Thank you so much Alex and Cammie for your responses! They are very helpful. Being able to harness immense creativity during dreams is amazing, and so is being able to control your wakefulness! I'm especially interested in techniques that reduce the need for sleep, but without sacrificing attention, cognition, and health of course. Apparently, meditation is supposed to decrease sleep need, especially when done for at least a couple hours a day for a few years. Two studies (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2919439/) (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4054695/) have discussed how meditation can promote wakefulness and decrease hours of sleep. On the other hand, I can't find any scholarly information on whether shamanic practices can do something similar, which is why I asked. Both Buddhism and Shamanism emphasize heightened awareness during sleep, so it seems like a promising question. Also, shamanic journeys have similarities with meditation and lucid dreaming, as this article (https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311908.2017.1313522) discusses. Shamanism already does grant superhuman abilities, but the ability to sleep less and stay healthy and sharp, all while being creative during shamanic journeying would be spectacular. Maybe sleep time could be decreased via Shamanism without having to meditate 10 hours a day. Are there any ideas on Shamanic activities that promote wakefulness like the ones Alex mentioned?
