A. H. Almaas’ Runaway Realization Introduces “View of Totality”

In this illuminating interview from the October 2014 Science and Nonduality Conference, A. H. Almaas speaks about his groundbreaking book Runaway Realization. Introducing what he calls the “view of totality”, Almaas challenges the notion of reality as a singular, fixed truth. Instead, he invites us to see reality as dynamic, alive, and inherently mysterious—something that can never be fully captured by any one teaching or tradition. Recognizing this open-ended nature of reality, he suggests, is essential to embodying true freedom and living our realization in the world. Scroll down to view video.

Summary 

In Runaway Realization, A. H. Almaas invites us into a liberating view of awakening that defies categorization. Where many spiritual traditions offer structured maps or progressive stages, Almaas opens the possibility that reality itself is far too alive and mysterious to be contained by any single path. He calls this the “view of totality”—a perspective that honors all teachings, whether dual or nondual, structured or spontaneous, without needing to elevate one above another. 

At the heart of this book is a profound inquiry: How does realization truly happen? Is it the fruit of long years of spiritual practice, or does it arise through grace alone? Almaas suggests the answer is not either-or. Rather, realization is the mystery of Being awakening to itself—sometimes as the individual, sometimes as the formless ground of existence, and sometimes in ways that transcend both. 

The title Runaway Realization speaks to a radical kind of spiritual freedom—an unfolding that no longer follows a script. It’s like a train with no brakes, careening into the unknown, carrying us beyond our cherished concepts and fixed views into something far more dynamic, unpredictable, and alive. 

This is not a rejection of spiritual paths but an expansion of what it means to walk one. It is an invitation to seekers, teachers, and traditions alike—to meet reality with humility, curiosity, and wonder, recognizing that no single teaching can fully capture the vastness of what is. For those drawn to a living, ever-revealing truth, Runaway Realization offers a rare and luminous glimpse of what freedom truly means.