This is an absorbing account of a dialogue between leading Western
scientists and the foremost representative of Buddhism today, the Dalai
Lama of Tibet.
For modern science, the transitional states of consciousness lie at the
forefront of research in many fields. For a Buddhist practitioner, these
same states present crucial opportunities to explore and transform
consciousness itself. This book is the account of a historic dialogue
between leading Western scientists and the Dalai Lama of Tibet.
Revolving around three key moments of consciousness - sleep, dreams, and
death - the conversations recorded here are both engrossing and highly
listenable. Whether the topic is lucid dreaming, near-death experiences,
or the very structure of consciousness itself, the listener is
continually surprised and delighted.
Narrated by Fajer Al-Kaisi, the book begins with insightful remarks on
the notion of personal identity by noted philosopher Charles Taylor,
author of the acclaimed Sources of Self. This sets the stage for Dr.
Jerome Engel, Dr. Joyce MacDougal, and others to engage in extraordinary
exchanges with the Dalai Lama on topics ranging from the neurology of
sleep to the yoga of dreams.
Remarkable convergences between the Western scientific tradition and the
Buddhist contemplative sciences are revealed. Dr. Jayne Gackenbach's
discussion of lucid dreaming, for example, prompts a detailed and
fascinating response from the Dalai Lama on the manipulation of dreams
by Buddhist meditators. The conversations also reveal provocative
divergences of opinion, as when the Dalai Lama expresses skepticism
about near-death experiences as presented by Joan Halifax. The
conversations are engrossing and highly listenable. Any listener
interested in psychology, neuroscience, Buddhism, or the alternative
worlds of dreams will surely enjoy Sleeping, Dreaming, and Dying.
