Spiritual Dimensions of Lucid Dreaming

Spiritual Dimensions of Lucid Dreaming

Fariba Bogzaran, Ph.D.
JFKU University.

At the time of night-prayer, as the sun sets,
the route the senses walk on closes the route to the invisible opens.
The angel of sleep then gathers and drives along the spirits.
The Spirit sees astounding beings, turtles turned to men,
men turned to angels, when sleep erases the banal.
I think one could say the spirit goes back to its old home.
Rumi

The mystery of dreams remains as strong as ever but as the inquiry into human consciousness evolves and the secrets of age old
traditions are revealed to more people, we are learning more about the enormous possibilities of the dreaming mind.

Lucid dreaming- a phenomenon within sleep when the dreamer is fully aware that he or she is dreaming (van Eeden, 1913) is one of those mysterious dimensions which, when deeply explored, reveals its vast potential.

In lucid dreaming, different levels of intentionality can be carried out such as transforming images, or ego splitting (Tholey, 1983), experiencing the Divine (Bogzaran, 1990; Hewitt, 1988; Kelzer, 1987; LaBerge, 1985), healing (Garfield, 1974), meeting the deceased (Keelin, 1992), witnessing (Gackenbach & Bosveld, 1989), entering hyperspace (Bogzaran, 1996), and encountering the light (Gillespie, 1983). In my years of practice and teaching lucid dreaming, I have come to realize that the essence of lucid dreaming is the practice of awakening.

Since consciousness is a continuum from waking to dreaming, seeking lucidity in our dreams naturally leads to lucidity in each moment of our waking life. This lucidity then help us to be a witness to how we live our lives, the quality of choices we make and deeper self inquiry such as: Am I in right livelihood? Am I in right relations? This lucidity practice assist us in becoming present to our essential self and lead us to
authentic living and dying.

Lucid dreaming is a form of spiritual practice and in order to explore this dimension of dreaming, preparation is needed to little by little awaken the mind. This "awareness skill", assists us to expand the dimensions of our consciousness to become the lucid participants in the dream and at the same time witness the creation of our mind, observe the choices we have made and carry on a particular intention in the dream.

The Tibetan Buddhist practice of "Dream Yoga" (lucid dreaming) is to realize that both waking perceptions and sleeping dreams are products of the mind, "illusion" (Evans-Wentz, 1935). Namkhai Norbu (1992), a contemporary Tibetan master of the Dzogchen tradition, explains that the practice of the night is a series of mantras and disciplines that one practices before falling asleep. The intent is to fall asleep consciously so that one can be conscious throughout the night.

Norbu explains that it is possible to experience two different kinds of dreams: karmic dreams, which originate from our daily problems,
difficulties, memories, etc., and clarity dreams, which are dreams not related to the day residue events, and that show images that we
have never seen. If one does dream yoga practice, one may become lucid and conscious in the dream (Norbu, 1992).

Over thirty five years ago Scott Sparrow explored the topic of the spiritual in lucid dreaming in his book Lucid Dreaming: Dawning of the Clear Light. Sparrow gives many examples of his own spiritual experience in lucid dreaming, in particular his encounter with the Light.(Sparrow, 1976, p. 49) Psychotherapist and writer Kenneth Kelzer also (1987) believes that the primary purpose of cultivating lucidity is to attain union with the Light or union with God. Most reports of experiencing the Divine in lucid dreams tell of feelings of ecstasy and joy.

The Sufi master Pir Vilayat Khan advocates lucid dreaming as a Spiritual practice and encourages one to be engaged in "an impersonal will instead of a personal will." The personal will in lucid dreaming relates to the self-image. He compares lucid dreaming with meditation, which is "identifying with the universal, impersonal dimension of being." For Pir Vilayat Khan (1986), in order to move from the personal will to the universal will in a lucid dream, the lucid dreamer needs to observe the reality. This is similar to "witnessing" in Transcendental Meditation (TM). When Pir Vilayat Khan was asked whether this state of awareness is similar to Nidra yoga (lucid dreaming), he replied:

Yes, however, I have so far spoken only of the first stage of Nidra yoga, which consists of being able to dream consciously, but the next stage consists in being able to awaken from the dream world into the Reality beyond all forms. This is the ultimate Awakening. (Pir Vilayat Khan,1986, p.124)

Lucid dreaming as a way of life and a spiritual practice takes time and commitment. Such practices do impact our habits, our core beliefs and assumptions, our life style and choices, our relation to others and the world. The spiritual dimensions of lucid dreaming can appear to us in surprising ways, from a personified deity or impersonal forms such as light and non-representational imagery. (Bogzaran, 1990). For example one possible spiritual experience might be an encounter with a spiritual being. With continuous practice one might eventually become one with the essence of this spiritual form.

In many spiritual traditions, techniques of lucidity are not taught unless the dreamer has made a commitment to a number of years of meditation practice. However, in the past two decades in the West as lucid dreaming became popular as a psychological tool for personal growth, some spiritual teachers from traditions such as Tibetan, Hindu, and Sufi began sharing their teachings so that students might also receive the spiritual aspects of lucid dreaming.

In my years of teaching and practice on the spiritual dimensions of lucid dreaming, I have emphasized the importance of an integral approach toward the practice of lucid dreaming. This approach includes physiological, psychological, emotional, energetic and spiritual awareness. Briefly, the following are some of the essential components of this practice:

1. Body Awareness: We are a whole beings and how we treat our physical body impacts our dreaming mind. Diet and physiological spiritual practices such as Yoga, Ta'i Chi, Qi Gong are essential to open to the subtle energies and balance the mind and body.

2. Meditation: Practice of meditation awakens the observing self or witness within which is essential in lucid dreaming.

3. Reality Check: In Tibetan Buddhism, asking the question "Is this a dream" allows the practitioner to reexamine the present reality. Am I awake? Am I dreaming?

4. Intentionality: Setting an intention for spiritual dreaming creates the likelihood of experiencing dreams related to our intention. Intention as a spiritual invocation is a very powerful and transformative daily practice. For example, our dream experience can be directly affected by the way we incubate the following intentions.

"I Want to be in the presence of the Great Spirit,"
"I want to seek God,"
"I want to experience the Highest,"
"Let me be in the presence of the Divine."

5. Incubation: Intention as a spiritual practice involves incubating ones intention before falling asleep for a period of time, e.g.: two weeks. For example each night one might say "Tonight when I am dreaming I want to be lucid and I want to be in the presence of Divine."

6. Breathing: During incubation one observes the inhalation and exhalation of the breath..

The above mentioned practices are some of the basic tools for invoking the spiritual in lucid dreaming..

One archetypal spiritual experience in lucid dreaming is of the light. The experience of inner light is often the transition point from the familiar dreamscape to unfamiliar spaces of the mind. My own experience of encountering the light, being close to the light, going through the light, merging with the light and being in light has opened many inner dimensions and teachings. The experience of light in lucid dreams is one of great joy, ecstasy, bliss and oneness with the spirit world. Researcher George Gillespie (1986) of the University of Pennsylvania has experimented with a variety of transpersonal lucid dreams and light. For him, often the light appears while he is in darkness or when he is in some religious activity. Gillespie (1991a) created 16 categories of visual experiences in lucid dreaming:

1. Ordinary dream light: perceived images
2. Bright, clear dreams
3. Areas of bright light
4. Room light
5. Imprecise visual environment
6. Memory and imagination
7. Uniform darkness
8. Textures in darkness
9. Patterns in darkness: lines or herringbone designs, dots close together, chess board pattern, parallel lines; often gray
10. Hypnagogic-type images
11. Minor lights: points of lights (similar to stars but not stars); small lines (like lightning but not lightning); Lack color and are not representational. Appear after elimination of the visual environment
12. Disks of light: can be mistaken for a moon or planet; can be fixed or moving
13. Patterns of light: changing versions of lattices, lines, dots, and colors
14. Content-less light only: variations of light; can appear in the sky
15. Light with sun only: light from the sun and variations of the sun in different colors with rays
16. Fullness of light: covers the field with brilliant light; white light
appears that is difficult to look at; followed by spontaneous feeling of joy; the space of being in the presence of God.

Spiritual dimensions of lucid dreaming open the doors to vast and infinite possibilities of the depths of the Mind. This exploration is a form of awakening to a larger Reality. Preparation and practice is essential to explore these realms so that the spiritual wisdom of these experiences reveals itself for the benefit of the individual and the awakening of human consciousness to its Divine nature.

References

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