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MAINTAINING OPEN INTELLIGENCE
IN SLEEP AND DREAMS
CHAPTER TWENTY
“If we maintain open intelligence as we drift into sleep, then we will have directly introduced ourselves to open intelligence in a whole new way. When we accomplish undistracted open intelligence in sleep, then it will also be much easier for us to enjoy undistracted open intelligence at other times of the day.”
When we go to sleep at night, normally we just sort of conk out, and then some hours later we wake up. Most of us don‟t have any control over what happens
during those hours. When we fall asleep, we‟re just asleep; we can‟t consciously do anything while in that state, and consequently we believe that we‟re at the
complete whim of sleep and dreams. We don‟t know how it all happens, but something is happening to us, and we don‟t have any power over it.
When we don‟t recognize the open intelligence that is at the basis of sleep and dreams, we‟re just lost in those worlds. When we have a dream, anything can
happen in it. It can be the craziest and most bizarre thing or the most sublime thing. All these phantasmagorical images appear, some of which we remember and
some we don‟t. Generally speaking, while in the dream we have no idea that it‟s a dream and we take it to be real. The same can be said for the waking state, which is truly just a dreamlike appearance within the changeless reality of open intelligence. If we take our bodies and the various events sandwiched between birth and death to be who we are—while ignoring the substratum of open intelligence that alone can truly be said to exist—the result will be alienation from the timeless freedom and perfect peace that constitute our true nature. This is what non-recognition of open intelligence is: being lost in the belief that the thoughts, emotions and experiences define who we are and thinking that the states we pass through are real. For the whole of our lives we‟ve been thinking that
the everyday states of waking, dreaming and sleeping are who we are. Most of us are deeply convinced that our birth, life and death completely define who we are.
We think that without them we would not be, and we depend on them for our sense of identity. However, when we rely on open intelligence, more and more we find
that we‟re not dependent on any concept whatsoever. We‟re not dependent on the body or the mind, nor are we dependent on the waking, sleep and dream states.
We don‟t even depend on air, the Earth, the sun or even the universe! It‟s very important to go beyond all the ordinary descriptions we‟ve learned to identify with,
and we do that simply by maintaining open intelligence. I want to share with you a very powerful practice that can help you use the
pivotal moment of falling asleep to discover the substratum of open intelligence. When we go to sleep at night, we can begin to maintain open intelligence as we‟re
falling asleep. As we do this, we‟ll see that all the activity of the conceptual mind—the stirring and proliferation of thoughts and emotions—gradually merges into a
non-conceptual state, which is the sleep state. This is still a state of mind. It‟s not real freedom; it‟s just another datum within open intelligence.
At that pivotal moment when we find that all the concepts have merged into a non-conceptual state, we can then pose a very important question to ourselves:
“What is it that is aware of this non-conceptual mind?” This question leads directly into the substratum of pure open intelligence. By relying on the open intelligence
that is revealed through this inquiry, we will be able to differentiate between the basic space of open intelligence, which is our true identity, and the non-conceptual
sleep state, which is just another state of mind. When we have discovered the open intelligence that is the same in all states and conditions, it will become easier and easier to maintain open intelligence throughout the day and during the night as well.
We don‟t have to make a big deal out of it. It is as simple as relying on open intelligence for short moments, many times, while falling asleep. This is the single
practice with all data, including falling asleep, dreaming and sleeping. If open intelligence comes easily when falling asleep, it‟ll come easily, and if it doesn‟t come
easily, we don‟t try to force it. At some point it may just naturally appear, and we‟ll fall asleep totally aware and remain aware during our sleep. We don‟t have to try this every night, but if only once we can be aware in this way as we move into sleep, we will see that sleep and dreams are themselves data within open
intelligence. If we maintain open intelligence as we drift into sleep, then we will have directly introduced ourselves to open intelligence in a new way. When we
accomplish undistracted open intelligence in sleep, then it will also be much easier for us to enjoy undistracted open intelligence at other times of the day.
Some people practice remaining aware all night long, even in deep sleep. What‟s most important about this practice is to see through firsthand experience that
dreaming and sleeping are appearances of open intelligence. Through relying on open intelligence the three categories we use to describe our 24-hour experience—
waking, dreaming, and sleeping—are completely gone beyond. We see that all three of these are just data within the all-encompassing pure view of open
intelligence.When we maintain open intelligence in the dream state, we realize that all the component parts of the dream can be changed or manipulated just by deciding to do so. If we choose to do that, we will be able to actively participate in the dreams we have and change what goes on in them. We‟ll be able to be aware in our dreams and be a master of the illusion of dreaming. When there is a feeling that we are at the whim of dreams, they seem totally
beyond our control. But with the decisive experience of being able to change what is going on in a dream, it becomes possible to directly experience open intelligence as not only beyond all phenomena, but also as having mastery over all phenomena. However, rearranging the figures in the dream—whether it is the waking dream or the sleeping dream—is not really a pastime we need to get into. In and of itself it is not a goal worth striving for, but the ability to do so is a natural byproduct of the complete mental mastery that comes through the practice of relying on open intelligence.
What‟s most important is to decisively realize open intelligence as the pure space of all images that occur within it. There‟s no need at all to try to analyze any of the
images, whether they are daytime images or nighttime images. Like all phenomena, the nighttime images in dreams are just self-appearances of open
intelligence, as are the images during waking life. They‟re identical in that respect. When we acknowledge open intelligence as the ground of our being by relying on
open intelligence in the direct encounter with all phenomena, then we realize in a very powerful way that all images that appear are due to open intelligence and
nothing else. So, there‟s nothing that needs to be done about any of them. By relying on open intelligence, more and more we know open intelligence as the
benevolent reality of our being, and all phenomena are then seen as benevolent and perfect just the way they are. They don‟t need to be analyzed, improved or
changed; in fact, nothing at all needs to be done about any appearance. If we‟ve been accustomed to analyzing the images in our dreams, this is a perfect
opportunity to bring that to a complete stop, for the ultimate substance and meaning of all images is the same. They are all just passing forms of open
intelligence, and that‟s all we need to know about dreams. Although most people believe that the waking state is reality and the dream state
unreal, the “waking dream” and the “sleeping dream” are identical in that they‟re both data within the changeless reality of open intelligence. The wisdom benefit of
flawless open intelligence is completely uncontained and has never been made into anything. Even though the various phenomena that appear in waking states and
dream states may seem incredibly substantial, when we examine them we find that there is nothing hold-able or keep-able within any appearance. When we maintain open intelligence in the face of what appears, then we can relax and know that the appearances are nothing at all to be afraid of.
We can rest assured that whatever appears—whether it is an event during the day or an image in a dream during the night—it is nothing but an appearance of open intelligence. This understanding is a very powerful resource for working out our daytime data. The phantasmagorical content of our dream states at night can
bring about a very powerful resolution of data within us, so that during the day it will be easier for us to rely on open intelligence. When we can be at ease with even
our most frightening dream imagery, the images we face in our waking state become significantly easier to face. When we awake in the morning, normally all the data of our waking state that were in abeyance during sleep immediately come flooding back in. If we rely on open intelligence in the moment when we wake up and the thoughts return, we find that we need not get caught up again in the torrent of thoughts and emotions.
Giving in to the thoughts that appear when we wake up in the morning is just a habit we‟ve sustained for a long time. It may have seemed that it‟s impossible to
feel ourselves empowered because of the immediate onslaught of thoughts, but if we can maintain open intelligence we‟ll see that we don‟t have to be ruled by the
thoughts or sensory impressions. When we sustain open intelligence as we wake up in the morning, it will be
easier for us to see the workings of the mind and not get caught in habitual patterns of identification with passing phenomena. Rest is best upon waking up in
the morning; otherwise, we may be tempted to think, “Oh, after such a beautiful vacation in sleep, here‟s all this garbage again!”
Instead of getting into endless stories about thoughts, emotions or images—identifying with some thoughts and rejecting others—we can see all phenomena as
equal and allow the relief of open intelligence to be our constant comfort. Thoughts and emotions never have an independent nature and will vanish of their own
accord, so there‟s no need to do anything about them. What do we need to do about them when they‟re going to vanish anyway? If we don‟t see that thoughts are
their own undoing and are free and perfect in their own place, then we‟ll think we have to do something about them. But when we practice seeing perfection in all
appearances and relying on the open intelligence that is the substance and essence of all appearances, the illusion of a personal identity and its workings is recognized to be insubstantial and without conflict. With continued practice we come to see that open intelligence pervades not only
our waking life, but also sleep and everything that is contained within sleep. If we bring this presence of open intelligence to the process of falling asleep, we‟ll soon
see that open intelligence is present in all that appears. As we feel more and more empowered, we may eventually be emboldened
enough to pose the question: “If open intelligence supersedes waking, dreaming and sleeping, then could open intelligence also supersede birth and death?” The
question might not mean very much if it remains only a philosophical idea, but if there is a direct experience of open intelligence as the unchanging basis of all phenomena, then something quite extraordinary could occur. One would come to see that even birth and death are just passing data within changeless open
intelligence, and the irrevocable realization of this truth can only come through getting fully acquainted with open intelligence; mere theoretical acknowledgement
is not enough. It‟s quite likely that no one has ever told us this very important truth about ourselves, namely, that dreams and sleep and birth and death are just data within changeless, timeless open intelligence. Each datum that appears is complete and identical and equal to every other datum that appears. There‟s never been any differentiation, inclusion or exclusion, because open intelligence is indivisible—and its own appearances can never affect that oneness. This is crucially important.
The practice of relying on open intelligence while falling asleep can help introduce us to the fundamental nature of open intelligence. Then, while maintaining open
intelligence as we experience the states of sleep and dreams, we can know that it is open intelligence alone that encompasses and transcends all states of mind. When we‟ve discovered all-encompassing, all-transcending open intelligence to be our fundamental nature, the treasure of perfect mental balance becomes our own, and it is a treasure we‟ll be happy to share with all.
