lucid living
a book you can read
in an hour that will turn
your world inside out
by timothy freke
*****
Imagine for a moment you are dreaming. You are completely engrossed in
the dramas of your dreamworld when a mysterious stranger appears in your
dream. He sidles up to you and softly whispers something extraordinary in
your ear: "Psst! Wake up. You're dreaming."
You're disconcerted but keep your cool. You know that the best way to deal
with people who are clearly out of the box is to nod politely and hope they
will go away. But the stranger is persistent. "I know it sounds mad to you
right now, but you're dreaming."
You feel irritated: "That's absurd!" The stranger is unperturbed: "Is it really
absurd? Haven't you noticed how full of significant patterns and strange
coincidences your experience is? As if there is some hidden meaning? Well,
that's because this is a dream."
You become angry: "What! Are you saying that this world is just some kind
of unreal delusion? I find that offensive. Tell that to all those people who are
suffering!" The stranger is patient: "Of course this world is real. It is a real
dreamworld. Its wonders are truly wonderful and its horrors are truly
horrible. I'm not dismissing it. I'm simply pointing out that it's a dream."
You are confused: "What do you mean?" The stranger explains: "Right now
you think you are a person talking to me. But that's just who you
temporarily appear to be in this dream. The real you is the dreamer. And this
whole dreamworld exists in you."
You feel stunned: "Are you asking me to believe that I am imagining talking
to you? Surely you are not a product of my imagination?!" The stranger
smiles kindly: "The person that you seem to be is not imagining this
conversation with me, because that person is a part of the dream. But really
you are the dreamer who is imagining everything and everyone in this
dream. We appear to be separate people having a conversation, but actually
we are both the dreamer."
You begin to panic: "Now you're freaking me out. I'm losing my hold on
who I am." The stranger is reassuring: "Don't worry. You're just beginning
to wake up. This is a dream of awakening. It is designed to progressively
make you more conscious, until you're conscious enough to realise that you
are dreaming."
You are confused: "But I don't understand. How do I wake up?" The
stranger looks you straight in the eyes: "You can wake up anytime you want.
