First of all, I would just like to say I put this topic in the Science forum rather than the Religion forum because whilst it addresses Religion, it is from a scientific viewpoint. If this is unacceptable for whatever reason, please move the topic. I do believe it belongs here though.

During a lucid dream last night I remembered an interview I watched a few nights earlier with Robert Waggoner on Conscious TV (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gf0g1YZa8co), and he said that he had started to address questions to the awareness behind the dream rather than the objects in the dream with interesting results of an inner voice responding, "an awareness within an awareness", and so I stopped and asked out loud during my lucid dream "What is the meaning of this?". When I asked the question I didn't really think about what "this" was, or what exactly I was asking about, and as soon as I asked that question it felt like something heavy had hit me in the back of the head only there was no pain, just a white flash that persisted for a few seconds, a faint dizzy feeling and a white noise ringing sound. Then I lost conscious thought and continued to just dream as normal.

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Trippy stuff for me, I'm fairly new to this whole lucid dreaming experience and for a long time I was extremely sceptical of it. The great subconscious voice I was hoping to hear when I asked "What is the meaning of this?" is interesting. Robert and several of his friends have experienced this voice, I'm sure some of you guys here on this forum have had experiences with this awareness behind the dream too and if you have I'd love to hear about those experiences here.

But now my point... and forgive me if this isn't a new idea (any further reading would be appreciated)

It got me thinking, is this voice a manifestation of our knowledge of religion learned in the waking world which is then used as a vehicle for this subconscious voice awareness behind the dream, since gods are often referred to as great ominous entities in the sky who talk with a mighty voice to those below from a presence that is seemingly everywhere, or...

Do you think that even without any ideas about religion this great subconscious voice would still be there? I believe this is true. Maybe lucid dreaming or altered states of consciousness are responsible for the birth of religion, or at least the original ideas of a powerful ominous entity. Who knows what crazy altered states of consciousness prehistoric men must have experienced given their lack of understanding, their environments and diet etc. People who are in their own thoughts a lot during waking life who talk to themselves and ask questions inside their own mind are kind of corresponding with an ominous presence that doesn't seemingly physically exist anywhere, so for that experience to be projected in a conscious lucid dream or other altered state of consciousness, that could definitely be a starting point for what is now referred to as "god".

Thoughts?

Again, further reading would be appreciated.

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