Do Things Beyond Your Wildest Dreams with Lucid Dreaming
by Learn about Lucid Dreaming – The act of manipulating ones dreams. Then, read tips on how to do it yourself.
What is Lucid Dreaming?
Lucid dreaming is the act of becoming aware that you are dreaming while you are still doing so, thus gaining the ability to manipulate yourself and your dream environment. The ability to achieve this state is usually, but not always, slowly developed through a conscious effort to remember and recognize your dreams. Once lucidity is established, you come to realize that the world around you exists entirely in your mind, and as such the rules of this world are not the same as the rules you live by while awake.
What can you do in a Lucid Dream?
Nearly anything, as long as you are able to maintain the state. In lucid dreams, it is possible to fly. It is possible to metamorph yourself into an animal. It is possible to turn invisible. It is possible to walk through walls. Your imagination is the limit. If you’re in a lucid state and you believe that you can do something, you almost certainly will be able to do it. If you’re the less active type, you can also just relish the fact that you are dreaming and treat the experience as an extremely vivid and interactive movie.
Lucid dreaming is very, very effective at curing nightmares. As a personal example, I used to often have dreams where I was being chased by a man who possessed some sort of crude weapon. One night it would be a hammer, another night it would be a knife, and so on. This went on until one night when I found myself running away from the man once again, his weapon du jour being an axe. This time, however, I became lucid. The thought process went like this:
“Hey… I’m dreaming!”
“I have a shotgun.”
I looked down at my hands, and sure enough I had a shotgun. The man came running around the corner behind me, and while his face was never distinct (a common occurrence in dreams), the feeling of shock and alarm that I got from my pursuer was very satisfying. I’ve never had a ‘being chased’ dream since. During a lucid dream, you are ultimately in charge no matter what the situation.
You too can have Lucid Dreams! Here’s how!
Anyone is capable of having lucid dreams. Just like any other skill, it takes time, practice, and patience to learn and maintain the ability. Basic steps are as follows:
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Post Commentcutedrishti8
On October 21, 2009 at 1:10 pm
A unique piece to read…thanks
lillyrose
On October 21, 2009 at 2:07 pm
WOW…that was really something else. Wish I had thought of this one, its right up my street! Really well presented, easy to follow and very, very interesting! not sure if I have had one, I am going to try tonight. I know where my dreams would be going!
Paul Griffiths
On October 21, 2009 at 3:31 pm
Thanks for the compliments!
@ Diamond – Don’t worry… I didn’t delete your comment! I just removed the article and re-posted it because I didn’t think it belonged on Authspot. Socyberty/Psychology is much better IMO.
@ Lilly – Now you know how I felt when I read your SHC article. I thought ‘Ack! Of course… Spontaneous Human Combustion! Why didn’t I think of that!”. It can take a while to train yourself, but let me know if you have one. I can only imagine the shennanigans you’ll get up to!
I’ve only had a handful of personal experiences myself, but they’ve all been classic. It’s 100% worth the effort.
Britany Kahle
On October 21, 2009 at 10:13 pm
Wow, very nice article!! Thank you so much for sharing. =)
Andrew
On October 24, 2009 at 6:24 am
Oh crap, now I’m scared to go to bed because I know I’ll dream about looking into a mirror and I’ll have a demon goat head thing…
Paul Griffiths
On October 24, 2009 at 9:55 am
@ Andrew – Welcome to my world.
Writing this piece evidently affected me. Do you know those little Fisher Price people that kids play with? With the round heads and the bottoms designed to fit into Fisher Price cars and helicopters and so on? 2 nights ago I dreamed that I was chasing a group of them around the aisles of a grocery store with a sword. :-/
I woke up feeling remorseful. I’ve got nothing against Fisher Price people. If I could have gone lucid, I’d have hung out with them.
brainfreeze
On October 24, 2009 at 10:23 am
Nice Article, I believe however your “tells” are unique to the individual. For example when I lucid dream everything becomes sharp and clear like reality, and great detail.
Last night for example, I was staring at my hands marvelling that even the lines on my palms where so clear. To me it’s basically matrix-esqe virtual reality that I can control.
Maybe your hands look weird because you expect them to look weird – it is your mind controlling the environment.
However if you have now planted a seed in my mind, and the next time I look at my hands and they are weird looking, I will hunt you down in my dream
.
Paul Griffiths
On October 24, 2009 at 10:34 am
“Maybe your hands look weird because you expect them to look weird – it is your mind controlling the environment”
That’s a really interesting theory. I know that hands are a fairly common tell, but it never occurred to me that perhaps those of us who use them are making them weird ourselves. I’ll have to experiment with different tells, or see if I am able to make my hands look normal during a dream.
And if you show up in my dream, I must warn you… I have a shotgun
WriteEditSeek
On October 24, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Lucid dreaming is fascinating. I think the key to having one of these dreams is to just consciously try to have one. I listened to a Coast to Coast show a few years ago with an expert on lucid dreaming who had invented some sort of helmet that supposedly could help you to have a lucid dream. I can’t remember what the technology behind it was, though.
Paul Griffiths
On October 24, 2009 at 10:44 pm
I don’t know if it’s the same thing, but I know there was some an eyemask which would flash red LED’s over your eyes at a given time after you went to bed, then every hour and a half thereafter. Supposedly this timing will catch you in REM sleep, and it cues you in that you are dreaming.
I’ve heard there are more elaborate ones which detect eye movement and send you a signal at that point. Maybe the helmet does that. I would have to think it would be hard to sleep with a helmet on, though. :-/