This is a true fiction, or an autobiographical novel*, composed of memoirs of journeys to far away lands and to the inner landscapes of forgotten memory. It spans some 3 years of travels to Peru, Mexico, Bali, Thailand, Malaysia and Albania. These journeys have been an encounter with the bardo – the limbo state between the dissolution of the self and rebirth – in daily life.
“Dreaming Awake” is an expression used by shamans to describe visionary journeys in altered states of consciousness, which are more real than ordinary reality. But it also has a double meaning, that of awakening within the dream of “real life” – seeing through its illusions, while still inhabiting it. Life, in this vision, is a magical psychedelic trip that we must learn to navigate lucidly.
*As an autobiographical fiction, the narrative does not follow the chronology of my travel journals. Some experiences and inner journeys are altered, mixed, or presented out of sequence – since the aim is not historical accuracy but presenting certain messages and lessons in the best & most coherent form for readers. The characters in the journeys are based (strongly or loosely) on people I met; all names have been changed to protect privacy.
Contents [red links take you to individual chapters]
1. The threshold of the unknown
(Bucharest / The Fool)
PERU
2. In search of the authentic
(Cusco / Two of Swords)
3. Innocence once lost, twice regained
(Cusco / Six of Cups)
4. Behind the veil of creation
(Pisac / The Magician)
Profane Light 