Dennis Lewis

A former businessman and a long-time-student of Taoism, Advaita, and the Gurdjieff Work, Dennis Lewis teaches the transformative power of presence through Authentic Breathing®, qigong, meditation, mindfulness, and self-inquiry. He leads workshops throughout the United States, at venues such as Esalen Institute, The New York Open Center, The Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health, and various qigong conferences.

He is co-editor, with Jacob Needleman, of two books (now out of print): Sacred Tradition & Present Need (Viking) and On the Way to Self Knowledge (Knopf). Both books were published in the 1970s.

Lewis' book The Tao of Natural Breathing: For Health, Well-Being and Inner Growth was first published in September, 1996, and was republished by Rodmell Press in May, 2006. His two-cassette audio program entitled Breathing as a Metaphor for Living was released by Sounds True in September 1998, and then re-released on CD in April 2005 as Natural Breathing. His most recent book Free Your Breath, Free Your Life: How Conscious Breathing Can Relieve Stress, Increase Vitality, and Help You Live More Fully was published by Shambhala Publications in May 2004. His most recent book Breathe Into Being: Awakening to Who You Really Are was published by Quest Books in May 2009.

His writing has also appeared in numerous publications, including Yoga journal, Gnosis, Parabola, Somatics, Library journal, Manas, and the San Francisco Chronicle. The book Gulp: The 7 Day Crash Course to Master Fear and Break Through Any Challenge (Bantam Books, 2008), by Gabriella Goddard, includes a section entitled "Breathing to Connect to Your Core," based on an interview the author did with him. He wrote a section on natural, whole-body breathing for a book on qigong, entitled Chi Kung - Energy for Life, by James MacRitchie. Hia work is also included in a recent book on Taoism, called The Complete Idiot's Guide to Taoism. He wrote the chapter entitled "Breath Therapy" (pp. 616-617) that appears in Alte ative Cures: The Most Effective Natural Home Remedies, by Bill Gottlieb. He is also quoted in Stress Relief & Relaxation Techniques, by Judith Lazarus.

He is a member of the National Qigong Association and is listed in Who's Who in America.

What Others Say About Breathe Into Being

"Dennis is a master teacher who stands fast in the profound truth that when we welcome this moment just as it is, life works. How simple. How overlooked. How astonishing and wonderful. The secret he reveals: all that we need do is attend to our body's natural function of breathing in, and breathing out. Nothing more is needed. Listen to Dennis. Breathe. Be still and awaken into living your alive, joyful and harmonious Presence that Dennis so beautifully reveals."--Richard Miller, PhD, author of Yoga Nidra: The Meditative Heart of Yoga (Sounds True), is president of the Center of Timeless Being and co-founder of the International Association of Yoga Therapists.

"We all know that breathing is essential to life. But this book helps us to discover its immense importance not only to physical life, but to the very meaning of what we are and what we can become."--Jacob Needleman, author of Why Can’t We Be Good? and The American Soul

"Dennis Lewis has written a very wise and highly readable book about one of the most fundamental insights of the great spiritual traditions: the breath is a mediator between mind and body, and is a bridge to the transcendent. This is a marvelous guidebook in cultivating awareness and living in the now. All valid spiritual instruction is simple and unado ed -- as simple as breathing, as Lewis makes clear in Breathe Into Being."--Larry Dossey, M.D., author of Healing Words and The Power Of Premonitions

"Breathe Into Being is both a fun and a must read, a fountain of practical wisdom for self-exploration that is delicious on the tongue of the soul while quenching our thirst for the knowledge of enlightenment. It is perhaps the most important self-help book – in the deeper sense of that expression – to come out in the new millennium."--Glenn H. Mullin, author of The Fourteen Dalai Lamas: A Sacred Legacy of Reinca ation

"Breathe Into Being is a most practical, user-friendly yet profound guide to awakening, with simple exercises that blow away the conditioned mind's veils, allowing one's inner light to shine forth. I highly recommend it."--Leonard Laskow, M.D., author of Healing with Love.

"In light of our fast often distressful pace of living, when one can read something that is both interesting and inspiring yet slows us down to breathe easier and effortlessly in the moment, it is a very good thing. Dennis Lewis' latest book Breathe Into Being does just that. Read it and let it breathe you."--Mike White, Director, The Optimal Breathing School and Institute

"A refreshingly simple, straightforward, and enjoyable exploration of the connections between body, breath, awareness, and presence. This user-friendly guidebook will help you be more embodied and awake."--John Welwood, author of Toward a Psychology of Awakening