Ep. 201 (Part 2 of 2) | In the thirteenth dialogue of the A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series, Hameed Ali delves into the subject of knowing, or basic knowledge, at the deepest level of awareness. Different from ordinary knowledge, basic knowledge is inherent and immediate, an important feature of reality. You can know Being by being Being, he says; know consciousness by being consciousness, know peace by being peace. Being and knowing are the same thing, he explains, two sides of a coin. Some of what Hameed shares here is unique to his Diamond Approach teaching, and not found in other spiritual teachings, such as what he imparts about the origin of mind and the distinction he makes between pure being and pure awareness.

Hameed explains that we need our conceptual mind (to do our taxes, he laughs), but that reification—treating concepts as if they were real things—creates obstacles and alienates us from our true nature. The aim of all spiritual practice is to go beyond reification to immediate experience, he says. When Hameed describes the difference between pure presence and pure awareness, John wonders, how does Hameed remember the state of pure awareness when there’s no knowing in that state? And what does it feel like to experience no ground of being? Hameed answers in his usual enlightening, gently humorous way, leaving listeners in a state of open-minded wonder. Vastly illuminating, this conversation goes directly to the heart of being and the heart of knowing at the very foundation of true nature. Recorded July 17, 2025.

“Mind is not an obstacle. Not an enemy. The obstacle is the reified representation of mind. If we take the knowledge of that mind to be reality, that is the obstacle.”

• How does Hameed remember the state of pure awareness when there’s no knowing in that state? (00:32)
• Most spiritual teachings have pure awareness and pure presence as inseparable, but in this teaching they can be distinguished (03:26)
• The experience of pure awareness: transparency, translucence, freedom (04:02)
• The world is not an illusion; it is the face of God (06:13)
• The logos is what makes things manifest (09:48)
• Connecting the dimensions of pure being and pure awareness: mind is not an obstacle (11:46)
• Gurdjieff’s “stupid saints” (13:14)
• Mind is not the enemy; it’s the reification of knowing that is the obstacle (14:07)
• Pure awareness is more fundamental than pure being because there are no concepts; freedom is more palpable in pure awareness (17:14)
• Hameed’s multiple kinds of freedom; freedom independent from the ground of being (22:10)
• What does it feel like to realize there is no ground? (25:02)
• Transcending conceptual dichotomies: in spiritual liberation dichotomies can be stumbling blocks, like being vs nonbeing (25:20)
• Will science start to accept the ground of being? (29:38)
• Is math, the Euclidean theorem, a property of reality? (32:42)
• Consciousness and quantum theory (34:27)
• Knowing is fundamental to the universe; it’s inherent to our true nature (38:41)
• There’s no reason to have to choose between knowing and being, they’re two sides of the same thing (39:51)

• A. H. Almaas (Hameed Ali), founder of

In the thirteenth dialogue of the A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series, Hameed Ali delves into the subject of knowing, or basic knowledge, at the deepest level of awareness. Different from ordinary knowledge, basic knowledge is inherent and immediate, an important feature of reality. You can know Being by being Being, he says; know consciousness by being consciousness, know peace by being peace. Being and knowing are the same thing, he explains, two sides of a coin. Some of what Hameed shares here is unique to his Diamond Approach teaching, and not found in other spiritual teachings, such as what he imparts about the origin of mind and the distinction he makes between pure being and pure awareness.

Hameed explains that we need our conceptual mind (to do our taxes, he laughs), but that reification—treating concepts as if they were real things—creates obstacles and alienates us from our true nature. The aim of all spiritual practice is to go beyond reification to immediate experience, he says. When Hameed describes the difference between pure presence and pure awareness, John wonders, how does Hameed remember the state of pure awareness when there’s no knowing in that state? And what does it feel like to experience no ground of being? Hameed answers in his usual enlightening, gently humorous way, leaving listeners in a state of open-minded wonder. Vastly illuminating, this conversation goes directly to the heart of being and the heart of knowing at the very foundation of true nature. Recorded July 17, 2025.

“Being is the origin of mind.”

• Introducing the 13th dialogue in the A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series, focusing on the basic knowing at the foundation of our awareness & the reified way we see reality (00:46)
• The work is to recognize that reification is happening (02:55)
• We need to understand there are two kinds of knowing: ordinary knowing and basic knowing (04:12)
• There are degrees of how immediate our knowing is (07:55)
• Where does mind come from? (09:52)
• The recognition of Being and the knowing of Being are the same thing; this is a basic nondual understanding (11:45)
• The ground of mind is knowing: without knowing there is no mind (15:20)
• To know implies a concept: the concept of being (17:25)
• Reification is a developmental achievement (23:14)
• The story of Maharishi and the Senate committee (26:50)
• The aim of all spiritual practice is to go beyond reification to immediate experience (27:43)
• For the realized individual, basic knowing is primary (29:58)
• Knowing always means concept (31:56)
• We can get to an awareness that is free of knowing; what Hameed calls nonconceptual, pure awareness (35:41)

• A. H. Almaas (Hameed Ali), founder of The Ridhwan School, home of The Diamond Approach
• A. H....

Ep. 199 (Part 3 of 3) | Polarity management pioneer and author Barry Johnson and adult development expert Beena Sharma are masterful teachers on the subject of polarities and what polarity thinking can bring to the world, benefitting our well-being at every level. Together they explain what polarities are, why they matter, how to apply and leverage them, and the essence of polarity wisdom: pursuing the upsides of opposite poles. Barry is careful to explain that although either/or thinking is the root of our troubles, both/and thinking by itself isn’t the answer either. Integrating either/or with both/and thinking and recognizing the interdependence of all things is the road to transformation and, Beena adds, the engine of human development, of human maturity.

Barry explains the profound spiritual understanding foundational to polarity wisdom and Beena details how polarities shift according to our developmental stage. Each of the polarities discussed—justice/mercy, claiming power/sharing power, being/doing, to name a few—illuminates its sphere, whether it relates to democracy, social justice, or spiritual practice. Barry and Beena are passionate about the promise of polarity thinking and their excitement is contagious in this fast-paced, delightfully lucid dialogue, jam-packed with information that is practical, inspiring, and potentially life changing. Recorded May 22, 2025.

“Universal interdependence is the most clear example of divine, unconditional love, and the polarity is the smallest element within universal interdependence—the interdependence of two.”

• Back to stages: from self-interest to harmonizing, to independence, multiperspectivality, and oneness (00:35)
• We are born unique and we become more unique; we are born connected and appreciate being connected more and more (08:23)
• Applying polarity thinking to contemporary politics: immigration (09:29)
• The language of compassionate action (12:08)
• How polarity thinking can help us with the metacrisis (16:02)
• Leveraging polarities in everyday life, socially & culturally (20:11)
• How do we select what to do when faced by an overwhelming amount of choices? (25:42)
• We have to consciously become more competent, more masterful (27:28)
• Polarity tension is always there, and we need to forgive ourselves and others for not always doing a good job with leveraging key polarities, i.e. work & home, self-care & achievement (28:51)

• Barry Johnson, And: Making a Difference by Leveraging Polarity, Paradox, or Dilemma
• Barry Johnson, Polarity Management: Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems
• Beena Sharma, founder Vertical Development Academy (VeDA)
• The 8 Stages of Vertical Development with Beena Sharma (Deep Transformation...

Ep. 198 (Part 2 of 3) | Polarity management pioneer and author Barry Johnson and adult development expert Beena Sharma are masterful teachers on the subject of polarities and what polarity thinking can bring to the world, benefitting our well-being at every level. Together they explain what polarities are, why they matter, how to apply and leverage them, and the essence of polarity wisdom: pursuing the upsides of opposite poles. Barry is careful to explain that although either/or thinking is the root of our troubles, both/and thinking by itself isn’t the answer either. Integrating either/or with both/and thinking and recognizing the interdependence of all things is the road to transformation and, Beena adds, the engine of human development, of human maturity.

Barry explains the profound spiritual understanding foundational to polarity wisdom and Beena details how polarities shift according to our developmental stage. Each of the polarities discussed—justice/mercy, claiming power/sharing power, being/doing, to name a few—illuminates its sphere, whether it relates to democracy, social justice, or spiritual practice. Barry and Beena are passionate about the promise of polarity thinking and their excitement is contagious in this fast-paced, delightfully lucid dialogue, jam-packed with information that is practical, inspiring, and potentially life changing. Recorded May 22, 2025.

“Love is a natural byproduct of seeing completely.”

• Looking at the pole preferences that show up at each stage of development (00:37)
• The integrative stage of development doesn’t reject either/or thinking or both/and thinking (04:42)
• Embracing polarities’ upsides elevates you; you come to a higher place (08:05)
• Tyranny and democracy: how do you both provide direction and encourage participation? (08:54)
• The spiritual polarity of doing and being and Martin Buber’s I and thou (14:08)
• How polarities nest and stack: Beena leads a nesting and upleveling exercise (18:10)
• Relating polarity thinking to quantum physics & the richness of the subject of universal interdependence (22:32)
• How do we respond to opposition at different developmental stages? (24:33)
• Jack Gibb’s trust theory: love is a natural byproduct of seeing completely (28:24)
• Seeing life and death as two poles and the violence in nature (29:28)
• Enhancing our capacity to love: individuals, enemies, countries; universal interdependence is a manifestation of divine love (32:44)
• Taking radical responsibility for our own incapacity to see (36:42)
• Love as a natural response to seeing fully and defenselessly (38:23)
• Barry’s profound realization about heaven, hell, and universal love (40:14)

• Barry Johnson, And: Making a Difference by Leveraging Polarity, Paradox, or Dilemma
• Barry Johnson, Polarity Management: Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems
• Beena Sharma, founder

Ep. 197 (Part 1 of 3) | Polarity management pioneer and author Barry Johnson and adult development expert Beena Sharma are masterful teachers on the subject of polarities and what polarity thinking can bring to the world, benefitting our well-being at every level. Together they explain what polarities are, why they matter, how to apply and leverage them, and the essence of polarity wisdom: pursuing the upsides of opposite poles. Barry is careful to explain that although either/or thinking is the root of our troubles, both/and thinking by itself isn’t the answer either. Integrating either/or with both/and thinking and recognizing the interdependence of all things is the road to transformation and, Beena adds, the engine of human development, of human maturity.

Barry explains the profound spiritual understanding foundational to polarity wisdom and Beena details how polarities shift according to our developmental stage. Each of the polarities discussed—justice/mercy, claiming power/sharing power, being/doing, to name a few—illuminates its sphere, whether it relates to democracy, social justice, or spiritual practice. Barry and Beena are passionate about the promise of polarity thinking and their excitement is contagious in this fast-paced, delightfully lucid dialogue, jam-packed with information that is practical, inspiring, and potentially life changing. Recorded May 22, 2025.

“Either/or thinking without both/and thinking is the root cause of poverty, racism, sexism, and war.”

• Introducing polarity management pioneer & author Barry Johnson and adult development expert Beena Sharma (00:48)
• How did Barry discover polarities? (02:15)
• The essential dimension of polarities—interdependent pairs—and the universal interdependence of all of life (03:08)
• The capacity to integrate and recognize interdependence is the driving force of adult human development (03:47)
• The difference between polarity management and polarity wisdom (05:37)
• A key polarity in leadership and democracy: claiming power & sharing power (07:20)
• Experiential exercise: the infinity loop (08:11)
• What is true for all polarities: each pole brings something special that is essential to the relationship (11:15)
• The integrating wisdom that includes and transcends both polarities encompasses all dualities, reflecting traditional East Indian wisdom (12:12)
• As a leader, how can we be both clear & flexible, self-assured & humble, and as an organization, centralized & decentralized? (13:51)
• The oscillation between activity and rest (14:55)
• Leveraging polarities: maximizing upsides and minimizing downsides (16:22)
• Either/or thinking is essential, but it needs to be supplemented with both/and thinking (16:34)
• Privileging one pole as better, you enter into dysfunction (19:33)
• Interpersonal relationships: we see the positive value of our preferred pole but the downside of the other’s opposite preferred pole (20:56)
• The essence of polarity wisdom: embracing the wisdom of the opposite pole (21:41)
• Polarity thinking is an antidote to rigidity; it heals polarization (22:25)
• Either/or thinking without both/and thinking is the root cause of evil (23:09)
• Pursuing justice to the neglect of mercy (its interdependent pole) (26:47)
• Does both/and thinking require a certain level of...

Ep. 196 (Part 2 of 2) | n the twelfth dialogue of the A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series, Hameed Ali guides us into the profound experience of pure being, which lies at the core of all mystical teachings. There are two nondual ways of experiencing the fullness of being, he explains. We can recognize we are infinite and boundless—as if we were the sky, but still experiencing this through our being—or, we can experience the oneness of being from the perspective of all manifestation: the mountain, the rocks, the molecules and atoms... “Wherever you go, physically or mentally, is pure being.” Hameed calls the first recognition “unity,” and the latter “oneness.”

Hameed clarifies the paradox of nothingness: “being and nothing are two ways of knowing the same thing; you can feel it as a fullness or you can feel it as an emptiness.” And he explains that being being and knowing being are the same thing, when knowing is understood in its deeper sense as gnosis. “Awakening is knowing our being or our awareness for what it is,” he says. Why is Hameed so uniquely articulate in talking about the experience of pure being? John asks him. This talk is an amazing teaching—visual and sensory, scientific and mathematical, deeply mystical and spiritual—Hameed comes at the subject of pure being from all angles. Recorded June 26, 2025.

“Practice is clearing the way, but whether awakening emerges or not is not up to you.”

• Why Hameed is so uniquely articulate talking about these experiences, and why some teachers don’t talk about these things (00:27)
• The nothingness side of pure presence (04:28)
• The spaciousness here appears different; it is non-Euclidean (07:44)
• Being and nothing are two ways of knowing the same thing; you can feel it as a fullness or you can feel it as an emptiness (09:22)
• What other traditions teach about emptiness (11:34)
• Awareness is pure beingness too (13:53)
• Awareness is an ontological reality; it is an “is-ness” we can recognize and it includes knowing (18:14)
• Being being is the same thing as knowing being; this is gnosis: knowing by being (20:23)
• Awakening is knowing our being or our awareness for what it is (23:44)
• Knowing and mind are fundamental, not just intellectual (25:52)
• Awakened awareness: realizing that awareness is the nature of everything (27:10)
• Awakening cannot be earned; it is a recognition, but there are obstacles in the way (29:37)
• We’ll get into knowing and reification next time (32:45)
• This teaching affirms you are a real being, and you are an expression of the being of God (33:55)

• A. H. Almaas (Hameed Ali), founder of The Ridhwan School, home of The Diamond Approach
• A. H. Almaas,

Ep. 195 (Part 1 of 2) | In the twelfth dialogue of the A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series, Hameed Ali guides us into the profound experience of pure being, which lies at the core of all mystical teachings. There are two nondual ways of experiencing the fullness of being, he explains. We can recognize we are infinite and boundless—as if we were the sky, but still experiencing this through our being—or, we can experience the oneness of being from the perspective of all manifestation: the mountain, the rocks, the molecules and atoms… “Wherever you go, physically or mentally, is pure being.” Hameed calls the first recognition “unity,” and the latter “oneness.”

Hameed clarifies the paradox of nothingness: “being and nothing are two ways of knowing the same thing; you can feel it as a fullness or you can feel it as an emptiness.” And he explains that being being and knowing being are the same thing, when knowing is understood in its deeper sense as gnosis. “Awakening is knowing our being or our awareness for what it is,” he says. Why is Hameed so uniquely articulate in talking about the experience of pure being? John asks him. This talk is an amazing teaching—visual and sensory, scientific and mathematical, deeply mystical and spiritual—Hameed comes at the subject of pure being from all angles. Recorded June 26, 2025.

“One way of experiencing pure being is from within itself; then there is experiencing it from the perspective of all manifestation. This is when we understand form is formlessness and formlessness is form.”

• Introducing the 12th dialogue of the
• A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series focused on Hameed’s nondual teachings, and experiencing the fullness of being (00:33)
• The difference between the localized experience of presence and the infinite, boundless experience of presence (01:50)
• Divine love, pure presence is the precursor of all other qualities (03:15)
• More fundamental than divine love is the simplicity of pure presence, pure being (06:09)
• Our alienation from completeness causes a sense of lack in us all (11:19)
• There are 2 major ways of experiencing the fullness of being, both nondual (15:27)
• The second way is experiencing it from the perspective of all manifestation; this is when we understand form is formlessness and formlessness is form (22:14)
• Nonduality is implicit in both experiences—subject and object are the same thing (26:09)
• If you look a little deeper, you find that formlessness is behind everything (28:17)
• All manifestations of true nature are an antidote to suffering (28:43)
• Ordinary mind perceives everything as separate, singular (31:04)
• Science deals with behavior only; quantum physics comes closest to acknowledging there is something besides the physical (32:59)
• Can mathematics take us to a realization of pure being? (36:58)
• It would be possible for scientists to study this if they practiced inquiry into the observer, into the experience (39:50)

• A. H. Almaas (Hameed Ali), founder of The Ridhwan School

Ep. 194 (Part 2 of 2) | Frank Ostaseski, Zen hospice pioneer, founder of the Metta Institute, and author of The Five Invitations, speaks with us about the profound wisdom and potential for transformation that is unleashed in the process of dying. “Suppose we imagine death as an unprecedented opportunity for transformation, he says, adding, “so why wait until we are dying?” In attending over a thousand people in hospice, Frank has often seen them experience a real sense of discovery in the dying process; there is a time of acceptance, a time of letting go, and then a deeper state of surrendering to something larger. The walls that prop up the self start tumbling down, Frank explains, and a larger connection emerges that is always there.

Frank would like to see the process of dying brought out of the closet—shared about, learned from, and not reduced to a medical event. It’s important to meet death with don’t-know mind and trust the dying process to teach each of us what we need to know, he explains. And some of what we can do right now to open ourselves to the wisdom of death is pay attention to how we end things, and to how we love. This far reaching discussion delves gently into the divine mystery of death and dying, touching on radical acceptance, transcending self, don’t-know mind, everyday compassion and boundless compassion, grief as an expression of love, and creating rituals to mark this passage and all passages. We are left feeling unexpectedly comforted and liberated at the same time. Recorded December 5, 2024.

“Grief is a way we continue to love someone… a natural response to the experience of love.”

• What qualities do people need to be with the dying? (00:27)
• Boundless compassion needs everyday compassion (02:09)
• Don’t wait to tell people that you love them (03:55)
• Grief is a way we continue to love someone, a natural response to the experience of love (06:06)
• There are subtler experiences after surrender: tracking consciousness as the brain stops (06:38)
• Gratefulness and a deep sense of belonging to something larger (09:52)
• Cultivating don’t know mind; meeting dying with don’t know mind (12:47)
• Terminal lucidity (17:49)
• Practices we can do now: how do we meet endings? (19:54)
• Impermanence is not later; it’s in this very moment (22:35)
• Cultural changes Frank would like to see (26:15)
• Proximate karma (30:00)
• Better drugs than sedation: psychedelics could help us meet the profundity of the experience (30:37)
• Bathing the body after death: a wonderful tradition that can fundamentally shift our relation with death (33:45)

• Frank Ostaseski’s website: https://frankostaseski.com/
• Frank Ostaseski, The Five Invitations: Discovering What Death Can Teach Us About Living Fully
• Metta Institute, founded by Frank Ostaseski, to provide innovative programs and trainings that foster mindful & compassionate end-of-life care
• Frank Ostaseski, founding director of the San Francisco Zen Hospice...