# Sleep and Dreams > Research >  >  Willed lucid dreams

## Canon

Some of these techniques may sound like they have nothing to do with lucid dreaming, but trust me they all work together to eventually allow you to have lucid dreams just by simply wanting to. These arent fast acting and while doing these exercises you should continue using whatever lucid dreaming technique that works best for you. These are different techniques ive picked up and incorparated into lucid dreaming.



BECOMING MORE MINDFUL


Mindfulness takes practice like everything else. Most people conduct there daily activities without conciously 'attending'  to many phisical and mental processes. When you attend to the pressure of your foot against the floor or the sound of a whistle in the distance, you are conciously focused on it. You can also be mindful of the taste in your mouth, an odor in the air or even an inner thought process. If you focus your attention to a spot on a wall, you can even direct your concious awareness to various points around that spot without shifting your gaze using your peripheral vision. Listen to an orchestra and try to pick out a certain instrument and try to only hear that one. After every hour review all what happened in that hour silently in your mind, also try to be aware of your emotions at different times, try to be mindfull all the time (with practice it becomes easier).

Also try to relax and control your emotions...especially in your dreams, increases self-control.

Be mindful of all your senses throughout the day and in your LDs. When you conciously attend to a certain activity, an increased bloodflow is conducted in the brain area governing that activity. An increased bloodflow brings about more oxygen to that brain area, an consequent electrical activity brings about neural growth.Your concious awareness is not something tangible, but you know when you are using it dont you? Its like the 4th dimentional trigger of the mind which can activate braincells into use.


Becoming more mindful in waking life means becoming more mindful within dreams as well.


CONCENTRATION/MEDITATION



Meditation helps many things including your ability to have lucid dreams and your ability to remember dreams (still useful to keep a dream journal). Concentration exercises also increase your ability to control your mind, thus increasing your ability to control dreams.

(these following concentration exercises i got off another site)

Concentration exercises
Exercise 1
Take a book and count the words in any one paragraph. Count them again to be sure that you have counted them correctly. Start with one paragraph and when it becomes easier, count the words in a whole page. Perform the counting mentally and only with your eyes, without pointing you finger at each word.
Exercise 2
Count backwards in your mind from one hundred to one.
Exercise 3
Count in your mind from one hundred to one, skipping each three numbers, that is 100, 97, 94, etc.
Exercise 4
Choose an inspiring word, or just a simple sound, and repeat it silently in your mind for five minutes. When your mind can concentrate more easily, try to reach ten minutes of uninterrupted concentration.
Exercise 5
Take a fruit, an apple for example, and look at it from all sides. Concentrate your attention on it and examine it from all sides. Devote the whole session to concentrating on it. Do not be carried away by irrelevant thoughts that arise. Stay with the apple. It could be any other fruit. Look at it and do not think about the shop were you bought it, about the way it is grown, its nutritive value etc, only about the object in front of you. Just look at it, see it, smell it and touch it.
Exercise 6
This is the same as exercise number 5, only that this time you visualize the fruit with your eyes closed. Start by performing again exercise number 5 for five minutes, and then do this one. Try to see, feel, taste, smell the fruit in you imagination. Try to see a clear and well defined image. If difficulties arise open your eyes, look at the fruit, close them again and continue the exercise.
Exercise 7
Take a small simple object such as a spoon, a fork, or a glass. Concentrate on one of these objects. Watch the object from all sides without any verbalization, that is, with no words in your mind. Just watch the object without thinking with words about it.
Exercise 8
After becoming proficient in the above exercises, you can come to this exercise. Draw a small geometrical figure, about three inches in size, such as a triangle, a rectangular or a circle, paint it with any color you wish, and concentrate on it. You should see only the figure, nothing else. Only the figure exists for you now, with no unrelated thoughts or any distractions. Try not to think with words during the exercise. Watch the figure in front of you and that's it. Try not to strain your eyes.
Exercise 9
The same as number 8, only this time visualize the figure with the eyes closed. As before, if you forget how the figure looks like, open your eyes for a few seconds and watch the figure and then close your eyes and continue with the exercise.
Exercise 10
The same as above in number 9 but the eyes open.
Exercise 11
Try for at least five minutes, to stay without thoughts. This exercise is to be attempted only after all the previous ones have been performed successfully. The previous exercises, if practiced correctly, will endow you with the ability to impose silence on your thoughts. In time it will become easier and easier.

Meditation


After getting better concentration, meditation also becomes easier.

Sit or lie down in a comfortable position, and concentrate upon your breathing. In your mind say "breathing in" while inhaling and "breathing out" while exhaling. After a couple of minutes of doing this count in your mind from 0 to 100 at 2 second intervals.


With practice you can be able to go deeper faster, soon you will be able to go into the theta state at will with multiple benifits.

Once you are able to go into the theta state during meditation (you'll know by the feeling of detachment) tell yourself...."my willpower is strong, i can have any dream i want...lucid or not simply by wanting to"....keep your relaxation and concentration and after a few moments recite this once more, relax deeper into the meditation then cound from 0 to 5 and after each count say to yourself "awaking more and more".

You may find it helpful to tell yourself at the end of each meditation, that the next one will be deeper and have stronger effects.



WILLPOWER


Willpower being the most important thing in this whole tutorial, may not seem important but it works on gaining and keeping control of your mind and bringing about the ability to LD just by wanting to(although it takes time and practice).

Note that these are sample exercises and its good to come up with some of your own.


Exercise: Arranging matches

Empty the contents of a full matchbox on the table, and arrange the matches in a row, one by the side of the other. Dont think of anything else, except putting them in order. Your movements should be slow and controlled. If you experience impatience or tension curb them and stay calm.


The following 10 exercises were also taken from another site.

1) You are sitting in a bus or train and an old man or woman, or a pregnant lady walks in. Stand up and give up your seat even if you prefer to stay seated. Do this not just because it is polite, but because you are doing something that you are reluctant to do. In this way you are overcoming the resistance of your body, mind and feelings.
2) There are dishes in the sink that need washing, and you postpone washing them for latter. Get up and wash them now. Do not let your laziness overcome you. When you know that in this way you are developing your will power, and if you are convinced of the importance of will power in your life, it will be easier for you to do whatever you have to do.
3) You come home tired from work and sit in front of the T.V. because you feel too lazy and tired to go and wash yourself. Do not obey the desire to just sit, but go and have a shower
4) You may know your body needs some physical exercise, but instead you keep on sitting doing nothing or watching a movie. Get up and walk, run or do some other physical exercise.
5) Do you like your coffee with sugar? Then for a whole week decide to drink it without sugar. You like to drink three cups of coffee each day? For a week drink only two.
6) Overcome your laziness and your habits. Convince yourself of the importance of what is to be done. Convince your mind that you become stronger when you do things, even when you are reluctant, too lazy or believe you are too tired to do.
7) Sometimes, when you want to say something that is not important, decide not to say it.
8) Don't read some unimportant gossip in the newspaper, even if you want to.
9) You have a desire to eat something not too healthy. Refuse the desire. 
10) If you find yourself thinking unimportant, unnecessary, negative thoughts, try to develop lack of interest in them by persuading yourself of their futility. 

Never say that you cannot follow the above exercises, because you certainly can. Be persistent no matter what. Think and rethink about of the importance of performing the exercises and the inner power and strength they will give you. Believe me it helps. It helped me and it can help you. 


Once you get more advaced try placing a glass under a water tap, open it only a little so that only small drops come out. Patiently wait and concentrate as the glass fills to the top.

Dont try this one at first, it riquires alot of willpower and patience.


VISUALIZATION


Visualizations are good to practice while meditating also, at first they may flutter away or not be very realistic but with practice they become as real as waking life....detail is the key, all five senses, use them in visualizations and dreams also be aware of them in the daytime. Try to taste something, hear the sounds, see every little around you, feel things when you touch them and smell the air around you while your visualizing whatever you want. In time this increases dream vividness.

It may be helpful for some to use music while practicing visualizations. I dont find it that helpful, but thats just me.
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I need somebody else to try these techniques, so i can see if they work for others as well, and not just me. Remember the effects wont come right away, but when they do you'll see that it was all well worth it.

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