Recalling Dreams and Meditation

In my postings, I have written about some of the things we can do to improve dream recall and the quality of our dreams. These include the following: proper amount of sleep, avoidance of strong drugs, maintaining a good diet free of junk foods, and regular daily meditation. The proper amount of sleep will vary from individual to individual, but you should feel refreshed when you start the day. Too little or too much sleep can be detrimental and will affect your sense of well-being and your dreams. Strong drugs can adversely affect your body chemistry and result in nightmares or dreams depicting a strong imbalance, as can certain foods. I am not talking about drugs prescribed for a serious medical condition. That is a completely different subject for a later posting. I am talking about artificial stimulants or depressants. Food that taxes rather nourishing the body can also result in dreams that depict the body’s reaction against the food and the body’s struggle to obtain homeostasis. Finally, meditation was said to be a key component in our lives for obtaining the maximum benefit from our dreams.

The maximum benefit from our dreams can be obtained when the body is not struggling with imbalances. If we want solutions to problems in our daily lives, we should strive to keep the body healthy and well rested. The dreams can then focus on areas such as our jobs, financial issues, social issues, family matters, and personal growth. And when we stray from healthy lifestyles, we are reminded as I was in my dreams. Many years ago when I was trying to improve my heath, I was occasionally eating burgers from one of the fast food restaurants. One night in a dream, I was in my kitchen with the burger and was told to put it down the garbage disposal. Another time, when I was entertaining, I ate too many potato chips, and drank too much wine, I dreamed that night that I entertained Babe Ruth, who was known for excessive eating and drinking.

Daily meditation helps to bring peace and harmony into our daily lives and establishes our willingness to receive guidance from a higher power. Spiritual channels are opened when we dream, so the guidance rises above the level of the individual consciousness to a universal level. The advice we receive takes into consideration our spiritual lives, and is not just a creation by the body consciousness or a response to worries and concerns of the day. For those who seek visions from their dreams, a view of the future, I think that daily meditation is essential. There are many approaches to meditation, and many say their way is the right one. I think that success with meditation is not determined by the use of certain chants or music, or yoga positions, or the following of a guru. I believe that success is determined by our willingness to let go of the inner talk we are consumed with each day, and surrender to a higher power. I have known some who have achieved enlightenment in a short time, and others who spend a lifetime in a futile pursuit. The goal should not be to achieve what someone else describes as success; the goal should be to enter into a silence where you can experience that sense of peace and connection to all of life. The goal should be to experience your true self.

Next year I am going to start focusing on the nature of time and the future as it unfolds for us in our dreams. I will discuss some of the science concerning time, as well as the personal ramifications for us in our daily lives. Some say we shouldn’t know the future, and others say we can’t know the future. I intend to address the positions of both groups and provide my answer to why I think it is important that we know our “probable” future. At this point l will just say that events do not happen the way most people think, and our dreams show us how we create the future we experience. It doesn’t just happen; psychic forces are at work building the future long before we experience it physically.