Thread: Sufism? The Diamond Approach?

Originally posted by Lance
I've read and understood the works by Hameed Ali (pen name A.H. Almaas) or more specifically, the Diamond Heart series.

Before I post anything in this forum about what he discusses, is there anyone who has heard of him?

Oh, yes, I have heard of A. H. Almaas's approach, and like any Sufi Approach, I find it personally inspired with individual insight. I may be a Catholic, but I hold that Sufis, as adherents to Zoroastrianism, the Mother and Father of the Higher Religions, though for the sake of personal survival in the mileau of Islam, the most murderous of intolerant and exclusive Religions, the Sufis have announced publically to be Muslims, we all know that they bring the essence and flavor of Zoroastrianism to the Modern World. Indeed, the Sufis have suffered persecutions again and again from the Muslims whenever their Zoroastrianism has show too brightly, lighting the sombre shades that Islam has grown so accustomed too.

But, yes, the Diamond Heart approach emphasizes the Unique Individuality of each person's Spirituality. It is reminiscent of Swami Vivekananda’s viewpoint, that in a Perfect World there would be One Religion for Each Person. We, however, are indeed social creatures, and “birds of a feather flock together”.

So the inherent paradox of the Diamond Heart method would be that all those people who think they are entirely unique would join together in a common method. Yes, I appreciate that the Institution would be open to a wide span of outlook. I must admit here, for the sake of intellectual honesty, that as a Catholic I once went to an official Catholic Website, and was actually refused right to any comment at all. Whatever mid-level dimwit was appointed to oversee the site, the Archetypal MODERATOR, banned me the first moment he realized that I was not online exclusively for the purpose of kissing his Type-A Authoritarian Ass.

Yes, I join with my Brother in Spirit A. H. Almaas (any friend of Vivekananda is a friend of mine), and would really wish to have the content of any Posts that would better elucidate his Diamond Heart Method (as I was not really able to find out much about it On Line. It seemed they were saving that for paying customers.)

Wow, I'm glad someone knows a bit of information about that. When I get around to it, I'll post some stuff that I've read

i haven't heard of him particularly, but sufism appeals to me incredibly. the sufi poets rumi and hafiz are dear to me.

"I died from minerality and became vegetable;
And From vegetativeness I died and became animal.
I died from animality and became man.
Then why fear disappearance through death?
Next time I shall die
Bringing forth wings and feathers like angels;
After that, soaring higher than angels -
What you cannot imagine,
I shall be that."

Rumi

----------------

I have a thousand brilliant lies
For the question:

How are you?

I have a thousand brilliant lies
For the question:

What is God?

If you think that the Truth can be known
From words,

If you think that the Sun and the Ocean

Can pass through that tiny opening Called the mouth,

O someone should start laughing!
Someone should start wildly Laughing –Now!


Hafiz

---------------

Originally posted by Asher
i haven't heard of him particularly, but sufism appeals to me incredibly. the sufi poets rumi and hafiz are dear to me.

What about Kabir? As a Sufi in India he worked hard to fascilitate a reconciliation between Islam and Hinduism. When he died, there was about to be a riot between the Muslims and the Hindus regarding how Kabir would be burried. And so Kabir's body turned into a bunch of roses, so that half could receive on set of Rites, and the other half the other.

About Sufi Poetry. This is a result of Islamic Intolerance. The Sufis, to continue in the ways of Ancient Zoroastrianism, could do nothing with plain narrative, or today with Cartoons, without being murdered. And so all truths had to be couched in a Media where all significant Meaning could be hid under a Veil of Symbolism. The Literalist Schools of Islam could find nothing to prosecute. However, there have been periods when the Islamic Schools suspected what was going on and persecuted anyway -- it was thought that since the Poets were not talking plainly, they must have been hiding something... not an unfair assumption, since that was indeed what was going on.

Perhaps it has hurt the potential for Poetry in the Catholic, Hindu and Buddhist spheres that these Religions don't better encourage Symbolic Language by persecuting and killing those use plain and uninteresting narrative styles. It may be a strange way of encouraging the Arts, by murder and persecution of those who don't take the care to bury their Intentions in layers of Artistic Symbolism, but the Proof here is in the Results, and Islam can take great pride in its Poets. And the Poets themselves can take great pride that they managed to survive in such an intellectual climate.

"Islam, the most murderous of intolerant and exclusive Religions..."

Thanks moderators for warning about this topic. I love this kind of unsupported "argument."

Originally posted by Loopy
"Islam, the most murderous of intolerant and exclusive Religions..."

Thanks moderators for warning about this topic. I love this kind of unsupported "argument."

Please allow me to remind our kind readers that Islam was being contrasted against Sufism, which in fact sourced out of moral Zoroastrianism. If Mohamed had really been a prophet of any one particular Religion, then it was Zoroastrianism. Unfortunately, Islam so honored that one Prophet that it forgot the Religion, the great substance of it.

We hear of Judaic influences on Islam, and Mohamed tosses around many of the same Bible Stories that are contained in the Jewish Torah, what largely goes by the name of the Old Testament. But what we need to know here is the ancient character of Jewish Writers that still maintains today, that during the Babylonnian Captivity, these ever-the-same Jewish Writers saw great literature and wonderful stories, and stole them for themselves. There was no Jewish Bible until after Babylon. Moses and Egypt were simply Screen Writer adaptations. The Original Zoroastrian Literatures were not speaking of Egypt and Hebrews but of oppressed Northern Tribes that had been oppressed by Ancient and largely forgotten Sumerian or Persian Overlords. Certainly we know from the detailed histories we have of Egypt that there was no catastrophic slave revolt resulting in the collapse of the Egyptian Economy and Military. So we find that there is a preceding influence that affected both Judaim and Islam, and that common sourse is Zoroastrianism, or at least highly flavored by Zoroastrianism.

Yes, I know that many, even most Modern Sufis claim to be Muslim. But, honestly, while they live in those Jurisdictions, what else could they say, and still hope to not have their throats cut? Take any Sufi and give him the security of Europe or America and suddenly their intellectual Essays begin to cite their true Zoroastrian Sources of Origin.

For an introduction to the Sufic approach, I'd recommend "The Sufis" by Idries Shah. This is gives broad perspective on Sufi's and their activities and influences in the West.

"We view Sufism not as an ideology that molds people to the right way of belief or action, but as an art or science that can exert a beneficial influence on individuals and societies, in accordance with the needs of those individuals and societies ... Sufi study and development gives one capacities one did not have before." -- Idries Shah

Idries Shah was an amazing teacher and a remarkable man. Most of his books are available through Amazon and at most libraries. www.sufis.org

Originally posted by Asclepius
For an introduction to the Sufic approach, I'd recommend "The Sufis" by Idries Shah. This is gives broad perspective on Sufi's and their activities and influences in the West.

"We view Sufism not as an ideology that molds people to the right way of belief or action, but as an art or science that can exert a beneficial influence on individuals and societies, in accordance with the needs of those individuals and societies ... Sufi study and development gives one capacities one did not have before." -- Idries Shah

Idries Shah was an amazing teacher and a remarkable man. Most of his books are available through Amazon and at most libraries. www.sufis.org

Well, yes, Idries Shah, and there was another popular author, who made their fortunes by publishing scholarship and stories concerning Sufism and Sufis. And I can't overrate the entertainment value of some of the most popular Sufi Stories, afterall, before the Printing Press and any Modern Media, it was just such Stories that provided from generation to generation what we would consider 'entertainment'. Those stories that survived the longest with the highest acclaim and repute must have some element of true fascination. Indeed, I used to read such stories hour after hour, and at a time in my life when I had many other choices.

but, yet, such scholarship is inevitably once removed from a direct connection to actual Sufism. If one really wants to get a taste of working Sufism, well, there was a Modern Saint, Sai Baba of Shirdi, who claimed to be in the line of the great Sufi Saint Kabir. There is a strange On Line book, the "Sai Satcharitra" -- http://www.saibaba.org/saisatc.html -- in that book one can see the strange interplay between the Zoroastrian Influences on Sufism, Islam, Hinduism. There was also in interesting book that came out of India from a British Spiritual Journalist -- Arthur Osborne's "The Incredible Sai Baba" which has been in and out of print... oh, it just happens to be in print right now -- http://www.indiaclub.com/shop/SearchResult...?ProdStock=3440. It is just such 'Saints' that give one some true insight into what would constitute a True Religion.

Originally posted by Leo Volont+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Leo Volont)</div>

Those stories that survived the longest with the highest acclaim and repute must have some element of true fascination. Indeed, I used to read such stories hour after hour, and at a time in my life when I had many other choices. [/b]

Idries Shah collected and arranged many teaching stories see for example Tales of the Dervishes, Caravan of Dreams, Wisdom of the Idiots. He also wrote on the uses of teaching stories both to reach new types of thought and to reveal common thought patterns.

<!--QuoteBegin-Leo Volont

such scholarship is inevitably once removed from a direct connection to actual Sufism.

I think this would have delighted Idries Shah. When he published The Sufis he was attacked extensively by a number of professors and academics who felt he was trespassing on their domain and that his work was not sufficiently scholarly. Later of course, Shah and his supporters provided extensive source material to substantiate the materials presented.

Shah wrote extensively on the need to overcome automatic thinking and the "Commanding Self". A useful approach for both lucid dreaming, and healthier living.

Some years ago a friend of mine who was visiting London found two books by this sufi teacher in the empty room she moved into. I read them and have ever since had a great deal of respect for these teacher and sufism as far as i know it I like the fact they they teach the "unity of religious truths " and that sufism is "the wisdom of the heart" there was an interesting comentary on the ancient sufi sound "hu" which is part fo the sanskrit phrase which goes something like "el al lah lu hu " (from which alleluyah is derivative ) and which roughly translated means god is /praise god In this world where certain forces seem intent of encouraging jews muslims christian hindus and buddhists to fight it is worth remember ing the things we have in common which is worship of God/ respect for the unified creative from whence all things come.

incidentally for a lucid dream website "hu" as well as being an ancient and sacred sankrit sound is also the mantra used in eckankar and organistation with some interesting history and some interesting ideas

I find this religion qutie fascinating could you go into more detail on their soel beliefs as it is I have very rarely coem across this and so now want to know as much as possible for knowledge is power you could say

For those interest i would recomend the The Sufi teacher "Nazrat Inayat Khan" he described the sufi tradtion something like the "wisdom path"

i think while many sufi 's see themselves as from an islamic tradition many would suggest you can practise your own religion and still follow the sufi path certainly the school of the above teacher recognises that truth is to be found in all the worlds major religions