On September 18, a totally red room at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Rome (MACRO) hosted a special event entitled ‘The Door of Dreams’, organized by Merigar and Zhenphenling, the Dzogchen center in Rome. Several speakers, both Western and Tibetan, presented the theme of dreams from different perspectives.
Raimondo Bultrini
Phillipe Cornu
Elio Guarisco
The first round-table, held in the morning and chaired by Raymond Bultrini, saw the presence of an expert in neuroscience (Della Rocca), a neuro-psychiatrist (Chianese), an artist (Baruchello), a composer (Cisternino), and an art historian (Imponente). The discussion, followed with interest by a large audience, saw the merging of recent scientific information on that part of life spent sleeping and dreaming: from experimentation in flotation chambers that leads to a condition that precedes birth, in a dreamlike state, to self-reflection and self-healing that each of us can do in deep sleep and in dreams.
In addition, the story of the dream has been a contributing factor to the artist’s inner vision. Anna Imponente, head of Campania Polo Museum and the composer Nicholas Cisternino spoke about how sound models words and signs drawn on sand by Aboriginal mothers tells the story of their ancestors, and songs represented by natural colors. In this framework Alex Siedlecki presented the Museum of Asian Art in Arcidosso which will be inaugurated in December with the Namkhai family collection and in the presence of the Master.
Left Michael Katz. Right Charley Morley
The crowded audience followed with interest both the first and the second round-table that took place in the afternoon in which the theme of the dream was analyzed in the context of Tibetan culture. Donatella Rossi spoke of the dream in the Bon culture, Philippe Cornu of the similarity of the dream to the condition of the Bardo, and Elio Guarisco of the supreme medicine of dreams, stating that ancient Tibetan culture had anticipated that which neuroscience explains today. Michael Katz and Charlie Morley spoke about lucid dreaming, anticipating the direction of their workshops that took place the next day, at Zhenphenling and at the Alessandra Bonomo Gallery.
This is a time of growing awareness of the illusory nature of human life, which maintains a continuity between the dream state of day and that of the night. The magnificent conclusion of an extraordinary event, followed with interest all day by a full audience, saw twelve dancers, bearers of the profound meaning of the door of the dreams, dancing the Dance of the Vajra that Liberates Beings on the mandala.
The theme of the dream was addressed in a natural and spontaneous way by offering many people the opportunity to come in contact indirectly with the teaching and with our Master and to develop this possibility with joy and relaxation.
Gabriella Dalesio
