My lurking days are over; Using LD as a form of meditation

[distorted]

Hey there, folks. I've been visiting this website on and off for several years now, using it for LD research and the like, but at this point, I think I'd like to start discussing the things on my mind concerning LD, rather than just searching for them. I view my LD experience as a form of meditation--a way to access a form of detached consciousness, and observe and interact with the many layers of the mind. Except, it's not as refined or "zen" as it may appear written, because it's hella fun. But I've become more aware of my conceptualizations of spirituality, how they are ever-changing and evolving, and LD seems like a great way to learn more about what I consider to be a higher power. I just learned about the Hindu tale of Brahman (A Dream of Brahman : Ted Scott), and I am so intrigued. Before having ever heard of Brahman, I held some belief that perhaps our entire lives stem from the consciousness of a higher power; that our reality is merely this power's "dream"; that its existence somehow forms ours, perhaps with or without this power's intention to do so. While LDing, I feel like a god. My mere existence creates that which stands about me. And yet, whilst all that appears to me within my dreams are of my own creation, it feels like an external reality, somewhat foreign to me. It's that whole Inception deal: Creation and Perception, seamlessly bound. If anything I've said here has struck a cord with you in any way, let's chat! Let's get to know our conscious and subconscious selves and tear this mother we call the world apart. Namaste, M.A.

[JoannaB]

Namaste, distorted! I too think that lucid dreaming practice can be very effectively linked with spiritual exploration, and indeed that is part of the reason why I came back to the hobby: to grow spiritually through LD practice. The idea that our world is all a dream, that creation happened through dreaming, and that we in turn can experience the world more in God's image through lucid dreams - these are all ideas that I have been entertaining as well. I am a Christian but with a great interest in Buddhism and some interest in expanding my learning to other religions as well - I believe that different faiths can teach me different things, though my home faith remains Christianity. Have you read the book "The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep" by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche yet? If not, I highly recommend this book to you. Welcome to DV!