Contemplating and Investigating in the Dream State Is a Shortcut to Spiritual Practice

Question: In the early hours before getting out of bed, one is in a hazy, half-asleep, half-awake state. The manas is deeply deliberating, while the mind consciousness functions very weakly. This does not count as dreaming—is it being in meditative concentration (samādhi)?

Answer: In the state of being neither fully awake nor fully asleep, the manas can engage in deep deliberation; He can investigate and deliberate throughout the entire night. When one is about to wake up in the morning, the mind consciousness arises and discovers that the manas has been deliberating. In this half-awake state, the mind consciousness is weak, so the manas is of course in meditative concentration, undisturbed by the six consciousnesses. When the manas deliberates and investigates in the middle of the night, without the interference of the six consciousnesses, it can also be said to be in meditative concentration. It is even possible that the moment one wakes up in the morning, the mind consciousness immediately knows the result of what the manas has been pondering and deliberating. Before falling asleep at night, set a question that needs to be thought through; if the manas pays close attention to it, then throughout the night the manas will keep thinking and deliberating until one wakes up. When the mind consciousness ceases, the manas continues to work all the same, yet without feeling tired. In this way, a great deal of practice time can be saved, and it is both direct and highly efficient—there is no need for the mind consciousness to repeatedly habituate the manas, thus avoiding a detour. The Yogācāra dharma is the most ultimate.