Thread: Inception Question: dream within a dream

This is a "yes and no" type of question. I have had "dreams within dreams." That is; I have gone to sleep in a dream, had a completely unrelated dream, and then woke back up in the original dream.

HOWEVER, I don't believe that this is an actual matter of having a "dream within a dream," as much as it is a matter of just having one dream, that creates the illusion of going to sleep again and having another dream within it.

And welcome to DreamViews!

There isn't actually such a thing as a "dream within a dream". You can have dreams that seem like that, though - you go to bed in a dream, then another one begins with you getting up out of bed. Like Oneironaut said, it's just a few dreams that create the illusion that you're actually waking up or falling asleep.

thanks for the welcome, and ya thats what i was thinking. If you went to sleep in a dream and entered another dream, it could just be a illusion of the original dream.. But in your situation did you go to sleep in your dream on purpose? and if so did you feel more deep in the dream world? I feel like it is possible because you can do anything in a dream that you can in real life so dreaming in a dream should work?

Originally Posted by Puffin

There isn't actually such a thing as a "dream within a dream". You can have dreams that seem like that, though - you go to bed in a dream, then another one begins with you getting up out of bed.

Not exactly. For example: I had a dream that I got drunk at a party and fell asleep in an alley, on a mattress. Then, the dream transitioned into a completely unrelated dream, where two versions of spider-man were fighting each other. Then, after that dream, I woke back up in the same alley, on the same mattress, and continued the dream from before. It's not the same as a false awakening, where you just go to sleep and start the next dream by waking up in bed.

I guess what I'm trying to understand is what would be the difference with the dream and the dream within a dream, maybe you can get more control and a longer time in the dream within the dream like inception describes? i doubt it.. Ether way it would be great practice to master lucid dreaming.

Originally Posted by clockworkmma

I guess what I'm trying to understand is what would be the difference with the dream and the dream within a dream, maybe you can get more control and a longer time in the dream within the dream like inception describes? i doubt it.. Ether way it would be great practice to master lucid dreaming.

As far as all that is concerned, then I would have to say there is no difference. As far as we know, dreams don't have "levels," in which things are different on one level than they are on another. A dream is just a dream. So there really are no increases in ability, from having a 'dream within a dream.'

Originally Posted by Oneironaut

As far as all that is concerned, then I would have to say there is no difference. As far as we know, dreams don't have "levels," in which things are different on one level than they are on another. A dream is just a dream. So there really are no increases in ability, from having a 'dream within a dream.'

ya i guess so but that is crazy how you woke up from your second dream back into the original , im going to try that next time i LD.

I have experienced a dream within a dream as Oneironaut has. Time seemed to move slower in the 2nd dream (don't know how much), and I also felt more stable in that dream and less likely for it to fade out or to wake up.

obviously it is impossible to share dreams

There are people who say its possible and they had done it, true or not, I wouldn't be so quick to underestimate the possibilities of the human brain

i know how you guys feel with my immediate opinions, i do think you can probably dream withing a dream sharing dreams seem a little crazy

it will become too unstable, and you will become limbo...

nah, just kidding I think you maybe can do this in some way.

I had one the other day. To me, it is what it seemed to be. A dream about having a dream within dream. This is from my DJ:
I'm dreaming (non-lucid) that I'm having a sleepover with a couple of friends of mine.
Not doing anything special, except practicing a few MMA moves with one of my friends, we decide to call it a night.
I lay down in my bunk-bed and go to sleep. Now I start dreaming that I'm walking around in the city with a cigar.
I walk for quite a long time, smoking my cigar and looking a the big crowds of people walking past.
Suddenly it starts raining an my cigar starts to melt, as if it was made of chocolate. As I'm smoking my now melting cigar, I fall down this hill. The crowds of people start laughing, but my only concern was to get my cigar to light up.
I wake up, however, I'm still in the room were I started. My friends are sleeping and I wake one of them up to tell him my dream.
Can't remember how it ends from here, I either start dreaming something else and not remembering it or I just wake up.
As for shared dreaming being "obviously" impossible, remember that we do really know all there is about dreams or dreaming. In fact, we hardly understand how the universe works.
Inception style shared dreaming seems a bit to advanced to be possible though.