The Art of Dreaming Part 2
The Energetic Flow of the Universe
“Don Juan explained that in the general energetic flow of the universe, there are entrances and exits that work as dampers; in the specific case of lucid dreaming, there are seven entrances, seven obstacles that the sorcerers call the seven gates of lucid dreaming.” [1] (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 11)
It is interesting to note that Don Juan first leads Carlos to prepare the dream, within the dream state, by instructing him to observe his hands and attempt to control the events in dreams by not letting them vanish without mentioning the most fundamental thing: how to cross the first gate; how to consciously enter the dream worlds. Effectively, he waits for Carlos to hit the first wall before instructing him further.
Reaching the first gate seems easy enough. Don Juan states, “We get to the first gate when we are aware of a very peculiar feeling that overcomes us just before falling deeply asleep. A pleasurable darkness and heaviness keep us suspended and does not allow us to open our eyes.” (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 11)
It was one and the same thing, apparently, a causality dilemma that Carlos later clarifies: “The only way to be conscious that we are falling asleep is by examining the elements of our dreams.” (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 11)
How complicated. In Part 1 of this series, I already illustrated two ways I am aware of crossing that first gate: Angel’s Peak and Rooms of Reality, and I never went through the stage of focusing on elements of my dreams to become aware of crossing the gate.
Deep into the book, Don Juan specifies that crossing the gate is more than merely breaking social conditioning — something that seems arbitrary once you accomplish it: “The first gate of lucid dreaming is related to the natural flow of energy in the universe. It is a natural obstacle.” Then he elaborates no further. (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 16)
Again, as if by chance, Carlos comments that Don Juan also considers “dreaming an extremely vivid dream” as a sign of having reached the first gate. (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 14)
How to Remember your Dreams
You see, the book is rather messy. Over the years, I have read it several times, and it always leaves me feeling foggy. The more I revisit it, the more I am convinced that their lucid dreaming techniques took them to the Near-Earth Realms [2] of dreams — and not precisely to the lovely neighborhoods of these realms, I might add.
Take the following quote, for example. Advanced in lucid dreaming, Carlos relates that his interest in encountering inorganic beings became a crucial part of his practice. As Don Juan explains, those are beings conscious of their beingness and purpose, with an infinitely longer lifespan and a consciousness infinitely calmer and deeper than ours.
These inorganic beings teach in exchange for energy and allure the lucid dreamers into their world. At some point, Don Juan expressed, “For you, the diabolic part is the temptation to yield, especially when the rewards are so grand. To me, the diabolic part of the kingdom of the inorganic beings is that it might be the only refuge that lucid dreamers have in a hostile world.” (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 37)
I mean, really? That is not my experience in dreams, and by far, it is not the kind of conscious connection that Tobias presents in Dreams [3] or Adamus lays out in DreamWorlds [4] and DreamWalk Journey to Your Secret Garden [5]. Taking the enigmatic, occult, esoteric, dark, and sinister air out of this analysis has taken me forever! Well, maybe that’s what this is all about because I know we are going above and beyond, and the feeling is something else.
If you were not aware, the Art of Dreaming never gets to the 5th, 6th, and 7th gates –however, the 4th gate is already enough to make anyone cringe. In a disorderly manner, the book explains the entrances but not the exits, and it does not fully delve into the nature of that first door as the portal by which everything comes and goes.
For most people, this is the heart of the matter, and this post might very well be named How to Remember your Dreams, something that I was leaving for a special occasion, yet here we are.
Of course, we could talk at length about things that help anyone remember their dreams — breathing deeply before falling asleep almost guarantees that I will bring back a great experience, by the way; internal silence is essential to perceive more clearly on the other side. But before that, for many humans, there is this need to unlock the door — the first gate — and leave it wide open.
The Choice
Crossing the first gate, opening the door to the dream worlds, boils down to making a conscious choice, as recently offered by Adamus Saint-Germain in DreamWorlds.
As we all know, making a conscious choice is easy. Or is it? The keyword here is “conscious.” To make it a conscious choice, all of who we are must agree to the choice in question. In other words, the choice must come from deep inside, not only from the human mind. Achieving that alignment within oneself seems to be the core issue.
Sometimes we make these life-changing, mind-blowing, bewildering conscious choices in the blink of an eye, without even considering to stop and analyze them. As if by magic, the energy efficiently realigns itself.
Back in 2017, I was using biofeedback therapy, a combination of holistic medicine and advanced quantum technology. The device is connected to you via a headband and wrist and ankle straps to scan your body, and through resonance, it indicates needs, dysfunctions, and vulnerabilities.
One of the findings was a tiny tumor in the base of my skull, right where the pineal gland is. I knew then that it was true, but in a nano-second, I thought: “Oh, no. Absolutely not, what a drag!” and forgot all about it.
Sure enough, two weeks later, doing whatever at home, I sensed the tumor “deactivating.” At the following appointment, the doctor said, “You don’t have the tumor anymore.”
“I know,” I replied.
But ask me about the skin disorder that seems to have found a comfortable place in my physical existence. Or ask me about the things I repeatedly “chose” — for ages! The energy lazily indulged me after begging to myself, materially making a human tantrum, and putting up a scene “to my Soul”. Or ask me about the feeling of being a billiard ball, abruptly turning direction at the pool table until I finally settled on working wholeheartedly on dreams. Just saying.
The Human Choice
I can also think of a couple of obstacles the human part encounters when wanting to make the conscious choice of remembering dreams, the first being fear.
As a couple of friends told me at the beginning of May: “Why on Earth would I want to remember my dreams if handling this reality alone is complicated enough?!” Interestingly, there is more fear of the natural sea of potentials that are the dream worlds than of the dangerous fragmentation that technology can cause in this world! But I get it.
Furthermore, if you haven’t cleaned up your mess to some extent, the resonance may naturally lead you to your unbalanced dream worlds, to those repetitive and low vibrational stories that seem very earthbound.
To my astonishment, the second and maybe more decisive blockage for remembering dream experiences is the one Adamus offered in DreamWorlds: worthiness. Yikes! I would have never thought of that! And yet, I know perfectly well what he is talking about.
I used to be a specialist in creating beautiful realities in the other realms but was not capable of anchoring them back here. In a dream I had on October 19, 2011, that I refer to in the post The Mirror where I encountered the spectacular ethereal manifestation of a business I was building back here around 2007 and collapsed in 2008.
The dream was a bit lagging, but it helped because I eventually faced the need to connect both worlds and received assistance to do so. Well, that is my passion: how to continually bridge realities. So much so that on April 16, 2006, I dreamt the following.
I told my sister that it was urgent that I commit suicide because I needed to deliver some valuable information to the other side. I was trying out a rope and a lace made out of straws (not very effective, as you can imagine). In the dream, I told her not to worry because I was going to reincarnate right away, but with my memory wiped out, as is customary. She would be able to identify me by looking me in the eye, but I wouldn’t remember her. My sister was sad, but I felt lighthearted, even enthusiastic, about the whole affair.
That was eight months after I had encountered my Soul in dreams; I must have known, even back then, that I did not need to die to bridge dimensions, and now I am sure of it. And the dream worlds are one way to connect it all together. Let’s say that if in dreams you can go all the way up to your Soul, is there anything then that cannot be integrated?
Intent
On the other hand, Don Juan presents the possibility of reaching that first gate by stating: “The goal is to intent to make your energy body realize that you are falling asleep. Do not try to force yourself to be aware that you are falling asleep. Let your energy body do it. Intent is wishing without wishing, doing without doing.” (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 12)
In further trying to explain intent to Carlos, he concludes that there is no easy way to do it: “I or any other sorcerer would look like a pair of idiots if we tried to explain it.” (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 11) Mmhmm. It’s just like trying to explain a conscious choice, isn’t it?
Carlos asks if he needs to make every effort imaginable to believe that he is a lucid dreamer, but Don Juan responds: “No, it is not that. Intent is far simpler and, at the same time, infinitely more complex.” (Castaneda, C., 1993, p. 13)
Right…
Today I believe that making a conscious choice — or successfully intending– to open the gate to dreams and leave it wide open is conveniently achievable for those who truly desire so.
To be continued.
Aberdeem
Olivia M. Zenteno [Aberdeem] is a branding and business strategist. Along with her team, she is venturing on A Thousand Dreams, a platform for dreamers to document, analyze data, and share dreams with the world. www.athousanddreams.world
Thank You
A special thank you note to all those who have kindly supported me in this endeavor; it is invaluable!
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Did you know you can offer as many as 50 applauses for each story? I didn’t.
The Invitation
If you have any related experiences in dreams, please share; they will enrich us all. Otherwise, join, follow, share and if you feel like it, support. Sponsors or investors for The Book of Dreams are very much welcome or you can Buy Me a Coffee.
Background
If you want to know what this blog is about, you may want to read the following post:
If you want to know how the dreaming experience unfolded for me, you may want to read the following post:
If you care to learn about A Thousand Dreams’ origin and destiny, The Launch is the post. The idea came to me two years after I began writing and took shape and gained notoriety really quickly thanks to Adamus Saint-Germain and the Crimson Circle.
And if you want to have fun, take the quiz:
Other than that, in this blog you will find posts about many types of dreams and their relationship to our physical reality. Hope you enjoy them!
Reach Out
Contact me at aberdeem144@gmail.com. I will be happy to hear from you.
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References
[1]Carlos Castaneda; The Art of Dreaming, 1993; HarperCollins.
[2] The Near-Earth realms are described in the Crimson Circle workshop DreamWalker Death featuring Adamus Saint-Germain, Geoffrey & Linda Hoppe, originally released in 2008 and updated in 2020; Recorded at the Crimson Circle Connection Center; https://store.crimsoncircle.com/dreamwalker-death-2020-september-25-27-2020.html?query=dreamwalker+death&page=1
[3] Dreams: The New Energy Dreamscape; Featuring Tobias, Geoffrey & Linda Hoppe; Recorded in Taos, New Mexico; August 2005; https://store.crimsoncircle.com/dreams.html?query=dreams&page=1
[4] Adamus on Topic: DreamWorlds; Bridging the Realms through Dreams; Featuring Adamus Saint-Germain, Geoffrey & Linda Hoppe, Olivia Morales Zenteno; Recorded at the Crimson Circle Connection Center, Louisville, Colorado, June 2022; https://store.crimsoncircle.com/adamus-on-topic-dreamworlds.html?query=dreamworlds&page=1
[5] DreamWalk Journey to Your Secret Garden; Featuring Adamus Saint-Germain; Recorded in Golden, Colorado, January 2013; https://store.crimsoncircle.com/dreamwalker-series-journey-into-your-secret-garden.html
