Andrew Holecek | Dreaming To Live and Die
Leading with Genuine Care
Three phases of meditation practice
Andrew outlines body, breath, and mind phases as shamatha groundwork before open awareness and reverse practices.
"Really, death is a journey into and through the mind." — Andrew Holocek
In this episode, I speak with Andrew Holecek, the author of several books on meditation and lucid dreaming. While he's had a career as a dental surgeon, he has had a lifelong interest in meditation and the wisdom traditions. In 1998, he went on a three-year retreat at Sopa Choling in Nova Scotia, Canada. He calls this experience "transformative," and it was in his last year he had the idea for his first book, The Power and the Pain: Transforming Spiritual Hardship into Joy. He has gone on to publish several other books on dying, meditation, and dream yoga and speaks and teaches on these topics. His teachings draw on Buddhism, but he stresses that all wisdom traditions have something to offer and often teach the same things in different ways.
Andrew's book Preparing to Die: Practical Advice and Spiritual Wisdom From the Tibetan Buddhist Tradition explains that how we prepare to die is just as important as how we live. Many of the spiritual masters understand that death is just another phase of life, and they make no distinction between life and death. The best way to prepare for death is to become familiar with your own mind, and the best way to do this is through the practice of meditation. Further, living your life to the fullest and living a life of goodness are also spiritual practices that prepare you for death. These masters seek to be at the moment of looking forward to death when they die. Having no fear and no regrets are also states to aim for. Indeed, the "awakened ones" see death as liberation.
Andrew's work on lucid dreaming further extends these ideas, as this practice is really about becoming more conscious and intentional. In his books about dream yoga and lucid dreaming, he explains that dream yoga incorporates but also transcends lucid dreaming. Lucid dreaming is the act of becoming conscious when in a dream state, so that the "conscious mind can face the unconscious mind directly." It's a powerful practice that has helped people become more mindful and conscious in their awake states, as well as having mental and physical benefits. Most of our lives are spent in the phase of "non lucidity" or distraction; practicing meditation and lucid dreaming can help us become more conscious. It can "accelerate your psycho-spiritual development."
Intention-setting is another important practice. At a dream yoga training, the teacher taught only that practice. This practice might involve the repetition of your intention throughout the course of the day, especially right before sleep.
As a dental surgeon and founder of Global Dental Relief, which provides dental care to people in developing countries, Andrew believes in the efficacy of Western medicine. However, as he notes, we are one of the only cultures that do not regard the dream state as important. He seeks to draw on the best of Eastern thought and Western medicine in his approach to sleep and dreaming. He gives examples of accounts of people who dreamed events that later became true and his own experiences with precognitive dreaming.
Another topic Andrew has written about is "reverse meditation." This is a practice that teaches you to be with an unwanted experience instead of running away from it as an opportunity for transformation. Pain and suffering can be a pathway for change; tranquility "sedates, it doesn't liberate." The goal is to live in a state of expansion rather than contraction. Acceptance and open awareness are key in this practice.
Andrew offers retreats for people interested in learning more about his work and is hosting one in March in Costa Rica. He also hosts an online community, Night Club.
In this episode of Leading with Genuine Care, you'll also learn:
- More about the best way to prepare to die
- How death can be seen as a form of liberation
- The power of lucid dreaming and practices that help you get there
- How the dream state is a "truer dimension"
- What Andrew thinks about dream interpretation
- Why someone might want to practice reverse meditation
- How to become less distracted and more aware
- What the three phases of beginning meditation are
- Why language can be a trigger and how to transform its power
- What Andrew experienced when he met the Dalai Lama
Connect With Andrew Holecek
Websites
Night Club: nightclub.andrewholecek.com
Global Dental Relief: www.globaldentalrelief.org
Podcast
www.linkedin.com/in/andrewholecek/
www.facebook.com/andrewholecekauthor
X (Twitter)
Books:
www.andrewholecek.com/andrew-holecek-books
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