How does Meditation help?

[Solarflare]

topic

[Katsuno]

Meditation helps in many ways, but some techniqes are more specialised in 1 aspect than the other. For example Void Meditation helps with increasing your overall awareness, amongst other things like relaxing and clearing your mind. Focal Meditation especially helps with getting more focused and such. Since I meditate I'm more calm, can fall asleep way faster (before it was like 30 minutes now almost within 1), also I'm more focused and aware. There are alot more things in which meditation can help. You can ask the member ShockWave as he was the leader of the meditation course on the DVA in which I participated or you can just google it I hope this cleared up some things for you.

[Solarflare]

Can you list some more types of meditation?

[Mancon]

It clears your mind and allows you to focus on one subject. Like I say a lot, confidence helps A LOT when coming to lucid dreaming. You have to believe you CAN do it and lucid dreaming is easy and it will be! If you meditate on it and focus on how you will lucid dream it greatly increases your chances of having a lucid dream. Good luck!

[Jezu]

I would think that it makes it easier for you to control your dreams, because if you find it really easy to clear your mind, then you'd find it easy to change something in the dream. Improves willpower, I guess. I've never tried it, though.

[Solarflare]

Thanks for the answers everyone ^-^

[ReachingForTheDream]

I'm not sure why or how it helped me, but it helped. A long while ago I decided to dabble in meditation for the first time. I started with chakra meditation. Who knows if I was even doing it right, but I just somehow did it. It's funny, I even remember that night I couldn't sleep after doing it, which is something that meditation encourages. But after that I started getting LD mayhem. Like every 2-3 nights was a lucid if not more often. Before I had done the meditation I would rarely get them, in fact, at that point I was even having a dry spell. After like a year of recording dreams, studying induction techniques, ect., I was having so much trouble. But somehow this meditation just broke the dry spell. Eventually the effects did diminish, as other things in life just got in the way. However, it only took that one meditation session to get all of that. The first time meditating since that time was actually today. I have no idea how or why but man it turned my LDing around. Maybe it was just a raising of self-awareness, an encouragement of lucidity in the waking life. But I can tell you I have never had much success with any technique - but somehow this did it. You might not get results like I did if you try it. Hell, most people don't seem to need to resort to things like meditation; I seem to have a knack for not being able to LD easily. But I would encourage you to at least try it; even if it doesn't help you LD it will help you with your waking peace of mind.

[Puffin]

Meditation has helped to raise my self-awareness and awareness of what's around me - for instance, I can hear the tiniest of sounds that I wasn't previously able to hear (I wasn't capable of focusing enough before), and really be "in the moment". All those benefits are great for lucid dreaming, and I'm sure there are more!

[NightSpy2]

Yea meditation can help take your mind of things going on in life as well, and just help you to relax, and just... be.

[Dark_Merlin]

I've noticed through meditation I've been able to focus more as well, combined with ADA. I now notice how my body feels, I see more detail in objects, I see more scenery of the places I'm in, I hear things I never used to and I now pick up on slight smells from around me. This helps create the desired effect of ADA, being able to tell when you're dreaming simply because it feels different. Focal meditation on a mantra has also helped me get most (if not all) of my LD's. I'd consider all my LD's MILD because I use my mantras every day. Focusing on these mantras while meditating allows you to block out all the outside thought and doubt that says "What if?" "Why can't I?" "It won't happen" and simply leaves you with the mantra you're repeating over and over. Other than that meditation also feels fantastic, I meditate whenever I feel tired, angry or stressed and I instantly feel much better and my thoughts become much clearer

[Solarflare]

Thanks, and how do you meditate? I mean you personally. Do you just sit like this or do you do more?

[Katsuno]

I meditate like this: At first I get into a comfortable position (anything but lying down because this makes you fall asleep) and start to count my breaths. I do this till I reach 30. It doesn't matter if your mind wanders as long as you keep getting back when you notice it. You can also focus on a image in your mind or a spot on your body. Whatever feels good for you is fine. This is Focal meditation. What I do isn't recommended for beginners (it took me about 4 weeks of practice) because I chain multiple techniques together. Another method would be void meditation. When I do this I just try to clear my mind a little and then be aware of all my senses at once. You could say that this is like focal meditation but it isn't because you don't focus on one specific thing. Whenever a thought comes into my mind I just ignore it or force it away and get back to the awareness. This is however just one way of void meditating. Well these two techniques are the main structures of meditating. They can differ in their details however.

[faceonmars]

I practice a form of visual meditation to attain altered consciousness (including lucid dreaming) . I have been doing this for years and would highly recommend it.

[fOrceez]

You can meditate in whatever position you're comfortable, however, lying down is often avoided as you may fall asleep! ^_^ Meditation may not directly help lucidity but very much helps your recall as it helps you relax. I've found that after meditating consistently for a week or so, my dreams have started to feel very real. Not just that i'm watching a movie but that i'm actually in my dream body, feeling my body move, etc.

[Solarflare]

my god, there are so much types of meditations my god! I dont know which ones i should do. But i will try focus meditation tonight. namely this Practicing Focused Meditation: How To Clear Your Mind With Focus

[NightSpy2]

I meditate like this: At first I get into a comfortable position (anything but lying down because this makes you fall asleep) and start to count my breaths. I do this till I reach 30. It doesn't matter if your mind wanders as long as you keep getting back when you notice it. You can also focus on a image in your mind or a spot on your body. Whatever feels good for you is fine. This is Focal meditation. What I do isn't recommended for beginners (it took me about 4 weeks of practice) because I chain multiple techniques together. Another method would be void meditation. When I do this I just try to clear my mind a little and then be aware of all my senses at once. You could say that this is like focal meditation but it isn't because you don't focus on one specific thing. Whenever a thought comes into my mind I just ignore it or force it away and get back to the awareness. This is however just one way of void meditating. Well these two techniques are the main structures of meditating. They can differ in their details however. Just like in Shockwave's class! Haha, I had a look at that. It was quite helpful

[dreamcatcher81]

I choose to do meditation on my back laying down,it helps center me, relax, and boost energy all at the same time Its gd for ld's 2 lol. namaste.

[Solarflare]

Just dont fall asleep

[SilverBullet]

I don't really see how meditation helps anything. If it's just clearing your mind and expanding your awareness temporarily then hell, I don't have to sit still for an hour to do that.

[ReachingForTheDream]

I don't really see how meditation helps anything. If it's just clearing your mind and expanding your awareness temporarily then hell, I don't have to sit still for an hour to do that. Don't quote me on it, but I think the goal of meditation is that you feel that lucidity constantly. The idea is that the results are not supposed to be temporary, but trained so that they are permanent. Meditation, for that reason, is also a good trainer for discipline. It also helps with increased focus, better self esteem, ect. It's more than just sitting there and doing nothing. Mind you, you can meditate for like 10 minutes and still feel results. Long-term is generally for trances and OBE stuff, or at least for me it is anyways.

[guitardreamer]

How exactly do you meditate? I mean, what do you think about and stuff...?

[SilverBullet]

Don't quote me on it, but I think the goal of meditation is that you feel that lucidity constantly. The idea is that the results are not supposed to be temporary, but trained so that they are permanent. Meditation, for that reason, is also a good trainer for discipline. It also helps with increased focus, better self esteem, ect. It's more than just sitting there and doing nothing. Mind you, you can meditate for like 10 minutes and still feel results. Long-term is generally for trances and OBE stuff, or at least for me it is anyways. I'm aware of myself most of the day. Maybe that's why I get lucids a lot. I have trained myself before in a form of meditation, but I don't need to sit still to do it. Infact if I sit still and close my eyes it's harder. It's called shutting off the internal dialogue. It's pretty difficult but I can stop my thoughts for a little while.

[ReachingForTheDream]

I'm aware of myself most of the day. Maybe that's why I get lucids a lot. I have trained myself before in a form of meditation, but I don't need to sit still to do it. Infact if I sit still and close my eyes it's harder. It's called shutting off the internal dialogue. It's pretty difficult but I can stop my thoughts for a little while. Damn, well, I'd say your lucky I don't get many LDs at all and definitely forget to keep aware of myself. Like you, I can clear my mind and be aware of myself without sitting still and closing my eyes, but I think that taking the time to do so helps me remember to do so more. At least that's my experience anyways.

[Robot_Butler]

Through meditation, you can become familiar with the way your mind works. You can learn to manipulate your own thoughts, your state of mind, and your state of consciousness.

[ninja9578]

Yes, when you meditate you change from external focus to internal, exactly the same way you do it when you dream.