The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep

[HandsInTime]

Does anyone have any experience with this book? It was a kind of strange sequence of events that led me to purchase this book (losing my wallet, deciding to spend all of my gift card money on my kindle account, finding this book through various searches and recommendations). So far I have been fascinated with how direct, clear, and helpful the theory is. The author is open about how this practice is a journey, and it is not simply philosophy and exercises in this book, but a way of life. I never really had an understanding of karma before starting this book, but now I have been experiencing the last few days with this knowledge that every action i take will produce some kind of karmic seed, that is, if my actions involve any kind of grasping or aversion. Truly brilliant, I have had dreams the past three nights and journaled them as soon as I got up, (product placement) after I took a shot of E3LIVE, of course. Last night I healed a friend using a spring forest qigong technique I saw in a youtube video...i think I shall practice that today. Anyway, tell me about your experiences!!

[de_paradise]

I got the book after I saw that post on the general forum. I had had a rare lucid dream last week and I decided to ask my lineage ancestor for advice, and the reply was a radio-like voice to get a book on dreaming. So I thought that perhaps this was the book to get. Its pretty good, as you say, in a step by step expanation of dream yoga, preparation practises, and what to do inside of dreams. Alot of this I was practising already, but its good to have a coherent teaching on the subject, not like those wishy washy new agerly type.

 

Another thing is sleep yoga, which I didnt know existed, or read and forgot. This is maintaining the clear light of rigpa during the entire night of sleeping. Thats certainly a goal. Once you have that, after you die you can go from bardo into the clear light.

 

I havent really tried the method yet, using the tigle visualizations, the black hong, and the tibetan A.

[Harmonious Emptiness]

I've been approaching this book very slowly, but what I really liked that stood out in the purpose of the practice was realizing when we're basically dreaming when we're awake, falling for ego illusion etc., and how the strength of awareness in dreams leads to strength of awareness in waking life.

 

just my two cents

[konchog uma]

i just finished part 1 (the foundation and philosophy) and next time i open it will begin part 2 the practice

 

so no comments yet except that i think tenzin wangyal is completely awesome. Everything he writes glows with excellence

 

best wishes to you with your dreaming practice

[HandsInTime]

It is very cool to hear people using the same book in their practices. I continue to struggle to have a practice routine, but so far this book is even helping me with that. I feel compelled to write a paragraph or two about my dreams the night before, and have been doing this the past four of five days. I'm also taking the book pretty slowly, as it is quite straight forward yet dense. Many of the concepts and terms are new to me, but honestly as I find myself thinking about karma each day, I feel uplifted knowing that this book has already affected me on the day to day level.

Last night was strange in a few ways, I woke myself up sobbing for an instant and then once I heard myself I stopped. I have done that multiple times before, it is almost embarrassing when it happens. I think it was out of fear of losing a friend. A second part of my dream was rather symbolic, I was riding the train very far from my home, and got off it finally, and realized I had a long way to walk back. Yet it was IN my dream that I some how consciously understood this symbolism in my life. By the time I awoke in the morning, I already knew the message of the dream. I seem to have these moments of consciously realizing the dream state, or at least the underlying priniciples of the dream, yet I don't become "lucid". Another example is I was in my dream and began relaxing my vision to see clearer (something I do in my day to day life), yet I only remembered this the next day. However, in my dream I thought, oh, this is a dream, i should practice things I practice normally. Perhaps this is just my memory skewering things.

Anyway, I do like sharing my experiences on here. This book is truly an excellent guide. Does anyone have any particular techniques they find helpful in dreaming? If I sleep on my right (for males) I kind of get into a more serious mindset about the night, mostly due to the book saying that is a good way to have more positive dreams. It's kind of like me telling myself, hey you're making an effort towards this, hi five.