Dennis Lewis
Encyclopedia
Dennis Lewis is a non-fiction writer and teacher in the areas of breathing
, qigong
, meditation
, and self-enquiry
.
In the book The Complete Idiot's Guide to Taoism Lewis is recommended as a source of instruction in Taoism for people who don't have much time for study and practice. His breathing instruction and practices have also been recommended to augment meditation techniques, to improve singing ability, as a support for recovery from injury, for stress reduction, and for greater calm, presence, and clarity.
In a 2004 critique of New Age literature by Jeremy Carrette and Richard King, he's cited as drawing upon the traditional Taoist interest in longevity but his writing is also categorized as an example of the "flattening out" of subtle cultural and philosophical religious ideas for the commercial and modern self help and personal development movement. In the preface and introduction to The Tao of Natural Breathing, however, Lewis states that his intention in this book wasn't just to explore "the relationship of breathing to health and inner growth" from the Taoist perspective, but also from his "observations and discoveries" from Advaita Vedanta
, the Gurdjieff Work, Ilse Middendorf, Feldenkrais
, and others, along with scientific principles from anatomy, neurochemistry, and physiology.
, Lewis spent most of his adult life in San Francisco, California
. He moved to Scottsdale, Arizona
in 2006. He attended the University of Wisconsin initially but has a degree from San Francisco State University
awarded in 1967 in Philosophy of Religion.
Lewis was the co-founder and president of Hi-Tech Public Relations, San Francisco, which was sold to Shandwick P.L.C (UK) in 1988.
Lewis studied Taoism
and Qigong
with Mantak Chia
, Dr. Wang Shan Long, and Bruce Frantzis
. In the Gurdjieff tradition his main teacher was Lord John Pentland
, from whom he learned breath-awareness practices as part of Gurdjieff's overall teachings. Lewis also worked with Advaita Vedanta
teacher Jean Klein, with whom he studied self-enquiry, yoga
and pranayama
.
His son is author, Benoit Denizet-Lewis
.
and the National Qigong Association conferences with the stated goal of helping people develop natural, conscious breathing and also integrating that breathing into one's everyday life. He believes that "breathing exercises are a dime a dozen" and often applied in manipulative or even dangerous ways. In his books he describes ways to avoid that by safely opening up the breathing spaces of the body. His techniques employ a mix of mindfulness and awareness practices, movements, postures, touch, and sound, with a stated emphasis on learning how to exhale fully and effortlessly. He writes in his articles and books that when the exhalation is full and natural, the inhalation usually takes place spontaneously in the most appropriate way for the demands of the moment.
Lewis claims that most people are unaware of their breathing until they have some kind of major problem. This lack of breathing awareness, he believes, is a manifestation of a larger issue: a general lack of self-knowledge and self-awareness. Reflecting the teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff, Lewis maintains that people often live unconscious, mechanical, disharmonious lives, unaware of the miracle of their own being. Lewis leads "harmonious awakening" gatherings, on occasion with harmonic chant pioneer David Hykes
. He describes those gatherings as helpful for seeing and going "beyond the boundaries of the conditioned mind--the habitual constellation of thoughts, emotions, sensations, beliefs, and judgments that each of us calls 'myself'." He also claims they can help people "awaken to who they really are". In the gatherings he employes self-enquiry, natural breathing, qigong, meditation, and special self-sensing and awareness practices.
In his writing and teaching about breathing, Lewis maintains that many people habitually hyperventilate — by which he means taking rapid shallow breaths from the top of the chest instead of breathing more naturally with the entire abdomen and back — and this reduces carbon dioxide
levels in the blood too rapidly and thus causes an oxygen
shortage in the brain and body. The result of lower oxygen he claims is, among other things, anxiety, tension, or irritability. There is disagreement about the benefits of increased oxygen blood levels. According to Dr. Mary Purucker, a pulmonary specialist in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluation and Research
, there are no long-term, well-controlled scientific studies that support claims of benefit for increased oxygen in healthy people. There are many like Lewis today, however, including breath therapists, breathing teachers, MDs, and researchers, who maintain that good breathing increases the likelihood of a longer, healther, more-rewarding life—physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
Breathing
Breathing is the process that moves air in and out of the lungs. Aerobic organisms require oxygen to release energy via respiration, in the form of the metabolism of energy-rich molecules such as glucose. Breathing is only one process that delivers oxygen to where it is needed in the body and...
, qigong
Qigong
Qigong or chi kung is a practice of aligning breath, movement, and awareness for exercise, healing, and meditation...
, meditation
Meditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
, and self-enquiry
Self-enquiry
Self-enquiry is a practice designed to rapidly bring about Self-realization, Self awareness, spiritual liberation or enlightenment, and is most commonly associated with its most famous modern advocate, Sri Ramana Maharshi...
.
In the book The Complete Idiot's Guide to Taoism Lewis is recommended as a source of instruction in Taoism for people who don't have much time for study and practice. His breathing instruction and practices have also been recommended to augment meditation techniques, to improve singing ability, as a support for recovery from injury, for stress reduction, and for greater calm, presence, and clarity.
In a 2004 critique of New Age literature by Jeremy Carrette and Richard King, he's cited as drawing upon the traditional Taoist interest in longevity but his writing is also categorized as an example of the "flattening out" of subtle cultural and philosophical religious ideas for the commercial and modern self help and personal development movement. In the preface and introduction to The Tao of Natural Breathing, however, Lewis states that his intention in this book wasn't just to explore "the relationship of breathing to health and inner growth" from the Taoist perspective, but also from his "observations and discoveries" from Advaita Vedanta
Advaita Vedanta
Advaita Vedanta is considered to be the most influential and most dominant sub-school of the Vedānta school of Hindu philosophy. Other major sub-schools of Vedānta are Dvaita and ; while the minor ones include Suddhadvaita, Dvaitadvaita and Achintya Bhedabheda...
, the Gurdjieff Work, Ilse Middendorf, Feldenkrais
Feldenkrais
Feldenkrais can refer to either:* the Feldenkrais method in movement education* Moshé Feldenkrais, physicist, judoka and inventor of this method....
, and others, along with scientific principles from anatomy, neurochemistry, and physiology.
Biography
Born in Milwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
, Lewis spent most of his adult life in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. He moved to Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...
in 2006. He attended the University of Wisconsin initially but has a degree from San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...
awarded in 1967 in Philosophy of Religion.
Lewis was the co-founder and president of Hi-Tech Public Relations, San Francisco, which was sold to Shandwick P.L.C (UK) in 1988.
Lewis studied Taoism
Taoism
Taoism refers to a philosophical or religious tradition in which the basic concept is to establish harmony with the Tao , which is the mechanism of everything that exists...
and Qigong
Qigong
Qigong or chi kung is a practice of aligning breath, movement, and awareness for exercise, healing, and meditation...
with Mantak Chia
Mantak Chia
.Mantak Chia is a Taoist Master. He is best known for his teaching Taoist practices under the names of Healing Tao, Tao Yoga, Universal Healing Tao System and Qigong. Throughout decades of teaching, he has run numerous workshops, written a series of books, and published a number of training videos...
, Dr. Wang Shan Long, and Bruce Frantzis
Bruce Kumar Frantzis
Bruce Frantzis PhD, is the first Western lineage holder in the Taoist Water tradition which is directly linked to Lao Tse and the Tao Te Ching...
. In the Gurdjieff tradition his main teacher was Lord John Pentland
Henry John Sinclair, 2nd Baron Pentland
Henry John Sinclair, 2nd Baron Pentland was a Scottish peer. He inherited the title from his father, John Sinclair, 1st Baron Pentland, in 1925.- Family :...
, from whom he learned breath-awareness practices as part of Gurdjieff's overall teachings. Lewis also worked with Advaita Vedanta
Advaita Vedanta
Advaita Vedanta is considered to be the most influential and most dominant sub-school of the Vedānta school of Hindu philosophy. Other major sub-schools of Vedānta are Dvaita and ; while the minor ones include Suddhadvaita, Dvaitadvaita and Achintya Bhedabheda...
teacher Jean Klein, with whom he studied self-enquiry, yoga
Yoga
Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...
and pranayama
Pranayama
Pranayama is a Sanskrit word meaning "extension of the prana or breath" or more accurately, "extension of the life force". The word is composed of two Sanskrit words, Prāna, life force, or vital energy, particularly, the breath, and "āyāma", to extend, draw out, restrain, or...
.
His son is author, Benoit Denizet-Lewis
Benoit Denizet-Lewis
Benoit Denizet-Lewis is a narrative journalist and non-fiction writer living in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts. He is a writer with the New York Times Magazine, where he often writes about outcasts and those living on the fringes of American culture. He is the author of two books published by Simon &...
.
Teachings
Lewis conducts Authentic Breathing workshops and retreats at venues such as Esalen InstituteEsalen Institute
Esalen Institute is a residential community and retreat in Big Sur, California, which focuses upon humanistic alternative education. Esalen is a nonprofit organization devoted to activites such as meditation, massage, Gestalt, yoga, psychology, ecology, and spirituality...
and the National Qigong Association conferences with the stated goal of helping people develop natural, conscious breathing and also integrating that breathing into one's everyday life. He believes that "breathing exercises are a dime a dozen" and often applied in manipulative or even dangerous ways. In his books he describes ways to avoid that by safely opening up the breathing spaces of the body. His techniques employ a mix of mindfulness and awareness practices, movements, postures, touch, and sound, with a stated emphasis on learning how to exhale fully and effortlessly. He writes in his articles and books that when the exhalation is full and natural, the inhalation usually takes place spontaneously in the most appropriate way for the demands of the moment.
Lewis claims that most people are unaware of their breathing until they have some kind of major problem. This lack of breathing awareness, he believes, is a manifestation of a larger issue: a general lack of self-knowledge and self-awareness. Reflecting the teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff, Lewis maintains that people often live unconscious, mechanical, disharmonious lives, unaware of the miracle of their own being. Lewis leads "harmonious awakening" gatherings, on occasion with harmonic chant pioneer David Hykes
David Hykes
David Hykes is a composer, singer, musician, author, and meditation teacher. He was one of the earliest modern western pioneers of so-called overtone singing, and has developed since 1975 a comprehensive approach to contemplative music which he calls Harmonic Chant...
. He describes those gatherings as helpful for seeing and going "beyond the boundaries of the conditioned mind--the habitual constellation of thoughts, emotions, sensations, beliefs, and judgments that each of us calls 'myself'." He also claims they can help people "awaken to who they really are". In the gatherings he employes self-enquiry, natural breathing, qigong, meditation, and special self-sensing and awareness practices.
In his writing and teaching about breathing, Lewis maintains that many people habitually hyperventilate — by which he means taking rapid shallow breaths from the top of the chest instead of breathing more naturally with the entire abdomen and back — and this reduces carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
levels in the blood too rapidly and thus causes an oxygen
Oxygen
Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
shortage in the brain and body. The result of lower oxygen he claims is, among other things, anxiety, tension, or irritability. There is disagreement about the benefits of increased oxygen blood levels. According to Dr. Mary Purucker, a pulmonary specialist in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluation and Research
Center for Drug Evaluation and Research
The Center for Drug Evaluation and Research is a division of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that monitors most drugs as defined in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Some biological products are also legally considered drugs, but they are covered by the Center for Biologics Evaluation and...
, there are no long-term, well-controlled scientific studies that support claims of benefit for increased oxygen in healthy people. There are many like Lewis today, however, including breath therapists, breathing teachers, MDs, and researchers, who maintain that good breathing increases the likelihood of a longer, healther, more-rewarding life—physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
Published works
- Breathe Into Being: Awakening to Who You Really Are (Quest Books, 2009)
- Free Your Breath, Free Your Life (Shambhala Publications, 2004)
- The Tao of Natural Breathing (Rodmell Press, 2006).
- Natural Breathing (audio program, Sounds TrueSounds TrueSounds True is a multimedia publishing company based near Boulder, Colorado. It was created in 1985 by Tami Simon. The company has published approximately 1,000 titles, including spoken-word audio recordings, books, music, filmed events, multimedia packages and online educational programs from...
, 2005) - Sacred Tradition & Present Need (out of print, co-editor with Jacob NeedlemanJacob NeedlemanJacob Needleman is an American philosopher. He is professor of philosophy at San Francisco State University.He has published many books, most of which draw from G. I. Gurdjieff....
) - On the Way to Self Knowledge (out of print, co-editor with Jacob NeedlemanJacob NeedlemanJacob Needleman is an American philosopher. He is professor of philosophy at San Francisco State University.He has published many books, most of which draw from G. I. Gurdjieff....
)
Other sources that reference Lewis' work
- Bailey, Steven (2001) The Fasting Diet ISBN 0-65801-145-6
- Carrette, Jeremy and King, Richard (2004) Capitalist Spirituality: The Silent Takeover of Religion ISBN 0-41530-208-0
- Goddard, Gabriella (2008) Gulp! The 7 Day Crash Course to Master Fear and Break Through Any Challenge ISBN 978-0-553-38498-7
- Jameson, Timothy J. (1998) Repetitive Strain Injuries ISBN 0-87983-802-7
- Lazarus, Judith (2000) Stress Relief & Relaxation Techniques ISBN 0-65800-385-2
- Mccarthy, Jenna (April 2001), "Breathing Lessons - how breathing properly aids health" - article in Los Angeles Magazine
- Irwin, Lee (2004) Daoist Alchemy in the West: The Esoteric Paradigms- article in Michigan State Universities' Esoterica Journal which lists Lewis' main teachers
- Rogers, Scott (2006) Mindful Parenting ISBN 0-97734-550-5
- Toropov, Brandon and Hansen, Chad (2002) The Complete Idiot's Guide to Taoism ISBN 0-02864-262-7