Reality of Dreams

The Reality of Dreams

Everyone dreams, yet they are not well remembered or understood.  They are literally the inspiration for the Scientific Method, yet objective science ignores them.  Dreams have documented psionic qualities like telepathy and precognition.


Working with your dreams is generally non-harmful, leading to both insight and empathy. Dreams traditionally mediate our relationship with the non-human world.

Dreams are not "just dreams"

Forget what you know about dreaming

If you've grown up in a materialist culture, then you've likely been told your dreams are "just dreams" and that you don't need to pay attention to your dreams.

In Western culture, we tend to value objective ways of knowing. We understand that dreams are figments of the imagination and therefore are not real.

Moss, R. (2010). The Three" Only" Things: Tapping the Power of Dreams, Coincidence, and Imagination. New World Library.

Wide definition of dreaming

Dreams happen across sleep and waking states

Dream scientists have a hard time defining dreams.  Clearly, the nocturnal dreams associated with REM sleep are dreams, but what about day dreams?


A working definition of dreams is recommended to include placement along three spectrums:

  1. Wake/sleeping
  2. Recall
  3. Quality


Pagel, J. F., Blagrove, M., Levin, R., Stickgold, B., & White, S. (2001). Definitions of dream: A paradigm for comparing field descriptive specific studies of dream. Dreaming, 11(4), 195-202.

The reality of dreams

Dreams are real, but that reality requires definition

When we look to cross-cultural studies, we find that most cultures honor the reality of dreams

  • 8% of dreams may be psionic, involving telepathy, visitation, miraculous healing, and precognition, etc.
  • Meta-analysis of dream telepathy studies demonstrate significant results
  • 90% cultures on Earth honor dreams as real
  • Shamanic dream practices, including the ancient Greek Asclepion rites, recognize the nondual reality of dreams


Krippner, S., & Faith, L. (2001). Exotic dreams: A cross-cultural study. Dreaming11(2), 73-82.

Storm, L., Sherwood, S. J., Roe, C. A., Tressoldi, P. E., Rock, A. J., & Di Risio, L. (2017). On the correspondence between dream content and target material under laboratory conditions: A meta-analysis of dream-ESP studies, 1966-2016. International Journal of Dream Research.

Laughlin, C. D., & Rock, A. J. (2014). What can we learn from shamans’ dreaming? A cross-cultural exploration. Dreaming, 24(4), 233.

Want to learn more?

Make sense of dreams by learning and practicing.  D-SETI e-courses include:

  • Practices to help you remember, record, and interpret your dreams
  • Lectures that present research-based inquiries
  • Bibliographies to help you continue your learning journey
  • Question and Answer with Daniel to deepen your learning journey

Take the free e-course, D-SETI Overview: Dreamwork for ET/NHI Contact.

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