Thread: Patjunfa's workbook

Originally Posted by Patjunfa

Nice lucid last night.
I had woken from a dream. Was trying to re-imagine the last scenes of the dream for a while. I was imagining my hands, can see a silhouette of them, move and rub together, cool, can feel them even if not formed yet, rub and clap, listening, cool, sound, they form into proper vivid dream hands “that’s how I want it”I start singing about being in a dream

Very nice job Patjunfas! This sounds like a good process for you anytime you feel like you've woken up. Singing in your LD is always a good sign and you got a soundtrack too which is always nice. The trip down the branch sounded cool and the golden twinkling stars, and trees…I have an affinity for trees for some reason.

With SSILD, do I sent any intent/mantra or just cycle with the senses (sight, sound and touch).

Traditionally no, but I see nothing wrong with experimenting with that. I think it could help if done before the cycles, or possibly even after the cycles, if you don't fall asleep right away.

Keep up the great progress

Not been the most active week for framing for a few reasons. Bit of a cold, heavy sinuses so nighttime not spacious. Also painting in bedroom so in the spare room now. I find I commit more to practice when after some length of WBTB I change rooms and sleep the last part of the night alone. Going to get some different earplugs as better ones may give more confidence without perfect conditions.

Had a shortish DILD almost a week ago and v short WILD early in night couple of days ago. Neither particularly noteworthy. Great night last night. No lucidity but still v satisfying. I'd Planned to experiment with some ALpha GPC but had a dream that I took as being negative about this. Wrote dreams a few times during the night, which I've been too lazy to do recently. Lots of fun non lucids, running along b side my old cat, in a manor like in princess Mononoke. Weird fights like from a computer game. Fun.
Been good reading through some others lucids on DV...getting a broader sense of of options with LD's.

Things I'd like to do to help my practice
Experiment more with imaging being lucid in day. Did seem useful last week. Mulling on the difference between regular reality checking practice and regular faking reality check practice. Perhaps regular reality checks build a habit of confirming that your not lucid, whereas faking it may create a new pathway of. "I look at my hands and I'm lucid" . Seems easier to do as a practice when excited about a dream goal or the potential of lucidity.
My other thing to do is try and be clearer on what current dream goals are. Pandora was a fun goal. Didn't get as far with it as I'd like which was to go to the tree of souls. Other TOTM, getting onto an alien spaceship has that fun/far out quality as does one of the potential tasks for next month, meet the Buddha. Such fun motivations feel like they help my goal of becoming more dexterous and familiar with lucidity which will hopefully help with other goals of having awareness in deep sleep and being able to inhabit other creations within the dream and not identifying with the dream ego/projecting separation into my experience (had one nice dream of this nature).
Going to order earplugs today as part of momentum

Originally Posted by Patjunfa

Also painting in bedroom so in the spare room now.

I guess as you said with cold, haven't been as effortful but could be interesting to play a bit with autosuggestion in the downtime. Especially just playing on the potentially spiked awareness of being in a totally different room. Along with the fact that some of your WILDs & false awakenings start off from your bedroom or the bed/buddabag you've switched to. ...or just to really spike awareness and sleep in your bed carefully while the painting is drying (if you don't fumigate yourself by doing so).

Originally Posted by Patjunfa

I'd Planned to experiment with some ALpha GPC but had a dream that I took as being negative about this.... Lots of fun non lucids, running along b side my old cat, in a manor like in princess Mononoke. Weird fights like from a computer game. Fun. ...and not identifying with the dream ego/projecting separation into my experience (had one nice dream of this nature).

Aw beautiful - esp the princess mononoke influence. Look forward to hearing more about meaningful/ noteworthy dreams at some stage or when back.

Intrigued by stringing this simulated RC along with Robert's & fogelbise's advice (recent post on my workbook) on uprooting & replacing expectations with seeds of ease and smoothness, and expecting a certain standard of awareness regarding states and induction methods.

Enjoy using consumerism to fuel lucid drive, it's a good one!

Originally Posted by fogelbise

Traditionally no, but I see nothing wrong with experimenting with that. I think it could help if done before the cycles, or possibly even after the cycles, if you don't fall asleep right away.

I just wanted to add something in case you experiment with SSILD. If you do add in any intent/mantra after the cycles, I would recommend to keep it light as you want to keep on track on your journey to sleep. SSILD sometimes creates a trance-like feeling and often brings up strong HH's. I find that intent and mantras are more powerful in the HH stage and that interesting questions and answers can be discovered during HH's, dreamlets and what may sometimes be NREM.

Originally Posted by Patjunfa

Going to get some different earplugs as better ones may give more confidence without perfect conditions.

I like the soft/supple ones with a high decibel rating. Sometimes I have to loosen them a bit for comfort or also to avoid missing my alarm…haha.

Had a shortish DILD almost a week ago and v short WILD early in night couple of days ago. Neither particularly noteworthy. Great night last night. No lucidity but still v satisfying. I'd Planned to experiment with some ALpha GPC but had a dream that I took as being negative about this. Wrote dreams a few times during the night, which I've been too lazy to do recently. Lots of fun non lucids, running along b side my old cat, in a manor like in princess Mononoke. Weird fights like from a computer game. Fun.

Great!..some lucidity and some enjoyable non lucid dreams as well, which are valuable as well.

Been good reading through some others lucids on DV...getting a broader sense of of options with LD's.

Absolutely, this can be useful…just be mindful of what Aaronoscar & I talked about in his workbook for any occasions that you read something negative in someone's workbook (how some challenge or problem they had doesn't have to translate to your dreams!).

Things I'd like to do to help my practice
Experiment more with imaging being lucid in day. Did seem useful last week. Mulling on the difference between regular reality checking practice and regular faking reality check practice. Perhaps regular reality checks build a habit of confirming that your not lucid, whereas faking it may create a new pathway of.

I agree that creating these new neural pathways or reinforcing existing ones may be the mechanism working here. I do both kinds of reality checks thinking that there has to be value in the original way of doing RC's as well.

Such fun motivations feel like they help my goal of becoming more dexterous and familiar with lucidity...

I wholeheartedly agree.

Originally Posted by aaronoscar

Intrigued by stringing this simulated RC along with Robert's & fogelbise's advice (recent post on my workbook) on uprooting & replacing expectations with seeds of ease and smoothness, and expecting a certain standard of awareness regarding states and induction methods.

Indeed. I liked your feedback that was in your workbook regarding this and the tie in to Robert's advice.

Lovely Lucid last night. Long, stable and clear. I’ve a bit of a new habit of SSILD earlier in night and then MILD on l8r awakenings (same as what you do Fogelbise…v suggestible :-)). Really liking SSILD even for the lovely meditative transition into sleep and the rest that brings. Its interesting having transitioned from primarily relying on WILD, which I love but is a bigger commitment, to DILD, which is easier to fit in and I’m having more lucids :-)… We have a small LD group meeting up in a couple of days, where I live, so last night I had motivation to bring some recent lucidity and inspiration to the group. Did short WBTB with a bit of Tai Chi. Then the following DILD. Meant when I woke it was 5.40, I wrote for 45 mins, and at 6.25 decided to get up. Lovely walk, stars still out, reflecting on how dreamlike and malleable perception is. Time when back for a nice meditation then getting the kids up. Much earlier than I’d have chosen to start the day, but lovely.

In dream my wife was taping me awake/banging off me, she was then doing Yoga, seemed v early in the morning for this. I look at the clock, its v cool looking and unreadable. Dreaming! Cool…can’t remember early part, hands on a ledge, look at hands, v stable. Reflect on sensation of being banged off and still staying asleep. Think dream plan-Call out “dream show me something important I need to see”- don’t remember, colour change or something that doesn’t feel v significant. Think of other tasks…TOTM, read a book with secrets written on it, ok, look in bedside looker- 1st book, small hardback black book, says secrets on it- then word gone/unreadable-Doh…look in it anyway out of curiosity, lovely dyed pinkish pages, pop up book at parts, like a nose and other things, wonder how would I remember all these images/drawings. Put it back and look for other books with secret written on it- My Wife and sister in room, My Mum there, looking like she did 30 years ago, I give her a hug. As they are going downstairs, I say a bit ackwardly about the other TOTM where a DC gives me a task to do outside. Woman/ Granny, like my neighbours mum says yes but what about the trinity? Seems annoyed and religious. Ok…weird…I’ll leave. Bit cold/raining outside. No runners on. I start to look for them-realise it’s a dream and they will arrive or will be fine. My boxing boots are on as I walk out-into a room with some lads- easy going good connection with. Seems fine to ask them. Say about TOTM where in a LD have to ask a DC for a task to do outside. Theyre curious…I say its for a forum online and you get wings…it’s a bit silly but its fun and motivates you a bit (move from feeling a bit daft to ok with it), guy says yeh he gets it. I say can be anything, he holds an orange lighter at an angle and sparks it “like this?” and clicks it again. I say perfect thanks. Loads of guys there, all seem sound. Think about asking them about something to do with dream world/If they are DC’s, feels somehow may end the dream. Think of other task of turning dream to back and white- would it be ok? Think of Sivasons post-everything being colour and projection and substanceless. OK Black and white…2 sides of the room (like a vertical band, about 10 % of room, goes b&W. Try again, same…band moves-A DC gets some B&W on face and hair-guy lying down has kilt up, grey hair and balls. Seems annoyed/grumpy old man. Other DC’s laugh. I head back into a different building/homeward. Thinking about how long and stable a dream this is and if should wake in order to be able to remember it but decide to keep going. Go through a turnstile type of thing. My Wife turns over in bed against me and I wake

Very nice Patjunfa! Good memory of several different TOTM's as well!

Originally Posted by Patjunfa

Lovely Lucid last night. Long, stable and clear. I’ve a bit of a new habit of SSILD earlier in night and then MILD on l8r awakenings

What does the breakdown of your night look like when using this combination? (doing SSILD at what stage? how much later for MILD?)

Really liking SSILD even for the lovely meditative transition into sleep and the rest that brings. Its interesting having transitioned from primarily relying on WILD, which I love but is a bigger commitment, to DILD, which is easier to fit in and I’m having more lucids :-)…

SSILD does seem to me to be a special technique and yes, working in DILDs to your practice can definitely increase LD frequency.

We have a small LD group meeting up in a couple of days, where I live, so last night I had motivation to bring some recent lucidity and inspiration to the group.

I'm jealous! I only have one friend that is really interested and involved with lucid dreaming and I only see that friend a few times a year. This is great that you have such a group!..I recommend to work however you can at keeping it going. Around my parts there should be demand for such a group and I've seen meet-up groups posted online but they seem to only have a few people saying they will attend and seem to become inactive shortly after starting.

Lovely walk, stars still out, reflecting on how dreamlike and malleable perception is.

I love walking under the stars, though there are a few too many city lights where I am most of the time. Over the last 4 years of my lucid dreaming practice I have come to what sounds like the same kind of realization regarding the malleable nature of waking life perception. I see so much more beauty, in unexpected places and in unexpected ways, far more frequently now.

Thinking about how long and stable a dream this is and if should wake in order to be able to remember it but decide to keep going. Go through a turnstile type of thing. My Wife turns over in bed against me and I wake

I suggest to always assume that you are experiencing HH's or a full on FA whenever you feel like your Wife is waking you up. If you are being woken by your Wife moving, then this assumption can assist you in DEILDing. Same thing with HH's. If you are actually in an FA (which is very common after doing SSILD) then you can discover that you are in a new dream scene and be lucid once again! It sounded like this dream started as an FA with your wife waking you in bed and you noticing the weird clock. At the end of the dream, the fact that moments before you were thinking about waking up in order to remember all of your adventures further suggests that this could have triggered an FA initially, perhaps turning into an actual awakening at some point. Please don't think of this a negative, but rather a positive angle for you to pursue even more lucidity in the future if you are not ready to wake up and record your adventures.