Lucid Dream: Tool or Distraction?

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Lucid Dream: Powerful Tool or Distraction?

by David Rivinus

A lucid dream is one in which the dreamer becomes aware that he is dreaming. This awareness is often triggered by a startling event in the dream. The following hypothetical example represents a classic scenario in which the dreamer begins to notice something unusual and starts to analyze his own situation. He thinks to himself, “Oh look! There’s a hippopotamus in ballet slippers. Wait a minute! Hippos don’t wear ballet slippers. This has to be a dream, so I guess I’m dreaming.”

Another type of trigger is the one I experienced when I first began to dream lucidly. Like the dreamer above, I vaguely became aware of watching a scene unfold in my consciousness. The more I looked, the more I knew that I had witnessed all of these events before. My sense of déjà vu caused me to be perplexed and to pull back, viewing the unfolding events from an even greater distance. At that point, I thought to myself, “Oh yeah. I know what’s going on; this is a dream.”

Once one becomes aware of being in the middle of a dream, one tries to stay aware while taking charge of the dream events that occur. This can take lots of practice. For example, in the dream about the hippo, a common outcome in a lucid dream is to be so startled by realizing that one is watching one’s own dream that one wakes up from sleep. Over time and with considerable honing of skills, one can learn not to be startled: “Oh. There’s a hippo in ballet slippers. I must be in a dream. Well, what should I do now? I think I’ll go over and make friends with the animal; I’ll tickle the hippo under its chin.” Then, the trick is to stay focused and concentrated enough that the goal – in this case tickling – actually gets accomplished. For many dreamers, fulfilling such a task is difficult.

OM Times is a leading voice of the Conscious Community with articles covering the full spectrum of Conscious Living. Click here to see all we share.