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The Jewish sages already taught in Massechet Brachot (57) that dreams are a taste of prophecy and therefore more than just meanderings of the mind. They also taught a dream without interpretation is like a letter left unopened.
There are many scientific studies that say we all dream every night even though we might not remember it. This idea is very ancient and is also found in many different spiritual traditions.
I don’t know about you but I this is perplexing and kept asking: why don’t we remember our dreams more often?
So, even though we lose our dreams most of the time, it’s safe to say that it’s in our best interest to try to remember and live them while they last since they reveal so much.
In Shaarei Kedusha, we find that lucid dreaming is one of the aspects of Hasagah (attainment of wisdom). Great masters like the Arizal were able to ascend to the Metivta D’Rakyah (the Heavenly Yeshiva) to study in a night what they wouldn’t be able to study in 80 years in this world.
As I was interested in the subject and wanted to explore this extravagant area, I’ve been reading quite a lot about it. Most specifically, lucid dreaming, namely, the art of becoming conscious in dreams.
I was quite surprised to know this is actually a very real thing and began investigating. I found out there is a whole branch of science that studies sleep and dreams and that achieving lucidity is a matter of training. This meant anyone, daydreamer or not, could do it. Apparently, someone who explores his dreams this way is called an Oneironaut.
I confess I haven’t been able to practice it so much lately, but thanks to the sources I’ve studied, I’ve had a few such experiences.
Continue reading this article and we’ll explore the following points:
When a person sleeps many of his physiological functions decrease. The Holy Zohar calls it Tardema (lit. slumber in Aramaic), which means the Mokhin (divine intellect) go out of the mind. In other words, consciousness is temporarily suspended, and the body becomes limp.
Or is it?
Many studies on sleep and dreams in the past seventy years found many interesting results. It turns out sleep has cycles in which the brain functions differently.
Scientifically, lucid dreams often happen during REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, a stage when the brain is highly active, and dreams are most vivid. While modern psychology sees lucid dreaming as a way to explore the subconscious, Kabbalah perceives it as an opportunity to engage with the soul’s higher realms.
Sleep progresses through several cycles—each lasting about 90 minutes—composed of various stages, including light, deep (slow-wave sleep), and REM sleep. During the deep stages, the body repairs and rejuvenates physically. REM, the stage where most dreaming occurs, is associated with processing emotions and memory consolidation. Kabbalistically, these cycles mirror the movement of the soul through spiritual realms, each stage providing a different level of connection to divine consciousness.
Light Sleep: This is the transition stage where the soul begins its detachment. Here, we experience a calm surrender, reflecting a meditative “letting go”, a prerequisite for connecting with higher dimensions.
Deep Sleep: Known for its restorative effects on the body, deep sleep is a period of complete detachment from the ego and worldly concerns, creating a profound spiritual rest and renewal.
REM Sleep: As dreams surface, the Nefesh (lowest part of the soul) encounter reflections of its innermost thoughts and subconscious energies. This stage is a communication bridge between the soul and realms of divine wisdom, where one can receive messages of clarity or answers to deep questions through symbolic language.
As we know from the Zohar, the reality is a composite of many levels kind of like an onion. Each level is composed of many strata in the following way:
As everyone knows our physical bodies are in the lowermost level of this chain, the physical counterpart of Assiyah. In Etz Chaim, Rabbi Chaim Vital tells us the “land underneath our feet is called Malkhut of Malkhut of Assiyah”. This is very revealing because, if you think about it, we’d need to go all the way up to Chokhmah or Keter of Malkhut to then move on to Yesod of Assiyah and only once we reach Chokhmah or Keter of Assiyah would we be able to go to Yetzirah.
As we move further up, the sweeter things feel since Hashem’s infinite light is more revealed, and the more we transcend the limitations of the mind. Consequently, the less logical language can explain them. This is why prophets were called lunatics.
Pure and simple, no secrets.
This could mean that what we perceive is a manifestation of our soul and that, the more we are able to access the deeper aspects of our soul, the more we will be able to apprehend reality. We all perceive different things, in accordance with our life experiences and sensitivity.
A pianist will have deeper feelings towards a certain piano than anyone else. He will be able to appreciate its real market value, evaluate its usage and some might even be able to tell whether it’s tuned in or not. A butcher might not know that, but he will know how to better evaluate pieces of meat, and so on and so forth.
We may not feel it except through training but we live in a sea of spiritual energy all around us.
God’s Light (a blissful state of expanding consciousness) is accessed by reducing the weight of physicality on our minds. As we sleep, we temporarily cancel out external stimuli from the body (seeing, hearing, tasting, and so on) and consciousness takes a different turn to experience the deeper aspects of the mind.
Our sages teach, 1/60 of the soul goes “up” to the “spiritual worlds”. This happens so it can receive a boost of energy for the next day. In our physical world, we only see the body “regenerating”, hormones being produced, and all other physiological phenomena. While it might seem very compelling to dismiss the “spiritual part”, it’s important to know that our consciousness also gets a major boost by resting.
Childhood traumas, PTSD, repressed emotions, and many other psychological disorders all make a deep impact on the mind. Often, they can affect a person limiting her in many ways, and go untreated for a lifetime. As we know, the mind is the gateway to accessing the olamot haeliyonim (spiritual worlds), as it’s through it that we apprehend the higher planes. Many Mekubalim including the Ramak, Ramchal, Rabbi Chaim Vital, Rabbi Abraham Abulafia and others explain that this depends on a person’s purity and level of detachment from the physical world.
I remember when I read the book, Field Guide to Lucid Dreaming, a long time ago. The authors, Dylan Tuccillo, Jared Zeizel and Thomas Peisel explain that many such disorders have clinically been treated thanks to lucid dreaming. Of course, not all can be treated through that, but it’s interesting to see how powerful our dreams can be.
Essentially, lucid dreaming depends on awareness (the sephira of Da’at) throughout the day and during sleep.
Learning how to control your dreams requires some measure of mindfulness during the day and being in a fairly good mood. The most important part to achieve lucidity in dreams is to constantly conduct reality checks. So, every now and then during your awake moments, ask yourself: “Am I awake now?”. This is a very important mindfulness mechanism and it can trigger lucid dreaming and will cause an impression in your subconscious to keep asking itself, and consequently prompt you to become lucid during dream time.
Despite sounding silly, when a person conditions himself to ask this during the day, chances are he will also ask it and then become aware he’s asleep.
Keeping a dream diary next to bedtime is also important. As you do, your brain will rewire itself to realize you “mean business” and that you want to be awake in your dream. As a person writes down all of his impressions, the brain will become more and more accustomed to remembering dreams. In the end, you will have more chances of becoming lucid (both of which are our goals).
Finally, when inside the dream, reinforce in your mind the desire to dream and live it while it lasts. The subject of the dream is also free, though of course some immature people will try to live their fantasies away instead of searching for deeper answers. This is where personal responsibility comes in.
I personally am quite surprised that many people who follow a spiritual path neglect this amazing possibility to develop their souls. Great Tzadikim and Prophets throughout the ages were able to receive immense, transcendental knowledge from their dreams. We can do so too in our level, it’s all about mastering the technique.
The Arizal, in fact writes Kavanot (mystical intentions) in Sha’ar HaKavanot so your soul (the Ruach) goes to Yesod D’Nukvah Kadisha D’Atzilut, where it can regenerate faster and even merit an Ibbur (impregnation of another soul). That means you also get your Tikkun faster.
One final piece which is interesting from the Field Guide to Lucid Dreaming:
Once you become lucid, you will have a complete memory of your waking life and will be able to think logically, make decisions, and explore the dream’s landscape in the same way you’d traverse the physical world.
Have you thought about the possibilities?
Yes, dreams can be very real for fantasies. That’s I guess what most of evil, misguided people do. However, that would be misusing a valuable gift for pleasures higher than we can imagine. For more information, see this article here on Wisdom and Understanding.
Remember to keep for yourself a dream diary and sweet dreams.
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