November Project: Question #16
This question comes from Brooks through email
How do you experience sleep and dreaming post-December 2006 accident? Have you noticed a difference in dreams over the last five years?
Thanks for the question, Brooks.
I suppose in the past I was a fairly regular dreamer. I never really placed much significance in it, but I think I enjoyed it for the most part. I can remember having horrifying dreams and waking up thinking, “How awesome was that??” But in the last five years or so, I can scarcely remember having any dreams. It just doesn’t seem to happen for me anymore.
I know people will cry foul and tell me Everyone dreams every night!!, or You do dream, you just don’t remember!!, but I really don’t think so. I won’t say I have had no dreams in the past five years, but I could seriously count the amount of times on one hand. Probably. 
There are many theories of dreaming and dreams. I think the main line of thinking is our dreams are there as a subconscious playground where we can work out all the unresolved issues of the previous day or days. If that is true, what if there is nothing to resolve? If dreams are dependent upon us having to deal with our self-perpetuated nonsense later, then the question of dreaming is a simple one to answer.
And others say dreams are messages from elsewhere, or from the subconscious, giving us advice and whatnot. Still others think they are symbolic representations of past lives or even representations of answers to our deepest questions. Some of it might be true, none of it might be true…I don’t really know.
But I do know when I lie down to sleep at night, I am always alone. It can be a deafening silence, and sometimes sleep does not come so easily. At times I like to fill the room with sound just to have something there. Solo piano music is good. I like the percussive nature of the instrument. But having music, or any sound for that matter, is not a necessity for me to sleep.
I don’t know if that answers your question, Brooks, but thanks for asking.
{ 1 comment }
Thanks Takuin!
I find it interesting about your experience with deafening silence, aloneness and your preference (not a necessity) to have some sound to fill it. Maybe there is no explanation for this.
I think you are correct in your analysis with dreams. I find it a fascinating subject but no one is certain what they are; there are many theories as you mentioned. In a way, my personal experiences during the day seem very dreamlike, in the way the mind interprets everything. So as you stated that during sleep maybe dreams are a way to resolve issues that were not fully developed during the day. For someone that has no perpetual self and does not identify with being an individual, as you suggest maybe there is no need for dreams.
Spiritual literature is filled with theories and practices dealing with sleep and dreaming. Maybe those are just experiences and have nothing really to do with what is real. I’ve heard it said that deep sleep, where no experiences/dreams are going on, is the home of the real ‘Self’. But I have no knowledge of this and have just heard stories. Thanks again, hope you’re feeling better
{ 1 trackback }
Comments on this entry are closed.