Author and dream expert Robert Waggoner will share his insights about lucid dreaming at the Jung Society of Utah’s spectacular season opener the weekend of October 2, 2015. He answers some questions about lucid dreaming and its extraordinary potential for advancing personal and spiritual growth in the interview below.

When did you first discover lucid dreaming?

In high school, I read in Carlos Castaneda’s Journey to Ixtlan that one can become consciously aware in a dream by finding one’s hands. I decided to try it, and, within three nights, I managed to induce my first lucid dream. It was a long, deep, and profound experience.

In what ways have you used lucid dreaming to help you live a more meaningful life?

When you are consciously aware in a lucid dream and look back at your waking life, you see it in a new way – much like the lunar astronauts looked back at the blue ball of Earth hanging in the vastness of space. The experience changes your perspective. If you take it far enough, you can discover a new depth and dimension to waking life.

You begin to see that you can bring the ideas and insights of lucid dreaming into your waking life to achieve more ‘lucid living.’ You begin to see experience as a creation, and you learn to examine the underlying assumptions and belief patterns that prop up your version of experienced reality. If you allow it to, lucid dreaming gradually reveals your limiting beliefs and expectations, your ‘issues’ and shadow, as well as your potential, depth, and breadth.

What are some of the psychological benefits of lucid dreaming?

People have used lucid dreaming to overcome PTSD, major and minor fears/phobias, generalized anxiety, obsessive habits, and more. Lucid dreaming truly seems a revolutionary psychological tool.

What can Jung Society attendees look forward to with respect to your presentation and workshop in October?

I look forward to returning to Salt Lake City to present some of the more recent research on lucid dreaming, as well as the evolving edge of its potential. It’s an exciting time!

The first day of the workshop, I’ll explain the various induction techniques for lucid dreaming, as well as how to stabilize the lucid dream, so you can explore it more thoughtfully, or even begin to experiment and learn about the hidden structural elements and principles behind the lucid dream.

The second day, I intend to explore personal goals of the attendees, as well as discuss preferred practices for areas such as emotional or physical healing, spiritual growth, and accessing creativity. We will also discuss how to consciously engage the unseen larger awareness within the lucid dream.

When I offer workshops, I call my approach ‘heart centered’ lucid dreaming, since I encourage people to pay attention to what comes in the lucid dream and the inner intuitions there. It comes for a purpose – and it should not be ignored as one chases some ‘ideal’.

Register at the links below for this transformational weekend with Robert Waggoner.

Saturday only: Early bird discount only $79 before Sept 20th, after $99 (incl. 5 CEs)
Sunday only: Early bird discount only $79 before Sept 20th, after $99 (incl. 5 CEs)
Saturday and Sunday: Early bird discount only $150 before Sept 20th, after $185 (incl. 10 CEs)
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~Amanda Butler, M.S.
Blog Team Member
Jung Society of Utah