Methods to turn sleep into cultivation?

[Uroboros]

I have been thinking about how to utilize sleep for cultivation. I know of two methods to help make sleep easier/ improve the quality but they don't always work.

 

I would like for this thread to be a place for people to share different methods and share their experiences.

 

The only two methods I have been taught are as follows-

 

Lie on right side, inhale into yintang through nose whilst seeing blue at yintang. Exhale through mouth with HA sound feeling heat leaving mouth. Do this for 9 repetitions in bed before sleep.

 

The second is simply laying in corpse pose in bed, inhaling from pelvic floor up to chest through nose then exhaling through mouth making the Xi sound whilst having the motion move down from chest to pelvis.

 

I have experimented with doing Anapanasati in bed while going to sleep and so far, it does not decrease length nor increase quality. It has simply deepened the amount of emptiness(no dream state) I have during sleep.

 

I will continue to experiment.

 

I look forward to hearing what you all do!

 

edit- Methods that do not focus on lucid dreaming. They seem harder to find.

Edited September 19, 2015 by Uroboros

[Miffymog]

Currently, I do the healing sounds before I go to sleep and I find them a good way to relax me before I drift off to sleep. They do seem to get rid of some of the tension I gained through out the day.

 

I've had some experience with lucid dreaming and had some success. But, for me, the effort I had to put in to it in terms of setting my alarm clock early, walking around, and then going back to bed in order to get into that state, was not worth it in the long term. I can see that there are many benefits from such practices, but they were too difficult for me to achieve.

[Uroboros]

Currently, I do the healing sounds before I go to sleep and I find them a good way to relax me before I drift off to sleep. They do seem to get rid of some of the tension I gained through out the day.

 

I've had some experience with lucid dreaming and had some success. But, for me, the effort I had to put in to it in terms of setting my alarm clock early, walking around, and then going back to bed in order to get into that state, was not worth it in the long term. I can see that there are many benefits from such practices, but they were too difficult for me to achieve.

 

What form of SHS do you practice? Just the sounds or movements? I did that for awhile and it did appear to help the quality of sleep.

 

I am not so much talking about lucid dreaming, as utilizing our natural movement into emptiness/ process of revitalization to benefit our cultivation.

[Miffymog]

No movements, just the sounds, as I am trying to enter into a relaxed sleepy state. I use Chia's sounds as they were the first I came across a number years ago. My morning practice consists of a brief stretch, stand and shake. My evening one, while in bed, takes the form of doing the healing sounds, 3 breaths each. Short and simple and, for me, maintainable. 

 

They help me drift off into a nice, deep and peaceful sleep. I am waking up to some strange dreams at the moment, although I'm not sure whether doing the healing sounds 8 hours earlier has any effect on this.

[Kaspar]

Removed.

Edited September 19, 2015 by Kaspar

[SriChi]

^ Robert Monroe could astral project and verify certain things like where his friends were and what they were doing. I don't think he practiced cultivation. It might not be needed for OOBEs.

[noonespecial]

Currently, I do the healing sounds before I go to sleep and I find them a good way to relax me before I drift off to sleep. They do seem to get rid of some of the tension I gained through out the day.

 

I've had some experience with lucid dreaming and had some success. But, for me, the effort I had to put in to it in terms of setting my alarm clock early, walking around, and then going back to bed in order to get into that state, was not worth it in the long term. I can see that there are many benefits from such practices, but they were too difficult for me to achieve.

 

I agree 100% -

 

1) It happens anyway (cultivation) when we sleep whether we remember or not,

2) If there is some sort of breaktrhough that we should take note of, we will wake up and take note.

[Uroboros]

The kind of practices I am curious about are not lucid dreaming focused. Lucid dreaming has little utility in my view as it is just more thinking/ imagining.

 

I am asking more about cultivation in alignment with qigong/neigong/meditation practices.  How to enliven the shen-qi-jing, so to speak, through sleep practices. Even though it happens already, how to utilize it consciously and improve the quality of the process.

 

Something more along those lines.

[wilfred]

The kind of practices I am curious about are not lucid dreaming focused. Lucid dreaming has little utility in my view as it is just more thinking/ imagining.

 

I am asking more about cultivation in alignment with qigong/neigong/meditation practices.  How to enliven the shen-qi-jing, so to speak, through sleep practices. Even though it happens already, how to utilize it consciously and improve the quality of the process.

 

Something more along those lines.

 

what if you were to do cultivation work from within the dream, meditation etc? from what i've read it's possible to reach deeper into the subconscious here and dissolve blockages, let go of things, which is ultimately the aim of our cultivation anyway. you need a lot of lucidity for this though.

[thelerner]

^ Robert Monroe could astral project and verify certain things like where his friends were and what they were doing. I don't think he practiced cultivation. It might not be needed for OOBEs.

Rawn Clark who extensively studied Hermetic magic ala Bardon, talked about how he'd set up a group of Hermetic magicians and they'd meet in the astral and later call each other to verify what they'd talked about there since things can get fuzzy.  They'd schedule and meet regularly.

 

For him, there was no simple formula, rather it was the culmination of decades long study up the Hermetic/Bardon ladder.  Unfortunately he no longer has the forum on record on his site.  Too bad.  I believe it, wouldn't bet the whole farm on it, but he's pretty solid. 

Edited January 15, 2016 by thelerner

[SonOfTheGods]

The kind of practices I am curious about are not lucid dreaming focused. Lucid dreaming has little utility in my view as it is just more thinking/ imagining.

 

I am asking more about cultivation in alignment with qigong/neigong/meditation practices.  How to enliven the shen-qi-jing, so to speak, through sleep practices. Even though it happens already, how to utilize it consciously and improve the quality of the process.

 

Something more along those lines.

 

Create as vividly as you can, an Astral Temple space.

 

Project there in your "mind" as you fall asleep- but start to visualize yourself (not seeing yourself, but actually transferring your Yi to *that* body)

 

Then, perfom a Yin Magnetic Gong, as you fall alseep

 

You will know if you did this correctly when you wake up.

 

Continued practice will develop strong magickal abilities and bio-location as well.

[Kaspar]

The kind of practices I am curious about are not lucid dreaming focused. Lucid dreaming has little utility in my view as it is just more thinking/ imagining.

 

I am asking more about cultivation in alignment with qigong/neigong/meditation practices.  How to enliven the shen-qi-jing, so to speak, through sleep practices. Even though it happens already, how to utilize it consciously and improve the quality of the process.

 

Something more along those lines.

 

This shows a HUGE hole in your understanding then. I would fix it if I were you. Not going to say anymore on that.

Edited September 19, 2015 by Kaspar

[Uroboros]

This shows a HUGE hole in your understanding then. I would fix it if I were you. Not going to say anymore.

 

It's interesting that you say that without explaining why. Just pointing out how you think someone is wrong without explaining why gives very little validity to your point. It just isn't constructive and continues the cycle of confusion.

 

There are so many methods of cultivation out there, yet most seem to keep us rooted in the human affliction. Lucid dreaming, from what I have read and heard from people who practice various methods of it, does not lessen the afflictions. That is why I stay away from most things that appear to have a higher chance of creating illusions of transformation.

[wilfred]

good examples of how you can effect things from within the lucid dream state here. particularly being able to meet the darker, repressed side our ourselves with equanimity.

 

[Kaspar]

Removed.

Edited September 19, 2015 by Kaspar

[Daeluin]

The psychic mind is not the mind of dao - read this in the classics recently; didn't find it again though.

 

I've found the sleeping recommendations here to be helpful.

Also see this from gift of tao / stillness-movement system.

[Uroboros]

The psychic mind is not the mind of dao - read this in the classics recently; didn't find it again though.

 

I've found the sleeping recommendations here to be helpful.

Also see this from gift of tao / stillness-movement system.

 

That is why I am curious about methods other then lucid dreaming. Lucid dreaming seems to focus more on visualizations and imaginings, more mental/ psychic. Where does it reflect the same process as the other waking cultivation methods? Do the ancients talk of it? Tibetan Buddhism does have some LD practices that you utilize to prepare for death.

 

I would think it would be similar to many methods where you, in a waking state, create the right fertile conditions to start the process and then the process does its thing. We already initiate a process of revitalization and transformation by sleeping. Consciously utilizing that, not for death but for life, might be a key.

 

Thanks for the links, Daeluin.  I will look into them.

[Uroboros]

 

Create as vividly as you can, an Astral Temple space.

 

Project there in your "mind" as you fall asleep- but start to visualize yourself (not seeing yourself, but actually transferring your Yi to *that* body)

 

Then, perfom a Yin Magnetic Gong, as you fall alseep

 

You will know if you did this correctly when you wake up.

 

Continued practice will develop strong magickal abilities and bio-location as well.

 

What does Yin Magnetic Gong entail, SOTG?

[sillybearhappyhoneyeater]

The main thing you want to do during sleep is protect Qi from leaking through dreams.

What you can do is lie on your side in the fetal position.

direct the mind to the legs and simply keep it there.

Stay that way for as long as possible, or until you go back to sleep.

That way you will get to keep more of your qi.

 

The natural logic of this is that when you sleep, the blood tends to go to the head to protect the brain.  If you will your mind to your legs it can draw some blood there and thus your body will get to keep more qi than it would if you were sleepin in another position.

 

This is abstracted from Da Cheng Jie Yao (a book from the Qing dynasty about nei dan methods)

[Uroboros]

The main thing you want to do during sleep is protect Qi from leaking through dreams.

What you can do is lie on your side in the fetal position.

direct the mind to the legs and simply keep it there.

Stay that way for as long as possible, or until you go back to sleep.

That way you will get to keep more of your qi.

 

The natural logic of this is that when you sleep, the blood tends to go to the head to protect the brain.  If you will your mind to your legs it can draw some blood there and thus your body will get to keep more qi than it would if you were sleepin in another position.

 

This is abstracted from Da Cheng Jie Yao (a book from the Qing dynasty about nei dan methods)

 

Thank you for this. I will try it out.

 

Have you practiced this often? If so, did you notice any changes in your sleep/waking states?

[JDN]

there is an excellent book by Tenzin Rinpoche called The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep

[doc benway]

there is an excellent book by Tenzin Rinpoche called The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep

 

The OP does not want methods that emphasize lucid dreaming...

Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche recently mentioned that he's thinking of writing a second volume related to dream and sleep yoga!

[Uroboros]

there is an excellent book by Tenzin Rinpoche called The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep

 

I have read the book and it is quite good. It is not the kind of method I am interested in, though.

 

Thank you

[Uroboros]

The OP does not want methods that emphasize lucid dreaming...

Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche recently mentioned that he's thinking of writing a second volume related to dream and sleep yoga!

 

Thank you for hearing what I am looking for!

 

I am a fan of Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche. If he does write this other book, I will read that, too!

[AussieTrees]

About a week ago I did a test drive of my lower back.

It is always tentative after so much fragility.

Anyway got this pile of rocks,gifted.

So tried some paving,never tried that before,lots of fun.

Back held up ok,sucking in chi from all around made light work.

Point is,slept really well,woke up fresh,back still good.

Dreams occurred,don't remember much,like another sorty in life.

Seems physical exercise before bed may help in sleep quality.