DREAM INCUBATION By David F.

Melbourne

There is much evidence in existence to support the notion that we all possess the potential to incubate dreams - in other words, conjure up dreams to order. Whether they are romantic encounters, dreams that furnish solutions to problems, or even lucid dreams, with time and effort, they can be evoked. Ancient civilizations were well aware of the potential of dream incubation. The Egyptians, for example, built temples called Serapeums, named after Serapis, the god of dreams. It wasn't unusual for the expectant dreamer to undergo various procedures including cleansing, purging, offering up prayer and so forth, in order to experience the desired dream. Usually, these dreams were for the purpose of interpretation by the 'Learned men of the magic library'. After performing their rituals, the subjects, full of enthusiastic expectation, would then sleep in the temples. These Serapeums were so popular that they were erected not only in Memphis, and Thebes, but also in various other locations in the Middle East. Native Americans, too, still believe that through ritual, spiritual dreams, especially, can be incubated. A 'vision quest' also involves engendering excited anticipation through ritualistic behavior: fasting, sleep deprivation, isolation, and in the past, even selfinflicted pain. Typically, the tribe's shaman or medicine man would be called upon to interpret the dream's message. The early Christians set much store by dreams, and had accumulated vast knowledge on the subject. Indeed, The Old and New Testaments carry many examples of dreams and their significance - from the Pharaoh's dream of the seven fat cows that ate the seven thin ones, to that of Joseph's encounter with angels in dreams. Had it not been for the barbaric witch hunts in the middle ages, the Western world might now be at the forefront in the understanding of dreams - unfortunately, what had been learned was lost. Only arrogance would encourage us to believe that we are leading the race to uncover the mysteries which are hidden in the enigmatic world of dreams. However, modern science, particularly psychology, does provide some strong clues to support the premise of dream incubation. But first, let us look at the reasons for wanting to incubate dreams in the first place. Interpreting the meaning behind our dreams is perhaps the most obvious motivation that springs to mind. It cannot be denied that individuals who are comparatively in tune with their psyche, have an advantage over the rest of the population - they appear to possess an inner knowledge. Understanding dreams also provides a vehicle for alerting us to new opportunities, or warnings, receiving reassurance, and even eradicating nightmares. Advances in new ideas can be made - even in the sciences. If it were not for the seemingly infinite wisdom and knowledge that appears to be available in the world of dreams, many inventions would have gone undiscovered. The lock-stitch sewing-machine, for instance, came to fruition after Elias Howe - the inventor - experienced a vivid and frightening dream. He had been wresting with the design for months, but when it came to a suitable needle, he was stymied - he had envisaged a hole halfway up the shank. Finally, his frustration peaked, and that night, he experienced a nightmarish dream. In it, he had been captured by a tribe of savages, whose king ordered that unless Elias could solve the problem of the needle design, he would be put to death. At first, his dream seemed unable to provide the answer as, fearing for his life, he struggled to satisfy the king's demand. The tribal leader then commanded that he be put to death. At that point, the dream became startlingly vivid, and the inventor, focusing his thoughts on the threatening spears which were advancing towards him, observed that each weapon housed an eye at the working end. Elias Howe immediately woke up, leapt from his bed, and began to whittle the new needle - he knew instinctively that he had solved

the design problem. A highly significant discovery in science, which had major ramifications in our understanding of organic chemistry, was the structure of the benzene molecule. In 1890, after struggling with the problem for a lengthy period, Kekule had a dream in which he saw atoms floating around. Many of these atoms combined to make large structures, some of which resembled snakes. He then noticed that one of these snakes appeared to be swallowing its own tail. At that point, the great professor of chemistry woke up, knowing immediately that he had solved the mystery. From his dream, he developed the closed chain or ring theory essential to the physical construction of benzene. Later, at a conference, he announced to colleagues, 'Gentlemen, we must learn how to dream!' Creativity can also be enhanced considerably. Many great works of art, literature and musical composition have been gleaned directly from dreams. Giuseppe Tartini, the Italian composer, for example, wrote the famous sonata 'The Devil's Trill', after hearing the composition in a dream. Yet when he reproduced it, he was unable to recreate as much of the complex, exquisite detail as he had heard in his dream. When it comes to art, Andr Breton, said to be the Pope of surrealism, shocked the world with some of his sexually explicit paintings which attempted to replicate the atmosphere of his dreams. Similarly, many of Salvador Dali's extra explicit paintings reflected some of his more Freudian dreams: 'The Birth of Liquid Desires', The Great Masturbator', and 'The Spectre of Sex Appeal' readily spring to mind. However, perhaps the artist most inspired by dreams was Goya, who reproduced nightmares in paintings. There have been some phenomenal works of literature activated by dreams. Many of Shakespeare's plays had dream themes running through them. Charles Ludwidge Dodgson, a notable mathematician, otherwise known as Lewis Caroll, portrayed Alice in Wonderland falling into her own dreamland. Robert Louis Stevenson was a prolific and vivid dreamer, who schooled himself to remember them. His book, 'Across The Plains', describes how entire stories came to him in dreams. Each night he would retire concentrating on a fantasy (a dream incubation technique), and was often awakened by a dream that inspired poetry, essays or novels. One which he found profoundly disturbing resulted in the creation of the infamous Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. More recently, however, Graham Green, receiving the Jerusalem prize for writing in 1981, related how his books, in effect, wrote themselves in the dead of night. He woke up several times during the night, to write down his dreams, (he kept a dream diary). Later, he was to use the outlines as a basis for his stories. It may come as no surprise to this site's readers to discover that the majority of my short stories, which have appeared in the British version of Horoscope magazine, were sparked off by dreams. In fact, last night, I fell asleep thinking about this article. I had just such a dream, in which my existence flitted between two parallel dimensions, which included two identical homes and two identical wives. No matter how much time I spent in one existence, when I flitted back to the other reality, only a split second had passed. Consequently, both wives thought I was going mad - excellent material for a Horoscope story! In fact, I have written an entire fantasy novel based on my dreams. These are just a few examples of the potential of harnessing the creative side to dreams. However, there are other good reasons to cultivate the ability to incubate dreams. There are many accounts of precognitive dreams, which foretell future events. Disguised warnings are often a feature. If we could incubate, then interpret such dreams, perhaps accidents and even disasters could be avoided. During his time overseeing the BBC's premonition bureau attached to the 'Out of This World' series, hosted by Carol Vorderman, Dr Keith Hearne uncovered seven particularly disturbing precognitive dreams. They described accurately the recent devastating earthquake in Japan, in which many lost their lives. If these dreams had been accurately interpreted before the awesome event occurred, perhaps lives could have been saved. Indeed, many of us will have seen the precognitive dreamer, Chris Robertson's, many appearances on television, warning of IRA bombs in London. He claims that not only did these dreams occur frequently, but he has learned how to decode the symbolism, which is

personal to himself. The fact that the British secret service took him seriously, allocating an agent to him, suggests the validity of his dreams. In addition, he has had sceptical journalists stay with him all night, witnessing his many awakenings during the night, when he has scribbled down his dreams on paper. One warning he issued, which involved a bomb exploding on a London bus, was substantiated by one of these same journalists, who testified that Chris Robertson had no way of knowing - apart from his dreams. However, perhaps the most tempting reason to incubate dreams comes in the form of initiating a lucid dream, in which full waking consciousness is achieved within the dream. Once lucidity is established, the world is our oyster - literally anything may be possible. Presently, Dr Hearne and I are exploring ways in which the lucid dream can be put to use. Apart from the obvious: romantic encounters, flying and so forth, we are looking at ways of bringing to bear the power of the subconscious, and perhaps even the collective consciousness. It is perfectly feasible that a lucid dreamer can conjure up an individual from the future, to impart whatever knowledge he or she deems suitable for our understanding - perhaps warning of disaster, or supplying the missing piece to a jigsaw of creative invention. Even more exciting is the prospect of healing. There exists plenty of anecdotal evidence to support the premise of prodromic dreams, (dreams that forewarn of illness). However, imagine that we were able to envision a 'dream doctor' who, perhaps wearing some sort of futuristic X-ray spectacles, could diagnose an otherwise undiscovered malady. Moreover, there would be nothing to prevent such lucid dreamers from then conjuring up a spiritual healer, who could bathe these individuals in a powerful healing beam of light. The potential of the lucid dream state is as limitless as the human mind can conceive! The ability to incubate dreams depends largely on a natural human trait - expectation. A good example of the power of expectation can be found as early as the 18th century. The Austrian physician, Franz Friedrich Anton Mesmer, thinking that hypnosis was the result of magnetic forces, (so called 'Animal Magnetism'), created an apparatus, from which protruded metal spikes. Subjects who expected to collapse or faint after touching a spike, duly passed out. However, Mesmer discovered that replacing these metal rods with ones fashioned from wood, resulted in the same effect - because individuals expected to faint, they did. Perhaps more recent instances occur during modern evangelical meetings. If people, full of expectation, imagine that the moment they are touched by a healer, they will collapse writhing on the ground, they are likely to do just that! Therefore, if people wish to incubate dreams, they first have to take a serious approach and believe they can - they must expect to! This expectation, or excited anticipation, can be enhanced by enacting certain rituals, which can be of the individual's own making. However, to simplify matters further, I will describe just one technique of dream incubation: Set a specific day aside for the ritualistic build up towards conjuring up a desired dream. Start that day by bathing and cleansing yourself. Burn incense and/or add aroma therapy oils to the bath water. If it is medically acceptable, don't eat for the entire day - drink only distilled water. Meditate several times during the day about the dream you wish to experience. Take another bath just before retiring. Move the bed to a new location and ensure that it has fresh sheets. Introduce some sort of new gentle lighting. From the moment you get into bed, repeat a chant over and over until you go to sleep. This can be along the following lines: 'I ask my ever vigilant subconscious mind, which knows my deepest desires, to provide me with the dream I seek'. Good luck! DAVID F. MELBOURNE, who lives on a remote Scottish island, has been studying dreams for 25 years and is known all over the world for his accurate dream interpretations. Apart from the general public, he has analysed dreams for celebrities and famous authors, all of whom have admitted a high degree of accuracy. David was the first person to discover the 'trigger mechanism' in sleep, which identifies message-bearing dreams, thus disproving Freud's idea that dreams are the guardian of sleep. He was also the first to establish a link between neurological visions, caused by trauma, and

the subconscious. He has written a fantasy novel, and has had about 40 short stories (nearly all inspired by dreams) published by various imprints. More about David F. Melbourne can be found at http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/dreamthemes