Welcome to Gaia! ::

Once upon a time, I believe mankind understood that dreams were gateways to a magnificent amount of hidden knowledge about the past, present, future, alternate facets of our world, the spiritual and divine planes of existence as well as what lurks beneath the surface of our conscious minds. You might think of those beginning to rediscover the value of the dream state as being those rediscovering a "lost technology", but that's a slight overstatement, as many cultures retained the knowledge but are obscure to western culture, or it was only retained superficially.

A prime example of a gateway experience I had once, that had nothing to do with reincarnation, strongly supports the Native American belief that meeting someone who has passed on in a dream is their spirit visiting you.

In this dream I was standing at my favorite local place to simply contemplate or meditate on matters, a spot on the flood dike that surrounds the rural community I reside within, that overlooks an oxbow lake. Beyond the oxbow lake is a small farmer's field and then just beyond that the forest that conceals the Red River of the North from view. Right at the edge of the oxbow lake and the base of the flood dike is the strongest of the three spiritual vortexes that triangulate around this community. (Most of the time it's a calming, energizing and serene location - but there are times when the energy feels turbulent and chaotic; I avoid going there when I start sensing that.)

As I was standing there in my dream, I was thinking about the fact that someone who has been dear to me would be moving far away from me very soon, and I might never see them again. I had the sensation of fighting back tears at the thought of their imminent departure. Suddenly I became aware that my grandmother, who had passed away two years prior, was standing beside me. She said; "Be strong ... you've been away from people you've loved before and have lived through it. Just ask (your' mom) about the phone books, she'll know what I'm talking about." She smiled, hugged me, patted my back, and then I woke up. Still groggy, I rushed to the phone. My mother has wrestled with my grandmother's loss, and a message like that was probably not just intended to support me in my grief - but also to remind my mother that though my grandmother was no longer among the living she is still very much a part of our lives.

I told my mother exactly what I have explained here, and she immediately broke down crying - as it was referencing something that only she and my grandmother would have known about because I wasn't even there to see said phone books. The reference to the phone books was a job that my mother took that required her to move from Oxnard CA to Union City CA, to do local telemarketing work from my grandmother's house. It was hard for all of us because she had to leave my father and I behind in Oxnard until we had a place we could stay in Union City. The phone books was referencing this HUGE tower of them that the company my mother was working for delivered to my grandmother's house.

Indeed, we all made it through that period of separation, painful though it may have been.

I have seen many things in dreams, beyond that, and past lives. Through my propensity to astral project in my sleep I've been many places and met with beings of lore and legend, though whether their identities were authentic, be it a masquerade or a manifestation of imagination, I can't be certain - but some things I've been told would suggest authenticity. I've met still others I've never imagined or heard of until researching them after the fact; Others I've found no mention of or were just too weird to express in words.

On one occasion I found myself in a place that was as black as night with a star filled sky above me but nothing below. Lines traced between the stars in an intricate latticework and as I marveled over this new and bizarre experience I began to hear discussion between at least three possibly four individuals about stanzas, chorus, chords, pitches and tones - each with a number assigned, as though adjusting some sort of tune. These comments were followed by another voice indicating a successful or failed adjustment. With each mention a line would change course from one star to another, altering the strange web-like form I was seeing. Whom I heard or what it meant I still do not know; But I had that child-like sensation of having wandered into a place I wasn't supposed to be.

My own dream experiences aside, meditation is actually quite difficult to master, regardless of what anyone has told you. As we are individuals capable of and familiar with constant conscious thought, learning not to do that is even more difficult than learning not to breathe when submerging oneself underwater.

When I meditate, I begin by isolating myself in the most remote location in the house or outside, free of distractions like music, television, conversation, and so on. You can do it with these distractions, but you aren't going to be able to achieve a very deep trance and will likely only wind up with a heightened state of relaxation.

Once in a location like the one I described, I breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth, concentrating only on the thought of breathing, the feeling and sound of the air entering my nostrils, its temperature, its scent, and the feeling as my chest expands as my lungs are filled - then the warm sensation and sound as the air exits my mouth. I clear my mind of all thoughts but these. Although I am aware of the temperature and scents I do not focus on identifying anything - just of actually accomplishing the act of breathing. I continue this until my mind begins to get foggy and I get a buzzing sensation that begins to fill my consciousness. Gradually I am no longer even aware of the sensations I felt as I was breathing and all that is left is that buzzing sensation. Once I've reached that point, I know I've entered the trance state. I allow my mind to wander only for a moment at this point until the very first thought of something enters my mind, regardless of what it is, and while continuing breathing to maintain that buzzing sensation I allow that one thought to fill my conscious mind. I analyze it from every angle, every sensation I get about the subject, everything that relates to that specific thought, when it happened, where it happened, why might I be thinking of it, has it effected something I was unaware of, and if so what might it have done. That only describes a fraction of information you obtain by following those steps in a trance state.

Most of the time it merely accomplishes seeing things from new perspectives and new angles. It may aid you in changing your' position on something or deciding to continue as you were. Occasionally you find new information you were not consciously aware of pertaining to a subject though. THAT effect is the highest value of the trance state, in my opinion.

The best example I can think of, regarding information I received while in a trance state, was in answering a question that had vexed me for several years; The sudden decision that my ex-fiance made to leave without a word of explanation. No fight, no break up, no good-bye - just to leave. I tormented myself for years wondering at what I might have done wrong to cause her departure, and yet I came up empty handed every time in understanding why as the last time we were together we were both terrifically happy and discussing our future together with great enthusiasm.

Years later, after I had mastered meditation, the thought of my ex-fiance inadvertently entered my mind. I followed the course of the trance and essentially relived the entire relationship, from my angle, from hers, from the perspective of onlookers, from the angle of my family members and from the angle of her step-father. I began to notice things amidst the trance. On our first date, in which I introduced her to my family, she was limited to only a two hour window to socialize, have dinner, and then leave. I noticed, while showing off our new kittens, that her step father was sitting in his car a half a block away at a vantage point to where he could see straight into our living room. When she was ten minutes late in exiting the house, he came to the door, and before I could invite him in to chat - he said something peculiar, that he was leaving, and for her to come home in the morning.

Driving she and I to our second date, he put his hand on her thigh and she quickly removed it. On our third date I noticed that both of their names were on their checking account. Many things that seemed strange but unrelated suddenly aligned to suggest something thinly veiled but concealed none the less from my then love blinded eyes. I began to see from his perspective, an older man, formerly married to her mother, had fallen in love with his adopted step daughter and was trying to put his own feelings aside by encouraging her relationship with a high school boy she had become fond of. There was a lot more I was able to put together in the trance that led me to the conclusion that my ex-fiance may have been in a relationship with me but she also harbored hidden but requited feelings for her step-father. As if in answer to how to confirm it, an unrelated thought emerged, that her step father once had said he routinely posted on message boards online. I came out of the trance with my entire body tingling and immediately went to my computer to do a search, something I had forbidden myself from doing to respect her decision previously. It took less than twenty minutes for me to learn that the two of them had gotten married in Texas the year after she had left - as he no longer referred to her as his daughter but as his wife.

A bizarre situation, to say the least, and certainly not something you would expect to run across in your' lifetime as it's not exactly a socially accepted concept - but Texas law did not forbid it.

I believe the example of the sudden spark of recollection of one solitary mention of his posting on message boards was that momentary contact with knowledge that comes from memories buried deep within. None the less I was able to gain peace of mind in knowing she had made her choice, for better or worse, as to whom she wanted to stand beside her when she made her oaths and given how that last day together felt I couldn't imagine that decision was one made based upon some ill act I had performed but rather one of finally submitting to feelings that both of them had tried to various degrees to bury.

I encourage you to start a dream journal, as it is an invaluable asset. I recommend though that if you do, make it a hard copy and not on a computer as hard drives can crash; I lost a VAST amount of useful information I had gleaned from my dream states due to my old computer's hard drive getting fried.

As for meditation, I also encourage you to continue trying, don't get discouraged or frustrated, approach it with a calm sense of patience with only the intent to sit and breathe. The rest comes after. ^_^

Thank you for the commendation, I'm happy to have been of service to a fellow member of a guild I have only recently joined. ^_^ It's worth it to give meditation a try later at night, things do tend to quiet down at that time of day both outdoors and inside. In my own household its about the only useful time of day to even give it a try, what with two children of my own, and my wife's habit of keeping the television volume raised a bit higher than I might like it to be. lol



Those are the precise types of dreams to carefully note within a dream journal if you are interested in learning about potential past lives or about feelings that are buried within your' subconscious mind.

Take for example spending time with mystery person X, knowing that you are close with this individual. What about this person stands out? Hairstyle, clothing, accent, surrounding structures, landmarks, vehicles, events and so on can all be subtle but important clues to understanding the dream you have recorded. Most people who speak English also know a handful of words in other languages - if someone uses one of those words rather than your' native tongue or a tongue you are fully proficient in using today make note of it as it is an important sign post. If you can definitively determine a time period according to these clues that have a high consistency rate for a time period prior to your' birth - you may well have found memories buried within your' soul rising to the surface. Why is another question entirely - perhaps a lesson, a regret, or even a longing sensation to have a similar person to that one in your' life. I should add that I'm a hopeless romantic regarding past life loves, and am among the minority that believe that those of us who desire the companionship of another, come into each new life seeking out a specific individual with whom we've had prior relationships. I have very little supporting evidence that its true save for some dreams my wife told me about prior to my opening up to her about my belief in past lives that bore an undeniable consistency that matched perfectly with events that occurred in my first life, and a couple that fairly accurately depicted events in my third life. About the only other strange coincidence between us having found one another is that since pre-school I have had a strange fascination with women with names based on the word "Angel" such as Angela, Angie, and eventually Angelina - my wife's name. Meanwhile, she had no serious relationships prior to meeting someone who bore my surname but concluded the relationship before it went anywhere because as she put it - he wasn't who she thought he was. Whether literal or not; It's a strange coincidence! lol

That said, if the time period appears modern, it could again be an example of a relationship you would like to possess in your' life, it could be a spontaneous event of "remote viewing", and while more on the fringe of the obscure/paranormal - a glimpse of an alternate facet of our world in which the "you" in that facet indeed had a close relationship with this (these) individual(s).



I was truly touched by your' most recent dream of your' father, and being able to conclude your' time together in such an amazing, magical, spiritual - pick your' descriptive word - way! I can tell by your' comments about other dreams of him, involving witnessing his final moments, and possibly remote viewing the actual incident (This phenomenon supposedly does not have to be set in the present and may indeed provide glimpses of past events.) that you were very close to your' father and love him very much. I am curious about something though, in life did he wear a trademark cologne - and do you ever find yourself detecting the scent spontaneously periodically? I only ask because one of my grandfathers, who bore a number of gifts of his own especially pertaining to foresight and an unnatural affinity for animals, whom I was close to makes his presence known this way at times. I've been able to introduce both of my children to him days after their birth, thanks to this clue, and was able to introduce my wife on the day that she and I were married. He visits my father routinely in dreams, and they talk at length, though my father doesn't talk a lot about what they discuss but always seems to fight back tears when it happens. My father worries about his own health and it scares him sometimes when his Dad shows up in his dreams, but invariably my grandfather tells him; "No, Junior, it's not time for you to move back home yet, get your' (posterior) back to Tammy (My mother), she'd never forgive you if you left first!"



Again, it was my pleasure, I just hope something I've said may have helped you in some way, however slight it may be. If you ever have any other questions regarding dreams, psychic phenomenon, spiritual activity, the use of crystals, stones, specific types of wood, essential oils, symbols, etc. feel free to drop me a message. I'm a master of nothing - but I've a little knowledge about a lot of different topics that may or may not be useful. (A friend once coined me with the title of, "The living library of absolutely useless knowledge and trivia." -_-; lol )

I had a similar experience during the single dream that led to the recollection of a life that ended with my being the commanding officer of a U-Boat during the second world war. Although most of what was said was in English, after surviving an attack by a large patrol plane with only minor damage, the crew cheered loudly and gradually built up to a song I could tell was either a traditional song of the sea or one of national pride but it was entirely in German. I've searched Youtube to see if I could pick up on the tune to then try to source a translation but thus far I've been stumped. The dream was so scattered and I only caught fragments - so it was a wonder that I was actually able to determine my identity at all; It's just that in the entire Kriegsmarine during the 2nd World War only a single U-Boat and commanding officer encountered the exact elements that were involved in that dream. Talk about a process of elimination and finding a needle within the proverbial haystack! That aside, with a dream journal handy you could have pieced together the parts that you did understand I suppose and might have generally gotten an idea of what it was about? None the less I find it fascinating that you've experienced similar phenomenon within your' dream states that may have pertained to past life recollections.



You've brought up an interesting topic that while different from past life recollections is still of relevance to the interests of our guild. I've read (and been told) that people perceive spirits and spiritual energy in many different ways. For some it is visual, literally seeing an aura or hazy field, for others it is audible - whether a subtle voice or just a vibration in the air, and still others detect it through the sense of touch and smell.

I learned to perceive auras with concentration soon after I realized whom the divinities were that I could comfortably place my faith with, in a sense this is one form of sensitivity to spirits. It's not something that's in effect all the time though and requires concentration, at least for me. (There have been exceptions in which I've detected auras spontaneously with individuals and with entities of various dispositions.)

I already mentioned the scent of my grandfather's cologne as for when he's involved, but I've never noticed what I've heard and read about many times in detecting a sulfuric stench in the presence of so-called demons; Though I am aware I have been in the presence of negative entities, or if you wish to call them so, demons, in the past. That said, I have a theory that the detected stench mentioned may actually be related to a specific type of entity or even an individual entity.

As for that sense of touch you described, the shape that you perceive I honestly have to admit baffles me. Were you to tell me it was always in your' hand or across your' lap, I might have suggested an early type of sword with an hourglass-like hilt, that you somehow have a spiritual connection to. (This is beyond my area of expertise but I have read that it is believed in many cultures that objects used in important ceremonies, simply used excessively or even fondly can acquire a spirit of their own and if destroyed remain "attached" after a fashion to their perceived owner.) Your' description though suggests that it's location of touch varies. You didn't give a specified size either so that leaves a slight gap in my ability to imagine at what it could be. The best I can ascertain is that it is your' own spirit's way of reacting to the presence of foreign spiritual elements in your' vicinity or even in contact with you. As it's a pleasant sensation I wouldn't say it's anything terribly threatening or dangerous.

In terms of touch, I've been physically thrown back by what felt like a strong gust of wind focused at the middle of my chest. Immediately prior to that, however, I felt a strong chill, and something like an electric current that made my body hair stand on end and just before I was thrown I did experience the taste most of us are familiar with from putting the conduits of a battery to our tongues in our respective foolishness as children. My wife was physically shoved at the mid-way point on a flight of stairs, hard enough from behind for her arms to flail backward and for her neck to pitch backward. Again before that there was a sudden drop in temperature and that sensation of body hair rising.

Additionally I am not sure I can describe it well enough, but in most encounters with unseen spiritual phenomenon, there is a sense of pressure closing in on you from all angles that varies dramatically from one encounter to the next. It seems those that are violent or malignant however offer excessive pressures - but I've also had had encounters with benevolent beings that sought to offer advice that gave off an immense amount of pressure as well. In VERY rare instances I've felt this sort of pressure from living individuals as well. I was acquainted with a woman that ran a specialty shop in a nearby community that catered to the local pagan/wiccan community who gave off that sort of pressure. She always watched me closely when I entered her shop and was very keenly interested in either finding out what I was in the market for or interested in learning what I planned to do with my purchases; She didn't seem to act that way with other patrons that came in to browse so it always left me at a loss. (I still wonder, did she think I was a thief or something?? O.o wink

Anyway, I'm not sure if this has helped at all, but with more information I might be able to look further into the matter. I love to research, the more obscure the information the better, as the fruits of my labor always seem that much more rewarding. ^_^

There are many Christians that believe in reincarnation of sorts. There is nothing in the bible that says reincarnation doesn't exist. Souls are immortal, so its very possible they get used again for different people in different experiences. Some Christian churches are open to the belief and others are not. If you are youre own kinda Christian, keep the belief if it makes sense to you.

If I may suggest, don't try to believe in what it is that that particular religion believes in but rather take what you truly feel is possible or true and conjure up and idea from there. Take ideas from one belief or religion, try to connect it with another belief or religion, and see what you can come up with.

In my case, I am more wiccan than anything but I have taken ideas and beliefs from when I was Christian and created my own ideas, beliefs, religion, etc. Does that make any sense? I tend to struggle with expressing my ideas and stuff.