question about lucid dreams and mind clearing.

[jollybear]

Im in day 18 of the mastering astral projection program and i have a question about lucid dreams. Correct me if im wrong. Is a lucid dream for instance. Im awake now, i close my eyes and delebarately make myself see the computer screen in front of me, and see the owl and the bee with the words "astral dynamics forums" sign on the screen. With my eyes closed, i can delebarately make the owl fly. I can also make the owl come out of the computer screen and lay on my hand. I can do that easy with my mind and eyes closed. I can make the owl do anything i want to at will. Is that the same as lucid dreaming? It seams i can do that easy while awake, but when asleep, it seams to be more defecult. Would it be better if i drank TONS of water before going to bed so i can keep waking up through the night and perhaps have more ability to lucid dream that way? Because by being a bit more concious, i can then be a bit more stronger in my will too. Am i correct in this or no? If no, please help me understand.

Also when im looking at the wall or looking at a number i wrote down and stick it on the wall and just focus on it to clear my mind. As i try to reach 3 menutes doing this without any thoughts entering, just focus and think of the wall im staring at; what if i say to myself "focus, focus, i wont think of a thought" < is those words in and of themselves a thought? Does that count as a thought, or no? Because im thinking that by me saying those words, that is stoping my focus on the wall, even though im saying to myself "focus on the wall". The words "focus on the wall" could be a destraction from the wall itself? Im just wondering about this.

And I have tried practicing this thing at work to. While im pushing carts or walking through the store, i would just focus on my steps, smells, and seeing stuff, but then a thought comes in and i wonder, after a menute of thinking of the thought, i then realize "hey i just got distracted, why did i not stop the thought at once?" Because that was my purpose, to be thought free the whole day or atleast catch the thought the moment it entered my mind. Just to think about the moment, nothing else. It seams defecult.

Oh ya and is the trance thing when your in a daze. Like sometimes just sitting down, invulentarily i will just go into a daze or a stare. Is that the same as the trance?

[CFTraveler]

Im in day 18 of the mastering astral projection program and i have a question about lucid dreams. Correct me if im wrong. Is a lucid dream for instance. Im awake now, i close my eyes and delebarately make myself see the computer screen in front of me, and see the owl and the bee with the words "astral dynamics forums" sign on the screen. With my eyes closed, i can delebarately make the owl fly. I can also make the owl come out of the computer screen and lay on my hand. I can do that easy with my mind and eyes closed. I can make the owl do anything i want to at will. Is that the same as lucid dreaming? No, that's using your imagination, and being able to vividly visualize. A lucid dream is where you are dreaming, but are aware that you are dreaming. Control of the dream doesn't make it lucid, knowing it's a dream is what makes it lucid.

It seams i can do that easy while awake, but when asleep, it seams to be more defecult. Would it be better if i drank TONS of water before going to bed so i can keep waking up through the night and perhaps have more ability to lucid dream that way? Because by being a bit more concious, i can then be a bit more stronger in my will too. Am i correct in this or no? If no, please help me understand. Increasing your discomfort can wake you repeatedly, but the loss of quality sleep is IMO not a good idea, and I don't think being woken repeatedly is going to bring awareness to the experience- IMO reality checks are better for this.

Also when im looking at the wall or looking at a number i wrote down and stick it on the wall and just focus on it to clear my mind. As i try to reach 3 menutes doing this without any thoughts entering, just focus and think of the wall im staring at; what if i say to myself "focus, focus, i wont think of a thought" < is those words in and of themselves a thought? Does that count as a thought, or no? Because im thinking that by me saying those words, that is stoping my focus on the wall, even though im saying to myself "focus on the wall". The words "focus on the wall" could be a destraction from the wall itself? Im just wondering about this. Unfortunately, if I remember correctly, any verbal thoughts are what you are trying to avoid with this exercise, so yes, it counts as a thought. For whatever it's worth, three minutes without verbal thoughts is good. I never was able to do this well, and it didn't stop me from projecting, but it is good discipline.

And I have tried practicing this thing at work to. While im pushing carts or walking through the store, i would just focus on my steps, smells, and seeing stuff, but then a thought comes in and i wonder, after a menute of thinking of the thought, i then realize "hey i just got distracted, why did i not stop the thought at once?" Because that was my purpose, to be thought free the whole day or atleast catch the thought the moment it entered my mind. Just to think about the moment, nothing else. It seams defecult. It is more than difficult, and you are doing better than you think.

Oh ya and is the trance thing when your in a daze. Like sometimes just sitting down, invulentarily i will just go into a daze or a stare. Is that the same as the trance? I'd call it a light trance.

[jollybear]

Ohhh, so lucid dream is just simply knowing im dreaming. Well that seams simple, perhaps then i've had many lucid dreams then without realizing it? Because when im dreaming, i think i know im dreaming, i know its not real life thats for sure :P ...Allthough their are odd times i thought my dream was real life. Such as when i dreamed of seeing a clock saying 10:00 on it, and i thought it was real, so i woke up thinking i was late for work, then i looked at the clock and in real life it was only 7:00. But i seriously thought that dream was real life. But most dreams i seam to know its a dream. So it must be lucid? But then again, maby im not being lucid, because i feel im oversimplifying it. But maby it is simple for me? But i wouldent think it would be. Sorta confused.

Or let me explain my understanding and you tell me if im wrong or right. I feel that when i dream and i see the images in the dream, im half concious since i see images, but when i say "oh im dreaming" then im being more concious then half, but not fully concious, because fully concious would make me wake up and open my eyes. So im more concious then half and thats what makes it lucid. My correct or not?

Oh ya, whats IMO stand fore? :( sorry...........I will also keep doing the reality checks then. What if i miss one half hour of doing it?

So the daze is the light trance.....Their was something in the book where it said when you star hard enough things turn dark. I had something happen to me invulentarily once where i went into a daze or star and i seen glitters or green sparkles in my eyes and i got very dizzy, its when i did a streatch while standing and took a deep breath and let it out slowly, i felt everything in my body pulse.....And those green sparkles(i dont know what to realy call it), is that the things turning dark, what the book calls "optical dark effect" on the eyes? Is that the deep trance?

I apreciate your responces and patience too. Thank you. :)

[CFTraveler]

Or let me explain my understanding and you tell me if im wrong or right. I feel that when i dream and i see the images in the dream, im half concious since i see images, but when i say "oh im dreaming" then im being more concious then half, but not fully concious, because fully concious would make me wake up and open my eyes. So im more concious then half and thats what makes it lucid. My correct or not? Sort of- there is usually a moment of lucidity right before we wake up from a regular nonlucid dream; it does count as lucidity, but the trick is to come to the realization you are dreaming and stay asleep in the dream, and that is the tricky part.
I'll try to explain it in 'scientific' terms (not really scientific, but the closest I get to scientific anyway): When you have a regular nonlucid dream, your subconscious is in charge. The subconscious works with memories, but it doesn't have the capacity to judge, so it accepts without question. So if you see a purple apple from an orange tree, it knows what an apple is, and what a tree is, but you will usually 'accept' what you see and not judge. In a regular dream, your conscious mind is asleep or 'somewhere else'. Right before you wake up in the normal sleep cycle, your conscious mind will wake up (or return) and become aware of the dream. At that moment you will go 'oh, this is a dream' and shortly after wake up.
When you do lucid dream practice, what we are attempting to do here is have a dream in which the conscious mind is present, so that judgement takes place 'oh, there's not supposed to be an elephant in my living room'. If you can do this and keep it up, you are having a lucid dream. If you can stay asleep/awake, then you can go one step further, which is to manipulate your lucid dream, or in our case, to explore 'where the dream scenario ends' and when the astral begins. And that, my friend, is when the real fun begins.


Oh ya, whats IMO stand fore? In My Opinion, and I have a lot of those. :wink:


:( sorry...........I will also keep doing the reality checks then. What if i miss one half hour of doing it? Do what you can and don't worry about it.


So the daze is the light trance.....Their was something in the book where it said when you star hard enough things turn dark. I had something happen to me invulentarily once where i went into a daze or star and i seen glitters or green sparkles in my eyes and i got very dizzy, its when i did a streatch while standing and took a deep breath and let it out slowly, i felt everything in my body pulse.....And those green sparkles(i dont know what to realy call it), is that the things turning dark, what the book calls "optical dark effect" on the eyes? Is that the deep trance? I think it was retinal fatigue, frankly. That's normal if you stare at anything for long enough.


I apreciate your responces and patience too. Thank you. :)
You're welcome.

[jollybear]

So by practising lucid dreams it seams that it would caus me to remember not just one dream a night, but many dreams a night? So far im remembering only one dream a night without fail, sometimes very detailed, sometimes not. Sometimes i remember 2 or 3 dreams, but not often. It usually happens if i drink lots of water. So by me asking myself all day "am i dreaming" that like programs myself to be awar of my dreams instantly the time they start when im sleeping then. And it seams that it would be easyer to lucid dream if i can remember more dreams in a given night. How can i remember up to 4 or 5? Because that might help as well with the lucid dreams too? It would seam?

Also if i dont see things turn black or dark as i star at the wall for long time, am i doing it wrong? When i do star, a speck might split and become two specks on the wall, even though its one speck. Then when my eye tuns in or out with its focus, the speck becomes one again in the sight of my eye. Whats that mean for me? Is that have anything to do with this practice?