Showing the Thinning of Ignorance and Reducing of Afflictions through Dreams

Ruchun: Recently, both my daily life and spiritual practice have encountered bottlenecks. Some problems in life remain unresolved, and my practice has shown no progress. Reflecting on where I might have gone wrong, I realized that no matter what issues arise in life or practice, they ultimately stem from that "self." What exactly is wrong with that self of mine? After analysis, I concluded that I crave affirmation and recognition too much. In life, seeking affirmation and recognition drives me to strive to become strong. Becoming strong brings more power, status, fame, wealth, resources, etc., leading to feelings of superiority, security, and a strong sense of connection with the world—experiences like being needed, respected, flattered, valued, admired, and praised. All these pleasant sensations serve to satisfy the deep-seated need for self-affirmation and recognition.

These feelings both nourish the ego and form crucial components of that "self." Yet, that very self is the root of samsara. Therefore, craving affirmation is craving the self, craving ignorance, craving samsara—thus deepening bondage and mistaking suffering for happiness. With such a mindset in practice, one moves against the Way, against selflessness and emptiness. How could one cultivate well? Painful feelings, pleasant feelings, and neutral feelings—people habitually choose pleasant feelings, yet fail to realize that the premise of this choice itself is flawed. Where there is feeling, there is self; where there is self, there is suffering. The compassionate Buddha taught: "The sea of suffering has no bounds; turn around, and the shore is near."

When I reflected on these insights and resolved to change, I had a dream. In the dream, I had diarrhea. In my dazed state, I felt my mind had cleared somewhat, my stomach had emptied a lot, and my whole body felt refreshed. Could changing a bit of perception, shifting a bit of mindset, transform some karma?

Commentary: Dreaming of having diarrhea signifies that some of the self has dissolved, and some afflictions have been expelled. The clarity of mind in the dream indicates a step forward in wisdom. The refreshing sensation throughout the body suggests that the burden of ignorance has lessened somewhat. When the mindset of manas (the mental faculty) shifts, past karmic obstacles are partially eliminated, and mental obscurations are reduced. Such a dream is excellent! Gradually eliminating the obscurations of ignorance brings progress in practice. The dawn of realizing the Way is not far ahead, growing closer step by step.

Dreams are manifestations of the thoughts of manas, born from the mind of manas, and revealed through the nature of manas. When the understanding and views of manas change, when thoughts transform, it uses dreams to express itself—because it cannot convey through language, words, or sounds, it uses dreams instead. Therefore, whenever any practitioner makes progress in their cultivation—whether eliminating karmic obstacles, entering the stage of the four preliminaries, subduing afflictions, reaching the stage of stream-enterer, realizing the Way in either Mahayana or Hinayana, passing through various challenges and bottlenecks, or ascending step by step—manas will express it through dreams. Thus, those who have practiced for a long time without any dreams showing progress likely have little change in the nature of their manas. Even if they feel they have attained a certain fruit of enlightenment but manas shows no sign, it is certainly a false attainment.