To Behold the Naked Truth
Aries September 3, 2025 Elly Moseson
A Hasidic homily describes a technique for cultivating lucid dreams by merging fantasy and reality, where thoughts have real cosmic consequences. To counter sexual fantasy, it recommends Neoplatonic contemplation from early Hasidic circles. This homily uniquely claims the practice leads to a revelatory dream state. Drawing on modern dream research, the study shows early Hasidism transformed anxieties about nocturnal emissions and demonic visitations into a technique for inducing lucid dreams perceived as direct perception of the divine. The work places the homily in its Hasidic, Kabbalistic, and broader Jewish contexts, highlighting Hasidic interest in extraordinary religious experiences within dreams.