Is it possible to enter a lucid dream? The answer to this question is unequivocal: yes, you can! However, most people who encounter such states do not understand what they can gain from this practice. The problem is that there is no evidence confirming how real lucid dreaming is. But there are several verified points from which we can start.
Common Misconceptions
The abundance of common mistakes and misconceptions makes it difficult to ask the question, “How real are lucid dreams?” The fact is that many incorrect, unscientific judgments have created the impression that lucid dreaming is pure fiction. Below, we will go through the most popular of these judgments.
1. A Person Physically Leaves the Body
If you accidentally find yourself outside your body, you might think that you have physically left your shell. You will be in the same room where you went to sleep, and you will be able to walk around the house while your “matter” lies in bed. However, it’s important to understand that no physical exit is observed. Just look around—most likely, not everything in the room is in its place, and outside the window, you might see a fantastic world that cannot exist in reality. This shows how realistic lucid dreams can feel; however, they are not a part of physical reality. If you rearrange something in your room or change your hairstyle, the changes will not happen in the real world.
You must understand that you will not be able to:
- Travel through the real world in real time.
- Spy on your friends or rivals.
- Read secret documents.
- Rearrange things.
- Pinch another person in the hope that they will get a bruise in reality.
However, this does not mean that the practice of lucid dreaming cannot help you. It just has a different meaning.
2. Parallel Worlds
People often see impossible and non-existent worlds in lucid dreams. When they do, they may think they have traveled to another time or place that exists somewhere in another reality. However, you should consider the power of your mind and consciousness instead of inventing things that do not actually exist. No matter how real lucid dreams may feel, unreal worlds are only a product of your imagination; you will not be able to meet someone real in them, exchange technologies and information with them, or use such journeys to enhance reality.
3. Supernatural Abilities
Lucid dreaming involves extrasensory perception. Few people are truly capable of practicing lucid dreams and deriving benefits from them. But it would be inaccurate to call this a supernatural ability because anyone can gain access to the world of lucid dreams.
There is a theory that lucid dreams help to unlock superpowers. You can find many mentions of this in various mystical sources. However, reliable evidence is lacking.
You can develop non-trivial abilities that you can use directly in lucid dreams, but these skills do not translate to the real world. For example, over time, you can control not only the plots in your sleep but also fully work with the space of lucid dreams. However, everything that happens in the dream world stays there. There is no way to transfer your skills to reality.
Lucid dreams are real; that’s exactly how they feel. But don’t think that the superpowers you develop in lucid dreams can be applied in reality. It’s better to use other approaches that you can test in your first entry into a lucid dream and develop skills that will help you in your real life.
Why Do People Learn Techniques to Enter Lucid Dreams?
Since you can control literally everything in lucid dreams, the practice attracts many people. Almost all practitioners can be categorized into one of three groups.
1. Researchers
These practitioners need to explore the world around them because, otherwise, they do not feel themselves. It is difficult for them to sit still, and they strive to experience the amazing and unusual. They have an innate desire to study everything that is happening around them. If they come across information about the phenomenon of lucid dreams, researchers will certainly experience its reality and usefulness personally.
2. The Strong
In the past, these people were ordinary researchers. However, they had to overcome a difficult path that was both physical and personal or spiritual. They have reached a certain peak and are currently in search of a new stage in their life. They are so strong in spirit that they can impeccably control their emotions. Therefore, they are the best at practicing lucid dreams. By the way, this type hones the skills of a particular phase state the fastest. For example:
- Exiting the body not only once in a dream but also during the day (e.g., during a lunch break).
- Independently removing informational garbage that is unconsciously stored in the head for some reason.
- Exploring past lives and unconscious layers (archetypes). Some practitioners call this stage “cleansing karma from past incarnations.”
- Learning languages or mastering art through lucid dreams. Some even manage to write music or books.
- Staying out of the body for prolonged periods (about 1–2 hours).
- Obtaining information that will be useful in one’s life.
- Overcoming fears and phobias.
Of course, the above list is far from complete. Even though you cannot change the world around you through lucid dreams, you can continue improving yourself during rest, which will allow you to influence your environment in the future.
3. The Desperate
These people have had to face terrible events in life, which they have overcome with great difficulty (most often psychological). They practice lucid dreaming to solve psychological problems and find answers to questions. Because of their unstable emotional states, they have more difficulty practicing lucid dreaming than the other two groups. This is because to immerse in lucid dreams, you need to fully control your emotions. However, desperate people are the most persistent and move unwaveringly towards their goal. It doesn’t matter if they fail one time, ten times, or a thousand times, as long as they ultimately see results. Accordingly, they will almost certainly immerse themselves in a lucid dream eventually, and they will take everything they want from their dreams.
Despite differences in their reasons and temperaments, practitioners of all three categories are united by a deep interest in lucid dreaming, and they are all eager to experience things they have never tried before. For all of them, lucid dreams also give the feeling of magic from childhood. You can experience this, too, not by believing in miracles but by seeing it with your own eyes and experiencing how real lucid dreams can feel. Ultimately, you can make lucid dreaming an invaluable part of your life.
Recommended Books on Lucid Dreaming
Recommended reading
Attacks and aggression from lucid dream objects
Does lucid dreaming feel real? Basic properties of space
Robert Monroe: “Journeys Out of the Body” and Lucid Dreaming
