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DreamSpeakpresented in Tibetan Buddhism emphasize the need to Subsequently, I have had many lucid dreams.use the sleep and dream states towards furtherHowever, considering the countless dreams in which Ispiritual development.have been fully identified with the dream I am morethan ever aware of my own limitations, as well as theI recall that when I was collecting material for the firstextraordinary capacities of someone like Chögyaldream yoga book one Tibetan lama who I greatlyNamkhai Norbu.respect pointed out that lucid dreaming or dream yogaDid anything surprise you about the experience ofshould not be for the purpose of fun and games. Toolucid dreaming? What did you make of that?often the emphasis on lucid dreaming has been forentertainment or to have a great adventure. There isnothing inherently wrong with having interestingAt night when we dream we are fully identified with theexperiences, but there is also the danger of greatlydream and believe that our experience is real. Once weenhancing our attachment. The Buddha in hisawaken we discover that it was actually not real at all.teachings identifies grasping or attachment as beingThe experience of moving from being fully identified tothe cause of our suffering. We would not want to create suddenly realizing that was actually just a dream ismore grasping by virtue of our attachment to lucidvery important. It can be quite a shock to move fromdream experience. The capacity to dream lucidly canthis fully identified state to lucidity.be either a tool for practice on the development of trueawareness or a great distraction.Even more shocking is the possibility that our daytimewaking life is also just like a dream, as the BuddhaIn the original Dream Yoga and the Practice of Natural says. Once we begin to have experiences of lucidity inLight book, Chögyal Namkhai Norbu emphasizes thethe dream state, realizing that what was considered topoint that development within the sleep and dreambe real is actually illusion, this sense of unreality maystates should be for the purpose of spiritualbegin to seep into our daytime. Diminishing our sensedevelopment and even enlightenment. This is the most of attachment and helping us to not take things soimportant message of the two dream yoga books.seriously has immense spiritual value.In one of your books, you mention an early luciddream, which I have placed below. What techniqueprompted you to become lucid?―On this particular night, I suddenly had the realizationthat I was both asleep and aware that I was dreaming.At the instant of the realization, the colors of thedreamscape became startlingly vivid and intense. Ifound myself standing on a cliff and looking out over avast and beautiful valley. I felt relaxed and thrilled, andI reminded myself it was only a dream. I looked outover the lovely vista for a short time and then resolvedto go a step further, literally and figuratively. If it wastruly a dream then there would be no reason why Icouldn’t fly.‖The dream you are quoting occurred when I was inmeditative retreat in upstate New York. After lookingout on the vista in my dream and knowing that I waslucid and within a dream, I took the leap. Whathappened next was a bit of a surprise in that, instead ofsoaring and flying around, I found myself in some sortof house and in a disembodied state. That is, withouthaving a mental representation of my body I was,nevertheless, moving up a staircase. Later, I relatedthe dream to the presiding lama, Shempen DawaRinpoche. I asked him what the dream meant and hereplied in a rather tongue-in-cheek way that I hadpassed my driver‘s test.4Later, you met Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche andlearned more about the Dzogchen practice ofdream yoga. What impressed you about Norbu andthe Dzogchen view?Before I had met CNN I had already been practicingTibetan-style Buddhism for some years. I hadcompleted an arduous series of practices calledNgöndro. Although I had, in the course of thesepractices, literally completed hundreds of thousands ofrecitations and physical exercises, I look back on theexperience as being of only a little benefit in regards tomy understanding and spiritual development. I couldsay in retrospect that my emphasis was morequantitative than qualitative. As a doctoral student Iwas very familiar with the route of credentialing. Weused to joke that PhD referred to ―piled higher anddeeper‖ or, as Dudjom Rinpoche colorful stated, ―Whatis the value of shit wrapped in a brocade?‖CNN relates a similar story which changed his life. Hehad been recognized as an important reincarnation of agreat lama at birth. He had subsequently been trainedfrom an early age by many of the great lamas of Tibet.He had studied and memorized and practiced manytechniques, but when he met his most importantteacher all of it went out the window so to speak.After having an important dream about this master,within which he had received a very special initiation,Lucid Dreaming Experience

DreamSpeakhe had made great efforts to meet him in person, andthen had requested a formal initiation from him. Theteacher initially refused, and when CNN related hisdream he responded by saying something like I alreadygave you that initiation why do I have to do it again.CNN did not accept this explanation because, after all,it had only been a dream, and so he insisted. FinallyChangchup Dorje, the teacher, agreed. Despite NorbuRinpoche's great dream, this teacher was initially agreat disappointment. He seemed inept at conductingthe formal initiation. The experience just dragged onand on and ultimately seemed to be a complete wasteof time. He even paused numerous times to consult akind of cookbook, which explained what steps to takenext and which ritual objects to use in which way.The young lama was completely frustrated by the timethe so-called master had completed the initiation. Atthat moment, at the height of his disillusionment andfrustration, Changchup Dorje began to explain the truemeaning of transmission and initiation, which hadnothing to do with ritual and words. At this moment hegave CNN a direct introduction into knowledge beyondthe mind, and CNN realized that up until this point hehad not had a clue as to what real knowledge was.Great teachers such as CNN, Dudjom and others canthrough their skillful means point out true knowledgeand give a qualified student a direct introduction intoreal Awareness and the nature of the mind.In the book’s introduction, you recall a dream inwhich you interacted with Norbu about an olderstudent, who had become seriously ill in wakingreality. Tell us about the dream, and whathappened?knew all about the dream that I'd had before Imentioned anything.So, from the Dzogchen perspective, anaccomplished person could assist in the healing ofanother while in the dream state? Could a personalso get precognitive or clairvoyant information,while dreaming or lucid dreaming? Could initiationsoccur in the dream state?As part of the book Dream Yoga and the Practice ofNatural Light, I interviewed Norbu Rinpoche regardingpossibilities and capacities of accomplished luciddreamers. In this interview CNN affirmed that a highlydeveloped practitioner might enter the dreams of his orher student, so as to teach and instruct. As I hadpreviously related, his own teacher had entered into hisdream and gave the young lama a direct introduction ortransmission. CNN at that time was too skeptical tobelieve that it was actually a real transmission.In addition to many accounts of healing within dreamsin the literature of Tibetan Buddhism, these accountsmay be found in many other cultures. For example inmy introduction to the original dream yoga book Iinclude examples from Ancient Greece, NativeAmerican, and other Shamanic sources related tohealing experiences.Through the dream yoga practice, someaccomplished practitioners, like Norbu, receive“mind treasures” and also information on thelocation of relics. Tell us about that, and how itworks, or share an example.There are innumerable cross-cultural examples ofinventors, musicians, shamans, as well as lamasThe dream you are referring to was very important forsolving problems, receiving healing information, orinspiring the first dream yoga book, which is based onreceiving some sort of important meditation practice inthe dream yoga and Dzogchen teachings of Chögyaltheir dreams. As previously mentioned, the extensiveNamkhai Norbu. An elderly woman by the name of Lara introduction I wrote as part of the original dream yogahad accompanied Chögyal Namkhai Norbu to western book includes many cross-cultural examples of theseMassachusetts where he was conducting a program at special gifts and often channeled information.the retreat center of a Gurdjieff community. The teacherof this group, Mr. Anderson, had become interested inTo give a glimpse of how this might occur, a highlyDzogchen, and had invited Norbu Rinpoche. In mydeveloped practitioner might actually make contact withdream I was saying to Chögyal Namkhai Norbu thatother dimensions of beings. In Chögyal NamkhaiLara was very ill and that she would soon die. In theNorbu's case he has had an ongoing relationship with adream CNN had responded that he was taking care ofspecial other dimensional being called a Dakini. Thisher, and that she would be ok. The next morning when I Dakini, Goma Devi, has channeled importantsaw him, and before I had a chance to say anything, he information including meditation practices, meditationalsaid to me that Lara would be fine.dances and healing texts to him for many years. TheTibetans call these Milam Terma or treasures of theAt the least this dream presaged a future event. Evendream. In many cases these special teachings aremore interesting was my feeling I had that CNN actually considered to be highly effective for our present timeand circumstances, and enlightened beings hadLucid Dreaming Experience5

DreamSpeakpreordained that they should be channeled to our humandimension at a specific time and place.When reading about Dzogchen views of dream yoga,the topic of death and dying seem central to thepractice. Briefly, how does death and dying connectwith dream yoga?It is important to note that the Awareness I am referring tois not synonymous with lucidity. Lucidity is considered tobe a type of mindfulness whereas true Awareness isbeyond relative mind.In the book, Norbu comments, “Many of the methodsof practicing Dharma that are learned during wakingcan, upon development of dream awareness, beapplied in the dream condition. In fact, one maySleeping, dreaming and awakening mirror thedevelop these practices more easily and speedilyexperiences of birth and death and the transition towithin the dream if one has the capacity to be lucid.another life. There is a French expression, "la petiteThere are even some books that say that if a personmort," which compares sleep to a little death. Thepossibility of reincarnation has increasingly become more applies a practice within a dream, the practice is nineaccepted even in the West. Simply put, the possibility of times more effective than when it is applied duringthe waking hours.”developing lucidity and even special awareness withinsleep and dreams is practice for maintaining awarenessWhy do you feel a practice done in a lucid dream maythrough the transition from this life into our nextreincarnation. More elaborate explanations may be found have greater effectiveness than one done in wakinghours?in both the original dream yoga book and my new book,The Royal Road to Enlightenment. I would alsorecommend Mind Beyond Death by Dzogchen Ponlop as The dream body and, indeed, the body which arises inwell as The Book of Living and Dying by Tsogyalthe transition from our life into another life is called theRinpoche.―mental body.‖ It is obvious that when we dream, it is notour actual physical body which is having the experiencesWhen you hear stories of people who have Nearand adventures associated with dream life. The sensesDeath Experiences, you sometimes see commentsare dormant and, consequently, all experiences areabout “the light.” So in that moment, how shouldarising from the mind. When experiences are filteredthey respond to the light?through the senses and the judgmental mind, the powerand efficacy of the experience, and our capacity to effectAs we transition from this life into another life we havechange within that experience is vastly diminished.many experiences. According to the Tibetan BuddhistConversely, when we are able to apply meditationalexplanations, shortly after death we will enter into a deep practices or attempt to solve problems in the lucid dream,unconsciousness and then after some period of time,the full power of the mind may be brought to bear withoutusually three or four days, we will emerge from that deep filters.unconsciousness. At that moment, the mind isreawakening even though the body is a corpse. I repeat; At these times the mind is considered to be seven to ninethe mind reawakens at this point! Of course this viewpoint times more powerful than during waking consciousness.is not universally accepted here in the West, particularly This can help explain the extraordinary stories of healingin the medical community.and problem solving that are common in our literature. Itis also why Norbu Rinpoche states that meditationAlthough the mind is reawakening, there is a short period practice in the dream state is far more effective thanbefore the mind which intellectualizes and judgesduring the day. This is not to say that it is easy. One ofexperience kicks in. At this point in the transition through my teachers once remarked that ―awareness is easy tothe bardo of dharmata one will experience a ―clear light‖ pick up but difficult to carry.‖experience which, in actuality, is the unfettered andIn the book, Norbu discusses a dream yogaunfiltered arising of our actual true nature. Thesetechnique to achieve lucidity, saying as you fallmoments are considered to afford a special opportunityasleep. “Then concentrate on a white Tibetan syllablefor the practitioner who has developed true Awareness,A at the center of your body. If you prefer an Englishand the practitioner is taught to integrate with theexperience rather than react in some other way, such as A it is acceptable. The important thing is that itignoring or fleeing. Although everyone will experience this corresponds in your mind to the sound Ahhh. It isarising of our own true nature at this juncture, most of us important that when you see that letter youautomatically know what its sound is.”will not be Aware, and it will pass in a fleeting moment.The Dzogchen practice of natural light is practice forSo why is the Tibetan syllable A important? And whatbeing able to integrate with this experienceis the significance of seeing it as white? Finally, whathas been students' experience with this technique?6Lucid Dreaming Experience

DreamSpeakThe technique which you are referring to, visualizing aluminous white A in the heart as you go to sleep, isactually more associated with the practice of naturallight related to Dzogchen. The A is used with itscorresponding sound, because this corresponds to theoriginal sound from which all form ultimately arises.In CNN's explanation of this technique he explains thevisualization and then encourages his students to relaxcompletely into sleep. In this case, relaxing completelyinto sleep means finding one‘s natural state orAwareness with a capital A. In order to find one‘snatural state we must first have some directintroduction, also called pointing out instructions, froma qualified teacher.After hearing CNN speak or after reading the originalbook, some may have attempted to apply thistechnique in order to increase lucidity in dreams. Perse this visualization is not really a technique fordeveloping lucidity, but more for entering into thenatural state of Awareness. If one succeeds inmaintaining transcendent awareness within the statesof sleep and dream, then lucidity and othermeditational experiences may arise as a by-product ofthis awareness.is not released. After many years of doingpsychodrama of extraordinary lucid dreams andmeditational-type experiences, I have come to believethat these types of psychodramas were the basis forthe Greek mystery theater. It is likely that the priestshad a repertoire of initiatory type dreams, which werere-enacted again and again to deepen the participant‘swisdom.My workshops maintain the spirit of Tibetan Buddhismvery closely. Participants who have completed myworkshops generally have an enhanced appreciationthat life is very much like a dream and all materialthings are impermanent. Some, but not all, of thetechniques I utilize, like zhiné meditation, aretraditional, but other techniques are related to myexperience as a psychologist. Regardless of which hatI am wearing, that of a psychologist or that of ameditation teacher, I consider a reduction ofattachment to be a valuable goal of my workshop.I also wrote a novel called The White Dolphin. Theheroine of this book is an environmental activist who isproficient in lucid dreaming. In this book she makescontact with an extraordinary white dolphin throughlucid dreaming. The novel is fictional, however, anexperienced lucid dreamer may make contact withBesides editing Norbu’s book, you have alsoother dimensions of beings. Although fictional,written a book of your own. Tell us about that.coincidently as I have gone around teaching mycourses several people have come to me and said thatIn my more recent book, The Royal Road tothey also have dreams of a white dolphin. So youEnlightenment, I have drawn upon my experience both never know.as a psychologist and as a long time practitioner ofBuddhist meditation. For example, as part of myThe novel has been highly reviewed. It is fast-pacedexplorations in transpersonal psychology I havewith a romantic edge and serves to raisestudied hypnosis, as well as psychodrama, as well as consciousness on the destruction of our environment.more traditional methods of dream interpretation. As a Both of my two recent books are easily availablelong time practitioner of Buddhism and a certifiedthrough Kindle as well as on Amazon.meditation instructor within the Dzogchen CommunityIf people want to learn more about your workshopsfounded by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu, I am also welland classes, where should they look? Any finalversed in the benefits of developing a meditativeadvice for lucid dreamers, as they go more deeplypractice both for day as well as night.into lucid dreaming?I have found hypnotic induction to be a highly effectivemeans of inducing lucid dreams, and extraordinaryI have traveled to something like thirty countries overtranspersonal meditative experiences. When I firstmore than two decades teaching meditation andbegan to use induction as part of my workshops more dream yoga. Frequently, but not always, mythan twenty years ago I didn't know how I wouldworkshops are organized by members of theintegrate the entire group into one person‘sinternational Dzogchen community. To keep in touchexceptional dream experience. I discovered thatand to publicize my programs I maintain a page calledpsychodrama of lucid dreams is a truly extraordinaryTibetan Dream Yoga on Facebook which people canmeans to effect this integration. When thejoin, or we can possibly meet through a lucid dream.psychodrama goes well it can feel as if we are allexperiencing the dream for the first time.Thanks!A Native American medicine man once stated that untila dream is acted on the earth the power of the dreamLucid Dreaming Experience7

OnBecominga Mosquito,aTree,Aliensin Dreamsand LucidDreamsA LucidDreamHealingof MyDadby RobertWaggoner 2015By GinnyMiller2015a Bird,anda HumanBy Karim 2015One of the things I enjoy when lucid dreaming is the ability to explore any concept or any way of being. We getthe opportunity to experience our consciousness as an animal, insect, a plant or even a different human.Something that we cannot do in waking life seems

practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism, The Six Yogas of Naropa, includes some explanations of dream yoga as well as clear light meditation from one sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Collectively they helped acquaint me with the Tibetan Buddhist perspective and sparked my interest in dream yoga. By the late 1