In his works David Hawkins (1927-2012) approached the study and practice of spirituality by means of his personal expe-
rience and his clinical and academic background. The stated objectives of Hawkins' research and teaching were to facili-
tate metaphysical understanding and to confirm the reality of spiritual truth focusing on various aspects of consciousness and on the road to enlightenment.

Hawkins stated and confirmed via muscle testing that his teachings alone were sufficient to take one all the way to Self-realization.¹
He wrote about the idea of a new branch in human evolution called 'Homo spiritus':

Sunset over rock formation in Sedona, Arizona

• "The appearance in humanity of the realization of God as the Ultimate Reality, substrate, and source of Existence and Creation marked the beginning of the emergence of a new, evolutionary branch of mankind called Homo spiritus. The term Homo spiritus refers to the awakened man who has bridged the evolutionary leap from physical to spiritual, from form to nonform, and from linear to nonlinear.
  The awakened man realizes that it is consciousness itself, which constitutes the core of the evolutionary tree in all its seemingly stratified and evermore complex expressions as the evolution of life. Thus, life transforms from the relatively unconscious linear to the fully conscious nonlinear, and Creation reveals itself to be the ongoing unfolding of the Unmanifest becoming Manifest. The capacity to reach the condition or state classically called Enlightenment repre-
  sents the fulfillment of the potential of consciousness in its evolutionary progression."
  I. Reality and Subjectivity, S. 418-419, 2003

Hawkins asserted that God is both immanent and transcendent. Theologically, he was aligned with nondualism and Ad-
vaita philosophy. Nondualism, a highly expansive and inclusive concept of God including all which is of form and not, may
be viewed as the belief that dualism or dichotomy (e.g. self/other, mind/body, male/female, good/evil, active/passive)
are illusory phenomena; it may also be viewed as a practice, namely self-inquiry as set forth by Ramana Maharshi.

His spiritual teachings focused on Devotional Nonduality, a form of transcendental monism, which has its origins in his research for Power vs. Force. The Hidden Determinants of Human Behavior and was further developed afterwards. He said that the concept of "Devotional Nonduality" resonated with many religions (such as Hinduism) that hold the concept that "all
is One." Other concepts stated by Hawkins to be analogous to his description of nonduality are Logos (in the religious sen-
se) and Tao, which are also argued to be congruent with modern quantum physics and the concept of nonlocality as expres-
sed by Bell's Theorem. He saw nonduality as a potential bridge between natural science, philosophy and cognition, similar to the merging of physics and metaphysics envisioned by Fritjof Capra in The Tao of Physics, the concepts em-
braced by quantum physicist David Bohm, particularly the one of holomovement, as well as the new paradigm science
of nuclear physicist Amit Goswami, Ph.D.. Hawkins' description of nonduality is also related to that of a number of modern writers and philosophers, including ⚡ Ken Wilber and G. Spencer Brown as presented in his book Laws of Form.

Hawkins strongly encouraged kindness to all forms of life, humor, forgiveness, humility, compassion, prayer and contem-
plation. He deemed alignment and erudite familiarity with the existing religious scriptures measured by him to be especially true (that is, 'high calibrating'—e.g., the New Testament except the Book of Revelation, the original teachings of Jesus Christ, Buddha, Krishna, and others) as a means of raising one's spiritual consciousness in the process and incorporating some of the most evolved known levels of truth. Both seeking and encouraging personal alignment with the Highest good, Hawkins repeatedly pointed out that "all are One in God," thereby supporting the Christian concept of "the Kingdom of God
is within you."⁵

Discussing how to transcend attraction and aversion alike, and the ego position which he deems as being the main
obstacle to spiritual awakening in human beings, Hawkins often asserts that the human mind alone cannot discern truth
from falsity and invariably will turn to other sources (ideologies, authorities, habits, ego, etc.) to determine what to believe
as true; to solve this perceived problem, he offers muscle testing (known as applied kinesiology) as a science of Truth.
He, a leader of a cult himself, discouraged cult-like followings of any sort, cautioning his students to question all sources
of knowledge (primarily via his unreliable form of muscle testing), to "judge them by their fruits," and to ask for inner gui-
dance by the Holy Spirit.

Having closely worked with spirituality-based self-help methods and groups, as a practicing student and later also as a teacher, and being collegially acquainted with some of their initiators, Hawkins advocates the following due to their clai-
med healing results:

• ⚡ "beneficial cult" A Course in Miracles (ACIM),
• "beneficial cult" Alcoholics Anonymous (named the "language of the heart" by its co-founder ⚡ Bill Wilson)⁶
• and the related Twelve-Step programs,
• Attitudinal healing originated by Gerald G. Jampolsky (based on ACIM), and
• Release Technique/Sedona Method of Hawkins former teacher and associate ⚡ Lester Levenson, with whom
  he had a major fallout.

By means of writing forewords he supported various authors:

D. Hawkins favored Thought Field Therapy

Sharing many of the beliefs of the New Thought movement