Exercises in Dreaming A Paper Compiled by Philip C. Cavanagh Edited by Robert Bruce Many people find it hard to remember what they have dreamed. At one time or another I too had great difficulty, not in remembering what I dreamed, but living the dream and taking control of it as in a lucid dream. I believe that we do not stay in our bodies when we dream, but do a form of Astral Projection. I tried many ways to remember and take control of my dreams. Some methods helped a little, others a lot. One of the biggest aids to dream control I have ever come across are the energy work and breathing exercises in a book by Denning and Phillips called " The Llewellyn Practical Guide To Astral Projection." Since doing these exercises I have found that we can all lead two different lives, one in the physical world and another in the dream world. In the physical world we live, work and play. We experience pleasure, pain, happiness and boredom. But in a dream world of our own creation we can have a plethora of vastly richer experiences than we ever could on Earth. We can work out and solve all our problem, by living them, and we can enjoy our deepest fantasies, by living them too. The following will hot harm your body in any way, like dreaming, this is perfectly natural. It will improve your general health and is good for your subconscious well-being. Do the following rhythmic breathing exercises for 10 -15 minutes per night before you fall asleep. The first step in this exercise is learning how to breathe in rhythm. I found that this exercise alone helped me from suffering with Asthma all winter like I always do. This is something which you can do anytime during the day, even when you're doing something else, like working. To get the best possible results from this exercise, keep your spine as straight as possible. You can do this while lying in bed, standing or sitting. To begin with, find a quiet spot where you won't be disturbed. Sit or lay comfortably, close your eyes and relax. Listen to your heart beat, the more relaxed you are the louder it will become. If you have difficulty hearing your heartbeat, find a pulse in your throat, temples or wrist. As soon as you find the rhythm, begin counting beats. What your trying to do is establish a pattern of breathing in which you can comfortably hold your lungs full of air for a certain number of heart-beats, then breathe out during "twice" that number of heartbeats so that your lungs are as empty as you can comfortably make them, keep your lungs empty for the "original" number of beats, then breathe in during the count of the double number, your lungs being well expanded at the end. The Tibetan mystics call this "The four fold breath." It is not the number of heart beats you use for this discipline but the ratio of the pattern that is important. Try the following pattern until you feel comfortable with it. You can increase the base number of beats later, as long as the ratio is kept the same. Breathe in during 4 heart beats, hold lungs full for 2 beats, breathe out during 4 beats, hold lungs empty for 2 beats. Now you will find that after awhile you can breathe in and out for longer periods of time. If you feel comfortable with increasing the number of breaths per cycle, by all means do it. Just remember to keep the ration ( 2 to 1 ) the same, ie. Ratios ( 2 - 1 ) ( 2 - 1 ) 4 in, 2 hold, 4 out, 2 empty. 6 in, 3 hold, 6 out, 3 empty. 8 in, 4 hold, 8 out, 4 empty. All these cycles have the same 2 - 1 ratio. ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// Energy Breathing Energy Centres: These are situated at: 1. The base of the spine (between the anus and the genitals) 2. The spleen (slightly below the belly button) 3. The solar plexus (1 hand-span above the belly button) 4. The heart (centre of the chest) 5. The base of the throat. 6. The centre of the forehead. 7. Crown ( whole top of your head). They are best imagined as roughly the size of your hand, except for the crown chakra which is much larger and covers the whole of the head above the hairline. Earth centre ( between the feet ) ******************************************************************** Establish your rhythmic breathing until you feel quite settled into the pattern. On an OUT breath, become aware of the Crown centre as a sphere of intense white light. On an IN breath, draw down a shaft of white light from the Crown centre to the Third eye centre. On an Out breath, become aware of the Third eye centre. Also continue to be aware of the Crown centre and the connecting shaft of light. On an "in" breath, draw down a shaft of white light from the Third eye centre to the base of the throat. On an Out breath, become aware of the Throat centre. Again keep a consciousness of the Crown Centre, the Third eye centre and the connecting shaft of light. On an IN breath, draw a shaft of white light down from the Heart Centre to the Base centre. On an OUT breath, become aware of the Base centre. Keep consciousness also of the Crown Centre, the Third eye centre, the Throat centre, the Heart centre, and the connecting shaft of light. On an IN breath, draw down a shaft of white light from the Base centre to the area in between your feet. On an OUT breath, become aware of the Earth Centre. You should now be aware of all six spheres of white light positioned, and connected by a shaft of brilliance. Draw three or four rhythmic breaths as you contemplate these centres. This white light is part of your inner being, brought into greater awareness and radiance by the light you have brought down from the Crown centre. This white light is a symbol and manifestation of your Higher Self. If you do these exercises regularly, in a couple of weeks you will notice a big difference in how you perceive your dream plane reality. Your dreams will become more real to you and you will begin living two separate lives. Believe me, the dream plane is much more fun. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The above information came from the book "The Llewellyn Practical Guide to Astral Projection", written by Denning & Phillips, 1993. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Philip C. Cavanagh. < UI423@FREENET.VICTORIA.BC.CA >