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A Field Guide to Lucid Dreaming: Mastering the Art of Oneironautics
Wake up and dream.
Imagine experiencing all the things that happen in dreams, but with one extraordinary You are “lucid”––consciously, joyously in control. Not just an adventure (yes, you can fly), a lucid dream is a time ripe for creative thinking, healing, inspiration, and self-knowledge.
This lively dream guide shows step-by-step how to become lucid, and then what to do once awake in the dream world. Here’s how to reconnect with dreams, and the importance of keeping a journal and timing REM cycles. How to use simple reality checks to differentiate between waking and sleeping states. How to incubate a dream to solve a problem.
With every dream we are washing up on the shores of our own inner landscape. Now, learn to explore this strange and thrilling world.
Imagine experiencing all the things that happen in dreams, but with one extraordinary You are “lucid”––consciously, joyously in control. Not just an adventure (yes, you can fly), a lucid dream is a time ripe for creative thinking, healing, inspiration, and self-knowledge.
This lively dream guide shows step-by-step how to become lucid, and then what to do once awake in the dream world. Here’s how to reconnect with dreams, and the importance of keeping a journal and timing REM cycles. How to use simple reality checks to differentiate between waking and sleeping states. How to incubate a dream to solve a problem.
With every dream we are washing up on the shores of our own inner landscape. Now, learn to explore this strange and thrilling world.
274 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2012
893 people are currently reading
3948 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 291 reviews
September 22, 2017
An excellent guide to experiencing or deepening lucid dreams, A Field Guide to Lucid Dreaming is filled with tips, tricks and advice to explore your dream world.
My husband and daughter experience lucid dreams all the time and I don't or, at least, haven't yet. It's embarrassing.
It's as if they have access to worlds that I can only dream about, literally. I picked this book up because I wanted to develop this skill too.
So far, with the advice contained within this Field Guide, I've realized that I was dreaming once, became lucid and immediately woke up. But, that's progress.
I'm encouraged actually. If I can go lucid once, I can do it again.
"Lucid dreaming is the ability to know you're dreaming while you're dreaming. A lucid dreamer is able to go to sleep at night and wake up within his or her dream. With this unique awareness, you can generally behave like someone who is awake, exercising the free will, imagination, and memory of waking life." introduction. How fun would that be?
Ever wanted to fly? Face your nightmares? Talk to a deceased loved one? The authors of this book claim that it is all possible.
They addressed some of my problems directly: "Quite often, the amateur lucid dreamer's early exploits in lucidity last only a few moments. If you've become lucid already but lost your awareness very quickly, don't worry. This is common. In the next chapter we'll look at ways in which you can stabilize the dream and stay lucid for long stretches of time." pg 106.
Practice makes perfect, it seems.
The shamanistic beliefs about the dream world are intriguing: "...shamans of indigenous cultures understood that in order for something to be created in the physical world (such as that kitchen you've been meaning to remodel, or this book), it must first be constructed in the "imaginal realm." In other words, lucid dreaming might be a tool in creating our physical reality." pg 151.
Life is like a dream and we are the dreamers, whether asleep or awake: "This world can be a nightmare or a nice dream. It's full of friends or enemies, success or failure, meaning or nihilism. We're headed toward destruction or we're headed toward rebirth. There are many viewpoints on Earth as there are people. And just like the dream, we shape our experience with our thoughts, emotions, and expectations. pg 246.
Recommended for anyone who, like me, wants to master lucid dreaming. I think that this book will help you find your way.
Sweet dreams :)
My husband and daughter experience lucid dreams all the time and I don't or, at least, haven't yet. It's embarrassing.
It's as if they have access to worlds that I can only dream about, literally. I picked this book up because I wanted to develop this skill too.
So far, with the advice contained within this Field Guide, I've realized that I was dreaming once, became lucid and immediately woke up. But, that's progress.
I'm encouraged actually. If I can go lucid once, I can do it again.
"Lucid dreaming is the ability to know you're dreaming while you're dreaming. A lucid dreamer is able to go to sleep at night and wake up within his or her dream. With this unique awareness, you can generally behave like someone who is awake, exercising the free will, imagination, and memory of waking life." introduction. How fun would that be?
Ever wanted to fly? Face your nightmares? Talk to a deceased loved one? The authors of this book claim that it is all possible.
They addressed some of my problems directly: "Quite often, the amateur lucid dreamer's early exploits in lucidity last only a few moments. If you've become lucid already but lost your awareness very quickly, don't worry. This is common. In the next chapter we'll look at ways in which you can stabilize the dream and stay lucid for long stretches of time." pg 106.
Practice makes perfect, it seems.
The shamanistic beliefs about the dream world are intriguing: "...shamans of indigenous cultures understood that in order for something to be created in the physical world (such as that kitchen you've been meaning to remodel, or this book), it must first be constructed in the "imaginal realm." In other words, lucid dreaming might be a tool in creating our physical reality." pg 151.
Life is like a dream and we are the dreamers, whether asleep or awake: "This world can be a nightmare or a nice dream. It's full of friends or enemies, success or failure, meaning or nihilism. We're headed toward destruction or we're headed toward rebirth. There are many viewpoints on Earth as there are people. And just like the dream, we shape our experience with our thoughts, emotions, and expectations. pg 246.
Recommended for anyone who, like me, wants to master lucid dreaming. I think that this book will help you find your way.
Sweet dreams :)
July 7, 2013
The best thing I can say about this is that it is exactly what it purports to be.
It provides step-by-step instruction to develop a lucid dreaming practice. I found the text to be engaging and not overwritten. It's just the right tips and tricks to figure things out. It also contains a lot of little anecdotes which are interesting and inspiring.
I read the book slowly - for about a month - so that I would have time to practice dreaming after each chapter. Finally� It worked. I was in a hotel bathroom looking at the mirror something wasn't right. I realized I was dreaming. It all started to fade away so I said "stabilize" and started to spin around. When other people walked into the bathroom I walked out and started floating through the hotel lobby. The fun is just beginning.
It provides step-by-step instruction to develop a lucid dreaming practice. I found the text to be engaging and not overwritten. It's just the right tips and tricks to figure things out. It also contains a lot of little anecdotes which are interesting and inspiring.
I read the book slowly - for about a month - so that I would have time to practice dreaming after each chapter. Finally� It worked. I was in a hotel bathroom looking at the mirror something wasn't right. I realized I was dreaming. It all started to fade away so I said "stabilize" and started to spin around. When other people walked into the bathroom I walked out and started floating through the hotel lobby. The fun is just beginning.
March 29, 2016
This is a pretty frustrating book. The idea of an intro to lucid dreaming is pretty cool, since I've wanted to explore the subject for a while. And this is a rather pretty book - there are a ton of nice black and white illustrations, and the map at the front of the book is rather neat. However, that's also one of the big problems - there's way too much whitespace and pictures and not enough actual content. The pictures are pretty, but often only kind of relate to the text. There are a bunch of stories of dreams scattered throughout, and many of them are annoyingly written by the authors rather than others. Thus they just serve to reinforce the pretentious tone of the book that I found so annoying. The content here is pretty scant, and what is present is written in a New Agey, kinda up its own ass tone. There's a whole bunch of stuff about mindfulness and how lucid dreaming might magically change the world stuck on at the end, which is really not what I was looking for. I wanted a straightforward and information guide to the basics of lucid dreaming, not rambling half-formed pap with freshman philosophy crap stuffed in. Honestly, this was so bad I'm a little turned off of lucid dreaming now, although I think I will be able to have good experiences with it once I find a book that isn't a trio of guys talking themselves up. (That was one thing that really pissed me off about the book and especially the dream stories - the perspective is 99% male.) I'm really glad I borrowed this from the library rather than buying it or contributing to the Kickstarter it apparently originated from.
December 16, 2019
Can’t say it’s worked for me yet, but the book was full of interesting food for thought—and I look forward to seeing if I can cultivate the skill in the future.
April 13, 2015
Pretty straight forward guide to lucid dreaming. I loved the quotes at the beginning of each chapter.
We shall not cease from exploration.
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
- T.S. Eliot,
poet, playright, aka 'Old Possum'
Fear has its use but cowardice has none.
- Mahatma Gandhi,
nonviolent activist, lawyer, walking enthusiast
If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, the long run--and often in the short one--the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative.
- Arthur C. Clarke,
writer, knight, sscuba diver
The guide looks at lucid dreaming as a practice. After three weeks of meditation techniques and dream journalling I was able to have pretty detailed dream recall. I liked the ritual of waking up and writing down my dreams before they were lost. It was a nice transition from waking up to going to work. Much better than getting up and checking Facebook.
After a month, I had a lucid dream. I was running at my old university at night. I got to in front of my old apartment and realised I had lost my shoes. I ran back to find my shoes and saw a pile of shoes in front of a corner shop. I rumbled through the shoes and kept finding single shoes I owned from various pairs. At which point, I questioned reality and realised it was dream. So what does one do when they realise they're dreaming?
I tried to ride a hover board. I concentrated on conjuring a hoverboard. I couldn't do it. But I found a serving platter among the pile of shoes. I got on the serving platter and "skated" down a hill. The platter grinding against the pavement and hurt my toes as I still hadn't bothered to find shoes and was barefoot. I focused again and was able to make the platter hover. Then I woke up.
We shall not cease from exploration.
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
- T.S. Eliot,
poet, playright, aka 'Old Possum'
Fear has its use but cowardice has none.
- Mahatma Gandhi,
nonviolent activist, lawyer, walking enthusiast
If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, the long run--and often in the short one--the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative.
- Arthur C. Clarke,
writer, knight, sscuba diver
The guide looks at lucid dreaming as a practice. After three weeks of meditation techniques and dream journalling I was able to have pretty detailed dream recall. I liked the ritual of waking up and writing down my dreams before they were lost. It was a nice transition from waking up to going to work. Much better than getting up and checking Facebook.
After a month, I had a lucid dream. I was running at my old university at night. I got to in front of my old apartment and realised I had lost my shoes. I ran back to find my shoes and saw a pile of shoes in front of a corner shop. I rumbled through the shoes and kept finding single shoes I owned from various pairs. At which point, I questioned reality and realised it was dream. So what does one do when they realise they're dreaming?
I tried to ride a hover board. I concentrated on conjuring a hoverboard. I couldn't do it. But I found a serving platter among the pile of shoes. I got on the serving platter and "skated" down a hill. The platter grinding against the pavement and hurt my toes as I still hadn't bothered to find shoes and was barefoot. I focused again and was able to make the platter hover. Then I woke up.
November 2, 2020
Los sueños lúcidos consisten en tomar consciencia de que estas soñando mientras estas soñando� �
Este es un libro que trata de los sueños lúcidos. Escrito por tres onironautas (navegantes del sueño) Sueños lúcidos es un tratado de los sueños y el mundo onírico. El libro comprende temas como la importancia y significado de los sueños en la historia del ser humano y las diferentes culturas, así como, la “fisiología� del sueño, técnicas y métodos para alcanzar la lucidez dentro del sueño, y algunos apuntes del mundo onírico. El libro está escrito de una forma muy amena, clara y divertida. Se alimenta con las referencias de algunos estudios científicos sobre el sueño, ideas y teorías del mismo, y, de anécdotas que son muy motivantes (de personas de pie y de gente reconocida). Pero el libro no solo se queda en desarrollar la lucidez, sino que también muestra todas las posibilidades que tiene, o puede tener, el sueño lúcido, como son el aumento de la creatividad, sanación emocional y espiritual, autoconocimiento, vivir experiencias que en esta realidad no son posibles, como volar.
Leí el libro porque sueño mucho y con frecuencia soy consciente de estar soñando; sin embargo, no sabía que esto es toda una habilidad y las posibilidades que puede tener. Ya he practicado algunos trucos que ellos enseñan y me han funcionado.
Tengo entendido que este no es un texto fundacional o pionero en el tema, pero cuenta con una muy buena bibliografía que sirve para buscar más fuentes e ir a textos referentes. Lo mejor del libro es que cumple con su propósito. Lo recomiendo para toda persona inquieta que quiera conocer otras posibilidades, que quiera indagar en otras realidades y ver qué pasa. Una sugerencia adicional: tener la mente abierta; en el sentido, que, si bien el libro cuenta con fuentes académicas, también hay muchas ideas sin sustento; por lo tanto, este no es un texto científico.
Este es un libro que trata de los sueños lúcidos. Escrito por tres onironautas (navegantes del sueño) Sueños lúcidos es un tratado de los sueños y el mundo onírico. El libro comprende temas como la importancia y significado de los sueños en la historia del ser humano y las diferentes culturas, así como, la “fisiología� del sueño, técnicas y métodos para alcanzar la lucidez dentro del sueño, y algunos apuntes del mundo onírico. El libro está escrito de una forma muy amena, clara y divertida. Se alimenta con las referencias de algunos estudios científicos sobre el sueño, ideas y teorías del mismo, y, de anécdotas que son muy motivantes (de personas de pie y de gente reconocida). Pero el libro no solo se queda en desarrollar la lucidez, sino que también muestra todas las posibilidades que tiene, o puede tener, el sueño lúcido, como son el aumento de la creatividad, sanación emocional y espiritual, autoconocimiento, vivir experiencias que en esta realidad no son posibles, como volar.
Leí el libro porque sueño mucho y con frecuencia soy consciente de estar soñando; sin embargo, no sabía que esto es toda una habilidad y las posibilidades que puede tener. Ya he practicado algunos trucos que ellos enseñan y me han funcionado.
Tengo entendido que este no es un texto fundacional o pionero en el tema, pero cuenta con una muy buena bibliografía que sirve para buscar más fuentes e ir a textos referentes. Lo mejor del libro es que cumple con su propósito. Lo recomiendo para toda persona inquieta que quiera conocer otras posibilidades, que quiera indagar en otras realidades y ver qué pasa. Una sugerencia adicional: tener la mente abierta; en el sentido, que, si bien el libro cuenta con fuentes académicas, también hay muchas ideas sin sustento; por lo tanto, este no es un texto científico.
September 26, 2013
With so many books out there on lucid dreaming this book fails to offer anything new. Born from a kickstarter campaign that raised $27000, you would be inclined to imagine this book would be something special, unfortunately it isn't and it would appear most of that money has been spent on promotion and layout, not research or content. The book has an enthusiastic tone but is let down by the inexperience of its young authors, whose research seems to have amounted to little more than a few websearches and borrowing the content from the books of more established works. I found its overly simplistic tone annoying and at times I felt as if I were reading a picture book. It's alluring cover and mass of pictures will likely appeal to the masses who have been bought up on 1 minute youtube videos, for everyone else looking for a substantial and educating read, it falls rather flat. In short, I found this book to be an oversimplification of a subject that deserves much better. With so many better books available, this is one I cannot recommend.
March 27, 2020
This is an amazing book about an amazing phenomenon.
What I like about the idea of becoming lucid in your dreams is its huge potential in exploring your subconscious mind and potentially healing yourself.
This book is written in a very easy-to-read way. It starts by explaining the history of using dreams for all sorts of reasons. It turns out that ancient people knew about the positive effects that becoming lucid in their dreams could have on their lives.
Then, we learn about DILD (Dream Induced Lucid Dreaming), which is the most common way of becoming lucid in your dreams. There is a detailed step by step instruction on how to do it.
Towards the end, we also learn about a more effective technique called WILD (Wake Induced Lucid Dreaming), which is a bit more advanced but a very promising one. If you master this one technique, you would be able to enter dreams directly from waking state. This is supposed to be a very interesting experience on its own.
I have had a couple of lucid dreams before and I constantly write dreams in my dream journal upon waking up. This has helped me to better remember my dreams, lucid or not. Authors talk about this in the book too, along with the importance of reality checks that you should be performing a couple of times a day.
The things that I think and intuit that are possible via lucid dreaming excite me very much. Becoming conscious of your unconscious mind is the key to solving many of your life's problems. Dreams seem to be a great medium to look straight into the eyes of the hidden aspects of your psyche. Shadow work is essential if you want to return to your state of wholeness, and exploring dreams lucidly seems to be an exciting and a very fun way to do it.
Also, authors make correlations between lucid dreaming and what mystics have been saying for thousands of years, that we are all connected, and that life is a big dream that we can awaken from, just like a lucid dream. As you become more aware inside your dreams, you clearly see the interconnectedness of everything in it and you easily recognize that all of that is just your mind and you are the creator of everything in it and the only thing left is to just explore the infinite potential of it.
What if the waking world is just like that, and a solidity of it is just an illusion. Well, that's what all those mystics and cutting edge quantum physicists have been telling us. It seems that lucid dreaming can help us realize all that and more.
So, read this book if you want to get excited about mastering lucid dreaming, like me.
Sweet dreams.
What I like about the idea of becoming lucid in your dreams is its huge potential in exploring your subconscious mind and potentially healing yourself.
This book is written in a very easy-to-read way. It starts by explaining the history of using dreams for all sorts of reasons. It turns out that ancient people knew about the positive effects that becoming lucid in their dreams could have on their lives.
Then, we learn about DILD (Dream Induced Lucid Dreaming), which is the most common way of becoming lucid in your dreams. There is a detailed step by step instruction on how to do it.
Towards the end, we also learn about a more effective technique called WILD (Wake Induced Lucid Dreaming), which is a bit more advanced but a very promising one. If you master this one technique, you would be able to enter dreams directly from waking state. This is supposed to be a very interesting experience on its own.
I have had a couple of lucid dreams before and I constantly write dreams in my dream journal upon waking up. This has helped me to better remember my dreams, lucid or not. Authors talk about this in the book too, along with the importance of reality checks that you should be performing a couple of times a day.
The things that I think and intuit that are possible via lucid dreaming excite me very much. Becoming conscious of your unconscious mind is the key to solving many of your life's problems. Dreams seem to be a great medium to look straight into the eyes of the hidden aspects of your psyche. Shadow work is essential if you want to return to your state of wholeness, and exploring dreams lucidly seems to be an exciting and a very fun way to do it.
Also, authors make correlations between lucid dreaming and what mystics have been saying for thousands of years, that we are all connected, and that life is a big dream that we can awaken from, just like a lucid dream. As you become more aware inside your dreams, you clearly see the interconnectedness of everything in it and you easily recognize that all of that is just your mind and you are the creator of everything in it and the only thing left is to just explore the infinite potential of it.
What if the waking world is just like that, and a solidity of it is just an illusion. Well, that's what all those mystics and cutting edge quantum physicists have been telling us. It seems that lucid dreaming can help us realize all that and more.
So, read this book if you want to get excited about mastering lucid dreaming, like me.
Sweet dreams.
May 28, 2016
Ever since I was a little kid I've been interested in dreams and how strange they can be in comparison to my waking life. Although I've only had lucid dreams a few times but from reading this book I understand that the possibilities are endless once you learn to controll your dreams. You can time travel, shape shift, fly, have sex with anyone you want and create whatever you want to create (even a universe).
The authors intention is not only to show the reader how to master a dream but also that society at large has a somewhat fallacious view of the subject. Dreams tell us something about ourselves and if we have a recurring nightmare it says something about you as a person. Your unconscious (or subconscious if you want to use their terminology) is a large part of who you are and why not try to explore it in hopes of learning more about yourself? Why should we settle for anything less than the most exilarating experience of our lives? All it takes is a little patience and discipline. I am currently working as an account manager at an IT-firm and often times I feel pressured. In order to develop resilience I therefore try to do everything I can to find the calmness within me - meditation, self-help books (and now lucid dreaming as well). I strongly believe that we can become stronger people by seeing dreamworld as an unexplored gateway to yourself.
The authors intention is not only to show the reader how to master a dream but also that society at large has a somewhat fallacious view of the subject. Dreams tell us something about ourselves and if we have a recurring nightmare it says something about you as a person. Your unconscious (or subconscious if you want to use their terminology) is a large part of who you are and why not try to explore it in hopes of learning more about yourself? Why should we settle for anything less than the most exilarating experience of our lives? All it takes is a little patience and discipline. I am currently working as an account manager at an IT-firm and often times I feel pressured. In order to develop resilience I therefore try to do everything I can to find the calmness within me - meditation, self-help books (and now lucid dreaming as well). I strongly believe that we can become stronger people by seeing dreamworld as an unexplored gateway to yourself.
March 12, 2017
O livro cumpre o que se propõe: oferece um passo-a-passo para iniciar a prática dos sonhos lúcidos.
É um manual, não um texto filosófico.
O estilo é leve, muitas vezes divertido, e realmente incentiva as pessoas a praticarem diretamente, sem grandes idealizações, sem uma aura de sobrenatural. Esse talvez seja seu maior mérito: incentivar a prática de forma extremamente acessível.
O livro só fica chato no último capítulos, quando os autores não resistem àquela tendência brega de propor que a técnica que estão apresentando pode mudar radicalmente a sociedade. Felizmente, essa é uma parte curta, e não compromete o trabalho bem feito que fizeram antes.
######
The book fulfills what it proposes: it offers a step-by-step to start the practice of lucid dreams.
It is a manual, not a philosophical text.
The style is light, often fun, and really encourages people to practice directly, without big idealizations, without an aura of supernatural. This is perhaps their greatest merit: to encourage practice in an extremely accessible way.
The book only gets boring in the last chapters, when the authors do not resist that tacky tendency to propose that the technique they are presenting can radically change society. Fortunately, this is a short piece, and does not compromise the job well done they did before.
É um manual, não um texto filosófico.
O estilo é leve, muitas vezes divertido, e realmente incentiva as pessoas a praticarem diretamente, sem grandes idealizações, sem uma aura de sobrenatural. Esse talvez seja seu maior mérito: incentivar a prática de forma extremamente acessível.
O livro só fica chato no último capítulos, quando os autores não resistem àquela tendência brega de propor que a técnica que estão apresentando pode mudar radicalmente a sociedade. Felizmente, essa é uma parte curta, e não compromete o trabalho bem feito que fizeram antes.
######
The book fulfills what it proposes: it offers a step-by-step to start the practice of lucid dreams.
It is a manual, not a philosophical text.
The style is light, often fun, and really encourages people to practice directly, without big idealizations, without an aura of supernatural. This is perhaps their greatest merit: to encourage practice in an extremely accessible way.
The book only gets boring in the last chapters, when the authors do not resist that tacky tendency to propose that the technique they are presenting can radically change society. Fortunately, this is a short piece, and does not compromise the job well done they did before.
June 13, 2015
Questo libro mi ha aperto la mente in un modo stupefacente. Ero già a conoscenza di alcune delle cose descritte, ma soltanto a grandi linee. Devo dire che alcune cose le avevo sperimentate per conto mio ragionandoci sopra e vedere che proprio studiosi sono arrivati ad alcune di questi mi rende orgoglioso. È un libro scritto in modo veramente cristallino, non annoia mai e le cose descritte sembrano addirittura semplici. Non per altro uno dei miei film preferiti è Inception incentrato proprio sui sogni lucidi e sulla capacità della mente umana di creare mondi nuovi.
November 2, 2019
Quite good, I'd give it 5 stars were it not for the ocassional filler. It tells you how to induce lucid dreams, and it tells you what you can do once you recognize you are in a lucid dream. I'd say that if you only want to read 1 book on lucid dreaming, this is it. It goes just a bit beyond the basics.
April 1, 2021
I have very vivid dreams and even experience occasional sleep paralysis when I nap (my brain wakes up before my body is physically able move, which is terrifying), so I feel like lucid dreaming is something that I should be able to teach myself to do. I had one lucid dream many years ago, but I couldn't stay in it for very long. This book gives practical advice that I have already put to use, but some sections are pretty boring and useless if you can't actually have lucid dreams yet. Hopefully the techniques I've learned will pay off soon with nightly practice.
January 17, 2024
I listened to the audiobook. It was very much a long blog post.
Some good points, some solid advice. And then that weird part where the author suggests that you could lucid dream about your favorite historical era, WWII.
I have questions. WWII? What do you mean, WWII? Why would I want to dream about that, lucid or otherwise? Whose favorite era is that?
Some good points, some solid advice. And then that weird part where the author suggests that you could lucid dream about your favorite historical era, WWII.
I have questions. WWII? What do you mean, WWII? Why would I want to dream about that, lucid or otherwise? Whose favorite era is that?
March 23, 2022
A great beginners guide, easy to understand, simple to follow, with lots of useful information.
March 25, 2023
Das Bauch war sehr einfach zu lesen und ohne schwierige Fachbegriffe. Ich konnte super viel lernen, obwohl ich selbst schon sehr oft luzide Träume hatte und es für mich nichts unbekanntes war.
November 30, 2024
I’m still interested in the subject but the book really never grabbed me. The authors seemed unsure as whether to present lucid dreaming as a science, or at least a legitimate aspect of psychology that the practitioner can use to resolve issues and ease stress, or sell it as a bunch of woo-woo for-entertainment-only bullshit. The material is repetitive to the point of tiresome (apparently flying and fucking feature VERY prominently in lucid dreaming). There was some interesting trivia towards the beginning about the role dreams have played in various cultures. The actual nuts and bolts about how to actually have and control a lucid dream could be printed bullet point style on a single piece of paper.
January 15, 2024
This is quite an exciting book. The authors provide us with extensive knowledge about lucid dreams and practically promise that if we follow their advice we will have one or some.
I myself have not had one yet (though I perhaps have had a few previously), but then I haven’t tried everything suggested.
Lucid dreaming is the ability to know you’re dreaming while you’re dreaming.
Another name for lucid dreaming is oneironautics and a lucid dreamer is called an oneironaut.
The authors teach us 1) how to reconnect with our dreams 2) how to have a lucid dream and 3) what to do once you’re lucid.
The first important thing to do when preparing to lucid dream is several times a day ask ourselves the question: “Am I dreaming?�
Then we should try to answer the question, We can do this by pressing our finger into the other hand. If we re dreaming, it wil go right through.
If we constantly ask this question, we will eventually ask it in our dreams too, thus giving us a chance to become conscious and lucid.
In lucid dreams we can have conversations with dream characters, fly across a mountain range, pass effortlessly through walls and travel over large distances.
The book includes many true accounts of people’s lucid dreams.
The authors assert that everybody dreams though many do not remember their dreams. I find that if I take my B-vitamins before going to bed, I remember my dreams.
As far as I recall, it is B6 that is valuable for dream recall, but the various B-vitamins should be taken together, so we shouldn’t take B6 alone.
All ancient cultures set store by dreaming. These include the Sumerians, Ancient Egyptians, Ancient Greeks, Romans, Hindus, Tibetans, Chinese, Hebrews and Indigenous tribes.
The period when we dream has been termed REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep.
It has been argued that REM sleep and wakefulness are essentially similar brain states. The only difference is that during the day our experience is shaped by the sensory input coming from the external world, while when we dream our attention is turned inward
In the beginning hours of sleep our REM (dream time) is relatively short, five or ten minutes at most. But as the night progresses, the amount of time spent in REM increases, The last two REM stages can last up to 50 minutes each.
We should make an intention to have lucid dreams, Before bed, we should say to ourself: “I am lucid and aware in my dream.� It is important to put the statement in the present tense.
Picture your desire coming to fruition � imagine yourself in a dream realizing that it’s a dream.
Imagine breathing dream air, flying, looking around.
An advanced lucid dreamer goes to bed looking for a lucid dream.
“Concentrate on your intention until sleep pulls you under.�
“All that is required to become lucid is to go to bed with the confidence, expectation, and intention to realize when you are dreaming.�
It’s important to mentally rehearse becoming lucid.
Visualize yourself in a dream, feeling the excitement of recognizing the dream state.
Feel a sense of gratitude that you have experienced a lucid dream before having one.
Cultivate a strong desire to lucid dream and make such desires your dominant thoughts before bed.
The authors claim that dreams are real experiences. Of course they are!
We should keep a dream journal and have it next to our bed.
We often dream about the same, specific things. For example, if you realize that you often dream about your old girlfriend, you can tell yourself before bed: “The next time I see my exx-girlfriend I will realize that I am dreaming�.
Writing down our dreams is the most effective way to remember them.
We have to perform reality checks to see if we are dreaming. As stated, ask if we are dreaming and try to put our finger through the palm of our hand.
One man looked at his hands and noticed that he had eleven fingers, so he knew he was dreaming.
Jumping is a great reality check. If you jump, do you float down, or is there an absence of gravity?
Does your reflection in the mirror look normal?
Can you read the same sentence twice without it changing?
Ask whether you are dreaming five to ten times a day for three days.
Perform a reality check, for example,
Every time you answer your phone
Every time you walk through a doorway
Every time you see a dog
After every meal
When something strange happens.
Don’t try to force it. If you stay focused and relaxed, the dream will simply come to you.
The easiest way of becoming lucid is with a technique called DILD, or a Dream-initiated Lucid Dream. A DILD is simply a dream where you become lucid after the dream has already started.
There is lots of further information that I’m not mentioning here.
I will provide a few things more, though. The authors tell us of the beings we can meet and communicate with, whom he calls the natives.
The natives don’t always look like human beings.
They include the following:
1) The sleepwalker, who lacks awareness
2) The friend. This native’s awareness is medium-normal.
3) The guide, who has a high awareness.
The latter may have important information to communicate and have a powerful presence. They know much more than you do. They don’t necessarily have human form.
You should interact with these various characters whom you can think of as your guides.
You can get guidance and healing, and the authors also mention dream sex.
Other than DILD, there is another method of becoming lucid called WILD.
WILD = Wake-Initiated Lucid Dream.
In this method you go from the waking state directly into a lucid dream.
You want your mind to stay awake while your body falls asleep.
I have personally experienced something like this a while ago.
I found that I was sleeping, but conscious. I knew this because I was snoring slightly. But I was not dreaming, just sleeping.
Also, years ago I have had experiences which indicate that I was lucid dreaming though I was not in fact conscious of being in a dream.
I lived south of Elsinore in Denmark, and I became aware of the fact that I was flying north along the railway line from where I lived to Elsinore. I was heading for a town north of Elsinore, where my younger daughter lived with her father. I realized that I went there every night to check that she was okay.
But this time I decided to change course and visit a female friend I knew in Elsinore. I flew through the town and noticed many other dreamers flying around. As far as I could make out, these dreamers were not conscious.
I recognized some people I had seen around, though none I knew well.
I flew to my friend’s house and went through the wall into her living-room.
She came out of her bedroom and greeted me.
I said to her “This is a dream. Please remember it. I’m really here visiting you.� I felt like shaking her to make an impression on her, but realized this would wake her up.
The next day I asked her if she remembered my visit. She said she didn’t but that when she woke up that morning she had felt excited and knew that something had happened during the night.
On other occasions I have been aware of flying around inside a house, and doing this at will, though again I did not know that I was dreaming.
I found this to be a useful, absorbing and exciting book and strongly recommend you to purchase it if you are at all interested in lucid dreaming.
Should I succeed in having a lucid dream, I will ask for healing, and, if possible, try to meet Christ for the same purpose, though it will not be necessary to meet up with him since any being in the dream may be able to heal me.
This is a valuable book.
I myself have not had one yet (though I perhaps have had a few previously), but then I haven’t tried everything suggested.
Lucid dreaming is the ability to know you’re dreaming while you’re dreaming.
Another name for lucid dreaming is oneironautics and a lucid dreamer is called an oneironaut.
The authors teach us 1) how to reconnect with our dreams 2) how to have a lucid dream and 3) what to do once you’re lucid.
The first important thing to do when preparing to lucid dream is several times a day ask ourselves the question: “Am I dreaming?�
Then we should try to answer the question, We can do this by pressing our finger into the other hand. If we re dreaming, it wil go right through.
If we constantly ask this question, we will eventually ask it in our dreams too, thus giving us a chance to become conscious and lucid.
In lucid dreams we can have conversations with dream characters, fly across a mountain range, pass effortlessly through walls and travel over large distances.
The book includes many true accounts of people’s lucid dreams.
The authors assert that everybody dreams though many do not remember their dreams. I find that if I take my B-vitamins before going to bed, I remember my dreams.
As far as I recall, it is B6 that is valuable for dream recall, but the various B-vitamins should be taken together, so we shouldn’t take B6 alone.
All ancient cultures set store by dreaming. These include the Sumerians, Ancient Egyptians, Ancient Greeks, Romans, Hindus, Tibetans, Chinese, Hebrews and Indigenous tribes.
The period when we dream has been termed REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep.
It has been argued that REM sleep and wakefulness are essentially similar brain states. The only difference is that during the day our experience is shaped by the sensory input coming from the external world, while when we dream our attention is turned inward
In the beginning hours of sleep our REM (dream time) is relatively short, five or ten minutes at most. But as the night progresses, the amount of time spent in REM increases, The last two REM stages can last up to 50 minutes each.
We should make an intention to have lucid dreams, Before bed, we should say to ourself: “I am lucid and aware in my dream.� It is important to put the statement in the present tense.
Picture your desire coming to fruition � imagine yourself in a dream realizing that it’s a dream.
Imagine breathing dream air, flying, looking around.
An advanced lucid dreamer goes to bed looking for a lucid dream.
“Concentrate on your intention until sleep pulls you under.�
“All that is required to become lucid is to go to bed with the confidence, expectation, and intention to realize when you are dreaming.�
It’s important to mentally rehearse becoming lucid.
Visualize yourself in a dream, feeling the excitement of recognizing the dream state.
Feel a sense of gratitude that you have experienced a lucid dream before having one.
Cultivate a strong desire to lucid dream and make such desires your dominant thoughts before bed.
The authors claim that dreams are real experiences. Of course they are!
We should keep a dream journal and have it next to our bed.
We often dream about the same, specific things. For example, if you realize that you often dream about your old girlfriend, you can tell yourself before bed: “The next time I see my exx-girlfriend I will realize that I am dreaming�.
Writing down our dreams is the most effective way to remember them.
We have to perform reality checks to see if we are dreaming. As stated, ask if we are dreaming and try to put our finger through the palm of our hand.
One man looked at his hands and noticed that he had eleven fingers, so he knew he was dreaming.
Jumping is a great reality check. If you jump, do you float down, or is there an absence of gravity?
Does your reflection in the mirror look normal?
Can you read the same sentence twice without it changing?
Ask whether you are dreaming five to ten times a day for three days.
Perform a reality check, for example,
Every time you answer your phone
Every time you walk through a doorway
Every time you see a dog
After every meal
When something strange happens.
Don’t try to force it. If you stay focused and relaxed, the dream will simply come to you.
The easiest way of becoming lucid is with a technique called DILD, or a Dream-initiated Lucid Dream. A DILD is simply a dream where you become lucid after the dream has already started.
There is lots of further information that I’m not mentioning here.
I will provide a few things more, though. The authors tell us of the beings we can meet and communicate with, whom he calls the natives.
The natives don’t always look like human beings.
They include the following:
1) The sleepwalker, who lacks awareness
2) The friend. This native’s awareness is medium-normal.
3) The guide, who has a high awareness.
The latter may have important information to communicate and have a powerful presence. They know much more than you do. They don’t necessarily have human form.
You should interact with these various characters whom you can think of as your guides.
You can get guidance and healing, and the authors also mention dream sex.
Other than DILD, there is another method of becoming lucid called WILD.
WILD = Wake-Initiated Lucid Dream.
In this method you go from the waking state directly into a lucid dream.
You want your mind to stay awake while your body falls asleep.
I have personally experienced something like this a while ago.
I found that I was sleeping, but conscious. I knew this because I was snoring slightly. But I was not dreaming, just sleeping.
Also, years ago I have had experiences which indicate that I was lucid dreaming though I was not in fact conscious of being in a dream.
I lived south of Elsinore in Denmark, and I became aware of the fact that I was flying north along the railway line from where I lived to Elsinore. I was heading for a town north of Elsinore, where my younger daughter lived with her father. I realized that I went there every night to check that she was okay.
But this time I decided to change course and visit a female friend I knew in Elsinore. I flew through the town and noticed many other dreamers flying around. As far as I could make out, these dreamers were not conscious.
I recognized some people I had seen around, though none I knew well.
I flew to my friend’s house and went through the wall into her living-room.
She came out of her bedroom and greeted me.
I said to her “This is a dream. Please remember it. I’m really here visiting you.� I felt like shaking her to make an impression on her, but realized this would wake her up.
The next day I asked her if she remembered my visit. She said she didn’t but that when she woke up that morning she had felt excited and knew that something had happened during the night.
On other occasions I have been aware of flying around inside a house, and doing this at will, though again I did not know that I was dreaming.
I found this to be a useful, absorbing and exciting book and strongly recommend you to purchase it if you are at all interested in lucid dreaming.
Should I succeed in having a lucid dream, I will ask for healing, and, if possible, try to meet Christ for the same purpose, though it will not be necessary to meet up with him since any being in the dream may be able to heal me.
This is a valuable book.
October 2, 2018
Most of the book is very practical, with attainable steps to achieve a lucid dreaming state. The illustrations are delightfully strange - I'd even recommend the book for those alone. The last 25% or so of the book gets a little hippie dippy, which might not be everyone's cup of tea, but you can skip or skim those without losing out on the rest.
October 8, 2018
I ended up reading most of the book only by the summary points. I found the writing a bit pedantic and needed more citations to believe a lot of the claims in it. Trying other books on lucid dreaming, maybe they’ll be worse but right now I can’t recommend this book.
January 30, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. I did have a lucid dream while I was reading it and intend on practicing the skills I learned here.
July 15, 2016
An exploration life in the dreamworld. The book offers 3 teachings: 1) How to reconnect with your dreams, 2) How to have a lucid dream, and 3) What to do once you're lucid.
Lucid dreaming is the ability to know you're dreaming while you're dreaming. A lucid dreamer goes to sleep and wakes up inside the dream. You can learn, discover, heal and awaken to different realities.
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
- TS Eliot aka Old Possum
To start, take a moment now, and ask yourself this seemingly bizarre question: "Am I dreaming?"
Oneironaut is derived from the Greek words oneira meaning 'dreams' and nautis meaning sailor. An oneironaut is one who has learned to travel consciously in the dream world with a high degree of clarity and awareness.
If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, in the long run -- and often in the short one -- the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative. - Arthur C Clarke, writer, knight and scuba diver
Tibetans
The philosophical practice of dream yoga among Tibetan Buddhists dates back at least 1000 yrs. While ancient Egyptians and Greeks knew the power of dreams, the yogis were pioneers of lucid dreaming. They describe specific techniques for lucidity and training consciousness. Once aware in the dream state, yogis complete a number of tasks, progressing to higher levels of practice. The challenges include exploration of various worlds, speaking with enlightened dream beings, and shape-shifting into other animals, to name just a few. The ultimate goal for a dream yogi was to become conscious of the fact that 'all life is but a dream.' Apprehending the dream was attaining complete conscious awareness.
REM and Stages of Sleep
Stage 1 - Begin to doze off
Stage 2 - Asleep, lower heart rate and core temperature. Things begin to slowwww doooowwwn.
Stage 3 - Deep sleep. Repair mode. Your body is rebuilding muscle and bone, repairing organs and tissue, strengthening your immune system.
As we climb back toward waking, we go through Stage 2, then, 1 and finally
REM Stage - Your brain is buzzing with activity, and it seems like you're about to wake up, but you enter the sweet spot -- the dream zone.
Who looks outside, dreams;
who looks inside, awakes
- Carl Jung
Intention
1) Wording is key - be specific
2) Feel it, see it
3) Expect it
4) Make it your dominant thought.
Gratitude Feeling thankful before something happens is a very powerful, creative force. If you're thankful in advance, it has already happened in your mind.
Let us learn to dream, and then we may perhaps find the truth.
- FA Keule, German chemist
I've dreamt in my life dreams that have stayed with me ever after, and changed my ideas; they've gone through and through me, like wine through water, and altered the colour of my mind.
- Emily Brontë aka Ellis Bell
Keep a Dream Journal
- Put it next to your bed
- Record date and time of your bedtime
- Write keywords
- Use the present tense
- Title your dreams
- Note whether you were lucid or not, what triggered lucidity, how long it lasted, what you did, and any tips that will help with later lucid adventures.
"A dream is an answer to a question we haven't learned to ask." - Special Agent Dana Scully, skeptical FBI agent in the X-Files
Reality is frquently inaccurate. - Douglas Adams
I soon realized that no journey carries one far unless, as it extends into the world around us, it goes an equal distance into the world within. - Lillian Smith, author, social critic, notorious fighter for equal rights
The natives... are generally tall, straight, well built and of singular proportion; they tread strong and clever, and mostly walk with a lofty chin. Their language is lofty yet narrow... and I must say that I know not a language spoken in Europe, that hath words of more sweetness or greatness, in accent and emphasis, than theirs. - William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, friend of the Lenape
No matter what kind of nightmare it is, the only way to get ride of it completely is to face it head-on.
Chat away with your demons and discover their hidden message:
Why are you chasing me?
What do you want?
Who are you?
Why am I in this situation?
How can I help you?
What do you represent?
What do you have to teach me?
The Greeks believed that some dreams foretold the future. After a bad dream, they would purify themselves by bathing in cold water, telling their dream to the sun, and even performing sacrifices to protective deities.
Healing the Mind
According to psychologist Abraham Maslow, the main goal of all therapy is integration.
Many mental problems seem to happen when we're repressing parts of ourselves. If a traumatic event occurs, we may lock that experience away in order to cope. Psychologists call this dissociation. Shamans call it soul loss.
A healthy person is a united, integrated person whose memory, emotions, social function, body, are all connected as a united system. We become unhealthy when one or more of these aspects become disconnected from the system, and we become detached, numb, anxious or depressed.
It is wisdom to know others; it is enlightenment to know one's self. - Lao-tzu, writer, philosopher
The day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. - Anaïs Nin, French-Cuban author, one of the finest writers of erotica
The most astounding fact is the knowledge that the atoms that comprise life on Earth the atoms that make up the human body are traceable to the crucibles that cooked light elements into heavy elements in their core under extreme temperatures and pressures. These stars, the high mass ones among them went unstable in their later years they collapsed and then exploded scattering their enriched guts across the galaxy guts made of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and all the fundamental ingredients of life itself. These ingredients become part of gas cloud that condense, collapse, form the next generation of solar systems stars with orbiting planets, and those planets now have the ingredients for life itself. So that when I look up at the night sky and I know that yes, we are part of this universe, we are in this universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts is that the Universe is in us. When I reflect on that fact, I look up � many people feel small because they’re small and the Universe is big � but I feel big, because my atoms came from those stars. There’s a level of connectivity. That’s really what you want in life, you want to feel connected, you want to feel relevant you want to feel like you’re a participant in the goings on of activities and events around you That’s precisely what we are, just by being alive�
- Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist, director of Hayden Planetarium
Let's wake up! Let's wake up in our relationship, let's wake up where we work, let's wake up in where we live. - Fariba Bogzaran, artist, dream researcher, writer, pioneer of dream studies
They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream at night. - Edgar Allan Poe, fan of ravens
- Take life more symbolically and dreams more literally
- See everyday patterns you fall into
- Go about creating the world you want to live in.
The term 'spirit guides' refers to entities who protect, teach and heal you on your physical journey into spiritual awareness. An individual may have more than one spirit guide, and a guide may change over the course of someone's lifetime. These beings are here to help us when we are in turmoil or seeking assistance.
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Eleanor Roosevelt, civil rights activist
In the history of the collective as in the history of the individual, everything depends on the development of consciousness. - Carl Jung, protégé of Freud
Share your dreams on a daily basis, and help each other discover the hidden meanings. Use the Internet to spread and share dreams like your waking life experiences on Facebook. Publish your dreams to social media circle, like you talk about the weather...
We must teach our children to dream with their eyes open. - Harry Edwards, sociologist, activist
Lucid dreaming is the ability to know you're dreaming while you're dreaming. A lucid dreamer goes to sleep and wakes up inside the dream. You can learn, discover, heal and awaken to different realities.
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
- TS Eliot aka Old Possum
To start, take a moment now, and ask yourself this seemingly bizarre question: "Am I dreaming?"
Oneironaut is derived from the Greek words oneira meaning 'dreams' and nautis meaning sailor. An oneironaut is one who has learned to travel consciously in the dream world with a high degree of clarity and awareness.
If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, in the long run -- and often in the short one -- the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative. - Arthur C Clarke, writer, knight and scuba diver
Tibetans
The philosophical practice of dream yoga among Tibetan Buddhists dates back at least 1000 yrs. While ancient Egyptians and Greeks knew the power of dreams, the yogis were pioneers of lucid dreaming. They describe specific techniques for lucidity and training consciousness. Once aware in the dream state, yogis complete a number of tasks, progressing to higher levels of practice. The challenges include exploration of various worlds, speaking with enlightened dream beings, and shape-shifting into other animals, to name just a few. The ultimate goal for a dream yogi was to become conscious of the fact that 'all life is but a dream.' Apprehending the dream was attaining complete conscious awareness.
REM and Stages of Sleep
Stage 1 - Begin to doze off
Stage 2 - Asleep, lower heart rate and core temperature. Things begin to slowwww doooowwwn.
Stage 3 - Deep sleep. Repair mode. Your body is rebuilding muscle and bone, repairing organs and tissue, strengthening your immune system.
As we climb back toward waking, we go through Stage 2, then, 1 and finally
REM Stage - Your brain is buzzing with activity, and it seems like you're about to wake up, but you enter the sweet spot -- the dream zone.
Who looks outside, dreams;
who looks inside, awakes
- Carl Jung
Intention
1) Wording is key - be specific
2) Feel it, see it
3) Expect it
4) Make it your dominant thought.
Gratitude Feeling thankful before something happens is a very powerful, creative force. If you're thankful in advance, it has already happened in your mind.
Let us learn to dream, and then we may perhaps find the truth.
- FA Keule, German chemist
I've dreamt in my life dreams that have stayed with me ever after, and changed my ideas; they've gone through and through me, like wine through water, and altered the colour of my mind.
- Emily Brontë aka Ellis Bell
Keep a Dream Journal
- Put it next to your bed
- Record date and time of your bedtime
- Write keywords
- Use the present tense
- Title your dreams
- Note whether you were lucid or not, what triggered lucidity, how long it lasted, what you did, and any tips that will help with later lucid adventures.
"A dream is an answer to a question we haven't learned to ask." - Special Agent Dana Scully, skeptical FBI agent in the X-Files
Reality is frquently inaccurate. - Douglas Adams
I soon realized that no journey carries one far unless, as it extends into the world around us, it goes an equal distance into the world within. - Lillian Smith, author, social critic, notorious fighter for equal rights
The natives... are generally tall, straight, well built and of singular proportion; they tread strong and clever, and mostly walk with a lofty chin. Their language is lofty yet narrow... and I must say that I know not a language spoken in Europe, that hath words of more sweetness or greatness, in accent and emphasis, than theirs. - William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, friend of the Lenape
No matter what kind of nightmare it is, the only way to get ride of it completely is to face it head-on.
Chat away with your demons and discover their hidden message:
Why are you chasing me?
What do you want?
Who are you?
Why am I in this situation?
How can I help you?
What do you represent?
What do you have to teach me?
The Greeks believed that some dreams foretold the future. After a bad dream, they would purify themselves by bathing in cold water, telling their dream to the sun, and even performing sacrifices to protective deities.
Healing the Mind
According to psychologist Abraham Maslow, the main goal of all therapy is integration.
Many mental problems seem to happen when we're repressing parts of ourselves. If a traumatic event occurs, we may lock that experience away in order to cope. Psychologists call this dissociation. Shamans call it soul loss.
A healthy person is a united, integrated person whose memory, emotions, social function, body, are all connected as a united system. We become unhealthy when one or more of these aspects become disconnected from the system, and we become detached, numb, anxious or depressed.
It is wisdom to know others; it is enlightenment to know one's self. - Lao-tzu, writer, philosopher
The day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. - Anaïs Nin, French-Cuban author, one of the finest writers of erotica
The most astounding fact is the knowledge that the atoms that comprise life on Earth the atoms that make up the human body are traceable to the crucibles that cooked light elements into heavy elements in their core under extreme temperatures and pressures. These stars, the high mass ones among them went unstable in their later years they collapsed and then exploded scattering their enriched guts across the galaxy guts made of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and all the fundamental ingredients of life itself. These ingredients become part of gas cloud that condense, collapse, form the next generation of solar systems stars with orbiting planets, and those planets now have the ingredients for life itself. So that when I look up at the night sky and I know that yes, we are part of this universe, we are in this universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts is that the Universe is in us. When I reflect on that fact, I look up � many people feel small because they’re small and the Universe is big � but I feel big, because my atoms came from those stars. There’s a level of connectivity. That’s really what you want in life, you want to feel connected, you want to feel relevant you want to feel like you’re a participant in the goings on of activities and events around you That’s precisely what we are, just by being alive�
- Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist, director of Hayden Planetarium
Let's wake up! Let's wake up in our relationship, let's wake up where we work, let's wake up in where we live. - Fariba Bogzaran, artist, dream researcher, writer, pioneer of dream studies
They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream at night. - Edgar Allan Poe, fan of ravens
- Take life more symbolically and dreams more literally
- See everyday patterns you fall into
- Go about creating the world you want to live in.
The term 'spirit guides' refers to entities who protect, teach and heal you on your physical journey into spiritual awareness. An individual may have more than one spirit guide, and a guide may change over the course of someone's lifetime. These beings are here to help us when we are in turmoil or seeking assistance.
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Eleanor Roosevelt, civil rights activist
In the history of the collective as in the history of the individual, everything depends on the development of consciousness. - Carl Jung, protégé of Freud
Share your dreams on a daily basis, and help each other discover the hidden meanings. Use the Internet to spread and share dreams like your waking life experiences on Facebook. Publish your dreams to social media circle, like you talk about the weather...
We must teach our children to dream with their eyes open. - Harry Edwards, sociologist, activist
April 19, 2024
I first practiced lucid dreaming in my late teens and early 20s, inspired by the movie Waking Life. I learned some tricks like trying to flick the light switches on and off, but never got beyond the odd spontaneous lucid experience. This book takes you deep into the lucid dreaming world, and gives very good, actionable ways to wake up inside your dreams, and to explore and manage your lucid dream. Since starting to read this book, I've improved my dream flying (I used to have to do a running start, but now I can just lift off from where I stand), I've disarmed nightmares by making friends with the antagonists, I've spoken to a dream guide (who I hope to meet again), I've conjured objects, and I've stayed in lucid dreams longer through stabilizing them by spinning around in a circle. I'm excited to continue mastering the art of oneironautics!
January 27, 2020
I read about the concept of lucid dreaming for the first time a couple years ago, and have kept a dream journal on and off since, but never really delved into the topic deliberately until this book. Still undecided as to whether the concept is pseudoscience or not, but it is way cool. Given the trendy focus on spirituality and mindfulness, this is but another aspect of holistic awareness - I can see how this was funded as a kickstarter project.
Results wise - based on the fragments of dreams that I have been able to document in my dream journal in the 7 days after I started this book...
1) I had a semi-lucid dream of with awareness of very briefly flying from the first night, with very sparse details.
2) Dream recollection has skyrocketed, 1-2 dreams recorded for every night in the 7 days since reading this book, mostly during the 4-5th REM cycles.
I've noticed...
1) Usually an observer, very rarely a participant in my dreams.
2) Dialogue is minimal. If it occurs, it is between other people.
3) Eyes tend not to be as fully rested upon waking, likely from (more aware) REM movement?
4) Dont need an alarm clock to wake, as brain is more active from (more aware) REM movement?
Definitely a cool thing to try!
But still undecided as to the statement of "dreams are real experiences" - can this be falsified?
Results wise - based on the fragments of dreams that I have been able to document in my dream journal in the 7 days after I started this book...
1) I had a semi-lucid dream of with awareness of very briefly flying from the first night, with very sparse details.
2) Dream recollection has skyrocketed, 1-2 dreams recorded for every night in the 7 days since reading this book, mostly during the 4-5th REM cycles.
I've noticed...
1) Usually an observer, very rarely a participant in my dreams.
2) Dialogue is minimal. If it occurs, it is between other people.
3) Eyes tend not to be as fully rested upon waking, likely from (more aware) REM movement?
4) Dont need an alarm clock to wake, as brain is more active from (more aware) REM movement?
Definitely a cool thing to try!
But still undecided as to the statement of "dreams are real experiences" - can this be falsified?
April 1, 2020
Съзнателното сънуване е нещо доста интересно, което ми се е случвало няколко пъти. Още по-интересно е, че има хора, които се опитват да го правят постоянно и някои дори имат успех.
Дилан Тучило описва опита си с него и дава някои техники, които, според него, биха ни помогнали да сънуваме по този начин и какво да пр��вим, когато успеем да го постигнем. Не е нещо революционно, като цяло останах с впечатлението, че процесът е нещо като продължение на медитацията.
Дилан Тучило описва опита си с него и дава някои техники, които, според него, биха ни помогнали да сънуваме по този начин и какво да пр��вим, когато успеем да го постигнем. Не е нещо революционно, като цяло останах с впечатлението, че процесът е нещо като продължение на медитацията.
January 3, 2019
3.5 stars
Most of it was really cool, some of it was a little goofy
Most of it was really cool, some of it was a little goofy
March 31, 2021
I’ll give this wonderful, witty and hopefully life-changing little book five stars... once I master lucid dreaming ;)
September 28, 2022
Rating 3.25
October 30, 2019
I can’t remember why we initially became interested in this, but Isaac and I were really wanting to get into lucid dreaming earlier this year. So, when I happened to be at McNally Jackson I asked them if they had any books on the subject and luckily they had exactly two copies of this one!
First let me just say that the writing in this book is WEIRD. Reading it often feels like that moment where someone makes a joke nobody understands and then there’s this period of awkwardness where everyone feels bad. For example, this is a chapter’s opening quote: What we think, we become. -Buddha, spiritual teacher, available in both skinny and tubby varieties. I always had to pause for a second and be like what.
The book also could have easily been a nice compact ~50 page read, but instead it really stretched out over 250 pluc pages. In some ways, this actually became useful because it kept the idea of lucid dreaming rattling around in my mind for many months as I read a couple pages before bed each night.
All of that said, this book definitely does provide the necessary tools to get started on a lucid dreaming journey. For a while, I was doing reality checks: looking at my hands, trying to breathe while holding my nose periodically, and continually reminding myself to ask am I dreaming? I also started keeping a dream journal, which I still update almost every day now. This practice helps me remember my dreams super clearly and retain them more throughout the day.
I only really lucid dreamt twice during the time I read this book. Once, the night after I started it where I dreamt Sofie was in my apartment in Park Slope and then quickly realized that this must be a dream. And another time much later when I was standing across from Chella in an abandoned parking lot high up, realized I was dreaming, and proceeded to fly. Both were very exciting moments, but did not last long and I haven’t really been able to conjure the power again SINCE. So, I’ve never had the chance to explore the super wild stuff in the book like talking to my dream characters or teleporting.
But! This was a very comprehensive read on the potential of lucid dreaming and although I think it would be bad for me to get reallllllyyyy into it, I am enjoying my current lightweight involvement. Also, super curious about the ways that the book talks about dreams and consciousness�. The idea that dream world is a land that connects all of us?! Insane.
I might return to the first few chapters if I ever want to try and really dive into attempting to lucid dream again, but for now I am very glad to have finally finished the dang thing. I feel like I really could have learned all that I needed to know on reddit in like 20 minutes.
Oh wait also last thing: the ILLUSTRATIONS. So confusing?! Could def have done without.
First let me just say that the writing in this book is WEIRD. Reading it often feels like that moment where someone makes a joke nobody understands and then there’s this period of awkwardness where everyone feels bad. For example, this is a chapter’s opening quote: What we think, we become. -Buddha, spiritual teacher, available in both skinny and tubby varieties. I always had to pause for a second and be like what.
The book also could have easily been a nice compact ~50 page read, but instead it really stretched out over 250 pluc pages. In some ways, this actually became useful because it kept the idea of lucid dreaming rattling around in my mind for many months as I read a couple pages before bed each night.
All of that said, this book definitely does provide the necessary tools to get started on a lucid dreaming journey. For a while, I was doing reality checks: looking at my hands, trying to breathe while holding my nose periodically, and continually reminding myself to ask am I dreaming? I also started keeping a dream journal, which I still update almost every day now. This practice helps me remember my dreams super clearly and retain them more throughout the day.
I only really lucid dreamt twice during the time I read this book. Once, the night after I started it where I dreamt Sofie was in my apartment in Park Slope and then quickly realized that this must be a dream. And another time much later when I was standing across from Chella in an abandoned parking lot high up, realized I was dreaming, and proceeded to fly. Both were very exciting moments, but did not last long and I haven’t really been able to conjure the power again SINCE. So, I’ve never had the chance to explore the super wild stuff in the book like talking to my dream characters or teleporting.
But! This was a very comprehensive read on the potential of lucid dreaming and although I think it would be bad for me to get reallllllyyyy into it, I am enjoying my current lightweight involvement. Also, super curious about the ways that the book talks about dreams and consciousness�. The idea that dream world is a land that connects all of us?! Insane.
I might return to the first few chapters if I ever want to try and really dive into attempting to lucid dream again, but for now I am very glad to have finally finished the dang thing. I feel like I really could have learned all that I needed to know on reddit in like 20 minutes.
Oh wait also last thing: the ILLUSTRATIONS. So confusing?! Could def have done without.
September 11, 2019
A quote from the book that sums it up nicely. " No matter what your journey is, what your religion is, where or how you grew up, dream exploration can be a way to understand who you truly are."
I am so impressed with this book. It takes a subject that has been shrouded in mystery and expresses it in an easily understood manner. Most authors present lucid dreaming as complicated and extremely difficult to learn and master. Instead, the authors present the topic in a simple and straight forward way. So simple in fact, I'm sure there will be some that are turned off by it. If anything this book makes lucid dreaming accessible to the masses, unlike a lot of the classics that came before.
Many other lucid dreaming books can be overwhelming to the novice, but this one is completely accessible to those with even zero knowledge of the subject. And while this is great for the complete novice; it's also a refreshing read for those who do have some knowledge or experience under their belt.
I enjoyed the authors' voice and found it very readable. I feel like even those who have no interest in lucid dreaming might become interested if they read this book.
The case studies are particularly motivating. The wide variety of experiences from other dreamers definitely builds confidence.
And I particularly enjoyed the quotes beginning each chapter. Their attributes to the authors were delightful
One thing I appreciate above all is that the material is not presented dogmatically whatsoever. Instead, it poses lots of ideas and theories and asks the reader questions. It then leaves it up to the reader to explore and come to their own conclusions. This is a better approach for true learning, in my opinion.
I highly recommend this book especially to the beginner, or those who want a refresher. If your ego is particularly tied up in your knowledge of lucid dreaming, this might not be the book for you.
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