The Philosophical Side of the Diamond Technique

In the following, you will learn more about the philosophical side of the Diamond Technique. To this end, it will be compared to a Koan – you will see, there are certain parallels!

In Zen Buddhism there are so-called Koans. These are special tasks and riddle words that cannot be solved on a normal level of thinking because they are contradictory, paradoxical, or even nonsensical. For example, the question:

“If someone claps their hands – what is the sound of the left hand?”

Nevertheless, there are such things as right answers – answers by which masters can recognize that the student has made progress and reached a new level of their spiritual development.

Such Koans are meant to introduce a new and deeper way of thinking and experiencing; their goal is enlightenment. Here, parallels to Diamond Thinking become apparent. First, the logical basic structure of the Diamonds should be mentioned, which allows a direct mapping of paradoxical statements. Someone is both unhappy and happy – and at the same time neither happy nor unhappy. Such a formulation could directly stem from a Koan. Such sentences only become comprehensible when one steps out of the old framework of thinking.

There are Koans that can significantly expand the thinking and experience space of a client. Suppose “calm” and “tension” were two such terms. Then it can be a strong resource to connect these two words in the following way:

• How about having a calm tension?
• Or an exciting calm?
• What would happen if the tension were to rest for once?
• What if the calmness of the tension were also exciting?

These Koans inevitably arise during a Diamond work, without one having to consciously intend or develop them. If one is not sure whether two points have such a quality, one simply tries it out. When connecting two Koan points, a noticeable change in the clients' facial expressions, breathing, and posture usually becomes apparent. Perhaps they smile spontaneously – or become thoughtfully engaged in an animated way.

In Diamond, it is always about a more, about transcending existing boundaries, about a transcendence, as it is called in philosophy. Normal problem-solving attempts to move from a problem state to a goal state – usually in the sense of a replacement: The old is replaced by the supposedly better.

This Diamond Thinking takes a completely different path. In Diamond, nothing is replaced or deleted. If someone is dissatisfied with their cowardice, courage is not simply laid over it. Instead, cowardice remains as an independent, freely selectable point in the Diamond network. This creates a special form of integration – one in which everything is allowed to have its place.

Usually, contradictions are perceived as a burden. One wants to eliminate or reduce them. So if one statement says that I am brave, and another, that I am cowardly – which one applies? Classical thinking says: only one of them. Since the statements contradict each other, one must be false. At best, the truth lies in the middle.

People who have adopted this increasingly forgo such attempts to seek an “actual” truth behind contradictory statements. They accept – and even rejoice – that life (as well as love, economy, or environment) is colorful, diverse, and often paradoxical. Diamond Thinking Bad times for unity fanatics – glorious times for life artists!

It has been mentioned several times that the clear distinction between “good” and “bad” is significantly relativized by the Diamond. Of course, there are still preferences, options, and decisions – but no more absolute assignments. In conjunction with the Diamond map, nothing is just bad or just good anymore. Nothing is just a problem, nothing is just a solution.

How does the Diamond Technique connect NLP with Zen philosophy and Koans? Discover how contradictions can promote growth and awareness.