In Russia, the practice of lucid dreaming may soon be illegal. Lucid dreamers have been equated with magicians, witches, mediums, alchemists, tarot readers, palmists, and other representatives of “esoteric, spiritual, and energy services.” Because of this, a bill is being developed by Nina Ostanina, head of the State Duma Committee on Family Protection, Paternity, Maternity, and Childhood Issues. The goal is to protect people from the “actions of esoteric fraudsters.”
At the time of writing, the bill has not been officially submitted to the State Duma; a committee meeting is scheduled for April 10, 2025, to discuss the text. So far, it contains two points:
— a ban on the dissemination of information about the services of these individuals
— a ban on advertising the services of these individuals
Interestingly, India is cited as a positive example where similar norms are already in place. In this country, people do not marry without an astrologer’s forecast, and Ayurveda, yoga, chakra work, and astrology are taught at universities.
Currently, no one is defending lucid dream practitioners included in the list. However, regarding those offering game-based personal growth services (who are also on the list), commentators argue that psychologists routinely use games, especially when working with children and adolescents. The proposed bill could harm all game-based pedagogy and business modeling. Ostanina herself, when speaking about the project, drew an analogy to the ban on “propaganda of the ideology of child-free or non-traditional sexual relationships.”
We will be monitoring the progress of the bill. What do you think—will it be passed?
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