Consciousness

Chapter

Fifteen

Dreaming and beyond

between levels of 40 Hz activity and ratings of insight (awareness of being in a
dream) and dissociation (experiencing the dream from a third-person perspec-
tive) (Voss et al., 2014). Given claims relating 40 Hz power to consciousness, this
also fits with the notion that lucid dreaming is a state hovering between waking
and dreaming sleep.

PRACTICE 15.2

BECOMING LUCID

If you are taking part in the class activity (Activity 2) try whichever induction

technique is assigned to you. Otherwise practise this one.

Take a pen and write a large D on one hand, for Dreaming, and a large

A on the other, for Awake. As many times as you can, every day, look at

these two letters and ask ‘Am I awake or am I dreaming?’ If you

get thoroughly into the habit of doing this during the day, the habit should

carry over into sleep. You may then find yourself looking at your hands in

a dream and asking ‘Am I awake or am I dreaming?’ This is a prelucid

dream. All you have to do is answer correctly and you’re lucid.

Did it work? What happened in the dream? What happened to your

awareness during the day?

FIGURE 15.6 • How can you test whether you are dreaming? In 1920s London, Oliver Fox made many such tests during his
experiences of astral projection and lucid dreaming. ‘I dreamed that my wife and I awoke, got up, and dressed.
On pulling up the blind, we made the amazing discovery that the row of houses opposite had vanished and in
their place were bare fields. I said to my wife, “This means I am dreaming, though everything seems so real and
I feel perfectly awake. Those houses could not disappear in the night, and look at all that grass!” But though my
wife was greatly puzzled, I could not convince her it was a dream. “Well”, I continued, “I am prepared to stand
by my reason and put it to the test. I will jump out of the window, and I shall take no harm.” Ruthlessly ignoring
her pleading and objecting, I opened the window and climbed out on to the sill. I then jumped, and floated gently
down into the street. When my feet touched the pavement, I awoke. My wife had no memory of dreaming.’
(Fox, 1962, p. 69).