Meaning of a Dream

What is lucid dreaming? Is it scientifically proven? Can anyone learn to lucid dream on demand? How long does it take? What else can I use dream control for?

I'm sure you have plenty of questions about lucid dreaming and this article aims to answer them all... Welcome to my quick start guide to lucid dreams!

Lucid dreaming is the ability to consciously direct and control your dreams. It transforms your inner dream world into a living alternate reality - where everything you see, hear, feel, taste and even smell is as authentic as real life.

Lucidity occurs during altered states of consciousness when you realize you are dreaming - and your brain switches into waking mode inside the dream. In normal dreams, your self awareness is shut down. That's why they often feel fuzzy and distant. But when lucid, the conscious brain wakes up during sleep!

This is a safe and natural state. It is not a literal out of body experience - because you are always asleep in bed. And if you want to, you can wake yourself up. When you become lucid, your senses become alive. You can explore the inner workings of your subconscious mind with total freedom.

Tibetan Monks have used dream control for more than a thousand years, in a philosophy called Dream Yoga. It is certainly not a new phenomena. However, the modern term "lucid dreaming" was not coined until the 20th century by the Dutch psychiatrist, Frederik van Eeden, meaning mental clarity in dreams.

The concept of lucid dreams became popularized by Celia Green in the 1960s, who pointed out the scientific potential of self awareness in dreams. She was the first to make the link with both REM sleep and false awakenings.

The first scientific evidence of lucid dreaming was produced by the British parapsychologist Keith Hearne. He did it by catching eye movement signals from his volunteer, Alan Worsley, in a lucid dream state in laboratory conditions.

But Hearne's research slipped under the radar of the mainstream science journals, and it was Dr Stephen LaBerge at Stanford University who became famous for replicating this experiment and formally publishing his findings.

A prolific lucid dreamer himself, Stephen LaBerge founded The Lucidity Institute in 1987 to explore the question: what is lucid dreaming? His mission is to research the nature and potential of consciousness in dreams... A riddle that may one day offer considerable advances in our understanding of the human mind.

Yes, I believe so. We all have dreams (whether we remember them or not) and so I think we all have the capacity to become conscious within them. Children have reported lucid dreams. And certain medications for degenerative conditions like Parkinson's Disease can cause lucid dreams. Age is certainly not a factor.

Having a lucid dream is not actually all that hard, once you tap into the right mechanism. Research shows that everyone will have at least one lucid dream in their lives, just by accident. And to have lucid dreams on demand, all you have to do is get into the habit of recognizing the dreamstate.

There are many ways you can achieve this subconscious recognition, such as:

meditationself hypnosisbrainwave entrainmentvisualizationsreality checksdream herbsdream journalingYou can practice one or all of these methods during the waking day or just before you fall asleep, in order to plant the seed of lucidity. It is up to your subconscious mind to trigger you during sleep. This subconscious programming gets easier over time.

In fact, many people are able to have their first lucid dream between three days and three weeks. With practice you will be able to induce lucid dreams on demand - and it gets easier the more you do it.

At first, many people are drawn to the idea of lucid dreaming for the escapism it offers. In your virtual reality dream world, you can realistically fly over cities, meet your favorite celebrity in the flesh, or become a ninja assassin. It is way more realistic than day dreaming or playing your favorite video game.

But once you get over the novelty value, you'll understand that lucid dreaming has many personal development applications, such as:

creative problem solvingincreasing your creativityfacing your fearsimproving your confidencepracticing new skillsdeveloping your sense of selfexploring your own subconscious

Robert Waggoner details this subject in his book, Lucid Dreaming: Gateway to the Inner Self. He introduces new ways to interact with your lucid dreams and how to use dream figures for communicating with your inner self.

If all that isn't appealing to personal development enthusiasts, I don't know what is! Lucid dreaming is a powerful psychological tool and enlightening experience. As a beginner, intermediate or expert oneironaut, I hope you find this website and its complete guide to lucid dreams useful in your own personal quest for self awareness in the unconscious dream world...

For step-by-step tutorials in lucidity, check out The Lucid Dreaming Fast Track, my digital course that shows beginners the fastest way to lucid dreams.

This article looks at some easy lucid dreaming techniques, helping most people have their first lucid dream between 3 days and 3 weeks.

I have packed as much information into this beginner's article as I can, so don't worry if you feel overwhelmed. Just take it slow.

First, my name is Rebecca. I've been lucid dreaming since I was 14 years old. Over the last 12 years I have researched a lot about dream control. I have practiced many different lucid dream exercises and developed my own ways to become lucid and stay conscious in the dream state for longer, enabling me to have many fantastic lucid dreams at will. The following is my "big picture" take on easy lucid dreaming for beginners. It combines the most popular lucid dreaming techniques and the best value dream control products to leapfrog you to success.

You should improve your dream recall so that you remember at least one dream every night (and preferably more). The easy way to do this is to tell yourself regularly, "I will remember my dreams", especially just before you go to sleep. This plants the intention in your subconscious.

Also keep a dream journal by the bedside so you can write down your dreams when you wake up. Discuss your dreams with friends whenever you can, to really hit home the message that dreams are important to you and must be remembered. Your subconscious will attend to it.

A very easy lucid dreaming exercise, reality checking is the secret weapon of those who tend towards Dream Initiated Lucid Dreams (DILDs). By performing reality checks regularly throughout your waking day, you will enhance your awareness of the waking state and be much more likely to recognize the dreamstate. Soon you will spontaneously perform a reality check in a dream, exposing the nature of the dream reality and giving you instant dream control.

Meditation is the exploration of the subconscious mind. When you meditate deeply, you can experience some fascinating phenomena, including hallucinations, feelings of euphoria and sudden insights. Meditation tunes you in to your waking reality on new levels, and helps you feel more at peace in your daily life.

Research has linked meditation with easy lucid dreaming for several reasons. First, it trains you to enter altered states of awareness on demand. Second, it bridges the gap between your conscious and unconscious brain. And third, it makes you more self-aware, helping you to recognize the unreality of the dream world and become lucid more often.

Start by introducing a simple 10-minute meditation into your daily routine, such as an easy breathing exercise. To access deeper meditative states, I like to listen to brainwave entrainment. I find it deeply soothing and it gives me the opportunity to improve my visualization skills for my next Wake Induced Lucid Dream.

If you are serious about having regular lucid dreams, you do need to do a little research. It can help you latch on to the best induction methods for you, and learn easy ways to control and explore your conscious dream world. If you don't know the ropes, the whole process takes a lot longer to learn.

This part is easy. Lucid dreaming is becoming increasingly popular with books, websites, forums and even TV and movie coverage. You will find more than 100 free lucid dreaming articles on this website. And the more you think about lucid dreams during the day, the more likely you are to become conscious in your dreams at night. The more you understand about this amazing mind phenomenon, the sooner you will take to it.

If you are looking for a great introductory book on lucidity, read Exploring The World of Lucid Dreaming by Dr Stephen LaBerge and Howard Rheingold. It's a truly comprehensive and practical workbook for beginners and experts alike. Once you nail the easy lucid dreaming techniques, like dream journaling and reality checking, it's time to begin more involved methods. Get ready for some acronyms (the bane of any beginner's guide to lucid dreams).

So far, I have only offered methods for Dream Induced Lucid Dreams (where you start dreaming normally and become lucid from within the dreamstate). The most popular type of DILD is called Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams (MILD), created by Stephen LaBerge. I recommend starting out on this route, because DILDs often give way to spontaneous lucid dreams.

There is also a whole other category known as Wake Induced Lucid Dreams (WILDs). These were originally developed by Tibetan Buddhists in the form of Dream Yoga, which involves training yourself to go directly from waking to a lucid dream state. It involves falling asleep consciously and induces some strange phenomena linked with the out of body experience (OBE).

So there it is - easy lucid dreaming for beginners. Of course, a beginner's guide is only the start. Once you have found some effective ways to become lucid, you will have more questions about controlling and working with the alternate reality of lucid dreams. But that is another article altogether...

This section is for beginner lucid dreamers who understand how to become lucid - but find themselves flung into a crazy, unpredictable dreamscape. You may feel you have very little dream control and this is totally normal for beginners. That's because the dreamworld obeys very different laws compared to physical reality.

In the waking world, if you want something to happen (like walk forward three steps) you simply will it to happen and your body does the rest. As long as it's within the realm of physical possibility, control of your waking reality is easy.

In a lucid dream, the rules are changed. You are suddenly in possession of a ghostly, ethereal body that can run through walls and travel through time. The dreamworld cares little for Einstein and Newton. The dreamworld is governed by your subconscious mind, and it is your task to work with it - not against it.

The following articles may sound utterly bizarre to non-lucid dreamers, but if you have any lucid dreams under your belt you will begin to understand the language of the subconscious mind. You'll learn how to tame its logic and most importantly control your lucid dreams exactly how you want to.

How to prolong lucid dreams and enhance the clarity and consciousness of your guided dream. Includes a range of very easy dream stabilizing techniques.

How to control your dreams with clarity. My own first-hand lucid dream research with advice on how to actively control and manipulate your lucid dreams.

How to Maintain Dream Control

Three ways to maintain dream control when you start to lose lucidity. Plus, why dream control isn't always what your subconscious dreaming self wants most.

Learn how to create dream characters in your lucid dreams. These six ways of summoning new characters will help you understand the nature of dream control.

Setting a lucid dream intention means consciously planning an objective to fulfill to make your lucid dreams more rewarding. Find inspiration here...

Five lucid dream challenges for beginners: have flying dreams, taste delicious foods, run through walls, go star-gazing and talk to your subconscious mind...

Tibetan Dream Yoga is a similar practice to lucid dreaming in the ancient philosophy of Tibetan Buddhism. Explore new depths to lucidity.

Many people want to have lucid dreaming sex... but can beginners have erotic dreams? And is it ethical to pursue sexual fantasies while lucid dreaming?

Find out what happens when you look at your reflection in a lucid dream mirror... And how to use dream mirrors as portals to alternate dimensions.

Ever wanted to master flying in your lucid dreams? Here's your step-by-step flight training - from bouncing in meadows to rocketing through outer space!

Flying Dreams Infographic

Many beginners want to have flying dreams - but flying in lucid dreams isn't always so intuitive. Here's how to soar like a superhero on your lucid quest.