About
TOTOH
Our purpose is to catalyze positive evolution.
Positive evolution is a metaphysical process that occurs within individuals and the collective. The core of this process is awakening and opening the heart, and connecting with the Earth. As more and more beings access the radiant frequencies of an open heart, the more possibility there is of awakening the collective field, and therefore all hearts, in concert with the planet. Spoiler alert: The next stage available here is globally connected consciousness!!
Mission
Our mission is sacred gathering.
Building and stewarding the sacred gathering place of the Temple of the Open Heart is our mission. Meanwhile, we gather regularly to explore direct realization of the Oneness of all things. We practice with study, meditation, contemplation, and interacting with one another. Through gathering and practice, we aim for self-awareness, healing, wholeness, love, harmony, and service. We offer many opportunities for spiritual study and embodied practice.
Cosmology
All is one.
We align with mystics and teachers through the ages who tell us that there is one unified creation; a single, conscious, infinite, and indivisible whole. As the Sufis say, "Wherever you look, there is the face of God."
In order for infinite consciousness (the one infinite Creator) to know itself more fully, it created the option to experience with limited, and seemingly finite perspectives. In other words, infinity wanted to also be able to experience apparent finity.
As a function of this opportunity for finite experience, each of us seemingly separate and limited beings get to choose whether we base our lives in one of two fundamental paradoxical truths. The ultimate and lasting truth of oneness, or the more illusory experience of separateness. We have the opportunity to choose separateness through unconscious inertia and apathy or through a more willful decision. (We call these respectively: indifference and the negative path.) And we also have the opportunity to consciously choose to believe the mystics, to lean into faith, and open our hearts. (We call this the positive path.)
For those of us making that latter choice – to understand and live as though the apparent manyness of what we experience is all an expression of a single reality – we've created TOTOH. Together, we study and practice the ways of the open heart.
Organization
Our story.
Temple of the Open Heart is a grassroots creation. We began our collective journey in 2016 as the Asheville Law of One study group – a free, weekly community gathering of independent spiritual seekers – reading, exploring, and discussing the Law of One. As a direct emergence from that group, TOTOH was founded in 2019 by several of its members.
We experience that when we gather as peers, each of us seeking along the positive path, we build collective power to effect positive change in the world. So we founded this nonprofit spiritual organization to create a shared vehicle to maximize our capacity to serve.
Holacratic
We practice Holacracy as our collective framework for governance and decision making. We value this organic approach that places purpose and service at the center of our work. This strategy distributes power, encourages individual initiative, and makes roles and responsibilities transparent.
Circular
Each area of specialized work is organized into different circles. The Anchor Circle is the core driving force of the work, serving to organize and execute the day-to-day operations of TOTOH, and coordinate the activity of all the sub-circles. The Wisdom Council guides, advises, and supports the Anchor Circle.
Volunteer
We are an entirely volunteer-run organization. We are passionate about serving positive evolution. And we find it our honor and our duty to be the change we wish to see in the world. By creating opportunities to gather in sacred community and bring about the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible.
Team
Location
Our home.
We’re located in a riparian, partially-forested wetland zone in Swannanoa, North Carolina. Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Southern Appalachia. Here in the Katúah bioregion we will build the Temple of the Open Heart, a beautiful, majestic, inspiring spiritual gathering place. Creating this sacred space is one of the primary aims of the TOTOH project.
Contact Us
Feel free to drop us a line at [email protected].
