The Alchemy of Presence
The Diamond Approach® is a spiritual path that teaches us to be fully present in our experience while touching the divine—”in this world, but not of it.” It speaks of love and intimacy as gateways to passion, presence, and spiritual realization.
Sideline Critics
Dragons ride the night sky
leathered wings upon the wind
upward spiral to heaven’s gate
entwined, lovers plunge
Threat of death
the viewer’s concern
not theirs
life has them in its grip.
John Harper
Podcast Discussion
Human Passion and Spiritual Awakening
Reflecting on “Sideline Critics” after 50 years on the spiritual path, I’m struck by how a single image can encapsulate so much truth. The central metaphor—dragons as lovers—emerged from the understanding that true spirituality and intense human experience are not separate but deeply intertwined.
When I wrote, “Dragons ride the night sky / leathered wings upon the wind / upward spiral to heaven’s gate / entwined, lovers plunge,” I was tapping into the transformative power of love and passion. They are climbing to the apex of their physical domain to surrender to a force greater than them—love.
The Alchemical Nature of Love
These dragons as lovers represent the alchemical nature of love—how it can elevate, transform, and make us more than we were.
This image came from countless observations and personal experiences where love took people beyond their ordinary selves. In moments of profound presence, we become something otherworldly, powerful, and maybe even terrifying to those watching from the outside. We spiral upward, touching something divine and transcendent just before plunging into the depths of human experience.
“When dragons fly overhead, all troubles seem small.” – Anne McCaffrey, Dragonrider Series.
“Threat of death / the viewer’s concern / not theirs”—these lines speak to the transcendent nature of fully realized love. When we’re completely present in a moment of connection, the usual fears and concerns disappear. The dragon-lovers aren’t worried about self-preservation; the immediacy of their experience has absorbed them into pure embodiment.
The “sideline critics” represent the part of ourselves – and society – that fears this level of abandonment. They’re the voice of caution, decency, and the superego that wants to keep us “safe” and separate. But from the perspective of one who has walked this path for decades, I’ve come to see that safety lies in surrender, not control.
“Life has them in its grip”—this final line emerged from the understanding that at its peak, love is not something we do but happens to us. It’s a force that takes hold, transforming and lifting us out of our limited selves. This surrender to the moment, to the other, to life itself is at the heart of many spiritual traditions.
Embracing the Intensity of Human Experience
Over the years, I’ve seen that the intensity of human love can be a gateway to spiritual awakening. It demands presence, dissolves the illusion of separation, and confronts us with something greater than ourselves. The dragon-lovers are a metaphor for this transformation—the ordinary becoming extraordinary through the power of presence and connection.
“Dragons were created to learn. They are always watching, always learning, always growing.” – Christopher Paolini, Eragon
This poem is not about cool detachment or transcendent disembodiment. It’s about a fully embodied spirituality that embraces the intensity of human experience. It’s a reminder that the sacred isn’t only in silent meditation or lofty philosophy but in love’s passionate, sometimes messy reality.
After half a century of being on the spiritual path, I’ve found that our most profound spiritual experiences often come in human forms. The path to awakening sometimes looks different from serene Buddha statues. Sometimes, it seems like dragons riding the night sky, entwined in a dance of passion and transformation.
“Sideline Critics” is an invitation to step off the sidelines of life and into the full intensity of the experience. It reminds us that true spirituality isn’t about escaping our humanity but embracing it fully, allowing it to transform us, lift us, and help us touch the divine while remaining profoundly and passionately human.
In the World, But Not of It
As I reflect on “Sideline Critics” through the lens of my 35+ years studying the Diamond Approach, I’m struck by how vividly it illustrates the principle of being “in this world, but not of it.” This tenet, central to the Diamond Approach, isn’t about detachment or rejection of worldly experience. Instead, it’s about a profound engagement with life that simultaneously transcends our usual egoic boundaries.
The dragon-lovers in my poem embody this principle beautifully. They are deeply “in this world”—feeling the wind, experiencing the intensity of their connection, fully embodied in their passion. Yet they’re also “not of it.” They are other-worldly beings. They’re not trapped by the “threat of death” that preoccupies the sideline critics.
In the Diamond Approach, spiritual realization doesn’t mean escaping the human experience but being so wholly present that we touch the divine within the ordinary. In their complete surrender to the moment, the dragon-lovers exemplify this state. They’re experiencing a love so intense that it transforms them, yet this transformation doesn’t separate them from their experience—it deepens it.
“Riding the wind and breaking the waves, soaring into the sky, wandering in the infinite.”
This passage from Zhuangzi‘s writings captures the essence of a being (often metaphorically represented by a dragon) that transcends the mundane, moving freely through the infinite and the boundless, symbolizing spiritual freedom, transcendence, and the vast, metaphysical realms beyond ordinary perception.
This state of being represents what we in the Diamond Approach might call “essential identity” or the “point.” It’s a condition where we’re so wholly ourselves, so completely present, that we transcend our usual limitations without leaving our humanity behind. The dragon-lovers are not trying to be spiritual; they are, in the most profound sense of the word.
“When we recognize the inner nature of our being, we realize that the boundaries of our identity are not real. We are as infinite and mysterious as the night sky.” – A. H. Almaas
Their state contrasts sharply with the “sideline critics,” who also represent the observing superego, always commenting, always judging. In the Diamond Approach, we learn to recognize this voice and to move beyond it, not by silencing it but by becoming so present that its chatter fades into the background.
In my years of practice, I’ve understood that this state – being fully engaged yet not identified, passionate yet free, human yet touching the divine – is not just a poetic ideal. It’s a lived reality available to us when present with what is, moment by moment.
The dragon-lovers remind us that our most profound spiritual experiences often come clothed in human forms, inviting us to find the extraordinary within the ordinary and timelessness within the present moment.