Author Archives: Dennis Lewis
Questioning Your Starting Point
Depending on your original premise(s), your original assumption(s), you can make a convincing argument for almost anything. People promoting their own particular brand of psychology, politics, religion, spirituality, and so on do so all the time. What few people do … Continue reading
Walking
I’ve done a lot of walking in my life, some conscious, some not, some with friends and loved ones, some by myself. I’ve walked in cities around the world, in forests, in mountains, in deserts, around lakes, on ocean shores, … Continue reading
Open Mind, Open Heart
Some people today put great emphasis on heart-based perception. To be sure, the heart is a powerful brain–one of three main brains, or instruments of perception (head, heart, and gut) according to G. I. Gurdjieff, as well as to modern … Continue reading
A Beautiful and Creative Act
Think of all the famous and awe-inspiring quotes passed back and forth through the worldwide web that connects so many of us. As some of them pass through your awareness notice how and where they touch you or when they … Continue reading
What Do You Really Want?
People frequently speak of passion, sometimes in a very dispassionate way. But I tell you now that, whatever your age, it is time to go after what you really want. Your time is not limitless, and our planet and its … Continue reading
A Smiling Practice
Join me now, if you wish. Smile generously and breathe through your smile into and out of your heart. As you inhale, sense loving patience expanding in your heart. As you exhale, offer this loving patience for the benefit of … Continue reading
The Benefits of Conscious Breathing
“Conscious breathing not only provides a solid foundation for all the other kinds of breathing work, but it is also, in itself, transformational. Conscious breathing helps us cultivate inner stillness and presence. It also helps us be present to ourselves … Continue reading
A Visit to Russia
Some 20 years ago, during a visit to Russia, I was invited by the head of a team of consciousness researchers, scientists, medical doctors, and alternative healers at the Russian Medico-Military Academy in Saint Petersburg to speak on my understanding … Continue reading
High Civility and Deep Morality
Several years ago I received a FaceBook message from an old San Francisco friend making accusations about someone very close to me. The complete note read (I’ve left out the name and the supposed action): “I suppose you are proud … Continue reading
Meditation In Action
An Early Morning Walk Henry David Thoreau said that “An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day.” I continue to experience this truth in my own life. It connects me to the earth, gets my blood moving, … Continue reading
The Musical Harmonies of the Written Word
The musical harmonies of the written word are fast being replaced by the cacophonies of impatience, efficiency, and inattention. One can see this most clearly in the social media, which is rife not just with sloppy, inattentive communication but also … Continue reading
Internal Sensations of the Breath
“As we explore ourselves more intimately as breathing beings, we discover that the internal sensations we have of our breath and ourselves have many different densities and levels. We can discern, for example, solid, earthlike sensations; liquid, waterlike sensations; and … Continue reading
The Struggle To Awaken
Some people say that no struggle is necessary in order to awaken. One especially hears this from the new and fast-growing crop of non-dual Zen and Advaita teachers, some of whom even offer Satsangs on the Internet. After several years … Continue reading