Course One: Wizardry 43
and bringing them home to keep in my terrariums (we
still have a couple of large boas). So I wasn’t at all
scared to have them crawling all over me in my
dreams—even biting me. I would laugh in these
dreams, knowing that the Sandman had really mixed
up! Later, I learned that in traditional dream symbol-
ism, snakes represent “spiritual wisdom; transcen-
dence into a state of wisdom.” And snakebites in a
dream mean “an infusion of wisdom.” So maybe there
was a good reason for them to be in my dreams after
all....Lesson 7: Dream Discovery
Dream discovery is a specific
kind of lucid dreaming whereby
you set an intention to dream
about a specific thing—usu-
ally in order to solve a
problem, gain an insight,
design a symbol, or vi-
sualize a project (such as
a painting, sculpture, music,
etc.). I have used this tech-
nique to create unicorns, con-
ceptualize statues I intend to
sculpt, make architectural de-
signs, plan magazine and book
layouts, and create logos for vari-
ous groups—such as the wizardly logo you see here.
One of the most famous instances of dream-dis-
covery was that of the ring structure of Benzene. Until
Kekule made the discovery, molecular structures in
chemistry were conceived as linear (being in a straight
line). This, however, did not explain many properties
of Benzene. Kekule was trying to figure out a struc-
ture—without much success—when the solution came
to him in a dream. He described this experience to an
assembly of scientists who had met to commemorate
his discovery:“...I turned my chair toward the fireplace and sank
into a doze. Again the atoms were flitting before
my eyes. Smaller groups now kept modestly in the
background. My mind’s eye sharpened by re-
peated visions of a similar sort, now distinguished
larger structures of varying forms. Long rows fre-
quently rose together, all in movement, winding
and turning like serpents; and see! what was that?
One of the serpents seized its own tail and the
form whirled mockingly before my eyes. I came
awake like a flash of lightning. This time also I
spent the remainder of the night working out the
consequences of the hypothesis.”
—Madhukar Shukla,
“The Discovery of the Benzene Ring”First, you must become completely obsessed with
the discovery you are trying to make. Read every-
thing you can find about it; search the Internet (go to
http://www.Google.com); question everyone you know
about the subject. Then, from all you have gathered
together, start collecting symbols, pictures, photos,
news clippings, and any other visible images you can
copy or print out. Write or draw some ideas yourself,
and include these. Cut them all out and spread them
over a large table or the floor. Shuffle and rearrange
these into patterns and designs until you are happy
with the overall arrangement. Take plenty of time with
this. Then get some scissors and glue sticks and paste
your arrangement of pieces onto a large sheet of card-
board as a collage. Don’t worry if the design comes
out looking a little different as you paste it up; that’s
also part of the process.
Before you go to bed, spend a while staring at
your collage, trying to memorize every detail. You
should be able to visualize it clearly in your mind when
you close your eyes. Put a notepad and pencil beside
your bed, along with a glass of water. Write down a
specific question on a piece of paper (parchment is
best for this and all such spells), and place it under
your pillow along with a little “dream-pillow” sachet
of artemesia herb. Then, in the same way you learned
earlier to remember your dreams, just before you lie
down to sleep, take a drink, making an affirmation as
you do so that all the pieces will come together in
your dreams, and you will see the solution you are
looking for. And you will remember it when you
awaken and take another drink of water.
If you would like to further empower a prophetic
dream, you can align yourself with the lunar aspect,
as the Moon is the ruler of sleep and dreams. The best
time is when the Moon is waxing and almost full, ide-
ally on a night of the week related to what you are
trying to discover (see 3.VI.5: “Table of Correspon-
dences: Planets”). You might also take a warm, relax-
ing bath before going to bed, adding a few drops of
the following oils to your bath water: lavender, rose-
mary, peppermint, thyme, and powdered poppy seeds.
While you are taking your bath, burn some of the fol-
lowing lunar incense in your bedroom: camphor, pow-
dered aloeswood, jasmine, pulverized cucumber seeds,
and powdered white sandalwood (all in equal parts).OuroborosBenzene
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