Abstracts
of 2000 Award Winners' Papers:
An
Exploratory Study of the Practice of the Tibetan Dream Yoga Four
Foundations on Waking Life Awareness and Dreams
Presented
by: Barbara Viglizzo
Affiliation: Institute of Transpersonal Psychology
Spiritual
practices of Eastern traditions are reported to have life changing
effects, increasing awareness and equanimity. Can these effects
be quantitatively and qualitatively measured? Can they enhance
life in the rhythms of Western living? This dissertation studies
the Tibetan dream yoga practices of the indigenous Bon religion.
It concentrates on the four foundations of Tibetan dream yoga,
traditionally used in monastic life. These practices are about
integrating lucidity and flexibility into life and letting go
of heavily-conditioned patterns (karmic traces). In the first
foundation, "Changing the karmic traces," practitioners view their
experiences as dream-like. In the second foundation, "Removing,
-grasping, and aversion," practitioners recognize their emotionally-charged
reactions such as anger or jealousy as dreams. In the third foundation,
"Strengthening intention," practitioners review memories of the
day and notice them as dreams. The fourth foundation is 'Cultivating
joyful effort" for the practice. This study involved 10 women
and 2 men, ranging in age from 26 to 65 years with a variety of
spiritual orientations. Their ethnicity included 10 Europeans,
1 Native American. and 1 Eastern Indian. The study has two parts:
developing a training and evaluating the effects of the practice.
The training was developed under the guidance of Geshe Tenzin
Wangyal Rinpoche, a lama in the Bon tradition. Weekly instruction
was given for 2 1/2 hours over8 weeks. Participants clicked digital
counters when they noticed the dream-like quality of life, and
recorded their clicks per day over the 8 weeks. Participants completed
daily practice logs with 6 Likert scales, 5 qualitative questions,
and descriptions of 3 events of grasping or aversion. Participants
completed 3 dream recording reports per week with 3 Likert scales,
7 qualitative questions and descriptions of grasping and aversion
in their dreams. After the course, participants completed questionnaires
and were interviewed. The study yielded a range of quantitative
and qualitative results. Quantitative results were assessed using
statistical cross tabulations producing chi square results. Results
showed a statistically significant increase in participants' understanding
of their karmic traces, (p(=.019) <.05, with df=l), and statistical
significance for less identification with thoughts and emotions
as a result of the practice (p(=.020) <.05, df=l). There was a
statistically significant correlation between the amount of practice
and participants' level of present centeredness (p(=.003) <.05),
df=72). Other significant results showed that participants recognized
grasping and aversion (P(=.000) <.05, df=10), developed a sense
of joy and curiosity in their practice (p(=.012) <.05, df=2),
and saw life as a teacher towards greater awareness (p(=.002)
<.05, df=2). Qualitative results were informed by grounded theory
analysis methods of participants' daily log sheets and dream recording
reports. The qualitative results are consistent with and support
the quantitative results. This dissertation extends our understanding
of the effectiveness and benefits of Eastern spiritual practices
in Western settings. It brings a psycho-spiritual perspective
to assessing a practice done throughout the day. These practices
show promise in providing a method for awareness training effective
for the hurried lifestyle that many Westerners maintain.