Harnessing Hypnagogia
Hypnagogia is the transitional state of consciousness between wakefulness and sleep, experienced both at the onset and offset of sleep, when the brain is producing a mix of alpha and theta waves. While hypnagogia occurs naturally it can also be induced, as in hypnosis. It’s common to experience hypnagogic hallucinations, like a sensation of falling through the air and then jerking awake. These hallucinations are considered a normal part of brain function. Hypnagogia a naturally-ocurring, substance-free “trippy state.”
The hypnagogic state is so ripe with creative and transformational potential, if there is one single spiritual or creative practice I recommend above all others, it would be anything that somehow utilizes this twice-daily inherent part of your existence.
Salvador Dali tapped in to hypnagogia throughout his work day by sitting in front of a fire and holding a key to his chest and metal bowl in his lap. As he drifted off the key would fall into the bowl, waking him. Those few moments were enough for him to begin hallucinating. The abrupt awakening to an alert state permitted him to clearly recall his hallucinations, which he would immediately jump up and begin painting. Dali claimed he learned this method from the Capuchin monks.
Thomas Edison similarly induced the state for creative problem solving and new ideas during cat naps, holding steel balls in both hands instead of a key.
Many other artists, thinkers, writers, and inventors have experienced creative breakthroughs in the hypnagogic state. Aristotle, Michelangelo, Stephen King, John Fowles, Mary Shelley, and Edgar Allen Poe are a few. Edgar Allen Poe said,
“There is, however, a class of fancies, of exquisite delicacy, which are not thoughts, […] They seem to me rather psychal than intellectual. They arise in the soul […] only at its epochs of most intense tranquility — when the bodily and mental health are in perfection — and at those mere points of time where the confines of the waking world blend with those of the world of dreams. I am aware of these ‘fancies’ only when I am upon the very brink of sleep, with the consciousness that I am so.”
For years I’ve been in the habit of paying close attention to my slowly waking mind in the early morning, open to receive any insights and creative solutions especially if I intentionally turned a problem over to the Divine the night before. It’s not rare for me to receive a higher, better understanding of a situation just as I’m waking up, as if the fog of confusion were lifted. The physical sensation that accompanies an epiphany feels like the hallelujah chorus on my brain!
Trippy hallucinations for visual artists, story ideas for writers, fresh ideas for inventors, and creative solutions for everyday life can be found in this liminal world, but there’s more. It’s the state in which one can open the portal to enter other dimensions through shamanic journeying and astral travel. It’s the state where it’s easiest to communicate with the spirits, whether for healing purposes or mediumship.
In another post I mentioned the blissful reverie I drift into in the morning before getting up. I call it “basking in Spirit” and that’s my morning practice. If you aren’t in the habit of connecting to the unseen world throughout the day, it’s the easiest state in which to start receiving love notes. I love to start my day by remembering how supported and loved I am in the unseen world because there is nothing like it for setting the tone I want for the rest of the day.
One reader asked me to give some additional tips on how exactly to “bask in Spirit.” I should clarify that I don’t experience the euphoria every time. Some weeks I’ll feel it two or three times and some weeks not at all. Whenever I decide, “Ok, I’m going to reverse engineer this so I can get into the substance-free euphoric state consistently and teach others how,” it stops happening. I’m telling you, putting too much intention on it only serves to chase it away! It happens when I’m not trying.
The best direction I can give for basking in Spirit is to be open to it every single morning, or at another set time each day, in a set place. Showing up consistently and setting the expectation to access Spirit is key. Reflecting on the things in your life you are grateful for can get you into the right frame of mind. A simple prayer, something like, “I’m here to be uplifted and strengthened” could help, too. Remember that you are not seeking to connect—you are already connected. I prefer to think of it as tuning in to the right channel.
At night before falling asleep I used to pray in the way I was taught by a teacher in the unseen world during an ecstatic episode a few years ago. Recently in my studies of witchcraft I discovered that this approach to prayer is also a form of spell casting! What I was taught to do is imagine the object of the petition (myself or someone else) in a bubble of love and well-being. Then envision whatever it is you are asking for inside the bubble with the person. I started praying this way because words alone felt inadequate to communicate with the Divine.
After reading about Neville Goddard’s manifestation technique a few months back I decided to give it a try. I described the technique in a post a few weeks ago. It’s proving very effective so that’s my new use of the evening hypnagogic state. I like it much better than what I was doing before because it feels more powerful.
As Neville says, “By feeling your wish fulfilled and quietly relaxing into sleep, you cast yourself in a star role to be played tomorrow, and, while asleep, you are rehearsed and instructed in your part.”
Happy hypnagogic dreaming to you all!
Con Amor,
Lindsay