A former businessman (co-founder and former president of Hi-Tech Public Relations*) and a long-time-student of Taoism, Advaita, and the Gurdjieff Work, today I teach the transformative power of presence through Authentic Breathing®, qigong, meditation, mindfulness, and self-inquiry. I lead 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.
In the Gurdjieff Work my primary teacher for 15 years was Lord John Pentland, who led the main line of the Work in America for many years, and who also made me a group leader in the Gurdjieff Foundation of California (San Francisco).
My Taoist and qigong teachers over a ten-year period included Mantak Chia, Dr. Wang Shan Long, and Bruce Frantzis, all of whom certified me or gave me permission during those years to teach specific qigong forms and energy practices.
I also had the good fortune to study for three years with Advaita Vedanta master Jean Klein.
I am 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.
My 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. My 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. My 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. My new book Breathe Into Being: Awakening to Who You Really Are, will be published by Quest Books in May 2009.
My writing has also appeared in numerous publications, including The Empty Vessel, 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 me. I wrote a section on natural, whole-body breathing for a book on qigong, entitled Chi Kung – Energy for Life, by James MacRitchie. My work is also included in a recent book on Taoism, called The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Taoism. I wrote the chapter entitled “Breath Therapy” (pp. 616-617) that appears in Alternative Cures: The Most Effective Natural Home Remedies, by Bill Gottlieb. I am also quoted in Stress Relief & Relaxation Techniques, by Judith Lazarus.
My son, Benoit Denizet-Lewis, is an author and journalist, and a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine. His book America Anonymous, was published in January 2009 by Simon & Schuster. His collection of journalism and magazine writing titled American Voyeur: Dispatches from the Far Reaches of Modern Life, will be published in January 2010.
I am a member of the National Qigong Association and am listed in Who’s Who in America.
More biographical information can be found on my business site Authentic Breathing Resources LLC.
Contact Information
Phone: (623) 252-4396
Skype: dennis.lewis
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* We sold Hi-Tech Public Relations to Shandwick (UK) in 1988, and the agency was eventually folded into their network of companies.
**All pictures of me on this website are by Isaac Leeper artisanpics@gmail.com. They were taken in Papago Park, AZ on Feb17, 2008
