I know that I'm dreaming but...

Hi,

I'm trying to have lucid dreams and have a particular issue and i was wondering if any body else has experienced this and what they did to overcome it.

When I have lucid dreams there is a point in the dream where I realise I'm dreaming, everything seems perfectly normal apart from the fact I know what i'm experiencing is not my life. Rather than take control of the dream I follow it. Usually I'm asking my self where am I and what am I doing here but seeing as I apparently know what I'm doing I simply follow it all the while confused as I don't or rarely know anyone in the dream. This may sound strange but I don't want to take control because I fear it might mess it up (by that I mean the reality I'm experiencing) for someone else. Is this a normal experience? How can I take control of the dream to experience something more personal to me? Can anyone suggest a mental approach I need to adopt to help me take control as more often than not I feel like a passenger.

I have had many lucid dreams but now I'm actually trying to have them it's not happening although I have to say I'm remembering and dreaming way more than ever before.

Thanks Michael

Sounds like you're semi-lucid, so you are still concerned about any social consequences of your actions. Try to expose your dream characters as not real, and you will find it is easier to continue

Thanks Torakrubik, Not sure how I'll get on with that, often I'm in situations where there are lots of people around and although I might have an idea to challenge my reality I usually end up being a passenger even though I know I'm dreaming. I think this is what is stopping me from taking control. I'm practicing saying, this is my body I am lucid now, in my waking life as often as I can plus I'm using a yoga technique during the day to take with me when I dream for the awareness but as yet I haven't been able put them into practice in my dreams since I started trying to lucid dream.

I have always been quite cautious in my dreams as I've had so many strange experiences, time travel, differenty worlds revisited again and again it has led me to be wary about interfering. I guess I need to stop the worry and take control! Thanks for the advice sat nam Michael

Hi Michael,

I think that both my spontaneous dreams and my willing action in lucid dreams just come from within myself. So I don't see a danger of "disturbing" anything. And if you once take control, you can let it go again if you wish to. I often have the feeling of just letting the LD go on, because I'm curious what will happen. Even it is no necessary to take full control. Sometimes I only change a little in my dream. For example I visit a certain place intentionally and the give up control to see what happens. There is really no danger in control.

I think another important point is thy one wants to have LD. For a long time, I had lucid dreams but the most interesting idea I had was flying around my house all the time. I realized that I need a goal where I want to go. I think it's like traveling. By choosing a destination you take control, yet you can try to be open to all the experiences that occur to you on your voyage. That's at least my opinion.

I have some goals that I achieved (being a cat in a dream was nice :D ), but some I'm still searching for (to get to the beautiful and now destroyed garden of my grandfather would really make me happy).

Have beautiful dreams, Toby

Thanks Toby,

Often when I dream I end up following it and only when I want to leave it do I stop and think I'm dreaming. Mostly there is confusion at this point and I might wake up or lose my awareness of the dream state.

My goal is simply to become aware I'm dreaming. Since I've been trying I've had no joy, only when I wake up do I think oh I was dreaming. Once I can become lucid then I have a whole list of people I need to talk to!

Can you simply create the environment just by thinking about it or is it harder than that?

Michael

Creating an entirely new dream environment takes practice, but if you're fully lucid, changing aspects isn't difficult. just the other night, i changed words appearing a wall by closing my eyes, imagining the word, then opening them. give it a go :)

My plan is to follow the buddhist 6 stage process, so really I need to be able to manipulate objects in the dream first and then move onto changing the dreamscape. But first I need to be able to lucid dream at will...small steps ;)
It's great to hear of your experiences torak, have you ever tried to meet any of the ascended masters? another one of my goals!

I haven't done much in the way of dream character interaction, although it's an interesting prospect. mostly I've been manipulating the environment and bending the rules of physics ;)

Ah the laws of physics ;) I was flying last night but not lucid enough to take control, too much enjoyment I think although I had to wake up to go to work! I'm looking forward to playing with the energy in a dream, I've only ever tried that once when I happened to be flying. The thought occurred to me I needed to watch out for power lines (hahahaha...) when I looked up to see if there were any the reality changed and I was speeding through something (kind of a kalidescope effect) but I travelled with such speed I lost all awareness.

How does it work when you're manipulating the dreamscape? Are you fully in control, by that I mean do you imagine what you want to see and it appears or is it only a partial effect? I'd love to know how you do that as it's something I want to learn.

Thanks Michael

I did two things in a LD a few nights back, one was look for and find the thread to my body. A long silver line and I managed to hold it and feel the thread that was cool and can be done in any LD in my experience if you just look for it.

Second I was relaxing and entered into a dream by leaving my body, It was a little harder than usual as I was a bit hyped on too much coffee from the day so felt some of my energy depart to a dream body (obe) and then started spinning and imagined spinning. "I" ended up as a collection of small spheres in a horizontal plane and just rotating or spinning at a great rate. Suspended in space, a total void. I was observing the spheres and was the spheres at the same time. Don’t know how that happens but the awareness was both of being the spheres and observing the spheres. I don’t even think you need a normal projection of your body in a lucid state.

Peter

Hi Peter, What were you dreaming about when you decided to look for the thread? The last two nights i've had very vivid dreams but I've not been able to become lucid as the dreams seemed so real. I need to learn how to become lucid, I can see it's going to take me while to break the habit of thinking they're real. How long did it take you to teach yourself to become lucid?

The spheres sound amazing, I've experienced similar, being the observer and the person hurtling through space. How did this dream come about? Did it just happen and you became lucid during it? Sorry so many questions ;)

I really appreciate the responses.

Thanks Michael

I was in a LD and had just walked out of my bedroom through the glass door and to look for this thread was one of my goals. I have seen it a few times and suspect it is always there and will make a habit of looking - might be a good reality check / cant see one now;-) I have been able to get lucid for most of my life but did not know what it was so a few scary years until it all came together but great progress in the year of two. I still have times where I cant get lucid so dont try and times when it is easy. It has a lot to do with how tired you are and not getting wound up if you cant. I was lying in bed and could feel my dream body leaving my physcial body but it was stuck so I tried twistin and turning and thought of spinning and that worked wonders - I was simply in a void spinning with a sense of joy.

For some of these night I use supplements, they work for me but are not magic as you need some skill but I have had near 100% sucess with them.

Questions - ask as many as you want

peter

Wow thanks Peter, I have to say I feel the urge to sleep in the hope I become lucid :)

The past three nights I've had really good dreams and have become aware I'm dreaming in all of them. Flying into work was quite something but then I realised I had to get up for work! So although I was aware I was flying I wasn't lucid. Tuesday night I became aware during a dream when I realised I'd killed someone and might get caught (i've checked and thankfully it's not a bad thing...I believe them ;) ), when my rational mind kicked in I was thinking about where I could run to...I have no memory of committing the crime (your honour!). And last night when I started talking to someone and had to think I became more aware of what I was experiencing and thought it more than a little strange. All of these dreams have happened just before I have to wake up to go to work...tonight is friday so I'm hoping tomorrow morning I'll be able to fall back into the dream state and take control.

Also, I've noticed for most of my dreams I'm a passenger, there is little or no dialogue with other people. When I have to think I begin to question where I am and what I'm doing. Is this something you've encountered along the way to becoming lucid?

I definately need to practice and have more discipline with the reality checks. I think this could help with realising I'm dreaming rather than simply following the story.

I've had a few experiences over the years of my dream body being stuck and I've always been able to pull myself out of it, usually to wake up and then fall back into sleep. So the idea of twisting and spinning into the dream state will hopefully be remembered, thanks!

Do you set yourself goals for the dreams before you go to bed or do you think about them all day? That might be an idea!

I really appreciate the responses and hope to be able to make more of a contribution once I'm lucid.

Thanks Michael

Agree - I like going to sleep and into another world, truth is without LD I would not feel alive as I do. I also think that doing reality checks become harder as the worlds get closer. You become more aware of waking reality and see wonders everywhere and with this comes an acceptance of life in its forms and then in a lucid dream any oddities are more easily accepted. Last night I was in a snow covered field with summer bulbs just emerging and I thought that cool they are growing at the wrong time of the year. I then grabbed a handful of snow and it was warm and looked more like small plastic bubbles. So I though this is why and that great. Totally missed the chance to get lucid. I had 3 great changes to get lucid and missed them - still had some fun dreams. I think that the harder you try to get lucid with reality checks the less they work. I feel that it’s more of an intuitive leap when the question "is this right, correct, can it be" needs a conditioned response that is formed by habit rather than trying to puzzle it out. That tends to put you mind in a position to get fooled by you own logic. Classic is when in a dream and a dream character will talk you out of thinking you are in a dream. I have lost many debates to dream characters.

I try to set goals but really they are hard to think of. Meeting people, flying and what I call entertainment goals are not really for me, if I want a dream for fun I will just go there if I can and explore. The surprise of discovery is fun. I am more interested in getting beyond the dream and my goals will tend to be "show me where I really am" or "I want to see the space between dreams". One great dream I asked to see light as energy and got an increasable experience.

Long post - hope u find it interesting

Peter

Do you meditate Peter? The awareness you speak of to recognise oddities in reality and dreams. That's an interesting point you make, in life i'm always looking and would like to think i'm quite aware. In my dreams however I'm focused very much on what is happening and very little else, I don't stop to gaze at the sky which I do constantly in the waking reality.

The past weekend I've had some fantastic dreams but I haven't become lucid to take control of anything in them, which is my goal. In many ways I want more meaning from my dreams. I do a lot of energy work, meditation and the like and the questions you ask about seeing light as energy I can experience in different trance states. It is amazing what we can experience. You've made me question my reasons for lucid dreaming as I have access to all the answers and experiences I want within my meditation.

At times I can find myself in a reoccurring dream environment which makes it more difficult to take control as there is the added familiarity. Do you find this too?

Although I'm not in control of my actions per se...where else would I be trying to stop a huge ocean liner sliding along the snow covered roads with only a broom stick in my hand???? Sometimes like you say it's nice to just enjoy the ride!

Michael

I medate at times but not that often in a normal way. On going to sleep and lying down, normally on my back I will use the same techniques as medation. Relaxing, letting go and connecting with the void is my way of putting it. Somewhere between relaxing and mediating i think.

I think that meditating might only be another way to connect to the dream word (use that term in a wide sense as it covers all aspect of altered mind states). Once in the dream and aware you can choose what to do. I also think the hard line between a LD and a not-LD in not that relevant. It appears that most people are seeking adventure, entertainment, sex etc in a LD. That is fine, no issues there but I feel that the dreams where you have an intent like one dream i posted a few days back parts of it you dont want to be aware in the sense of a LD but aware to the point you have full recall. If you ask a question it makes sense to listen for the answer, not interupt the teacher.

Recouring dreams - try listening and looking for detail hidden in the theme.

Awareness - looking in normal life and the same the dreamscape. I liken that to keeping watch on a ship and scanning the horizon for other ships. You dont look for a ship, you look for something that shouldnt be there and then zero on in the detail.

Peter

Thanks Peter,

Intent. That's something I'm learning about in my life right now. Every thought and action has my intent behind it, just not always the right one! So i'm trying to learn to fix my intent on positive action and thought. I apply this to my energy work and like you say, it is important not to interupt the teacher. Many times with my trance work I will experience revelations which at the time astound me but once out of the state I can't recall all the detail but know I've been taught something on an energy level that will benefit me.

As for the reoccurring dreams and details...that's where I struggle. I get too engrossed with what's happening in the dream to stop and consider anything else. To me this is what Lucidicty really means in dreams. To then make conscious decisions to meet the higher forces and communicate with them. All too often in my dreams I don't seem to have that awareness with me.

As for looking for something that shouldn't be there I was dreaming about a huge ocean liner floating on snow covered roads...to me it felt so right at the time!?!!!

But I have a new plan for this week so we'll see how I progress. Thank you for sharing your experiences, I really aprreciate them.

Michael