MEDITATION
and
DREAMS

     Here  are  some  testimonies  and  research  reports
pointing  to  meditation   as   a  key  to  gaining  better
access   to   dreams.   The  Community   Dream   Journal
welcomes    your    comments   on    this   material.   We
especially    encourage    testimonies    of    your    own
experiences  or  of  any  research  you  may have done
concerning  the  relationship  between meditation and
dreams.
      As  we ponder this material, an intriguing question
arises:    How   can   we   determine   if   the   effect   of
meditation  on  dreams  is  more   than  that   of   auto-
suggestion?  Does  it  really  matter,  as  long  as  it  is
effective?  But  suppose  that  meditation  and  dreams
are  related  to   a  general  process  of  attunement  to
inner, yet transcendent, activity. Then in our own lives
we  might  wish  to  distinguish this process from auto-
suggestion.  We  invite  you  to  suggest  suitable, self-
disclosing experiments.

Dear Journal:
      I  believe  that  dreams  and  the  meditative  state are
somehow  related.  Once, while meditating,  I sensed the
presence  of Mary, the mother of Jesus.  I was surprised
and  asked within,  "Mary,  are you coming to me?"  With
inner hearing  I  heard,  "I come to  all who love my Son."
Naturally, I kicked this around for awhile, wondering if I

46