The Tibetan Yogas Of Dream And Sleep Pdf Download
Raphael Dyen
Know dreams as dreams, and constantly meditate on their profound significance. Visualize the seed syllables of the five natures with the drop, the nada and so forth. One perceives buddhas and buddhafields. The time of sleep is the time for the method that brings realization of great bliss. This is the instruction of Lawapa.[8]
Another meditation manual by Gampopa also explains how the yogi should attempt to see Buddhas and dakinis giving them teachings in their dreams, and how this gives rise to blessing. It also recommends to practice kumbhaka breathing before sleep.[11]
In Tsongkhapa's system, it is necessary to become acquainted with the tummo, radiance/clear light and illusory body practices before practicing dream yoga (which he sees as an extension of illusory body yoga).[12] According to Tsongkhapa, before practicing dream yoga, one must first master the yoga of retaining the radiance/clear light that arises at the moment of falling asleep (through experiencing the visions etc.) as explained above. If one practices this before sleep, when a dream occurs, one will realize that one is in a dream.[13]
Dream yoga practice begins by first acquiring the skill to recognize one is dreaming within the dream. If one is not successful in recognizing one's dream through the practice of retaining the radiance of sleep,"one should cultivate a strong resolution to retain conscious awareness in the dream state. In addition, one meditates on the chakras, especially that at the throat."[15] If one can make this resolution to recognize one's dream strong and continuous throughout the day, one will be able to recognize one's dream.[16] One can also practice the visualization meditations on the throat and forehead chakras during the day so as to enhance one's ability at night. One may also meditate upon oneself as the deity, and on guru yoga, offering prayers so that one may experience clear dreams.[17]
Tsongkhapa mentions various meditations to be done before falling asleep. In the first one, one generates a vision of oneself as the deity as well as a vision of one's guru, and prays to the guru to recognize the dream and so forth. Then one visualizes a small red four petaled lotus in the throat chakra, with an Ah or Om in the center. He mentions that in another tradition, it is taught that one meditates on five syllables (OM, AH, NU, TA, RA), with one at the center and the other four around it. One focuses on each of these in succession.[18] The second method is to pray as before, and meditate on a white radiant drop the size of a mustard seed between the eyebrows. Then one performs vase breath seven times and goes to sleep.[19]
One can also meditate on the heart chakra before sleep. According to Tsongkhapa, if one finds it too difficult to recognize one is dreaming, then this means one is a deep sleeper, and thus one should switch to the crown chakra. This will lighten one's sleep.[20] If this makes sleep difficult however, then one can focus on the chakra at the tip of the penis and unites the vital winds there 21 times through kumbhaka.[20]
The book is organized into six parts: 1.) The Nature of Dream, 2.) Kinds and Uses of Dreams, 3.) The Practice of Dream Yoga, 4.) Sleep, 5.) The Practice of Sleep Yoga, and 6.) Elaborations. The last part has information pertinent to both dream yoga and sleep yoga.
The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche is a book I stumbled upon after scouring the Internet for more information about tibetan dream yoga. I found a lot I can relate to as well as a number of interesting perspectives.
Unlike in the Western psychological approach to dreams, the ultimate goal of Tibetan dream yoga is the recognition of the nature of mind or enlightenment itself. "If we cannot carry our practice into sleep," Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche states, "if we lose ourselves every night, what chance do we have to be aware when death comes? Look to your experience in dreams to know how you will fare in death. Look to your experience of sleep to discover whether or not you are truly awake."
The science behind modern lucid dreaming has been a huge boon for dream yoga. With their sophisticated analysis of dream cycles, sleep pharmacology, and high-tech gadgetry, Western lucid dream researchers have vastly increased access to lucid dream states, and therefore the ability to practice dream yoga (no lucid dreams means no dream yoga). In my own experience, I had hit-and-miss results with traditional induction methods. But when I added the modern techniques, my lucid dreams increased dramatically. Ancient dream yoga and modern lucid dreaming make fantastic sleeping partners.
Sleep is a unifying factor of humanity. Everybody sleeps and dreams. This biological camaraderie is just the outer level of a deeper spiritual union and points to one of the greatest benefits of the nighttime yogas: their ability to yoke us to all sentient beings.
The Practice of Sleep Yoga takes us beyond dreaming and considers the Yogic practice of the sleep act itself. This author is a master teacher on these subjects, and he not only lays out the steps involved but also encourages growth in the practice while offering guidance on obstacles such as frequently waking up through the night.
This is the most comprehensive book yet on the nocturnal meditations. Joining science and spirituality, East and West, in a full-spectrum exploration of the night, it explains how lucid dreaming develops into dream yoga, which can evolve into sleep yoga, which further develops into bardo yoga. Diving deep into the Buddhist nighttime practices, this dream yoga book will show you how to have lucid dreams and what to do with them.
The practice of Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep is a powerful tool of awakening, used for hundreds of years by the great masters of the Tibetan traditions. Those who practice Tibetan dream sleep yoga claim that it deepened their awareness of all their experiences - the dreams of the night, the dream-like experience of the day, and even the bardo experiences after death.
The main aim of Tibetan yoga is the recognition of the nature of the mind or enlightenment itself. Tibetan yogis believe that looking at our experience in dreams will help us understand how we will fare in death. And, looking at our experiences of sleep will help us discover whether or not we are truly awake.
Tibetan dream yoga is possibly the first form of lucid dreaming ever practiced. The aim is to gain control over dreams and carry out certain tasks while sleeping. Learning how to master your dream state is thought to enhance your awareness and take you closer to enlightenment.
Now that you have begun considering the possibility that wakefulness might not be all that it seems, think about whether a dreaming state is really non-wakefulness at times. After all, people report that they are fully aware during lucid dreaming. In fact, some claim that they feel more awake during lucid dreaming than during the day when they are not sleeping.
As you prepare for bedtime and just before you close your eyes to sleep, tell yourself that you are going to have a dream in which you are fully conscious. You can also remind yourself of this intention during the day in order to prepare your mind for a dream yoga experience. If you do not experience lucid dreaming at first, do not despair. Increase your intention to master your dream state by visualizing yourself being in a lucid dream when you are in a relaxed, dreamy state.
Once you have harnessed your dream powers, develop the intention to meet enlightened beings while you sleep. Ask that they bestow you with important knowledge and help your growth toward higher consciousness. You can also intend to travel to different planets and planes of existence, and take on the body of a creature such as an eagle or bear, experiencing what it is like to be them. Ultimately, dream yoga can help you recognize your limitations and blockages to growth and provide opportunities to overcome them. You can gain confidence, and even heal from your past when you become proficient at this ancient art.
Look at other books on sleep and dreaming from more authentic resources, (e.g. the Tibetans Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, who has a simpler, more direct, and valuable audio recording, and the text, The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep; and Chogyal Namkhai Norbu, and western mind specialists such as TH Ogden and JA Hobson). Do you want to be scared into listening to something, or find more reasonable sources to explore a worthy topic? Add to Tenzin Rinpoche's recorded teachings, the text Dzogchen (Heart Essence of the Great Perfection) text by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and you will better learn and master.
In the Tibetan tradition the ability to dream lucidly is not and end in itself rather it provides as additonal context in which one can engage in advanced and effective practices to achieve liberation. Dream yoga is followed by sleep yoga also known as the yoga of clear light. It is a more advanced practice similar to the most secret Tibetan practices. The goal is to remain aware during deep sleep when the gross conceptual mind and the operation of the senses cease.The result of these practicas is greater happiness and freedom in both our waking and dreaming states.
Because my daytime experience was becoming more dreamlike and my nighttime dreams were becoming more real (clear and stable), I had a hard time determining if I was awake or asleep. There were times when my dreams felt super-real and waking experience became the dream. These previously separate worlds were mixing together.
Other traditions work with sleep and dreams for spiritual purposes, including Sufi and Taoist dream practice, aspects of Transcendental Meditation, and Yoga Nidra. I will focus principally on Tibetan Buddhist dream yoga because this is a specialty of this branch of Buddhism.
My study of dream and sleep yoga comes from all these lineages (and others as well), but my practice of dream and sleep yoga is mostly from the Six Yogas of Naropa. Four of the Six Yogas will be central to our journey in this book: illusory form yoga, dream yoga, sleep yoga, and bardo yoga. The other two yogas are chandali (inner heat) yoga and phowa (ejection of consciousness) yoga, which are beyond the scope of this book.
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