On Totems

Quest for Lucidity
1

[center]On Totems[/center]

[center]Inception[/center]
A concept taken from the recently released movie, Inception, about a man who takes contracts to enter people’s minds and learn their secrets—through the use of shared dreaming. I’m sure that most avid lucid dreamers have seen this movie, and I don’t think I’m speaking just for myself when I say that it is one of the best movies ever made. One of the many things mentioned in the movie is the idea of totems—a single, small object, unique to the individual which allows them to know whether they are in their own dream, someone else’s, or are not in a dream at all. The point of a totem is that only its owner knows its weight, balance, and feel; that way, when they hold it, they know if they’re in their own dream, since no one else could possibly recreate it exactly.

The main character’s totem is a spinning top—in a dream it spins endlessly, whereas in the real world it would eventually stop. Another character’s is a loaded red die. And another’s is a slightly hollowed out golden chess piece.

Obviously, most of us don’t fear being fooled into thinking we’re in our own dream when in actuality we’re in someone else’s. However, I think there is a place for totems in the lives of lucid dreamers. If a lucid dreamer were to have their own totem, a unique object easily carried around on their person, it could easily replace all other reality checks.

[center]On the Use of a Totem[/center]
Using the totem would function as a reality check—something done repeatedly in real life so that it will carry over into your dreams, where the result will be different. All you have to do is use your totem a few times a day, asking yourself each time “Am I dreaming?” Don’t do this passively, that could be a detriment as opposed to a benefit; actually think about the question, really focus on your totem. If you ever perform a reality check in a dream, you should realise the answer is “Yes!” and become lucid.

Some people are of the opinion that you should practice more than one reality check: read some text, look at a digital watch, breathe through your nose while plugging it, try to pass your hand through a wall or mirror, jump, look at your hands. I believe, however, that if you have only one reality check, then it will become more associated by your mind with the state of dreaming and the quest to have a lucid dream. This will make it a much more effective method for becoming lucid.

[center]Qualities of a Totem[/center]
-Uniqueness: make your totem something you wouldn’t typically see in your day-to-day life, so that it remains connected solely to your dream life.
-Smallness: make your totem small enough to carry around with you wherever you go; maybe even something that you can hang on a string around your neck or wrist.
-Manipulability: make your totem something which can be manipulated in some way, i.e. something which you can change the state of, not something static. Think of things which can light up, spin, twist, spring, sound, or are magnetic. This will provide you with a quick reality check, and will also help to implant the object in your mind, as you use it.
-Permanence: make your totem something which can handle wear and constant use, so that you won’t have to worry about it breaking, and needing a replacement.

Examples of Totems

A yo-yo, light, elastic band, hair clip, locket, lighter, spongy ball, whistle, magnet. Just make it unique to yourself and you could use virtually anything small and manipulable. Also, having a totem that appeared in the movie would probably be a good idea (if you’ve watched the movie, that is), as your mind has already seen it used for this purpose and will already have associated it with dreaming. Obtaining a spinning top exactly like Cobb’s would be incredibly effective, I think.

Thanks for Reading

I hope this article will be a help to all lucid dreamers, new and experienced alike. If you haven’t seen Inception yet, then go watch it; you won’t be sorry! I wish you all many lucid dreams.

2

Yeah it’s been tried before, but unfortunately it doesn’t work like in the movie. In theory yes it could happen in some instances, but our dreams our much less realistic that those in Inception. We bend everything, including reality. If we can’t even get a clock to work properly, and always get stuff wrong in for example our own room or house, how can we be sure the exact properties of a small item are transfered perfectly?
It will work as something to stimulate reality checks. I made a topic on that some time ago… think it was called ‘totems for RC’s’ or something like that… wonder whatever happened to that…
Anyway I have my own totem, and a number of times per set timeinterval I use it for a reality check. Problem is this only works in a dream when the totem appears in your dream, which means for it to work you have to focus on it really often and strong all day long.
And that could work, but it’s just not as practical as others; look at a clock, look at your hands, pinch your nose… these are just so much simplier.

3

the only real reason totems work in the movie is because they use a device to do it for them, so they cant remember when they hooked up to it, making it seem like its exactly like real life, like in nightmare on elm st.
so when they used the totems, it behaved like in RL, so they know they were dreaming when it didnt do what it was supposed to.

i mean, you could use one if your dreams are like 100% realistic, but otherwise, RC’s do their job 10x better.

4

But then how is that different from real dreaming? We often forget when we hooked up or fell asleep, and it can continue exactly like real life (or what we keep thinking is real life,) which can be two big reasons why we have non-lucid dreams and can continue non-lucidly.

It’s the same as pinching your nose and breathing through it. You can’t be sure your respiratory system will behave the same, and that’s why part of the reason why it works as an RC. What RC’s and totems do, mainly, is that they get you wondering. If you look at your hands in a dream and they look normal, you can still become lucid from them because you’re wondering if you’re dreaming.

5

I actually have had one for quite a while now :tongue: mines a coin with a smiley face on it (I made it). The totem idea would really work if you believe it will, similar to how we believe our hands will look deformed in our dreams. For my totem, when I flip it the face will change :grin: hehe, it’s funny for one of my lucid dreams I tested it out…at first it wasn’t working really well, so I started to get frustrated then my coin’s smiley face mimicked my face like >: l. So I guess my totem is now the face mimicking coin :bored: . LOL I’m just glad it works!

Also, THE MOVIE WAS AWESOMES!

6

I realize that it wouldn’t work like in the movie; that’s why I didn’t suggest we use it in the same way. My point was that the totem wouldn’t appear in your dream the same way that it appears in real life, just like any other reality check.

That’s why I said to use the totem as a reality check. Your dreams are populated by people, places, objects, and events which are familiar to you. For example, I had three dreams last night. In one, I was on the bus; in another, I was at my school; in the third I was in a town I spend a lot of time in. The people in my dreams were my best friend, my ex, and my parents. You see? Places that are familiar, people I’ve spent a lot of time with.

Therefore, if you spend a lot of time with your totem, it will cross into your dreams, especially if you associate it with your dreams.

Well, when you’re dreaming, do you know you’re dreaming? No. That’s the whole goal of lucid dreaming. Originally, we think that our dream is our reality.

Anyway, I didn’t say that the point of a totem would be to appear exactly like it does in real life: I said that because it won’t be exact, it will work as a reality check on its own.

7

I’ve actually found that while I’m dreaming I am always wearing a pair of white shoes, however these shoes are always different from the actual pair of white shoe I wear in real life so my shoe acts as a kind of totem/RC. If I’m wearing one pair I’m dreaming and another means I’m asleep, it’s a fairly reliable way to keep me from becoming distracted and forgetting I’m dreaming

8

I’ve had an idea for a “Totem” of sorts for a couple months now, and the concept is a two-tailed coin that will come up heads in dreams. Oddly enough I actually found such a coin, in a dream. From there I hopped into two dreams where I was able to flip the coin (After ignoring massive dream signs like the coin changing from a penny to a dime, or a ceiling fan right in the corner of the room) and successfully gained lucidity when it came up heads. Hasn’t happened again, though, so I can’t wait to get the one that I’m gonna order soon xD
/first post

9

I have this necklace with a guitar pick on it that I wear 24-7. In RL I always fidget with it when I get nervous or bored, and it is almost constantly in my hands when I dream. Can I somehow turn it into a totem since it is already so present in my dreams?

10

Yes defenitely, though I personally find that for me it is easier for me to make a connection to something new, something I don’t have a set feeling for yet. When I already have or do something to get a new association to that is difficult for me, which is why I can’t do a RC everytime I look at the clock, 'cause I always did that, so just can’t get it in.
But if you can, or find a way yes that would make an excellent totem.

11

Love the movie, definetly one of the best I’ve seen in a long time. Dreaming there doesn’t work exactly like it should, but totems probably work as good as RC-s, but I’d guess they are similarly (in)effective.

Did someone try to compare totem-based RC-ing with the usual RC-s? And is anyone here using this technique at all?