The brain is a huge filtering device, it is responsible for filtering out billions of bits of information every second, it is an amazing and super fast. The filters are set by our genes, our environment, our upbringing, our culture and evolution. There is some evidence for believing that higher entities also have a role in our filter mechanism. So what can we do about it, can we retake control? Probably not fully as it could prove very dangerous to our sanity but there are some things we can do. There are many functions of the brain which happen automatically the heart rate and breathing are done without conscious control, yet we can control them. There are practitioners of Yoga and meditation who demonstrate remarkable control over their bodily functions, people have used hypnosis to control pain and even undergone operations without anaesthetics. So you can see taking control to a certain extent can be achieved and the results need not be confined to bodily functions.
There are different states of consciousness, there is the normal awake and aware consciousness, which is a very small part of our overall consciousness. There is the subconscious which looks after our bodily functions so efficiently as well as the unconscious emotional effects from memories and fears. What of the dream world, what type of consciousness is that? So the bulk of the brain activity is not in what we would call our normal consciousness, it goes on under the surface and this is where the filtering is happening, it is not in normal conscious, so just making a conscious decision to change the filtering mechanism is not going to have the desired effect. We must some how get down below the surface, this is why almost all teachers of psychic or spiritual development espouse the use of meditation.
There are those who state that the development of psychic senses should be just a side effect of spiritual development and I very firmly agree. However, there are ways that they can go hand in hand. Earlier I mentioned that there could be higher entities involved or at work in our filtering mechanisms. These same entities are also very much involved with our spiritual development. Some call them guides or angels, I do not like to limit them by names. Communication with these entities is possible during meditation if practised diligently over long periods of time. There is though a technique which we are all expert at and can prove very beneficial throughout many areas of our life.
What is the difference between being asleep and being awake? There is a state between the two, we all experience it twice a day, once as we fall asleep and again when we awake it is called hypnagogia a state of transition. We can use this state to great advantage, it has been proved time and time again to deliver to the world great insights, some profound some practical. Great scientist have attributed their major breakthroughs to the hypnagogia state, Artist, musicians and writers have found inspiration through the hypnagogia state. How many times have you heard the expression "Let me sleep on it" The hypnagogia state is the link between our inner and outer selves as will as a link to the higher entities which guide us and care for us as well as releasing important information to mankind whenever they are ready.
Taking control of this state and make it work wonders in your life is not that difficult, certainly not as difficult as meditation which I know some people find very difficult. The secret is simple, just ask. As you take to your bed and prepare for your nights sleep, ask a question, if there is some problem you are struggling with, keep the problem in your mind as you drift off to sleep. Be prepared for some revelations when you wake up, what thoughts, ideas, impressions do you wake up with, these are your answers.
I would start small to begin with, 'I am having a problem at work, how best can I solve it?' 'I need some information where can I find it?' The hardest part is accepting the answers, you must not limit yourself to a set of answers you have already considered, and it may not be the answer you want. The next step is to act on the answers you are given, this is most important, if you do not then you have just wasted everybody's time and that will not sit well. Think how you would feel if someone asked your advice and they routinely disregarded it. If there is nothing in the morning, no ideas or hunches do not despair keep trying, you will quickly learn the art of listening to the inner you just as you wake up, but it is a fleeting thing. I should point out that if you have to wake up with an alarm clock this will not work at all, because you miss the moment, so time your experiments when you do not have to use an alarm clock or tell yourself to awake just before the alarm clock. In this way you can enjoy that special hypnagogia state.
If you still get no response then maybe you will get something during the day, we can discuss this next month.