Basic Oneironautics Guide

About this thread

This thread is a guide to inducing, sustaining and improving lucid dreams.
I’m intentionally focusing on more practical approach here since you can endlessly theorize about nature of lucid dreaming.
English is not my native language and I’m sorry if I use words inadequately or mess up with spelling/grammar etc.
My initial post will be comprehensive but not final and I’m planning on updating it from time to time as well as answering the coming questions. I’m aware of other great threads about lucid dreaming on ATS like this one: Lucid Dreaming for Dummies
However I want to share my own experience here. Hope you will find it useful!

What is lucid dreaming?

In Russia we use the term “Conscious dreaming” instead of “Lucid dreaming”. I find it much more descriptive.
Lucid dream is a dream where you are aware of the fact that you are dreaming.
Level of awareness determines vividness and how deep you can control your dream.
In lucid dream it is possible to reach a state where you can literally control everything.

Before we start preparing for diving into the dreaming world I want you to become familiar with concepts of alpha-rhythm state and mnemonics.

Alpha-rhythm state

I’m not going to explain what brainwaves are since you can always visit wikipedia:
en.wikipedia.org...
To get into alpha-rythm state you just need to sit (lay) down, close your eyes and relax.
Some may argue that in some cases beta brainwaves are dominating even with closed eyes. That is true.
To make sure that you are in the alpha state do the following experiment:

1. Sit next to a wall. Distance from the wall should be 1.5 - 2 meters.
   
2. Focus on the wall
   
3. Close your eyes
   

After closing your eyes you should notice a slight muscle action sequence in the upper part of your head. That’s your eyes rolling up. If this transition happens then you are in the alpha state (Alpha brainwaves are dominating). If it isn’t happening then you are not relaxed.
So again, to get into the alpha state you need to sit down, close your eyes and relax. It’s that simple!

Mnemonics

Mnemonic is a symbol which helps you to remember something. In oneironautics we use mnemonics as messages to subconsciousness. It’s very simple:

1. Get into the alpha state
   
2. Make a statement to yourself
   

For example, before falling asleep close your eyes, relax and order yourself to wake up 2 hours earlier than usual. If you wake up 2 hours earlier then your mnemonic worked! I can’t tell you the exact statement you should make because it’s a very personal matter. Just try to experiment yourself and you will succeed very soon.

(continued)

How to induce a lucid dream?

Here are the main steps of my methodic:

1. Improving your dream memory
   
2. Preparing your body
   
3. Planning your sleep schedule
   

You won’t necessary need to go through all three of these steps because you may induce a lucid dream during any one of them. However I highly recommend to stick with this order because it’s proven to work.

Improving your dream memory

An average person recalls 1-2 dreams a week. Some people are not recalling their dreams at all. Of course it’s not acceptable for an oneironaut. Good shape is a dream every night!
Haha not necessarily that much but it certainly won’t harm you.
You can easily reach that “a dream every night” mark in about a week. Here is how you do it:

1. Before going to sleep (already lying in bed) get into the alpha state (sounds obvious I know).
   
2. Remember some of your recent dreams or any vivid dream of the past (dreams from childhood work great). Recall as much details as possible: colors, characters, environments, sounds, sensations, emotions etc. General moods of dreams are very important too. It will tune you in the dreaming world.
   
3. Make a mnemonic to remember your dreams tonight.
   
4. Go to sleep!
   
5. After waking up try to remember the dream you saw. Do not move your body too much because it will substantially obscure your dream memory. And again, recall as much details as possible.
   

Repeat this exercise everyday. You will notice a substantial improve in your ability to recall dreams in 2-3 days!

Preparing your body

So you are comfortable with frequency of your dreams now. It’s time to prepare your body for the lucid dream! Again, do it right before sleep:

1. Lie on your back and close your eyes, your limbs should not cross. In yoga this position is called shavasana. Google it if you want pictures.
   
2. Now you need to relax your muscles. Start breathing deep and slow, relaxing all groups of your muscles. Good indicator of a proper relaxation is when you will feel heaviness of your body.
   
3. Don’t break the deep relaxation! Focus between your eyebrows above and start breathing into it (yeah literally INTO it). You will soon start to feel pressure on your forehead. Work on increasing this pressure.
   
4. When the pressure is high, make a mnemonic to become aware of the fact that you are dreaming tonight (to have a lucid dream tonight).
   
5. Go to sleep. If you can sleep on your back then go for it! If you can’t then try to preserve relaxation through the changing of your pose.
   
6. After waking up try to remember the dream you saw. Was it lucid?
   

Deep muscle relaxation and ajna (forehead chakra) stimulation may result in a variety of “side-effects” including sleep paralysis. If you are suddenly awakening and feel completely paralyzed then just move your big toes and the paralysis will be gone. If you aren’t afraid of sleep paralysis (and you shouldn’t be) then try to fall asleep without breaking it. You will go straight into a lucid dream!

Planning your sleep schedule

Changing your sleep schedule will help you in inducing lucid dreams.
There are 2 main ways to change it:

1. Prolonged sleep. Grant yourself additional 2-4 hours of sleep! You may either get up 2-4 hours later than usual or go to sleep 2-4 hours before usual. That’s depending on your daily schedule.
   
2. Discrete sleep. This one is heavy artillery! You need to wake up every 2-3 hours (use your alarm clock), take a glass of water and/or wash your face and go back to sleep using a mnemonic to have a lucid dream. This works very well. I must warn you that you may not be very rested in the morning.
   

(continued)

Important advices

Always use mnemonics! It is a trigger for lucid dreaming.
Don’t fall asleep unrelaxed.
Always recall your dreams in the morning.
Fresh linen is a good thing for lucid dreaming.
Read about lucid dreaming. There are lots of books!

How to prolong a lucid dream

So you are inside a dream and became aware of it. Congratulations!
Most of beginner oneironauts wonder why are lucid dreams so short. Here are things you should avoid if you don’t want to wake up:

Raising you awareness too high and too fast will result in waking up.
Staring at one point for too long will result in waking up.
Moving (and flying) too fast will result in waking up.
Uncontrollable emotions will result in waking up.
Sexual overstimulation will result in waking up.
Accidentally moving your physical body (happens when the dream is shallow) will result in waking up.

As you will gain experience in lucid dreaming you will be able to sustain dreaming through these things but if you are beginner you should avoid them.
Many people say that spinning around is a good way too sustain a dream, but just turning by 180 degrees works fine too.

Level of awareness

The most magnificent things in lucid dreams come from your higher consciousness.
By raising your awareness too high you suppress higher consciousness and characters of your dream may become lifeless, flow of uncontrollable events stops and dream eventually is starting to fade away and fall apart. You may end up in absolute emptiness with very high awareness which is in fact a very interesting experience too but it maybe very disappointing since it’s basically the end of a lucid dream.
Try to lower your awareness and you will see how the dream is starting to live it’s life again.

Creativity in lucid dreams

I believe it should be fairly easy for the majority of ATS community since the only restrictions in lucid dreams are your mind restrictions. An open mind is the key to unrestrained creativity in the dreaming world. If you believe that an elephant can pop up from the thin air then it will!
If you have problems with creating some object or environment just imagine that it is behind you. Turn around and here it is.
Creativity in lucid dreams goes far beyond that though.
For example I’m a musician. “Writing” music in a lucid dream is one of the most astounding experiences in my life. I’m just starting the music flow which literally comes from above. I’m balancing between total control of this flow and completely releasing it to the higher consciousness. So the most difficult part is waking up and recording it!

Should people dream lucid?

Some people may argue that our dreams are messages from above and we should not intervene in this sacred process.
I have no problem with dreams being messages from above, I actually agree with this. But why shouldn’t we intervene?
Human is a conscious being and I believe he should bring consciousness everywhere he is. So yes, I want mankind to dream conscious!


Thanks for reading! Now I will try to answer all of your questions. I hope this all wasn’t too hard to read and understand!

I read the whole post, and I'm pleasantly surprised to note that some of the things you have listed are what I do to consistently remember my dreams. I have done this since about kindergarten, but it was not a very pleasant lucid dream. In it, I was being cornered by a crowd of tricycles with the head of a very annoying little boy in my class between the bars. I still remember it whenever I feel like recalling it.
This is a really fun activity to do! I don't focus so much on raising my frequency right now, more on exploring and interacting within my dream world.
Sometimes I wonder to myself why I'm going to a particular place in certain scenarios, such as when I repeat a dream twice or thrice within one sleep session or between years... and then I realize it just feels good repeating it now that I know what to do.
This is a facet of my life that I do not like sharing with people... because it just feels weird telling them how I come up with characters for my manga/anime/writing hobbies.
Also, some things are private and I'd like to keep them that way.

PS, good post.

[edit on 6/3/2010 by Elaethyr]

I use to have lucid dreams every night, now it is maybe once a week sadly. I'm going to try my best to keep on going!

thank you i needed a good reminder. lately my dreams are so vivid and weird
i need away to control the fragmented story lines

Very good to see this thread. Well done too. I would add is when using mnemonics, don't just tell yourself to do something once and go to sleep. Focus on it as you drift into sleep. Or focus on a simple image like a white dot or cross or something simple as you drift into sleep (edit: as the symbol should be a reminder of your mnemonic). Focusing on something simple will probably make it easier to fall asleep anyway, and help you sleep better. I suppose the last thing you want is for your last thought before going into sleep to be one of worry, anxiety, or fear. These DO effect your sleep, and really even if you aren't a lucid dreamer, this practice would be very good for your well-being.

[edit on 3-6-2010 by Novise]

Those are some good tips - I always have trouble staying asleep when I realize I am dreaming - so I'm going to apply some of the tips you mentioned above - thank you.

Originally posted by Novise
Very good to see this thread. Well done too. I would add is when using mnemonics, don't just tell yourself to do something once and go to sleep. Focus on it as you drift into sleep. Or focus on a simple image like a white dot or cross or something simple as you drift into sleep
[edit on 3-6-2010 by Novise]

I completely agree with this. Mnemonics are not limited only to verbal statements.

reply to post by Etherguide


First of all, you write as well as a native English speaker! Thank you for the info.

Originally posted by Elaethyr
This is a facet of my life that I do not like sharing with people... because it just feels weird telling them how I come up with characters for my manga/anime/writing hobbies.

I think this may actually impress some people! But yes, I agree, it doesn't seem as a very comfortable topic in modern society.

Originally posted by Klaatumagnum
First of all, you write as well as a native English speaker! Thank you for the info.

Thank you! I was really worried about that.

Moose and squril nuf said lol srry had to say that any way awsome thread I'll keep an eye on this try it out to mabey ;3

reply to post by Etherguide


great post.so i have just started getting into "conscious dreaming"(

Originally posted by amtarcher
reply to post by Etherguide

 

great post.so i have just started getting into "conscious dreaming"(