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"Conscious Mind, Sleeping Brain: Perspectives on Lucid Dreaming", Edited by Jayne Gackenbach and Stephen LaBerge, New York, Plenum, 1988.
No full textThis is the most thorough summary on lucid dreams to date. The editors have been very successful at the monumental task of gathering the major modern works on lucid dreams from across many disciplines and nationalities. For a basic introduction to lucid dreaming, two other books by these authors --Gackenbach and Bosveld\u27s (1989)Control Your Dreams and LaBerge\u27s (1985 )Lucid Dreaming--would be more appropriate. However, most readers of Lucidity Letter will already be well enough versed in the field to appreciate the amount of depth inConscious Mind, Sleeping Brain
John Layard\u27s "The Lady of the Hare: A Study in the Healing Power of Dreams", Originally Published in London in 1944 and Recently Reprinted by Shambhala Press
No full textLayard\u27s work is actually two short books ‑‑one about the "The Lady" and the other about "The Hare".In the first "book" entitled "The Dream Analysis", Layard presents the case of "Mrs. Wright".A devout Christian and "hard‑working country woman", Mrs. Wright sought therapy for her extremely introverted sixteen year old daughter Margaret. After one unsuccessful session in which Layard was unable to "reach" Margaret, he suggested that the mother come to see him and discuss her own dreams in an attempt to "get at" Margaret\u27s problem. He felt that an examination of Mrs. Wright\u27s dreams might reveal the unconscious family dynamics and the source of Margaret\u27s difficulties. In the book Layard describes twelve analytic sessions and reports 25 dreams and "visions", as well as associations and interpretations of the imaginal material. According to Layard, a turning point in the treatment was marked by the appearance of a dream which Mrs. Wright was sacrificing a hare
From Lucid Dreaming to Pure Consciousness: A Conceptual Framework for the OBE, UFO Abduction and NDE Experiences
No full textIn order to gain a theoretical understanding of the lucid dream, out-of-body experience (OBE), unidentified flying object abduction experience (UFO), and near-death experience (NDE) it is necessary to place things in their series, as William James, author of the 1902 classic The Varieties of Religious Experience, emphasized. That is, identify the similarities and differences between experiences in order to understand their nature. The goal of such an inquiry is to identify a common state from which they derive and/or common mechanisms or structures. In this paper, lucid dreaming will be framed with the apparently different but related phenomena of three of the cases presented in the June 1989 issue of Lucidity Letter: the OBEs of Father "X," the UFO abduction described by Felicia Payne, and the NDE of Mark Block. A fourth case from the same issue, the witnessing experiences of Anja Savolainen, is also relevant later in this discussion
A Personal Experience in Lucid Dream Healing
No full textFirst, let me describe my own qualifications and orientation in dreamwork. I normally recall 3 to 5 dreams per night, and have over the past decade or so written down and then fairly comprehensively indexed over 5,000 of my dreams. Of these dreams I have had several hundred that I characterize as fully lucid, meaning that within the dream I had at least the same degree of consciousness and free will (the ability to make conscious decisions) as in my physical reality waking state. During these experiences I have applied many of the standard tests for “realness” that one can apply to the physical world (from pinching myself, saying my name out loud, checking my dream body sensations, self-remembering, checking for consensus with other dream persons. etc.) and in each case dream reality has passed the tests. Of course, dream reality compared to physical reality has many profoundly different attributes, and I do not in any way wish to make light of those differences. But from a phenomenological point of view, which bases itself in experience rather than in theories about experience. I have found no basis other than prejudice for assigning any less “realness” to the lifeworld of my lucid dream state than to that of my awake physical state
Some Further Thoughts on Lucid Dreaming and Ethical Reflection
No full textImmediately following the article I wrote in the June 1988 Lucidity Letter. Lucid Dreaming and Ethical Reflection”1, Stephen LaBerge commented on my ideas in “Reply to Bulkley: A thoroughly confused picture of what ethics is all about...utterly antithetical to any sort of valid ethical position”2. From the comments he made in his essay, it seems that LaBergeand I disagree on a few points. But before I begin a detailed consideration of LaBerge’s arguments, I want to stress that debates such as these are an important way of improving our knowledge and understanding about lucid dreaming. Similar disputes emerged at the Lucidity Symposium at this past summer’s annual conference of the Association for the Study of Dreams, and while things got a little cantankerous I believe that everyone benefited from an open airing and discussion of the difficult issues involved in our studies and research. So while I may continue to challenge certain of Dr. LaBerge’s positions, and while he may continue to challenge me, I feel confident that such a debate will make positive and constructive contributions to the enterprise in which we are all engaged, namely the exploration of the experience of lucid dreaming
Some Relations Between Clinical and Transpersonal Approaches to Dreams
No full textThe complex relations between clinical (more or less psychoanalytic) and "transpersonal" approaches to dreams can be clarified by the notion that there are natural varieties in dreaming experience and that these may suggest appropriate ways of using dreams. In other words we can use and/or interpret dreams with or against their own natural gain
Oneiric Health and Oneiric Lucidity
No full textThe study of the relation between mental health and oneiric lucidity is an important part of the research on lucid dreaming. Perhaps because most of the researchers in this area are psychologists, and the possibility of using a new and efficient tool for psychotherapeutic practices is important to them.
We know the evidence for a relation between lucid dreaming and psychic equilibrium is circumstantial. Some subjects, with strong psychological problems, dream lucidly, regularly, and spontaneously, while apparently, well-balanced subjects do not succeed in their attempts to induce lucidity. The contrary is also true. This leads us to the following remark: lucid dreaming is not in itself an indicator of mental health. Nevertheless, we know that it can contribute to the recovery of one’s psychic equilibrium, by following an appropriate method
More Commentary on Sparrow’s Cautions Letter
No full textThank you very much for sending the copies of Scott Sparrow’s and the others’ letters (see Lucidity Letter, Vol. 7, No. 1, 1988) which I just received. I hasten to respond in order to encourage the level of interest which finally seems to be manifesting itself in this very important question of how best and most fairly to present the issues involved in fostering lucid dream induction. Like Scott, I choose to risk rambling, since being obsessive will only mean not answering you. Quite simply put, my own position has little to add to what I feel is Scott’s most eloquent set of arguments and examples concerning the down side of lucid dream induction. I admire and am envious of his clarity and precision in describing virtually all of the major points to be considered
A Buddhist Perspective on Lucid Dreaming
No full textWithin the Buddhist tantric tradition there is great emphasis on using the dream state of being for developmental ends. There exist a special practice called Dream Yoga, which in the West has been presented in one of the "Six Doctrines of Naropa". The Dream Yoga is a high meditation practice which is performed by the adept within the so called lucid dream state
Beyond Lucidity? Healing Through Nonlucid Dreams. A Personal Report
No full textLucidity is nowadays often presented as an indispensable goal for all who want to use their dreams for personal transformation. No one seems to point out the possibility of dangers involved at least for some of us. Like Jung said “What sets one free is a prison for another”. We do not all eat the same kinds of foods nor do we read the same kind of books -why should we dream along the same lines? Nearly every one speaks about different techniques to achieve more lucid dreams, but what about those who may need to get rid of theirs?
I am an active dream-worker but am now developing farther and farther away from lucidity, because of the negative effect lucid dreams had on my health. I don’t think that I am the only one: there must be others with similar experiences, perhaps even those who have health problems without knowing that the cause may lie in their lucid dream experiments. Perhaps my experiences are of value to them