The most exact definition of curiosity is “joy in the truth,” or “the joy of the truth.” It is the joy of the heart, the love of the heart. As you can see, it is very, very different from the attitudes of the first two groups in our story. Curiosity transcends but does not reject pain. That is why it says in the story, “they endured much.” There is pain, but “their faces shone with joy.” Pain doesn’t have to go. You can enjoy investigating it. You are as curious about pain as you are about pleasure. – Diamond Heart Book One: Elements of the Real in Man, ch. 16
Curiosity leads to the truth without being oriented by the personality. Curiosity is the motivation from Essence itself. Paradoxically, the first thing we need to do is not to seek curiosity. The point is to investigate curiosity, to become curious about curiosity. It is something that cannot be sought, just like happiness can’t be sought. You seek happiness, and you kill it. You seek curiosity, and you kill it. So just observe your moments of curiosity. Be curious about them; see how there is joy there. Joy is the flicker, the spark of curiosity. It is the spark of truth operating. Curiosity is not seeking; it is living. – Diamond Heart Book One: Elements of the Real in Man, ch.16
Curiosity involves love for truth, and joy in the truth. True curiosity is a rare quality. It is a quality of Being, and ego usually kills curiosity to avoid exposure of ego’s falsehood. We can often see true curiosity in the play of children. Often when a child finds a new object, he will be so curious and so involved in investigating it, that he becomes completely absorbed in the activity, pulling the object apart or putting it back together, or whatever. He is not seeking a result, or trying to gain something. In fact, after a while, when his curiosity is satisfied, he will probably throw the object away, as if it is of no more interest to him. But during the investigation, which has the character of play, he is totally absorbed, completely enraptured, fully enjoying and loving the investigation.
This is just the attitude necessary for inner transformation. Although we call it work, it is more like play. When there is love for truth and curiosity about it, then there is a serious kind of play, profound but light. Curiosity can be seen as the expression of the essential aspect of Joy. And Joy, like love, is a heart quality, which again is an expression of truth. – The Pearl Beyond Price: Integration of Personality into Being, An Object Relations Approach, Ch. 17