healing, curative effect in themselves. The very
experience of a dream may change your mind, or
feelings, in a way that eliminates your conflict. Try it and
you'll see what I mean. Here's how ..."
      I would then show the dreamers how to set up a dream
journal that would help them in the incubation process.
Next, I would describe in detail the when and how of
incubation. More detailed instructions for you to try will
be given below in my proposed experiment in incubation,
so I'll present here only a brief outline of the incubation
procedure.
      First, I would see to it that the dreamer had already
learned to recall dreams with some regularity. Then I
would ask the dreamer to choose an "incubation issue,"
or problem which is of immediate concern, and about
which there is a readiness to receive new, perhaps
unflattering insights. The dreamer would then choose a
night when he would not be overly tired and on which he
could spend about 15 uninterrupted minutes with the
dream journal just before falling asleep. On that night,
the dreamer would begin the "incubation discussion,"
writing in the dream journal, describing the issue in
great detail. This discussion would include the major
aspects of the problem, as well as any alternatives or
resolutions that present themselves to waking conscious-
ness as the discussion unfolds. The purpose of the
discussion is to get all conscious thoughts on the issue
down on paper, and thus out of mind. If this step is well
done, the dreamer is freed from the need to continue
rethinking the issue, and his mind is then clear enough to
find and concentrate upon the "incubation phrase."
      To find the incubation phrase, the dreamer must listen
to the heart for a "one-liner" phrase or question that is a
terse distillation of the incubation issue. Now, just before
and while falling asleep, the dreamer must hold the
incubation phrase clearly in mind, like a mantra, focusing
on only the phrase while passing into sleep.
      On the following morning, not only would all dreams
be recorded, but also any thoughts, songs, or fantasies
found in the mind. The dreamer would then work on the

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