This is my review of The Lucid Dreaming MP3 by Meditation Power. This is an isochronic brainwave entrainment recording, designed to induce states of meditation as you relax at night. From this quieter mental state, I find you can more easily open the gateway to lucid dreams.I highly recommend it for beginners in lucid dreaming and those wanting to explore altered states of consciousness.
Dream research shows that meditation improves your ability to enter altered states of awareness on demand, making it an excellent primer for lucid dreaming. This can be applied to both types of lucid dream induction - DILDs and WILDs.
I've used brainwave entrainment for almost a decade (and much of my active lucid dreaming life). It's a useful tool for exploring that dreamy borderland sleep-wake state from which blissful meditation, lucid dreams and OBEs can arise. I also use it for relaxation, escaping the stresses of everyday life, and dream programming.
Listening to brainwave entrainment helps you to relax your mind and body faster, and enter a deeper meditation than you might otherwise achieve. If you haven't experienced real meditation before, it's quite hard to grasp what effect entrainment can have. I recommend you try it out yourself and analyze your experience, which can differ between individuals as meditation is a very subjective realm.
Generally though, brainwave entrainment designed for lucid dreaming can take you to new states of consciousness by creating:
Deep physical and mental relaxationClarity of thought and a sense of inner peaceHypnagogia (seeing swirling colors and patterns)Feelings of drifting / floating above the bedEmerging dream scenes and lucid dreams Meditation Power's Lucid Dreaming MP3 uses the latest brainwave entrainment technology, called isochronic tones, to produce a scientifically proven effect.
Every day, your brain passes through many difference frequencies which dictate your level of brainwave activity. Your most active mental state is usually in the Beta range (13-40 cycles per second) which is associated with high concentration. When you become more relaxed, yet alert, with openness to creativity, you enter the Alpha range (8-13 cycles per second).
Meditation, dreams and light sleep are associated with Theta frequencies (4-7 cycles per second) while deep sleep is marked by Delta (0.5-4 cycles per second). Armed with this knowledge, sound engineers have created recordings that shape your level of consciousness with descending frequencies.
This effect has been measured in the lab using EEG machines, and over the years people have extracted all kinds of applications for the technology - from inducing lucid dreams and OBEs, to creating super learning states for students.
Brainwave entrainment doesn't use any spoken words, so it's unlike hypnosis. In fact, it's a far more automatic response, so you don't need to do anything special to feel the effect (other than lay down peacefully, as if you are going to sleep).
My preferred Lucid Dreaming MP3s sound like distant white noise, disguised by the relaxing sounds of rainfall, waves or flowing streams. Meditation Power's MP3 is ideal and unlike some recordings, contains no distracting music or verbal cues (which can disrupt or completely ruin the effect anyway).
As I mentioned before, everyone responds to brainwave entrainment a little differently. The most important factor is probably how relaxed and attuned you allow yourself to become; how willing you are to just "go with it". Nonetheless, there are some common features we can all look out for when listening.
Within the first few minutes, you'll begin to feel mentally relaxed and your mind chatter will disappear. This is normally quite difficult to achieve through a silent breathing meditation unless you are well-practiced, so it's very good for beginners.
Soon, you'll be led into a deeper state of mental and physical relaxation, marked by hypnagogic imagery (the swirling light patterns that appear when you fall asleep at night) as well as imagined tactile sensations such as floating or drifting.
This is a great place to be for lucid dreaming. You'll have a sense of timelessness and freedom, because your mind is still and you can enjoy just "being". It's a powerful stress reliever. And best of all, you'll find you can start to create dreamscapes with your mind, either out of the blackness or as an evolution of your hypnagogia.
The deeper you go, the more imaginary physical sensations you'll feel. If you keep your awareness with your body in bed, you may feel your arms and legs are in totally new positions. This can lead to other out-of-body phenomena, and it is possible to develop this into an Out of Body Experience, if you choose.
Personally, I prefer to create a dreamscape in my mind and propel my consciousness into a "dream body". This body may be running, swimming or walking through a dreamscape - it all helps to dissociate my mind from my half-asleep body in bed, so I can enter the lucid dreamworld.
Whichever method you choose - lucid dream or OBE - both scenarios mark the transitional state of entering a WILD. For my step-by-step induction method, see this article on Wake Induced Lucid Dreams.
Here are some useful tips to boost your success with The Lucid Dreaming MP3:
Listen in the early morning (after 5am) or during an afternoon nap. This is when your body's chemistry is just right for a lucid dream, after at least 4-6 hours sleep for most people. Your brain is also raring to dive into REM sleep. (I also recommend listening before sleep at night, but primarily as an opportunity to wind down and meditate.) Relax your body as if you're going to sleep. Take some deep breaths, get comfortable (I usually lay on my back) and focus on the relaxing sounds. Imagine your whole body going numb / becoming invisible / being weightless. Any fidgeting should quickly settle down after 1-2 minutes. If you have an itch, scratch it, but then return to your comfortable position. Set the scene with visualization. To ease your mind into the meditation, create an imagined scene that matches the sounds you're hearing. With this MP3, I like to imagine sitting under a pergola in an Oriental garden, watching the rain pour down around me. When visual hypnagogia arises, go with that instead. You can create any desired dreamscene when the meditation is deep enough. For detailed instructions, see my article on How to Visualize.This Lucid Dreaming MP3 is available at the Meditation Power store. I've evaluated many brainwave entrainment products and this one is my favorite because:
It uses isochronic tones - the latest in brainwave entrainment technologyIt's the most peaceful sound - which helps me relax fasterNo headphones required - so play it out loud on your smartphoneNo verbal distractions or music - which can ruin the entrainmentNo experience required - ideal meditation practice for beginnersIt's good value - $19.95 for a lengthy 45-minute recordingBy listening to brainwave entrainment regularly, you will see some serious development of your meditation skills, which is a great primer for lucidity via DILDs. It is also excellent for exploring altered states of consciousness and inducing WILDs. It is scientifically verified and completely safe to use, without the need for any chemically mind-altering drugs. I highly recommended it for lucid dreamers.
Isochronic tones are a modern and scientifically proven form of brainwave entrainment technology. 
The primary goal of listening to entrainment is to relieve stress and experience a good, deep meditation. I recommend all lucid dreamers practice meditation on a daily basis - so if you're not skilled or practiced in the art, then brainwave entrainment can be considered your helping hand.