In this practice we're going to engage in a modified form of a practice that's been around for millennia.
There are records going as far back as the ancient Greeks who used this practice of dream incubation to shape the content of their dreams and their experience of the night.
This practice comes in a variety of forms.
What I'm going to do here is guide you through a process where you can seed your night with ideas or suggestions or intentions that will grow into your dream experience.
Understanding the underlying principles of our mind as it transitions from wakefulness into sleep is that we pass through this first stage of sleep,
The hypnagogic,
Which is an open,
Creative,
Flexible,
Fluid,
And suggestive state of mind thanks to the theta brainwaves that our brain is emitting.
We can use this information and this transition to plant an intention in the form of a short phrase that we can repeat gently to ourselves as we drift into sleep.
And with this intention we can shape our experience of the night and the content of our dreams.
So I will guide you through this process of developing your own incubation phrase that you can bring with you into this transition from wakefulness into sleep.
Once you have your incubation phrase it's important to use it on a night when you're not overly tired or under the influence of substances that may negatively affect your sleep like alcohol or sleeping pills or other recreational drugs.
Take a few minutes to think about the problem that you want to target in your sleep and dreams.
You may find it helpful to ask yourself questions like these.
Am I ready to act on this problem?
How do I feel about this situation at this very moment?
Would it be different if the problem was resolved?
If you're not ready to engage with a problem,
If you're simply hoping to sleep more restfully and more peacefully,
We can attempt to incubate a night of peaceful sleep and dreams.
So we always have this as an option to set our intention as we're falling asleep to use as our incubation phrase something along the lines of,
Tonight I sleep and dream peacefully.
Tonight I sleep and dream peacefully.
This can be a great phrase if you tend to have difficulties in falling asleep.
It allows you to be gentle with yourself and focus in on the main objective which is to fall asleep.
It's extremely important in this practice that we are gentle with ourselves.
If you're working with a problem that's too emotionally challenging or too intellectually stimulating,
It may keep you awake and unable to fall asleep.
So as we do this practice and for any intention that we're setting as we fall asleep,
It's important to be following the principles of the middle way.
Not too tight,
Not too loose.
So we don't want to be so intense about repeating this phrase hard over and over with a really forceful,
Heavy approach to the point where we're not relaxing,
To the point that we're uptight.
Because of course this will lead to a little bit too much excitation and difficulties in falling asleep.
And on the other end of the spectrum,
If we're too loose and we really just want to crash out as we hit the pillow,
We say the intention once or twice and then drift off into sleep,
That's not really going to have a big impact for us.
So we want to find that middle ground where we're firm with our intention and resolute that this is going to come to pass for us without letting it get to be too much or too little.
Once you have the problem that you'd like to address in your mind,
I want you to come up with a short phrase or a question or a one-line sentence about it.
Don't be afraid to change the wording until you find a version that really feels right.
Write this incubation phrase down and keep it by your bed.
Then when you're ready to go to sleep,
Tell yourself that you will dream about this problem.
Make sure that you have a pen and paper or something to record any insights that come over the course of the night handy by your bedside.
As you're in bed and ready to fall asleep,
Repeat this incubation phrase to yourself as you drift off.
Repeat it 21 times or around 21 times.
The number is not as important as it is the feeling that you believe this is going to come to pass,
That you're resolute that this phrase is going to shape the experience of your night.
And as you're repeating this phrase in your mind,
If you catch your mind wandering,
Let those thoughts go and bring your attention back to your incubation phrase.
Upon awakening,
Either in the middle of the night or in the morning,
Lie quietly in your bed with your eyes closed.
If you're awakened by an alarm,
You can turn it off and close your eyes again and rest in stillness.
Just give yourself a few moments,
A few minutes to remember as much of your dreams as possible.
Only then open your eyes and write down or record what you remembered,
Even if it's just an isolated image or a fragment of a dream.
You can even write down,
I don't remember anything.
Just this act of recording your experience is a step in the right direction and will lead to progress.
It's also important to avoid making any judgments of your dreams.
At this point,
Just focus on getting everything down before it's forgotten.
Once you have a dream,
Examine how it might relate to your incubation phrase.
Notice if there are any connections or any insights that may come from this reflection,
Comparing your dream to what your incubation phrase was.
And with this practice,
It's important to have patience and understand that this may not happen after just one attempt.
It does take some practice and it'll take a little bit of learning to really incorporate this into a regular,
Consistent practice.
If you continue to struggle to remember your dreams,
We can use this problem as one of our incubation phrases.
We could fall asleep with the intention,
The incubation phrase,
Tonight,
I remember my dreams.
Or,
Tonight,
I have excellent dream recall.
Repeating this phrase in order to plant the seed of intention to remember your dreams.
This dream recall is the foundation for incubation practice,
Where we do need to cultivate this skill of dream recall in order to benefit from it.
So I encourage you to regularly come back to this practice,
To be adjusting and incorporating your incubation phrases,
Building this into a regular habit as you drift off into sleep,
And plant these seeds of intention for your night.
Thank you for practicing,
And sweet dreams.
