Yoga and Active Dreaming

Part 1: Dream Practice

“In order to acquire continuity of consciousness, unaffected by lapses into unconscious states, you must hold yourself at the junction of all the states, which constitutes the links between sleeping, dreaming and waking:  this is turiya, the fourth state.”

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Adapted from the S​panda Karikas​ of Vasagupta a tenth ­century Tantric text.

Robert Moss uses this quote at the beginning of one of our Quantum Dreaming sessions as it describes the essence of the dream practice. Spanda is a Sanskrit word denoting ” active, throbbing, pulsating with life” and refers to the dynamic tension between Shiva and Shakti, or between Purusha and Prakriti, the Seer and the Seen, to use Patanjali’s terminology. Another word for the immediate and personal experience of spanda is kundalini. The Spanda Karikas, along with the Shiva Sutras, are key texts in the Kashmir Shaivism tradition, and it was delightful to see this being integrated in to the Quantum Dream teaching. It’s all yoga!

This fourth state, pure awareness without attributes, is the core or foundation of the other three states.  The Yoga Sutras, in I-3, describe this as ‘drashtuh svarupe’ the the true nature of the Seer, and we experience this as the infinite ever-present dynamic stillness awakened in practice. In savasana, we begin the journey, in stillness, from waking to dream, but pause in between, in the twilight zone, where we are no longer awake, but have not dropped into sleep. Here imagination, or vikalpa, one of the five vrttis mentioned by Patanjali in I-6 and I-9, is activated.

Imagination can be seen as a creative mental process that is fed by streams of energy and information. If the only streams feeding imagination are our superficial thinking and disturbed emotions, our imagination can be self destructive. However, if our imagination can tap into a deeper stream of our own souls yearning and creative impulses, whole new worlds can open, full of healing and growth. If we go further and let our imagination tap into the stream of the creativity of the whole universe, then we become active participants in the cosmic creation process. These imaginal realms are explored in active dreaming.

An asana practice based on sensitivity and deepening perception is the foundation for the creative imagination. Being able to drop into the energy flows and fields of our body, of organs and cells and fluids, and swim around in there is great preparation for active dreaming. In active dreaming, we consciously enter the ‘savasana twilight zone’ and journey to imaginal realms to study, heal, explore and discover new levels of awareness and consciousness. We use archetypal structures as starting points for these journeys that offer an infinite number of possibilities for our own unique experiences. In the previous blog, two active dream structures were presented for your explorations. Here is another I learned from Hank Wesselman, my shamanic guide and it is well presented in his book seen below.

The Sacred Garden

The Sacred Garden can be a home base for our explorations in non-local consciousness. It is a place of “for personal empowerment, as well as physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual restoration.” It is also a jumping off point for further journeys. According to Hank, the garden operates under four primary rules. 1. Everything in the garden symbolizes some aspect of our lives or experience. 2. Everything in the garden can be communicated with. You can ask questions and receive answers, although the language may be a bit different from our normal daily experience. 3. You can change your garden; add structures, plants, invite visitors and full time inhabitants; or remove the same. 4. As you garden changes, some aspect of your life will change.

Sitting or lying in a comfortable position, dropping into ‘savasana’ consciousness, imagine a place where you know you are totally safe and nurtured. It may be from your child hood, or any part of your life, and we are calling it a garden, but it is a place where you can go and take refuge. Begin to notice the sensory details: how it smells, the sounds, the lighting, the structures. It can be small or large. It is your imaginary creation, but you want to begin to stabilize the basics so you can return here again and again. It may become quite elaborate over time. (Hank told us his sacred garden has a house with a house keeper and he will go there at death for the bardo phase as he decides what to do next.)  Feel free to move things around. I have towers, fountains and underground rivers in mine. Lots of water! Find a place in the garden that is the most powerful, where you can go to recharge and also begin other journeys. It may be at the foot of a tree, or inside a cave, or in the middle of a flower bed. Trust your inner psychic instincts and imagination to help you out here. Upon your return to waking consciousness, take notes to help anchor your experience. Return to it daily for practice.