New to Lucid Dreaming

Dream recall is very important, so it is good that you have good recall. The main thing is to review the dreams, and reach for the memories, during wakings at night.
I recommend using a voice recorder at night: it is fast, not very disruptive to sleep (you can do it in the dark without moving, especially if you use a voice-activated voice recorder app/device), and you can transcribe to a written journal during the day, typing on the computer, or written in a hand journal. The practice is very beneficial I believe to strengthening your connection to dreams.

How vivid are your dreams? How much detail do you recall? Do you recall dreams from every waking (after the first one or two?)? Do you notice every waking during the night? Do you feel like your dreams are hazy/unaware, or do they feel like an "alternate life," indistinguishable from waking life?

You haven't found the key message in the book that I wanted you to find. Look in the practice section, especially the two introductory pages at the start of the practice section, and the pages that describe the day practice. You should find passages that indicate what the most profound / required steps/methods are to achieve lucidity in dream. Write back when you think you've found them.

What you've written about the visualizations is about the night practices. He also writes about something else you need to do in preparing for the night, something to do with your mindset, see if you can find that.

> So in Dream Yoga Emphasis is on Visualization.

I think this is not the main message of the book. This is part of the night-practice, yes. But there is a more important message there that I want you to find, as mentioned above.

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Originally Posted by devotee013

Thank You FryingMan

I think that If I simply Recall my Dreams and write it down in my Dream Journal that should help me become Lucid. Am I correct ?
Problem with my Dream Journal is that I find it difficult to type the entire Dream in my Email using my Phone.
I have to keep on typing for a long time and I find it difficult to do so. It takes a Long time typing on the phone. I am not used to typing on the phone.
And I also feel Lazy mainly because I have become good at dream recall. So recalling dreams is not a problem. Problem is I find it Lazy to write down my Entire Dream.

Also I have read the book The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep and in this the Author Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche says that you have to imagine Chakra with 4 petals in you throat or in your Heart. Right now I visualize a 12 petal Chakra in my Heart.
You also have to Visualize the Letter A inside the Chakra.
The teaching says that focusing on this chakra produces gentle dreams.
So in Dream Yoga Emphasis is on Visualization. So This is Why I am Following the Practice of Visualization.

Any Comments ?

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If you're using a phone, rather than a computer, and finding it difficult, I would focus on using a paper journal (or voice recorder if you prefer). I use a lighted pen. Also, it's important to write them down in the middle of the night, right when they're fresh, rather than in the morning. You will remember more details if you do this. It definitely helps with lucidity. I do think writing dreams down sets a stronger intention than speaking dreams into a recorder. That's just me, it could be different for you.

I think the book you read is good, but I also think it's a bit more advanced. I would start with DILD methods before jumping into WILD methods or dream yoga. Good luck.

I Plan to Continue Visualization for the Next 3 Months.

I encourage you to address the questions in my recent posts.

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Originally Posted by FryingMan

I encourage you to address the questions in my recent posts.

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Hi FryingMan,

Right Now I have just started reading the books and it is still not complete.

I think I will write down my dreams in my email, this is for easy access.

Practice of Visualization is Part of my Daytime Meditation. I hope this type of meditation should help me achieve Lucid dreams.
Yesterday night I did meditation for 20 mins and in the morning I had good dreams. But I could remember and write down only the last 4-5 seconds of the dream.

I do not recall Dreams Every Day. But Yes I am able to recall Dreams in Detail.
History of recording dreams.
14the June,19th June,28 June, 2nd July to 9the Sep...On and off .. like 3 dreams per week.
Sept - 14th,16th,19th,21, and today 22.

How vivid are your dreams?
My Dreams are Not Vivid but I remember the Story.

How much detail do you recall?
I do recall dreams in detail. I remember the story.. and what scenes happened like a vision..
Most of my dreams are not black and white they have color. But I have not had many vivid dreams.

Here is an example.
"I was standing with a Group of people my friends.. suddenly the land cracked...it started shaking... Huge tree branches were coming out of the ground.. the branches were in a sleeping position... I and my friends started running... We were climbing the sleeping branches and were on top of the branches avoiding the cracking Land...it was Like an Earthquake...the Earthquake started spreading with branches coming out of the ground ..we ran into the forest....we got separated... there was a Lion... It said don't get separated... And then people gathered near me...."
I was able to remember them like how you remember a movie. But yes I am not able to write down the complete dreams even if I remeber the dream.

Do you recall dreams from every waking (after the first one or two?)?
I have kept an Alarm for 04:30 am. After I wake up at 04:30 I sometime recall dreams at 04:30. then I go back to sleep. And in the scond part I recall 2 dreams and I am able to write down 1 dream.

Do you notice every waking during the night?
Yes I am fully conscious after I wake up, but in the dream I am not conscious enough to recognize it is a dream. I have many dream which involve magical phenomena but still I fail to recognize the Dreams.

Do you feel like your dreams are hazy/unaware, or do they feel like an "alternate life," indistinguishable from waking life?
I do not have hazy dreams. All my dreams are clear. But I am not conscious enough to accept the fact that I am dreaming.
As I said I have had dreams involving Unusual Phenomenon.
e.g.:
Potholes in river and drowning.
Tall Dam protected by blue laser beam
Earthquake
running on the roof... etc...

I have a question. Do I start watching the series Magicians. So If I keep watching movie series about magic then many of my dreams will involve magic and that way I will become Lucid.
Is watching magical movie series a good Idea?


As I have said, I have still not completed reading the books. I am still reading.
But the message I got from reading books is to practice Visualization. So I plan to do this as a part of my Meditation Practice.

I hope you have a clear picture now.
Thanks for reading.
Waiting for your Reply.

I recommend working on remembering dreams from every night, as from what you write I think you need to build a closer connection to your dreams.

You should be able to recall at least something from almost every waking of the night, except perhaps the first or second cycle (but with practice you should eventually be able to recall at least a small piece from these cycles as well).

What section of TYoDaS are you reading now? If you've read about doing visualizations, then I assume you've read at least part of the practice section. The key ideas I want you to get for now are from the two page introduction to the practice section, and the description of the illusory form practice.

The ideas I want you to see are: what are the prerequisites to getting lucid in the dream state? What is more powerful than anything in getting lucid in the dream state? "Visualization" is not the answer here. Look it up, it's important.

From everything you've written I think you're more focused on attaining lucidity than on building a closer connection to all your dreams. The "dream connection" is the foundation of lucid dreaming.

Pay attention to experience in waking life. Recall moments from your day. Set the intention to notice and remember things from your waking day, and do the same with the night: set intention to pay attention to your dream experiences and to remember them when you wake up.

Move your attention closer and closer to the dream, begin by trying to recognize that you've woken up the very moment you wake up. Then remain still, and reach for your dream memories, and record them.

The biggest leap in dream awareness and connection came in my practice when I reached for dream memories on EVERY waking throughout the night.

I agree with Hilary: I think you should emphasize MILD over TYoDaS visualizations. I think TYoDaS has some very important messages that I'd like you to get from them, but you probably will get more results earlier if you first work on dream recall, dream awareness, waking attention and lucidity, and setting specific goals and forming strong intent.

Do both daytime and nighttime MILD, along with sometimes doing WBTB. Experiment with what time and how long you stay up. IMO there is nothing more powerful for LDing than WBTB with setting intent to LD as you fall back asleep.

If I was told I had to have an LD or something horrible would happen, that's what I'd do: set super strong intent to LD, perform daytime and nighttime MILD, and do WBTB in the 3-5 hour range (experiment to find the best time for you), and keep my mind on my dreams and lucid dreaming during the day. And go all out on dream recall.

And through it all, maintain a sense of humor and playfulness about the practice, and try to enjoy it! The more positive and relaxed you are, the faster your progress will be.

Hi FryingMan,

After reading your reply I took your advice. Today morning I had a dream but when I woke up I could not remember the dream. But I remembered what you had written ,that I should maintain a dream journal and remember all my dreams every night . So I decided to write.
Here is what I wrote.
I wrote little in my Dream Journal, but I have re-written the story in detail.
I think I am Really Stupid.
It was a Long dream. The whole theme of the dream was about becoming Lucid... But I did not become Lucid even Once.
Here is how the Dream story goes...

"An evil man was torturing and Killing people in the name of Lucid dreaming by giving them Lucid dreaming Supplements....
The Lucid Dreaming Supplement come in the form of eye drops. But he also used magic. He gives the Lucid dreamers a Ring and an arm bracelet when activated helps them do unusual thing while Lucid. The whole environment was like a dream environment. Anyone can have supernatural abilities because this whole story is a dream.... The dream place had a Big palace where the evil man used to live and surrounded by huts and forest.
The evil man was like the Xavier of X-Men... but he used to kill people who did not become lucid using supplements.
He used to keep people in small rooms and imprison them.
I went to his palace. When he checked me ... He made me wear a watch and ALL the dials started spinning ..which means that I could have all the abilities in lucid dreaming.... He made me wear a Ring and bracelet in my arm... It was embedded in my arm like a glowing tattoo. He also gave eye drops to enhance Lucid dreaming abilities....
I was in a Dream Race ... There were busses on the road.. I was jumping and flying sideways and kicking the runner on the chest so that I can go ahead of them.. I knew this race was a dream (but was not lucid) and I had to run super fast but was not able to ......
After some time in the dream Cops came into picture.
The Cops Found the Area and rescued thousands of people including me. I made sure that I carry the steroids' bottle so that I can buy the steroids' in the city. But when I entered city I could not buy the steroids'.
After that I left the area and when I going to the city I saw many children in bicycles going towards the palace because they were attracted.
When I got to the main road i was again running in the streets along with people...on the other side of the street there was a thin man who was jumping over busses, some people running with me forced me to enter a bathroom on the road and come through the window but I got stuck in the window of the bathroom and I said this is a lucid dream so I should be able to break the walls, but when I forced myself to break the walls and come out of the window I woke up...."
See, even after having a dream where the entire theme was Lucid Dreaming I DID NOT BECOME LUCID.

So I guess, I am really Stupid.

No no no, you've reached the wrong conclusion. If you dream about lucid dreaming, you are REALLY CLOSE to getting lucid. That is great progress, and you should celebrate it! Just maybe put into your day work, the practice of doing a state test when the subject of dreaming comes up in waking life. And it looks like a really detailed, fairly vivid dream. So, both points for celebration! Pay very close attention to your dreams and you'll have more and more like this!

Again, detailed dreams with the subject of lucid dreaming means you're VERY CLOSE. Be very happy, and keep going!

And, learning to bring awareness to the moment of experience (the 1st important message I wanted you to get from TYoDaS, read the intro to the practice section!) [in both waking and sleeping states], and abiding in lucid presence throughout the day (2nd important message from the practice section) are powerful practices to bring lucidity to dream.

No you are not stupid!!!

This kind of Lucid dream theme non-lucid dream is common, Please don't give up.

You are on the road to lucid dreaming. It takes a lot of work. Keep working on working on your DJ.
Everybody that I know of have struggled with this step or even continue to struggle with this step. I would just focus on awareness. Take small steps.
Also, I think your dream is telling you that you don't need to make this a race. Take your time. No short cuts.

Hey, I get dreams like this, too. I had a dream the other day where I had a lucidity drink, but didn't get lucid ... >.<

It's normal, and it is a good sign.

Just keep up with the steady progress. :)

Thank you FryingMan , Thank you Lang, Thank you Hilary for your Reply.

I will make an Effort to maintain my Dream Journal Every Day.

I am a Little Bit Depressed Because my Dream Journal is Empty
June 5 Days
July 21 Days
Aug 20 Days
Sep 8 Days
Oct Zero
So in June I made DJ Entry for 5 days, July 21 days DJ Entry and so on
So you see in September my DJ Entry has been Very Low
And this Month I have not made any Dream Journal Entry till today
But Yes in October I recalled Dreams for 2 days but I did not Feel Like writing it down in my Dream Journal
In October one Night I had like 5 dreams but I did not write down any of them
I am CONFUSED
How to Maintain my DJ
Does the Quantity Matter Or the Quality ???
I sleep and then wake up at around 4,5 or 7 am and then again go back to Sleep.
So I have 2-3 dreams every night.
So do I have to write down ALL my dreams or I should write down Only one dream But in DETAIL.
Does the number of Dreams Matter Or the Detail of the Dreams matter.
Should I write down Dreams in Short Form Or in Detail ???
Kindly Explain
I have been trying Lucid Dreaming since 2010 .... I did become Lucid like 3-4 times in 2010, but could not continue my practice as I was doing Night shifts
Right now I have started Keeping a Dream Journal since June 2022.
I Plan to Practice TRYING to become Lucid for the next 3 Years. So for next 3 Years I will keep Trying.

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Originally Posted by devotee013

I am a Little Bit Depressed Because my Dream Journal is Empty
June 5 Days
July 21 Days
Aug 20 Days
Sep 8 Days
Oct Zero
So in June I made DJ Entry for 5 days, July 21 days DJ Entry and so on
So you see in September my DJ Entry has been Very Low
And this Month I have not made any Dream Journal Entry till today
But Yes in October I recalled Dreams for 2 days but I did not Feel Like writing it down in my Dream Journal
In October one Night I had like 5 dreams but I did not write down any of them
I am CONFUSED
How to Maintain my DJ
Does the Quantity Matter Or the Quality ???
I sleep and then wake up at around 4,5 or 7 am and then again go back to Sleep.
So I have 2-3 dreams every night.
So do I have to write down ALL my dreams or I should write down Only one dream But in DETAIL.
Does the number of Dreams Matter Or the Detail of the Dreams matter.
Should I write down Dreams in Short Form Or in Detail ???
Kindly Explain
I have been trying Lucid Dreaming since 2010 .... I did become Lucid like 3-4 times in 2010, but could not continue my practice as I was doing Night shifts
Right now I have started Keeping a Dream Journal since June 2022.
I Plan to Practice TRYING to become Lucid for the next 3 Years. So for next 3 Years I will keep Trying.

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Only you can decide to dedicate to the practice the required amount of energy, or not. Maybe your 3 year window is too long-term. Maybe you should make your decision "to continue the LD practice or not" on a shorter time span, like one year, or 6 months. For dream recall, maybe make just a weekly decision (or even daily!) to dedicate to it, or not. But I can tell you, LD progress will be limited if you do not build a close connection to your dreams. IMO, there is nothing more vital to having lucid dreams than having regular (nightly), vivid, detailed dreams, and really *enjoying* reviewing and recording them.

I say, in as much detail as possible, every night, every waking, at least after the first or second. Nothing builds progress as fast as a "dream recall full court press"

Quote:

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Originally Posted by devotee013

I am a Little Bit Depressed Because my Dream Journal is Empty

Oct Zero

And this Month I have not made any Dream Journal Entry till today

But Yes in October I recalled Dreams for 2 days but I did not Feel Like writing it down in my Dream Journal

In October one Night I had like 5 dreams but I did not write down any of them

I am CONFUSED

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This is why ^. You're telling your subconscious that your dreams aren't important enough to you for you to make the effort of writing them down. This will negatively affect your recall and ability to become lucid.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by devotee013

So do I have to write down ALL my dreams or I should write down Only one dream But in DETAIL.

Does the number of Dreams Matter Or the Detail of the Dreams matter.

Should I write down Dreams in Short Form Or in Detail ???

Kindly Explain.

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That depends on what you want. Do you want to increase your recall as much as possible? Do you want to increase your chances of lucidity as much as possible?

If yes, then the answer is yes: write down all of your dreams. Even write down fragments. Capture as much detail as possible, however, in the middle of the night, use a shorthand key-word type approach. Why? Because you want to get as much out as possible in as little time as possible. That will help it from fading. Also, because you don't necessarily want to disrupt your sleep too much (unless doing a WBTB) so you want to be able to go right back to sleep. Hit every detail, EVERY one, but just don't write full sentences. Write some key words that you will know what they mean when you awaken.

The next day, flesh out your dream completely when you have time. Write it as a story, and include all the details. But now - you're going to write them in full sentences. You might be amazed to find even more dream memories resurfacing when you do this.

Good luck.

Thank You FryingMan
Thank You Hilary

For the past 3 days I have been writing down dreams in my dream Journal.
I hope that from now on I will be consistent and write down all my Dreams in my DJ. Thanks for the Tip.

Why I have a 3 year period is because I want to become Lucid Every Day, i.e. Each and Every Dream that I have should be Lucid.
I an not Planning to Have Fun in Lucid Dreams, But I am Trying Very Hard to Achieve a State of Mind. A State of Higher Awareness.
I Hope that in the Next 3 years I will be able to do WILD every day.
So You see, this is why I have a long time span.

One more thing..... I still have not finished reading the books.

I have purchased a new book
Chakras: Energy Centers of Transformation by Harish Johari

Try this if you are interested in Medatation.

Thanks a Lot for your replies . It puts me Back on Track towards Lucid Dreaming.

Thank you ALL for reading.

The reason I suggested shorter periods, is that psychologically, often it is easier to fully dedicate oneself to a practice if the horizon is not so far off. It can help for specific tasks, too. Like dream recall and journaling: "This week I dedicate myself fully to recalling and recording dreams during wakings during the night"

I understand that you haven't finished reading yet. Are you taking notes? Highlighting key ideas and major concepts? I'm still interested in what of these you've picked up from TYoDaS. There are many important bits of wisdom almost on every page. Hint, I don't mean: "visualize a lotus in the throat chakra as you fall asleep." You may also want to pick up the newer edition of the TYoDaS which came out at the end of August, it's largely re-written to make the practice and explanations more approachable / understandable.