# Lucid Dreaming > DV Academy > Current Courses > Dream Yoga >  >  Hermine_Hesse's Dream Yoga Workbook

## hermine_hesse

*Dream Yoga Basic Skills: Lesson #1*

"Listening To A Noisy World" and "Feel An Intense World" are practices very similar to what I already do as a part of awareness techniques I have been practicing throughout the day recently.  

Times when I would normally let my mind drift - such as walking, driving, or downtime at work - I instead attempt to bring awareness to things in my surroundings that my mind would normally filter out.  I start with sound, first listening to the most obvious sounds in the environment each individually, then to internal sounds such as breathing or swallowing, then try to hold a few in my mind simultaneously.  Then I shift my awareness to tactile, much like level 1 in "Feel An Intense World".  I would follow with visual noticing colors, shapes, distance, shadows, and light, then smell.  (Though not always in the same order.)  The one I hadn't found a way to incorporate was taste, so I look forward to trying Version 3: Mixing It Up.  Sometimes I add in a "sixth" sense and feel my energy, the energy of the environment, and other people's energy and emotions, but that one is definitely a little trickier.  Eventually, I want to be able to hold this heightened level of awareness in all five (or six, I guess) of my senses simultaneously and have the ability to hold that awareness in both waking life and dreams.

Tonight I attempted "Listening to A Noisy World" at Level 1.  I instantly picked up on noises I had been tuning out - the AC, refrigerator, traffic, the hum of my laptop, and my own breathing.  While holding these I began to notice other noises. In addition to traffic on the main road, I could occasionally hear traffic on a more distance gravel road behind my house which was nearly inaudible.  I heard bugs flitting at the window, my house settling, my cat walking around the back bedroom, and became aware of more internal noises.  In addition to this, I would occasionally sense a low vibrational hum and am not sure what the cause or origin of this sound was.  I did this for about five minuets and noticed that even after I ended the meditation, my auditory awareness remained heightened.  I found my head instinctively turning towards small noises I normally would not have even noticed.

Another strange occurrence happened when after I had kept my awareness of sounds for about five minuets, I decided to practice making a ki ball and feeling energy while maintaining my auditory awareness.  I rubbed my hands together, then pulled them slightly apart.  I felt the energy between them as I slowly moved them together and apart.  I noticed I could hear my arms moving even though it was a minimal movement.  By this I don't mean that I heard the air move as my arms moved through it, but it was almost a creaking sound as if I was actually hearing the sounds of my muscles.  I tried the same movements again without the ki ball and there was no sound!  I did the experiment again with and without the ki ball with the same effect.  

Tomorrow I plan on continuing practicing these techniques throughout my day at work, but instead of jumping from one sense to another to focus either on just sound or touch for longer periods each.  I also intend to practice Version 3, Level 1 during a time of quiet and stillness.

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## Sivason

> *Dream Yoga Basic Skills: Lesson #1*
> 
> Sometimes I add in a "sixth" sense and feel my energy, the energy of the environment, and other people's energy and emotions, but that one is definitely a little trickier.  Eventually, I want to be able to hold this heightened level of awareness in all five (or six, I guess) of my senses simultaneously and have the ability to hold that awareness in both waking life and dreams.
> 
> Another strange occurrence happened when after I had kept my awareness of sounds for about five minuets, I decided to practice making a ki ball and feeling energy while maintaining my auditory awareness.  I rubbed my hands together, then pulled them slightly apart.  I felt the energy between them as I slowly moved them together and apart.  I noticed I could hear my arms moving even though it was a minimal movement.  By this I don't mean that I heard the air move as my arms moved through it, but it was almost a creaking sound as if I was actually hearing the sounds of my muscles.  I tried the same movements again without the ki ball and there was no sound!  I did the experiment again with and without the ki ball with the same effect.  
> .



Hi! I am glad you checked out my lesson and actually played with it so fast. I think it is great that you are already familiar with this type of meditation! It is not the common main stream version. I will look forward to your workbook growing. What an awesome first posting.

Keep up the work on the energy awareness. It sounds like you are on a good path so far. You also seem to see where this can lead, which helps. NOt only will you get to where you can calmly be hyper-aware, including your energy sense, you will learn to form and manipulate your energy body in ways that are very intense things to preceive.

The part about hearing your musclefibers move is great. I actually have had the same experience. LOL! This is a bit more exciting a world, than the average person chooses to see. -Eric

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## hermine_hesse

Last night I attempted Version 2, Level 1, but fell asleep before I got to my ankles.  Guess I was really tired!

Today at work, I spent the first half of my day focusing on holding my awareness on sounds and the second half of my day focusing on tactile sensations.  I work front desk at a salon, so there are many different sounds to experience, plus I am walking about often, but not doing anything that requires a great deal of thought or attention.  I found it easy to maintain an awareness of at least one or two subtle sounds plus one obvious sound even while preforming other actions.  The heightened level awareness I felt after meditation last night seemed to continue through most of the day.  For the second half of my day, I found tactile sensations much more of a challenge.  Instead of bringing awareness to multiple tactile sensations, I tried to just bring and hold awareness on just my feet.  Feel my sandles on the bottom of my feet, the straps on top, the temperature, and pressure from walking or standing.  As soon as I became absorbed in a task, I would loose awareness.  Throughout all this, I found my pesky inner monologue was more active and persistent than usual.  Instead of feeling frustrating, I kept gently redirecting my awareness from the monologue back to my feet.

I meant to steal a hard candy from work to try Version 3, but forgot.  Maybe I'll be able to scrounge up a peppermint and try it in the morning...

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## Vangogh929

> Last night I attempted Version 2, Level 1, but fell asleep before I got to my ankles.  Guess I was really tired!
> 
> Today at work, I spent the first half of my day focusing on holding my awareness on sounds and the second half of my day focusing on tactile sensations.



did you spend any of the time working?

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## hermine_hesse

Last night I tried Version 2 Level 4 as I lay down to fall asleep last night.  Last time, I started with my toes and feel asleep before extending my awareness past my ankles.  Last night I was able to track my awareness and every sensation a few inches past my ankles.  As I extended further up my leg, I noticed my awareness fading from the bottom of my feet. At this point, I would start over at my toes.  I extended up a few inches past my ankle again and just held my awareness here.  I noticed two strange sensations.  First, after a while my feet began to feel heavy, a bit like a force pressing down on them and a bit like being pulled towards to the ground.  At first I thought that this may have been a symptom of falling asleep, but upon further reflection I think I may have been actually perceiving gravity.  This makes sense to me since when we are in a lighter or heavier gravity we perceive this change.  Normal everyday gravity must be something we can perceive, but instead just filter out since it is constant.  The second sensation I perceived was a tingling through my feet and ankles.  

I try not to analyze what I am perceiving during the meditation, but just try to be totally immersed in the experience and record it for later analysis.  Hopefully, I am not over-intellectualizing or analyzing too much, as I know this can be a hindrance to meditation.

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## Sivason

> As I extended further up my leg, I noticed my awareness fading from the bottom of my feet. At this point, I would start over at my toes.  I extended up a few inches past my ankle again and just held my awareness here.  
> 
> ... I think I may have been actually perceiving gravity.  This makes sense to me since when we are in a lighter or heavier gravity we perceive this change.  Normal everyday gravity must be something we can perceive, but instead just filter out since it is constant. !!!



Hi again. Let's see, at first on this meditation do not worry about maintaing awareness on a point after you have moved on to the next. Do not worry about trying to be aware of your entire body 100% all at one time. I kind of doubt the brain can fully allow that much experience in the same second without almost orgasming! For, now I would suggest you move from point to point. Get to were you can almost instantly feel  the sensationss recieved by any part of your boody. I, for instance, can shift a high level of awareness and precieve my  right earlobe, inner elbow, or outside of the cleft of my right ankle, in a very  clear and detailed manner in almost a fraction of a moment.Note that if I try this withmy entire body, the experience is almost overwhelming. You are doing great!

Gravity. Wonderful!

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## hermine_hesse

> Hi again. Let's see, at first on this meditation do not worry about maintaing awareness on a point after you have moved on to the next. Do not worry about trying to be aware of your entire body 100% all at one time. I kind of doubt the brain can fully allow that much experience in the same second without almost orgasming! For, now I would suggest you move from point to point.



LOL!  This makes much more sense and is probably easier than what I was trying to do.  It still sounds like an interesting experience to allow all of that awareness, maybe I'll revisit it in a few years.

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## Sivason

Hi everyone! It has been almost two weeks. I hope everyone got a chance to practice. The thread *Dream Yoga Basic Skills: Lesson 1*, has been updated. I have shared a few ways these skills will be useful in LDs, and the thread is now open to Q & A.

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## hermine_hesse

So, I am not sure if I mentioned this before, but I am in the middle of relocating to another state and a big life change. The stress, upheaval, and irregular sleep patterns have dropped my LD count to zero and lessened my recall.  Also, instead of being able to complete a meditation in bed before falling asleep, I am often falling asleep exhausted at the beginning of the meditation.  





> Version 2 teaches you the skill needed to form and maintain a vividly clear dream body. If in waking life you are barely aware of your body, what chance do you have of staying fully aware of it in a dream? Now, when you get very good at feeling every inch of your body you will have a template to use when visualizing in order to form a body. Then while dreaming and after having formed the body you can stablize your legs and arms without looking at them.



I had actually just begun to discover this a few days before you posted it.  I was focusing on feeling my body from the toes up as before right before sleep.  My girlfriend was in bed next to me and I could sense part of her leg touching mine.  I must have fell asleep almost immediately, because I began to be aware of her body too.  Not in the sense that she was next to me, but actually experiencing her toes, legs, ect., at the same time as experiencing my own - like she had suddenly become my Siamese twin.  I realized that I was entering sleep, and that after only a few sessions of learning how to map my body, I could now not only continue to map my body without any sensory input, but could also extend that feeling beyond what I normally experience.  This skill could certainly be useful in a LD in forming and maintaining a dream body, although that is not something I have ever found to be a challenge.  I imagine this could also be used in WILDing.  The few times I've had a successful WILD, I would let my body fall away, float in a void, then form the dream around me.  Instead of this, I could now simply _maintain _  the feeling of a solid body and just step right into a dream.  Also, if I can already create a feeling without any sensory input, this skill could be used to create a different dream body.  For instance, I have always wanted to add fully functional fairy wings to my dream body.  

As for the gravity, I've seen you mention before changing your direction of gravity in a LD to do things like climb walls or walk on the ceiling.  I couldn't wrap my brain around how to accomplish this before, but now I get it!

It may be a few weeks before my LDs return, but I can't wait to try out these new skills!

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## Sivason

Wonderful! You are at the head of the class! You nade a powerful connection and predicted where I was going with this. I repost the second paragraph of this in the actual lesson. Not only do I want you to get recognition for such a huge leap in understanding, but I told the class I would wait until students stumbled on the meaning of why you should learn this. If you re-post there it will benifit the whole group.
You are absolutely correct! This is in fact how I do my advanced body transformation. If you read some of WILD journal entries, I talk about actually experiencing what wings, or hooves, or what ever feel like. It is an extension of this method, but you found it through your own exploration! Now, isn't that more exciting than if I had just handed it to you? Great job!

As far as WILD goes you are almost correct. You should still let the  true physical sensations fade away, so you disconnect from the waking world, but as soon as I find myself being all floaty, then I quickly use thee body template idea and reforn a dream body long before REM hits. Then I am ready to go. You can actually do LD type body transformation in nREM and I think you should. The result can be great fun. You may not get anything but blurry dark visuals tthat early in the WILD, but it gives you sometthing to do, is fun, and you can be fully transformed when the real LD begins.

You have also actually figured out how I do such amazing gravity manipulations. That is some very advanced stuff and it will be covered in a 'select topic' after awhile. But, for now, yes, Version 2 is required to do the advanced gravity tricks. I am very proud of you, in one post you uncover two of my 'secrets' and came more or lesswithin inches of how I  use version 2 in WILD attempts. That is another Gold Star for hermine_hesse! So, you will get another 15 hall points

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## hermine_hesse

I have a question, Sivason.

I was reading fOrceez thread and was interested in the part about diffuse vision.  I think this is something I discovered on my own while meditating in nature a few times.  I would either focus on my breath, or recite the Green Tara mantra while using my mala beads.  I found it was easier to focus if I opened my eyes without focusing on anything versus keeping my eyes closed.  I happened to do this a few times in front of a large group of trees and noticed some interesting results.  The leaves of the trees started to seem as if they were moving and forming patterns - very similar to the effects of hallucinogens.  Once, I continued to meditate and and the green of the leaves almost seemed to engulf my entire vision after awhile.  Is this a normal/desired effect of diffuse vision (if that was what I was doing)?  ...or just an after-effect of too many acid trips when I was younger?

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## Sivason

> I have a question, Sivason.
> 
> I was reading fOrceez thread and was interested in the part about diffuse vision.  I think this is something I discovered on my own while meditating in nature a few times.  I would either focus on my breath, or recite the Green Tara mantra while using my mala beads.  I found it was easier to focus if I opened my eyes without focusing on anything versus keeping my eyes closed.  I happened to do this a few times in front of a large group of trees and noticed some interesting results.  The leaves of the trees started to seem as if they were moving and forming patterns - very similar to the effects of hallucinogens.  Once, I continued to meditate and and the green of the leaves almost seemed to engulf my entire vision after awhile.  Is this a normal/desired effect of diffuse vision (if that was what I was doing)?  ...or just an after-effect of too many acid trips when I was younger?



Diffuse vision does produce amazing visual effects. It causes some ordinary biological distortions, but it is also a needed aspect to training in auras, crystal ball/ reflection gazing and other mystical things. At the very least it is hella entertaining. At an intermediate stage students should learn to do most of their meditation with eyes open, but diffuse vision. My instructor said it was primarily so no one could sneak up on you, but I find it is conducive of a wonderfully relaxed state of mind. Also, youu should learn to be able to do all your meditations well enough that having visual stimuli should not distract you.

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## hermine_hesse

Yesterday I tried "Mixing it Up" Level 1, but with open eyes.  I did not find it a challenge to keep focus on the candy and keep from biting it all the way until the candy dissolved.  I did notice the flavor of the candy would fade in and out, even with full attention on it.  As soon as the flavor started to dissolve, I would swallow or move it around a bit and the flavor would return.  I wonder if it is possible to regain awareness of the flavor without moving the candy - using only attention and focus.  In the future, I may incorporate this into my meals.  Instead of reading a book during lunch, or watching TV while eating dinner, I could do this meditation instead.

Looking forward to Lesson 2!

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## hermine_hesse

I went for a walk this morning and practiced the "Be Here Now" in Lesson 2 for about twenty minuets.  I found that I when I truly choose to focus my awareness, I have very little inner monologue lately.  I noticed, when I did become distracted from the here and now, it happened in distinct ways.  I would sometimes find myself narrating my experience to myself, as if my mind was already planning how to speak of it later.  Although, this wasn't exactly stepping outside the here and now, it felt disconnected from direct experience.  Other times, I would have an instantaneous flash of a picture, either from a memory or imagined future event.  Once, I heard a song I had recently heard start to play in my head; and once, I began planning what I would do after I rounded a bend in a walkway. 

I have definitely noticed an overall increase in my awareness - colors seem brighter, I notice and feel even small sensations such as the wind blowing a single hair across my cheek.

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## hermine_hesse

I finished my big move a week ago and am finally feeling a little settled.  Last night I had my first LD after a long dry spell!  As soon as I got lucid I decided to try out my new LD skills.  I ended up in a living room after soaring through the void for a while, and attempted gravity manipulation.  I was able to throw myself at a wall and shift my gravity to the wall.  I did this up the wall, across the ceiling, and back down again.  As I did this, I would recall my experience of gravity from meditation, and apply it in a different direction.  It didn't happen effortlessly or smoothly - I suppose new LD skills are like learning to ride a bike and take a bit of practice.

How exciting to be able to apply what I've learned in the class in the dreamworld.  I'm starting to feel that my waking life meditation and dream world activities are falling in sync.

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## hermine_hesse

I attended a public meditation at a nearby center recently (for the first time in a long time I actually live in a city that has these).  The practice was simply sitting in a comfortable position and focusing on the breath with eyes open and diffuse vision.  My eyes were slightly downcast to the floor, but I could see the other people around me out of my peripheral vision.  After about a minuet, one girl next to me suddenly seemed to have a glowing explosion of a rainbow around her.  (One rainbow bending around her, not rays emanating from her.)  It was so startling that I completely lost focus and took a moment to recover.  Up until now I have seen a slight white or blue/green glow around people, rivers, trees, and some objects.  However, this glow has been fairly uniform around anything or anyone where I would see it.  This is the first time I have seen anything this colorful or intense.  When I returned to meditating, the same rainbow aura appeared, and again only around the one girl.  This time I didn't loose my focus, but continued to focus on my breath.  I let the aura reside in my peripheral vision - not ignoring it, but not focusing on it either - at this point all the colors were still visible, but orange began to dominate.

This is the first time I've seen anything like this, does it mean anything?

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## Sivason

> I attended a public meditation at a nearby center recently (for the first time in a long time I actually live in a city that has these).  The practice was simply sitting in a comfortable position and focusing on the breath with eyes open and diffuse vision.  My eyes were slightly downcast to the floor, but I could see the other people around me out of my peripheral vision.  After about a minuet, one girl next to me suddenly seemed to have a glowing explosion of a rainbow around her.  (One rainbow bending around her, not rays emanating from her.)  It was so startling that I completely lost focus and took a moment to recover.  Up until now I have seen a slight white or blue/green glow around people, rivers, trees, and some objects.  However, this glow has been fairly uniform around anything or anyone where I would see it.  This is the first time I have seen anything this colorful or intense.  When I returned to meditating, the same rainbow aura appeared, and again only around the one girl.  This time I didn't loose my focus, but continued to focus on my breath.  I let the aura reside in my peripheral vision - not ignoring it, but not focusing on it either - at this point all the colors were still visible, but orange began to dominate.
> 
> This is the first time I've seen anything like this, does it mean anything?



Diffuse vision and a meditative mind state is the key to tapping into aura vision. That  is going to be intermediate skill #3, so you are ahead of the game. For the purpose of the class I will not be suggesting they are actually seeing energy, as a few students are not allowed to practice mystic things. It is a state of mind, i welcome them to believe these things are just biological functions of the mind, and that is very plausable, so they can practice without violating their religious restrictions.
My own belief is that often aura vision is in fact you interperating a form of energy that we have learned to ignore. I feel it is a natural sense like smell, and after awaking Kundalini and mastering aura vision, it become a 24/7 thing. I have seen aruas during all moments of my waking life for over 15 years. A strange thing is you are experiencing a form of synastesia (sensory cross over), the aura sense is not actually based on your eyes, but when you first stumble on it you must relate it to a known thing and vision is the closest. (ignore all that for now)
The sense gives you an ability to feel more of what the biological aspects of your world are doing or feeling. Generally a slight glow in a clearish light surrounds everything, even rocks. Living things put off wave like energy that fluctuates and may be precieved as color (the actual color is the synastesia from your brain trying to relate to what it is picking up on.) When someone is full of energy such as any one teaching or performing or moving energy in meditation, then very impressive visuals can be seen, just like you described.

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## hermine_hesse

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this with me.  I'm sure you've already gathered that I welcome the mystical interpretations.  :smiley: 

I never realized that the clearish glow seen around things could be an aura.  I have seen a clear glow like this around people occasionally for many years.  Lately with diffuse vision, I see this around people, plants, and some inanimate objects.  I've also seen a slightly turquoise glow around trees and a river.  You mentioned that this light surrounds everything, including rocks.  Do you mean that this light also surrounds manufactured objects or only organic inanimate objects?  What do you think this energy is?

It's interesting that you mentioned synesthesia.  I've always found this condition very intriguing and have had a few synesthesia experiences when taking hallucinogens.  What you are saying makes sense.

On an unrelated sidenote: I spent most of today asleep with a migraine and had unexpected, brief lucid dream where I attempted gravity manipulation again.  After last time's success, I rushed into it without thinking about or feeling what I was doing and ended up falling from the ceiling.  Before I hit the ground, I floated midair for a moment and could feel gravity bombarding me from different directions while decided whether I would fall back up to the ceiling or down to the floor.  I found it interesting that I was able to not only recall goals from WR, but also recall a previous dream and continue where I left off on perfecting a skill - that my lucids can be a continuation of each other.

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## Sivason

> 1) I've also seen a slightly turquoise glow around trees and a river.  You mentioned that this light surrounds everything, including rocks.  Do you mean that this light also surrounds manufactured objects or only organic inanimate objects?  What do you think this energy is?
> ---------
> 
> 
> 2) I found it interesting that I was able to not only recall goals from WR, but also recall a previous dream and continue where I left off on perfecting a skill - that my lucids can be a continuation of each other.




1) Yes, you can see aruas off man made objects, and even more so if it is a conductive item like power lines. My own belief is that as every thing is composed of energy E=MC2 that we have a sense that can detect that energy to some degree. It may also be as simple as the energy of heat and motion. All physical items are vibrating on an atomic level and also have heat. Cold really is just having less heat than something else. In any case all objects have an aura even if it is weak and colorless. Obejects that are not alive, but have life like qualities such as a river will have larger auras. Living things have auras that fluctuate and kind of pulse or vibrate. Again the actual color is not truely there, but it is easiest for your brain to alert you that something special is in the energy. That is, your brain picks up on variations in the energy, and you interperate that as variation in color.

2) It is amazing isn't it? that is what study of this kind of thing leads to. It takes time, willingness, hard work, and an open mind, but personally why pursue a hobby like LDing and not do the needed training to master it?

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## hermine_hesse

The past few nights I have been experimenting with the visualization training.  At first when watching for colors, I experimented with finding what the difference is between actually seeing a color with my eyes closed and visualizing a color in my imagination.  I would switch between imagining a blue circle as vividly as possible, then observing what I was actually seeing.  It would be hard for me to describe the difference, but I know it is there and is a very subtle one.

Over the next few nights, as I watched for colors, I realized that I may be one of the few who don't see colors when observing this.  However, I do so light and patterns.  The light appears uniformly as a slight greenish hue (the same as I observed in auras), but fluctuates in repeated or random patterns or shapes.  I decided to focus on manipulating light and pattern instead of color.  I would imagine something that would contain a pattern or change of light, and see what I was observing was affected.  On the first night I imagined waves, but didn't see any noticeable difference.  Last night, I imagined fireworks (which would be a change of light and pattern), suddenly, white fireworks exploded on the dark background before my eyes.  It was so intense and vivid that it actually startled me and I opened my eyes.

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## Sivason

Wonderful! Good work. It is not a case of you being one of the few who does not see color, as much as you will just need to develop that less used portion of the brain used in this type of visualization. many students struggle for a few days to see even shadows or blurs of grey. Each person will have a level of skill at the beginning and then, when your brain has begun rewiring itself thhe ability will suddenly blossom. i am sure every student can reach the advanced levels of this practice, but it will take weeks for the breakthrough to really happen. Color will come later. Use the shapres and lights to develop the skill and go back to color after awhile, and it will be much easier.

As far as the difference between imagination and this type of real rich visual training, as the fireworks showed you, they are totally different, if somewhat related.

I like this post and will paste it into the lesson when it is time, and award you 50 hall points. Keep it up, no hurry, you are doing great. I think you in paticular will be able to complete the training and even contact a true dream guide entity to continue your training. That may take a few years, but you are taking the steps to get there. I will assist students in making contact when they are ready and well trained.

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## hermine_hesse

> I like this post and will paste it into the lesson when it is time, and award you 50 hall points. Keep it up, no hurry, you are doing great. I think you in paticular will be able to complete the training and even contact a true dream guide entity to continue your training. That may take a few years, but you are taking the steps to get there. I will assist students in making contact when they are ready and well trained.



Thank you  :smiley:   I think I have spoke with you before about what may already be a dream guide.  He has only appeared twice in my dreams and has not come back since.  Right after his last appearance, I had a long dry spell of no lucidity and got the feeling I needed to gain a higher level of proficiency on my own before I could began training in the dream world.  When the time is right, I would like to try and seek out this same entity.

Honestly, with settling into my new life and job, I haven't been practicing as much as I could.  I am dedicated to this being a lifelong pursuit, though.

The past few nights, I have been attempting the visualization training every night.  Even without noticeable visual results, it feels like practicing awareness without training wheels.  Focusing on the dark field of vision and not letting my thoughts drift as I drift to sleep with no mantra or focus on sensation is much more challenging.  Last night I became lucid in a dream just by noticing how my voice rippled through the air when I yelled.  When I was lucid, I instantly had a greater level of control than I have been experiencing and the dream was more vivid than WR.

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## Sivason

> Honestly, with settling into my new life and job, I haven't been practicing as much as I could.  I am dedicated to this being a lifelong pursuit, though.



That is the key! You have your whole life, and there is no hurry.

You likely did contact an actual dream guide. I feel like they want people to advance to a fairly high level of skill, before they get involved.

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## hermine_hesse

I had a mini breakthrough last night.  I know I've read either in your instructions or in someone else's journal to practice diffuse vision when doing the visualization exercise.  Last night, as I was practicing, I suddenly realized I have not been using diffuse vision at all in this exercise!  With this realization, I switched to diffuse vision, and instantly saw a change in the light patterns before my eyes.  The patterns grew more vivid and intense and I even saw a few specks of blue.

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## Sivason

YAY!!! Color at last! Good job!

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## hermine_hesse

After about a week of no new progress in visual training, I decided to switch to tactile training for a few nights.  Even though my focus was on the tactile training, I still was passively aware of my visual field and began to make progress when I wasn't actively focusing on it.  One night, I started to drift off into a dream, but woke back up without opening my eyes.  The middle of my visual field held a shrunken portion of the dream like an after image.  I noticed this and was able to hold the image long enough to watch a scene unfold of someone leaving their house and getting into a car.

After this, I continued to focus on the blue sparks that have started appearing, and usually imagine the ocean, since this has movement and color, and is a calming image to fall asleep to.  (Although, it has caused most of my initial dreams for the night to involve me floating in the ocean.)  Yesterday, while taking an extended nap, I started to see whole patches of blue floating across visual field.   During the same nap, I also noticed that if I move my eyes quickly while keeping them closed, that a movement of light, in the same direction of my eyes appeared.  I could repeat this in any direction, and even use it to make a light circle.  I was lying on my right side, and also noticed that if I moved my eyes all the way to the right, I experienced a strange buzzing sound/ sensation.  The visual field has appeared in my dreams.I became lucid while in a black void a few nights ago, and wanted to return to a dreamscape.  I used the same visual techniques to create green across my visual field, which I then turned into a grassy field.

I am excited to try the new skills.   :smiley:   I have begun exploring energy work a little on my own, so it is great to have some guidance in this area.

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## Sivason

Great progress!

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## hermine_hesse

Wow!  It's been two months since I've posted.  I haven't abandoned this course or my dreaming practice, but I've been going through a difficult living situation involving roommates that I am unhappy with.  Not feeling comfortable where I am sleeping as caused me to let these practices fall by the wayside.  I still have lucid dreams fairly regularly, but they are unstable and chaotic.  Since I've been out of practice for a while, I am going to start back at lesson one and work back up this week.

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## Sivason

Good. These skills need to bring about large changes in your awareness. They are things to use for the rest of your life. No need to hurry as some of the most important stuff is in the first lessons.

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## hermine_hesse

Hi there, Sivason.  I think having these past few months to reconfigure my life and living situation, while putting meditation and dreaming on hold, has helped me to understand your mantra of not needing to hurry.  I tend to want to learn everything now!, so I think it has been good for me to back off a little, then come back.  I am settled into a new apartment now, and starting to regain my dream recall and time for meditation.

However, during these past few months I think I may have encountered a roadblock to my progress.  I was reading another thread in the Deep Dreaming section about psi balls where you said something to the extent that people who are able to harness prana, but put ill intention into it, not only can cause great harm to others, but also to themselves karmically.  Generally I have great compassion for people and all living things.  I try to cultivate compassion and lovingkindness, minimize my harm to other living beings and the planet, and have even practiced a few compassion meditation exercises from Thich Nhat Hanh.  However, I have come to realize recently that I have a real vindictive streak and perhaps over-inflated sense of righteous justice, especially towards others who actively hurt or are careless towards other people.  I believe I am at a point in my practice where I really need to resolve this.  Do you have any advice in regards to this?  I know it may be strange that I am posting this in a dream yoga thread, but I think these thoughts are intrinsically tied to my practice.

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## Sivason

Good to hear from  you again. So you see why I say the class should take at least a year?  I bet alot of jaws drop when they read that. lol/

One thing that when know helps control the urge to direct prana at another. It will only work upto the level that they have such and such amount of karma due. It will howevr harm you  at full force, although my father preached that it would return to you 10 fold. Knowing that you can cause no more harm than they deserve is a good reason not to direct at say a  rivel lover. The rivel probably desrves very little, so you putting out hate may end up with them feeling sad, or getting in a minor accident, HOWEVER, you will receive the brunt force of whatever you put out. 

With that in mind we see that aggressive hateful intent mixed with use of prana, is a dark and dangerous path. So, what can we do. What is the worth in a power to change our worlds, if such risk is involved? It comes down to one word, intent. We can still create wonderful things, that include our enemies being removed, that do not harm us. I am not saying you attempt to hide your contempt, because you will never fool the powers that be.

What I mean by intent is that the student changes how they veiw aa favorible outcome. I will use a couple example, to show two mindsets. Both may bring demise to a bad man, but one is very hurtfull  for the student. Take the case of a girlfriend who seems under the power of a male criminal type. You decide that if you can influence the world, you should help her escape...... Now see, up to now the idea is noble and guardians and angelics will not oppose you, you have good intent.,,,,,,,,,, Option 1)" Lord I give forth this energy that you may destroy this wicked man. Please allow him to overdose, or act stupid in front of cops, so he gets shot. Lord I give forth this energy that he may get what he deserves, and that will set my friend free.",,,,,, well, now the intent has got a bit creepy, even if he deserves it. One source of power is in doing good, because you can meet and befriend angelic types to assist you. In the first setting, many angelics will get disgusted and leave you for good. The power sent out may harm him, but will harm you at no less than full force (or 10 fold)

So what to do?! We want to help our friend, what good is a power that can not be used to help a friend? Was the first version honestly intended to help anyone, or was it ego unleashed? Here is alternative 2)"My Lord I give forth this energy that my friend will be able to remove the veil of illusion that is keeping her trapped. My Lady (lord, whatever) this man has wronged many and they will have their hearts set at ease if the consequences of his own actions comes upon him suddenly, perhap he may be arrested for something bad he has done and face the courts and the victoms. My Lady, my true wish is simply that my friend see what she needs to see and at the time you use this energy to give her the courage she will need.'

Is the wish to harm him not there? We are human, we may smile and flush red when he is marched away in handcuffs, but hopefully we did tame the viscious nature of being man.


So, my advice is to get  to know yourself as deeply as you can. Feel free to talk with yourself as if there were two or more of you. In private get yourself to say out loud how angery you are. then in a clamer mindset, play the role of the wise one, and come up with a comprimise. You could never hurt him worse that his karma alotted, but you may take a hand in directing his own karma into action. Come up with ways of creating your desired out comes, with out loosing your calm inner self.

I am not sure what else to say at the moment, but feel free to follow up, if we should talk about the concept more.

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## hermine_hesse

Thank you, this does help.  I think have been reticent in the past about talking to myself as if there were two are more of me, out of concern that this makes me crazy.  Being interested in fringe things such as lucid dreaming and directing prana, coupled with my intelligence and proclivity for over-analyzing everything makes me feel crazy enough already, that I feel if I am now talking to myself I have really gone over the edge!  Obviously, this is not the case, and perhaps I have just needed someone else to confirm this.  I especially like the idea of "wise me" talking with "angry me" and coming to a compromise.  

I am now removed from the situation that was bringing up these feelings, but wanted to still wanted resolve it as I am sure I could encounter similar situations in the future.  Since embarking on this dream meditation journey, I have noticed a subtle difference on how I effect my surroundings (or how the universe arranges itself around me as I sometimes think of it.)  For example, over a three week period, things I needed but didn't ask for just seemed to come to me.  I would receive an email for a free pizza when running low on money to buy food for the week.  A coworker gave a me a new set of mala beads after mine broke.  My partner and I moved into a new apartment with no furnishings.  Within two days of receiving a large, new tv from my dad, I won an even larger tv.  Initially, I did wish harm on the person causing the negative situation, and actively focused my intent on it.  I now realize that if the universe can bring me things I am not even asking for, how much more powerful is my focused intent?  I am glad to know, however, that I cannot bring any more harm than is karmically due.  I am starting to feel more resolved in this area now.  I suppose the best outcome in these situations where I am involved with a negative person, would be for me to ask for the enlightenment of that person, so that they may find peace and compassion.

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## hermine_hesse

I practiced Advanced Skill #1 Step 1.  This is probably the type of meditation I am already most familiar with and have been practicing something similar for years.  Instead of focusing on a clock, I focus on my breath.  I did try using the clock to observe how quickly thought forms.  I noticed after just two seconds a thought would start to form.  I am able to focus to where no random thoughts appear, but my internal monologue still will want to narrate to myself what I am experiencing in the meditation.  I am able to sense the thought as it is forming and my internal monologue doesn't usually get past the first word.  I don't like to think of it as suppressing thought, however.  I think of it as acknowledging and releasing the thought.  A former teacher of mine told me to view the thoughts as a train I am choosing not to board at this moment.  Sometimes I still a have a mental image of a train station that ends the thought, but most of the time it feels like the thought is a cloud floating away.

I already use something similar to step 3 when I am falling asleep, but have been lazy about it lately.  I find it is important for me to use this, not only to achieve LDs and dream goals, but to simply clear my head as I am falling sleep, so as not to dream about the day's problems.  There's nothing worse than getting home from a long day at work, then going to sleep only to dream about being at work!

I will try step 4 in my next meditation.

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## Sivason

It is great that you have already been working on similar things. You have a head start, and allso know what a long a difficult process it is. Maybe supression has a negetive feel to it. I try to apply a sense of force in motion to cancle the thoughts before the first internal monolouge starts. I am still suprised that so many schools only really teach this one meditation. It is hard as anything I have ever tackled.

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