Thread: Is it possible to dream a new color?

Sorry if this has been discussed before, I tried using the search button but it was extremely unhelpful?

I've heard it mentioned on this website, but I didn't hear an answer.

It seems possible to me, but I have a hard time believing that you could remember it or comprehend it in the waking life. I would think that your brain could trick you into thinking you can see a new color, but I'm not sure if you actually would be seeing a new color.

For a short answer, no.

Is it possible you've seen it in my DJ? That's one of my far fetched goals. I honestly don't believe it's possible. You eye has cones (or rods, I dunno) that pick up three basic colors. Red, blue, and yellow (correct me if I'm wrong). I'd venture to say that we see every possible combination of that in waking life. I'd love to be able to, but I don't see any way it could happen.

I believe it is red, green and blue. Anyway, the perception of color is produced in the brain not in the eyes, so it seems possible that you can perceive a new color in your dream when you your vision is not from your eyes.

I just thought of a new question, would it be possible to see out of something other than your eyes in your dream? Like perhaps your finger? What would it look like to see out of your finger? or perhaps develop 360 degree vision?

Man I am coming up with a whole bunch of interesting questions tonight!

first off, it is red green and blue.

it could be possible, since in a dream colours arent made of light, they are just colours which you think of.

and ive heard of 360 vision, im pretty sure thats been done.

This is all theoretical on my part, but if you look at a standard color wheel you'll notice that the blue parts of the spectrum seem awfully compressed compared to the reds and especially the greens. Your eyes, you see, suck at blue. While dreaming your mind is formulating all your visuals internally, so it may be possible to create a color wheel in your dream that is evenly spread out is if your eyes were capable of perceiving equal amounts of red, green, and blue. While you're awake you're at the mercy of your sense organs, but while dreaming... perhaps not?

Originally Posted by Michael

For a short answer, no.

For a long answer, - fuck no!

I don't believe this is possible simply due to the following reason:

Lucid dreaming is nothing magical. It's your brain (which is you) reproducing real life experiences or guessing what it thinks something will be like. Try to sit down for a minute and come up with a colour that is not a mixture of any colours we have today. Can't come up with something? Then neither can your brain...

none of us said anything about magical, we are all talking about what the brain can do when it sees without eyes

no its impossible... Your brain would have to have experienced a new colour before, and if a new coulour was to exist like... It would be impossible to describe because you can't say its a bluey green, or whatever cause that already exists. Unless you make yourself see x rays or something but even still we don't know what x rays would look like if our brain could comprehend them....

Originally Posted by slash112

none of us said anything about magical, we are all talking about what the brain can do when it sees without eyes

He answered the question very well IMO

We have already produce every colour possible using computers. Even some colours we can't see ouselves.

So technically, no. Since there are no new colours.

Originally Posted by Noktulo

Lucid dreaming is nothing magical. It's your brain (which is you) reproducing real life experiences or guessing what it thinks something will be like. ...

This is a very subjective view. This may be off topic, but the mind is stronger than what you think. People say Lucid Dreaming is all about expectations and belief, for the majority of it, yes it is. However, you can go deeper in to your dreams and start questioning your subconcious, you know, that part of you that isn't you?!

You don't control your subconsciousness, sure you can expect to be in a forest in your dream and imagine what it could look like. But do you consciously create every single blade of grass, animal, noises? no, your subconscious does. Try asking your dream directly one point that you want to experience a new colour, have no expectations. Ask your dream you want to see something new.

you never know what happens. The mind is a powerful tool. Mind over Matter.

No its not , even if someone did, it would be impossible for anyone to know/believe them because there wouldn't be any words to describe it.

Didn't I just say that?

Originally Posted by slash112

i cant remember if its 24 or 32, so maybe i meant 32, but i thought it was 24.

and im not talking about seeing other things in the electromagnetic spectrum, im only talking about visible light, and if our colour depth was raised, we would see more inbetween colours (more RGB combinations), not more types of light.

p.s. i dont actually know if a brain is this similar to a computer, it just makes a lot of sense, so this is what i will believe unless you prove me wrong.

Ah, I was talking about seeing things outside of the "visible" spectrum. I agree that color depth going up = colors in between strict RGB being more separately definable.

Originally Posted by guitarboy

Don't, you'll crush it. Our dreams are based off of real life, and I don't even think, besides the fact that we can't see beyond our spectrum, that we would be able to prove or even know if we see a new color. It's like trying to explain color to a blind man.

We can't see beyond our spectrum. In a dream you don't use your eyes, your brain comes up with its own input. I agree that its impossible to prove to others than you have seen a new color, its impossible to prove you did ANYTHING in a dream. I think we would know for ourselves if we saw a new color, by the merit that we would be seeing a color we haven't observed yet.

but things outside the visible light part of the spectrum arent colour, they are different types of light, and that has nothing to do with the fact its invisible, they are just totally different. infact someone said this earlier (i think it was slayer) and i didnt understand at the time, i do now.

Okay so since this is all in theory, here's a theory that I have with regards to this. Somebody earlier posted about an idea that they have had about peope's interpratations of colors being possibly different (i.e. what i see as red may appear to you as blue by my own interpretive definitions of red and blue, based off of what we are taught as children). However, let me take this idea one step further. Here is my theory, which I have had for quite some time as well which is kind of an elaboration on this theory. Lets say we both look at a leaf in the middle of summer. We come to an agreement that it is green. But, maybe what appears as "green" to me, appears to you in a color which is not even possible in my waking brains interpretations of wavelengths of light.

So, with this in mind let's address this issue of seeing a new color in a dream. It is agreed that there is a finite number of wavelengths of light that our eyes can pick up and we can see in waking life. I am not arguing this. I am saying instead that the ways in which our various brains interpret these wavelengths may be entirely different. Therefore, who's to say that when I am asleep and I look at a leaf, it is not possible for it to appear to me as the "impossible" color of green? I would simply be my brain working outside of its regular way of operating, interpreting something differently than it normally would be able to.

As for people saying, "oh, you can describe it as an orang/grey, therefore it is an orange grey and already exists" is not a very compelling argument. The example of the indians calling horses dogs is a perfect example. Are horses dogs? Of course not. If you saw a thing jump out of the woods and it looked like a 7 foot tall man with green fur and a trunk, that is how you would describe it, correct? Was it a seven foot tall man with green fur and a trunk? Of course not. However, if you have never seen something before, the only way to describe it to somebody who hasn't experienced the same phenomena is through words andideas which have already been defined, whether or not they accurately convey it or not.

If this is confusing, which I have no doubt that it may be as I have never tried to verbalize this theory to anybody before, let me know. I would be glad to try and clear up any confusion.

Oh, and I guess what I am saying is that yes, I believe it would be possible to "see" a "new" color in a dream.

Originally Posted by slash112

but things outside the visible light part of the spectrum arent colour, they are different types of light, and that has nothing to do with the fact its invisible, they are just totally different. infact someone said this earlier (i think it was slayer) and i didnt understand at the time, i do now.

Color is a psychological phenomenon of perception existing, arising from the physical properties of the waves of electromagnetic radiation we call light.
We are unable to see outside of the visible spectrum due to the limited variety of cones in the human eye(3, sometimes 4). If we were to gain sensory input from a different type of cone, our brain would have a new, unique wavelength to interpret and would come up with a new color to describe this.

Originally Posted by guitarboy

Didn't I just say that?

My bad

Yes it is possible. Waking vision is limited to physical capabilities dream vision has no limits. In fact all of our waking capabilities are limited due to physical constraints. In a lucid dream you can not only see through walls you can also walk through them as well as fly...cant do that in the physical world. Bottom line you can do and manifest anthing when lucid.

Here is my take on it. First of all, logic doesn't apply to dreams unless you expect it to. Second, if you believe you can dream a new color, then yes. It's possible.

Originally Posted by Thewolf321

Here is my take on it. First of all, logic doesn't apply to dreams unless you expect it to. Second, if you believe you can dream a new color, then yes. It's possible.

What has logic to do with visual perception lol?

I'm tempted to believe that it's impossible, but once again, slash is quite right when he says that some visual feats are possible in dreams (like 360 vision), maybe it goes beyond that? Great question OP!

In my opinion, no. I do not believe it is possible to dream up a new color. Atleast, not a color in the real life sense. Being the god of your own universe, you get to define a what a "color" is. But to dream up a new color on the light spectrum is impossible in my eyes and theres a simple test that reaffirms my position. Instead of dreaming a newcolor, just think of one right now. I sure can't. Whenever I try, I immedietly go "Okay, it'll look sorta blue, sorta green, and sorta red", and by the time I finish the new color is something called "brown". *facepalm*
However, as I said earlier, if you are allowed to change the definition of what a color is while in your dream, then technically I supposed one could create a "new" color.

If you think it's impossible in your eyes you can always use someone else's eyes.