Vows and Limitations

**SpecterSlash** · 07-31-2013 12:38 PM

So this is going to sound weird but its true. Also, this is going to be a slightly long post so bear with me...
I was watching the anime hunter x hunter and learned something about vows and limitations.
If you vow on something and add a limitation or punishment to it, that would get stronger.
This is basically like making yourself do something and either a reward if you do it or a punishment if you don't such as treating yourself if you did a full week of exercise. I did a little more research on this and it turns out that adding a reward or a punishment to something would improve your mindset to actually DO something and IMPROVE that something. I tried this on my lucid dreaming abilities.

I made a forum post awhile back about an experiment on reading books and them increasing my lucidity by massive effects, mainly getting dreams lasting hours and vividness that can't even compare to normal lucid dreaming techniques. Forum: Reading Induced Lucid Dream
That was BEFORE I knew about vows and limitations. Once I found out about them, I vowed "I will only have a lucid dream if I read a story which I actually like and nothing else will cause me to have a dream". I thought it would help a lot at first but now this is the problem...

When I made the vow, It really got in my head and my mind probably took it too hard and stuck it right in there... I read a story which consists of loads of chapters and I've been getting loads of vivid dreams. Now that I've finished reading to book, I can't find anything else to read and I specifically vowed that I need to actually LIKE the story rather than just plainly read it. The problem is that I can't get the vow off of my head and now my lucid dreaming is turned off until I am able to read a good story. I tried forgetting about the vow but it doesn't seem to work.

The upside of this is that when I DO get a good story to read, it increases my lucidity to unimaginable levels. If you want to help me either do any of these 2 things:
A.) Send me a good story, preferably something I can read on the internets.
B.) Tell me how to remove this vow. (Though it would probably weaken my lucid dreaming abilities)

--Okay extremely long post, thanks to whoever read all this.

**Obviously** · 07-31-2013 01:30 PM

Haha, this was certainly out of the ordinary. I am no expert on this, but try making a counter-vow. It can be something like this; "After i am finished reading the next story my vow will be broken." Try thinking about it 24/7 and hopefully your brain will take it in like it did with the last vow.

Good luck!

**realdealmagic** · 07-31-2013 01:48 PM

I'm gonna say that it's all definitely placebo. These vows have no real hold on you, you can dissolve them whenever you please, if you so wish. Maybe use visualization with the image of the vow on a piece of paper, and burn it, and wash away the ash. The vow will be no more.

Or take it a step further and actually write it on a piece of paper, then burn it. Have the piece of paper symbolise the vow in your mind. That should get rid of it.

**Pabo3** · 07-31-2013 05:44 PM

In case you can't get the vow out of your head, try convincing yourself over a longer period of time that the vow doesn't affect you if you don't want to. However, I think I will be more useful and provide you with some stories I like.

- "The name of the wind" and "The fear of a wise man" (Chapters 1 and 2 of the same story) are some of my favourite books. Easy to read, with plenty of fun and jokes, but with also moments of mystery and tension.
- The hunger games (the entire saga) If you can bear / you like the moments of love, it's a pretty interesting story.
- The Witcher saga. So far I have only read the 1st book (The last wish or something like that) but I loved the story. I started reading it and couldn't put it down until I had finished.
- Skullduggery Pleasant saga. Truly fun and entertaining, and with plenty of mystery.
- Prequel, a weird comic only on the internet. Based on the Elder Scrolls saga, really fun, I read like 4 years of comics in a day when I found it. PREQUEL

And I'm sure there are more stories I'm forgetting... But if you decide to read this it will probably get you lucids for months.

Oh, and a crazy idea: Why don't you write your own side story about a book you like and read it? You may be able to trick your brain.

**Sensei** · 07-31-2013 10:41 PM

Honestly, in order to believe it more, I would say that you would have better luck in dream. Maybe next time you find a story and LD, you find a nen eraser and have him destroy the vow. Or have him extend the vow to being on a scale of 1-10 how you liked the book, and that is the amount of days it is effective. Changing your mind in dream should be able yo effect you on a subconscious level (if you let it and have enough dream control).

Also, instead of doing vows and limitations check out something like Hukif's "clockwork" in order to change your ideas about things. I have my own, but until further notice, it doesn't work as well.

Secondary option is creating a fake memory. Sit down in a dark quiet room and pretty much LDD about the event. Add as much detail to it as possible to make it seem more and more like it actually happened and it should stick as a memory that is contradictory to the other one.

Or! Check out H. P Lovecraft, Edgar Allen Poe, or other short story beasts out there.

a short story a day keeps Cthulu away! H. P. Also has tons of dream stories.

**SpecterSlash** · 08-01-2013 01:20 PM

Thanks for the replies guys! I've decided to not remove the vow because just after posting this, a friend sent me a good story to read and for some reasons I can't tell you what the story is. I got 3 dreams in 1 day and remember them quite clearly!

**Plathix** · 08-01-2013 04:32 PM

I completely agree with everyone here but it's been said so I won't repeat it.
But I can recommend some books.

The following links lead to the Wikipedia articles
1. All the currently released Unwind books (Unwind, Unstrung, and Unwholly)
2. Shadow Children series
3. The Pendragon series
4. The Missing series

Sorry I couldn't provide any free storys, but these are pretty good.