[Advaita-l] Dreams and Reality

[Michael Shepherd]

Dear Pranipata ji,

Thank you for that response.

I don't wish to waste anyone's time on this site. But the question was not
originally mine.. so I feel more entitled to pursue it !

I guess there is a basic question here. Advaita Vedanta at its most
'ascetic' tells us that anything that does not last -- pain, bereavement, a
good meal, all visheshaa, the body itself... all these are illusion; none of
these are real; only Brahman is real..

But some would say, all this glorious chitshakti lila, the play of divine
consciousness, may be explored as yet another sight of Brahman..

And 'waking, dreaming, sleeping' are constantly referred to in the shruti
and smrti -- yet dreaming, amongst these wonders, is given little attention.
Yes, it's all 'imagination'.. then what is the Lord's intention in giving us
this vivid 'imagination' -- which takes place in waking state as well as
dreaming state...?

Ascetic Advaita Vedanta may say 'That's not a question for you to ask, in
your state of avidya.. your knowledge is only partial...'

But any question that may lead to liberation is valid ?

If 'dreaming' remains a mystery to one who asks this question -- this
mystery may be maya : but maya may be brought under observation.

I repeat : this was not a question originally put by me; but I think, in
this scientific age, within the belief in Advaita Vedanta, we may consider
it ?

With warm wishes,
Michael

-----Original Message-----
From: advaita-l-bounces at lists.advaita-vedanta.org
[mailto:advaita-l-bounces at lists.advaita-vedanta.org]On Behalf Of
Pranipata
Sent: 21 February 2009 01:40
To: A discussion group for Advaita Vedanta
Subject: Re: [Advaita-l] Dreams and Reality




Hari Om Shri Michaelji,  Pranaams!

Yes. Vedanta is simple and direct.

If one agrees dream is imagination, what need to put machines on some other
sleeping person to find more how one imagines!

Now narration of an incident in form of story.

Someone walking with his food-packet, got an increasing feeling that luggage
is very heavy and hard to carry as day progressed. So he sat down, ate the
food, continued the journey walking not feeling the weight of luggage
anymore.

Experiencing heaviness in carrying when the food was external to the body
and not so when consumed! Since both cannot be true, both has to be
imagination only.

cittakAlAH hi ye antaH tu dvayakAlAH ca ye bahiH.
kalpitAH eva te sarve visheShaH na anya hetukaH..(Mandukya Karika 2.14)
Things that exist internally as long as the thought lasts and things that
are externally related to two points of time, are all imaginations. Their
distinction is not caused by anything else.

In Shri Guru Smriti,
Br. Pranipata Chaitanya

There are recorded occasions of scientific discoveries made during dream :
which suggests that the old association of dreams with 'artistic dreaming'
or 'creative dreaming' may well be correct : the mind free of other states,
awareness of actuality or non-awareness.

What is most extrordinary is the totally different individual dreams that
re-occur !

It suggests that dreams confront us, in that mysterious state, with
untruth -- as if we construct cheap novels of our life, which are recognised
to be untrue on waking -- as indeed, as one gets older, one's life seems
more and more a dream which only slightly approximates to reality !

Michael


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