Dream Focus

Rituals, spells, prayer, meditation and magical acts.
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Smaragd
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Dream Focus

Post by Smaragd »

I was reading the first text of Corpus Hermeticum, for our reading group starting on the upcoming monday, where Poimandres reveals a vision of elements and principles and in my naive train of thought wondered who sees such pure and elementary visions? While this vision is perhaps less individual bound, we can also remember elementary dream visions appearing clearly in C.G. Jung's patient's dreams that on the other hand were more closely tied to an individual process regarding the elements.

So an idea came that if one would be in a certain stage of nigredo, perhaps a Black aspect devotee, where ascetism might naturally lead to focusing on the most elementary pillars of nature, wouldn't it be curious thing to meditate on these matters through dreams. The hypothesis is that when you focus on the bare bones of the elements deeply, or adopt a set of symbols you meditate regularly on, you would create a dynamic focus point upon which the unconscious would need to react, acknowledge and mirror one's individual relation to them. From there one could proceed to work through self-reflective analysis of dreams and dynamic action according to challenges revealed there.

I even speculated whether Jung might have given some incentive to his patients, a simple geometric talisman perhaps to mark the beginning of an analysis or something. Such a small yet significant gesture might actually direct the focus more naturally and less forced way. Do you have any experience of a similar conscious direction of focus for dream work and do you see something that is crucial to remember doing this kind of practices?
"Would to God that all the Lord's people were Prophets”, Numbers 11:29 as echoed by William Blake
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Polyhymnia
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Re: Dream Focus

Post by Polyhymnia »

Following this thread!

Though I experience visions, they are never controlled. The kind that strikes me during periods of what feels like transcendence are almost completely blindsiding and incredibly vivid, but if I set out to try and have a vision, I will never have one. They are seemingly spontaneous, and as such, I have no idea how to have even a modicum of control over them, and the same thing goes for my dreams.

I remember during the first Phanes dream practice, I prepared for sleep with ceremony, notebook at the ready to wake up and write the marvels down, and it ended up being about me luging down an icy road wearing a neon snowsuit and saying "wheeeeeeee" the whole time.
Smaragd wrote: Sun Jan 23, 2022 4:00 am
The hypothesis is that when you focus on the bare bones of the elements deeply, or adopt a set of symbols you meditate regularly on, you would create a dynamic focus point upon which the unconscious would need to react, acknowledge and mirror one's individual relation to them. From there one could proceed to work through self-reflective analysis of dreams and dynamic action according to challenges revealed there.

...a simple geometric talisman perhaps to mark the beginning of an analysis or something. Such a small yet significant gesture might actually direct the focus more naturally and less forced way.
A very interesting hypothesis. One that I wouldn't mind putting to the test.
"Limited love asks for possession of the beloved, but the unlimited asks only for itself." -Kahlil Gibran
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Smaragd
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Re: Dream Focus

Post by Smaragd »

Polyhymnia wrote: Mon Jan 24, 2022 12:51 am Though I experience visions, they are never controlled. The kind that strikes me during periods of what feels like transcendence are almost completely blindsiding and incredibly vivid, but if I set out to try and have a vision, I will never have one. They are seemingly spontaneous, and as such, I have no idea how to have even a modicum of control over them, and the same thing goes for my dreams.
It is a very tricky thing and already by calling it 'control' we sort of scare away the unconscious, as she is like a incorruptible mirror on the surface of which everything is reflected as it is. People who have tried lucid dreaming techniques to have more conscious control within their dreams know how it is like trying to take a hold of water as if it was a sword. The water just flows and slithers through your fingers. The same thing reaches also to the area of having seemingly very little control over bodily functions regulated by the autonomic nervous system. But the problem can be worked through by building a respectful relationship with the unconscious and overcoming all the fears, and desires to force things. This means one has to manage to lean on the unconscious and the conscious side of the mind with equal trust.

We could start by not calling the focusing attempt 'control', and meaning it instead of trying to hide things from the unconscious, which can't be done for it is the very place we hide things to. This would mean that we rather attempt to work with the unconscious, try to focus our conscious mind in a certain way and see what the unconscious reflects for us. In a way failing at this is already a success for we have been given a result: "it doesn't work this way, try to rebalance things and we'll see where we end up."

Polyhymnia wrote: Mon Jan 24, 2022 12:51 am I remember during the first Phanes dream practice, I prepared for sleep with ceremony, notebook at the ready to wake up and write the marvels down, and it ended up being about me luging down an icy road wearing a neon snowsuit and saying "wheeeeeeee" the whole time.
In retrospect, the dream was accurately reflective of the young age of our lodge. :D
"Would to God that all the Lord's people were Prophets”, Numbers 11:29 as echoed by William Blake
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