Thread: Any tips for Mantras?

I have also read this thing about the present tense. I'm not sure it's true, but I do it just in case. Or maybe try to avoid the future with "will", but use present continuous or "going to" instead. The subconscious may understand the future as something that can be put off, that's why they say the present tense is better.

Another thing they say is to avoid negative words. Many people believe the subconscious only understands positive orders.

Another curious thing I once heard is that a mantra for lucid dreaming is more effective if you don't say the phrase "lucid dream". For instance, "tonight, I realise I am dreaming" would apparently be more effective than "tonight, I have a lucid dream". I don't know why this is, but maybe it's because the first one sounds more dinamic.

Of course, the mantra has to be a short sentence, because the aim is that it sinks in, but I guess that's obvious.

Everyone is different for this. Some people will tell me what I said has worked the other way around for them, and that's perfectly okay. These are just a few tips I've been collecting over the last few months and they seem to work for me, so I hope this is helpful

^^ What she said.

Also, make sure your mantra has some meaning to you; maybe have it relate to your immediate dream goal, for instance.

So: Keep it short, simple, in the present tense, and meaningful to you.... that does seem to cover it.

I would like to add that you can make as much mantras as you fancy, and when MILDing just say the one or ones that sound nice at the moment.
You can even make up mantras each night, anything that suits you. Indeed, keeping it fresh will yield more results. You don't need to stick to one mantra, and you shouldn't.

Seems legit, thanks for the help guys!

Originally Posted by LouaiB

I would like to add that you can make as much mantras as you fancy, and when MILDing just say the one or ones that sound nice at the moment.
You can even make up mantras each night, anything that suits you. Indeed, keeping it fresh will yield more results. You don't need to stick to one mantra, and you shouldn't.

Iv'e kinda been thinking about this one for awhile, and from I know you should use only one mantra so it will be consistent in your head. Is this true or I can just make mantras up?

^^ You can just make mantras up. It is that the mantra is meaningful that matters, and not that it is the same as the one you used before.

Indeed, using the same mantra every time can lead to you simply reciting a word by rote, without giving it any thought or relevance. I think that a good way to keep your mantra important to you (and thus increasing its chances of doing its job and keeping you focused) is to change it to match your current desires or dream goals.

''I'm dreaming'' worked the best for me, only I said it in my language but that probably doesn't change anything.

Originally Posted by Sageous

^^ You can just make mantras up. It is that the mantra is meaningful that matters, and not that it is the same as the one you used before.

Indeed, using the same mantra every time can lead to you simply reciting a word by rote, without giving it any thought or relevance. I think that a good way to keep your mantra important to you (and thus increasing its chances of doing its job and keeping you focused) is to change it to match your current desires or dream goals.

Thanks again sageous, I know this kinda seems obvious by now but i'm the kinda guy who needs to get everything confirmed
So does it really matter if you say "I will lucid dream" or "I will realise i'm dreaming"(or does it matter putting the phrase "lucid dream" in the mantra?)

Yeah I know...

Originally Posted by HeWhoShapes

So does it really matter if you say "I will lucid dream" or "I will realise i'm dreaming"(or does it matter putting the phrase "lucid dream" in the mantra?)

No, it doesn't matter -- unless of course you make it matter. Choosing and repeating a mantra is more art than equation; your choice of words tends to be much less important than what that choice means to you. Also, no need to include "lucid dream" in the phrase... if you're going to the trouble of selecting and repeating a mantra, you likely already know you desire a LD, and you will remember that you want to have one as you repeat your mantra. In other words, "fluffy pink ferrets" could work just as well for you as a mantra, if that phrase carries personal meaning to you and your lucid goals.

One "equation" thing that does carry some power, though: You might be better off using present tense in your mantra, like "I am dreaming," rather than future tense, like "I will lucid dream." Apparently setting your desire in the future has a tendency of leaving it in the future during your dream; better to realize that you are dreaming during the dream, rather than acknowledging that you will dream!

Thanks again!. You give really good advice (but you already know that don't you?)

Sageous explained it very well!

And about repeating the same mantra to make it stick, it isn't the mantra that sticks, but the intention.

You see, as you practice more an intention, your prospective memory (the one responsible for reminding you to do things in the future) gets more 'used' to it, and thus execute it better, or easier.

So don't worry about changing mantras, the intention to LD will still get stronger and stronger, it was never about the mantra wording, but about the intention to LD, which is within each mantra you choose and make up.

I usually don't use a static mantra, most of the time I end up telling myself a monologue about how I will dream and I will realize it.