Thread: Mindful Listening for LDs

Mindful listening in and of itself is a good practice for lucid dreaming, so I thought I'd share a version that I do that adds a touch. The first aspect is a regular version involving listening to music as your anchor. You simply put all your focus on the music and for as long as possible keep concentrated. And when I say concentrated, I don't mean intensely. This should be a relaxing exercise. Wallow in the music. Each time you lose focus, you simply reestablish your mindfulness on the music. Reestablishing mindfulness creates critical awareness.

What I found helped me was to use a dual focus, making it more akin to a lucid living practice than what is normally construed as single focus meditation; the purpose is to add functionality for LDing not purely on mindful listening. But the result is the same.

My second point of focus is tactile. I observe my body. Where are my arms, my legs, my back and what are the sensations associated? I essentially do a head-to-toe body scan, then I switch back to the music. Every time you switch focus, you re-initiate your mindfulness, which establishes critical awareness at the moment you switch. And both aspects keep you in the moment and self-aware.

In regard to switching, since this is still primarily a mindful listening exercise the way I practice it. I maintain focus on the music for a couple minutes, and then body scan, and then back to music; I follow this pattern for the duration of the exercise, whatever the preferred time frame. The critical awareness that comes from noticing that your mind has strayed from target and then reacquiring mindfulness, plus adding in the tactile switch, increases awareness for lucid dreaming. It naturally takes time, which is different for everyone, for this to become a strong enough practice that it filters into your dreams, but it helps your waking mind immediately. And don't expect it to hit all at once. Increased awareness seeps in a bit at a time.

If you practice mindfulness living and meditation already, it will be hard to tell what aspect is actually giving you lucid dreams. The way I look at it, give yourself all the ammunition you can. Besides, who doesn't like lazing about listening to music? Put the time you are going to spend anyway to practical use.

Hopefully this sounds logical and useful to some.