HEART DWELLER

A.H. Almaas

First published in 1995 by Diamond Books
P.O. Box 10114 Berkeley, CA 94709

Introduction

Heart Dweller is a personal and revealing statement about the first stages of spiritual discovery as experienced and written by A.H. Almaas between 1971 and 1973. The manuscript describes experiences and insights, which arose as a result of the various practices, activities and situations he was involved in at that time. In this sense they are similar to and representative of the nature of spiritual realizations for many individuals who are exposed to different kinds of spiritual work in this modern age. These insights are revelatory and profound, but tend to lack a unifying logos and as a result they do not become easily integrated into the ongoing life of the individual. They express the openings necessary for the process of spiritual transformation, but not the transformation itself.

To those who know the Diamond Approach as Almaas has presented it in his earlier books, many of the realizations in Heart Dweller will sound familiar. However, Heart Dweller is of interest particularly because it arose out of Almaas’ experience prior to the process of inner unfolding which revealed the Diamond Approach. In other words, the realizations presented in this booklet were important in creating a field of inner openness and attunement in which the more focused and embodied process known now as the Diamond Approach could begin to unfold in Almaas’ consciousness.

If one were to compare the process described here with the one occurring some 10–15 years later as described in the book, Luminous Night’s Journey, one would see clearly the development in Almaas’ self-realization. More specifically what would be revealed is the realization of a distinct spiritual path known as the Diamond Approach. This path manifests in the precise and integrative unfolding of the soul through deep personal inquiry—a process that is not yet evident in Heart Dweller.

What Heart Dweller does is capture the unrestrained movement of the heart as it seeks its own deepest nature. Often referred to as the Flame, this fundamental motivation of the spiritual quest has inspired many to passionate and poetic expression, as it so beautifully does in this book. Almaas speaks of the range of the heart’s experience from betrayal to compassion, from curiosity to self-pity, from desolation to delight, from ecstasy to outrage, from desire to stillness. With each movement he allows the fullness of the heart to be expressed while continuing to hold that movement in the context of his soul’s love of truth. The Flame takes Almaas through both the heat of emotional surrender and the coolness of crystal clear awareness, arriving finally at the paradoxical mystery of Truth. As I traveled with him, I felt both challenged and inspired to open to the intensity of the Flame in me, my own heart’s deepest longing. I am very pleased to be able to make this inspirational statement of spiritual awakening available to all who have been touched by the work of A.H. Almaas.

Byron Brown, editor