I figured I might share this, since it just might help one of you shapeshifters, or potential shapeshifters, out there. If you are in a hurry, scroll down and read the summary.
Shapeshifting is normally easy for me in dreams. I do it naturally, in both lucid and normal dreams. For some reason, though, I never seem to get the dragon form right. Recently I finally got it right. I think this is due to the following:
First, I looked at dragon pictures while awake. I guess the reason I shapeshift into animals better is simply because I see them more often than mythological creatures! I used /Dragonology/. Not exactly a scholarly work, but the presentation and artwork is great.
During the actual dream I tried the command “I am now a dragon!” This resulted in me shapeshifting into a demonic-looking version of Big Bird. Not quite what I had in mind.
Next I transformed a giant wall nearby into a giant mirror. For some reason, transforming my reflection was easier than transforming myself. I gave the verbal command, “Turn the image in the mirror and my body into a dragon.” It worked. Not only that, I transformed into the most beutiful dragon that I ever saw. Not bad.
Summary:
- Look at pictures of what you want to turn into during the day.
- Create or find a mirror in your dream. Giving the verbal command “There is a mirror behind me” and then turning around should do it.
3)Change the image in the mirror and your form. Change one then the other, or both at the same time. Whatever feels more comfortable.
For you dream researchers out there:
Perhaps feedback from posters is not enough. In general, the only people who want to post are the people who experience success. You could set up an experiment. I won’t do it for obvious reasons (My techniques all work and my experiments prove it! W00t!)
I do not know if the mirror technique or the looking at dragon pictures is what eased the transformation. I suspect that it was both, because my first attempt failed miserably while my second attempt went flawlessly and almost effortlessly. An experiment could test this.
In order to tone down the influence that desire would have, whoever conducts the experiment should chooses an arbitrary form that is common, but less popular. Perhaps a skunk or a lamp. Probably should not be anything that people are likely to find cool or disguisting/scary.
One: Uses intent or verbal command to shapeshift
Two: Uses intent plus looking at pictures for a specified period of time during waking hours.
Three: Mirror technique
Four: Mirror technique plus pictures.
note: experimenter should choose the form and the pictures that he gives to every dreamer. Every subject should have the same form and the same set of pictures to study.
Alternately: I think that it is safe to just assume that looking at pictures of what you want to shapeshift into makes it easier. We could just either drop groups two and four or one and three. I reccommend dropping groups one and three. Just to make it easier on your dreaming subjects.
Once you have all that, you recruit volunteers and set up your hypothesis. Such as, “Treader is silly and there will be little to no difference between the two groups!” The more volunteers you manage to recruit, the less a problem chance will be. Try to recruit volunteers with similar abilities (ex: frequent lucid dreams, rarely/never shapeshifts). Ideally, similar sleeping habits would be good too.
It is always fun to play scientist. I would love to conduct a “shared dreaming” type experiment some time. 