Sleep

Osho, I don’t see dreams in sleep, yet it feels as if I haven’t slept for many days. At the slightest disturbance the body wakes up, as if I had been awake all along. But I don’t feel tired, and the hours of sleep seem to slip away. Please tell me what this state is?

Good, auspicious; do not be afraid. Dreams will slowly disappear. When the witness is awake, dreams cannot be. If there is dreaming, there cannot be witnessing. Good. The dream has fallen away; a sense of wakefulness remains through the night. Gradually it will deepen and grow denser; swiftness and intensity will come. The witness becomes keen—like the edge of a sword. But in the beginning there will be difficulty. We believe that eight hours of sleep are necessary—this is a notion—and then what is this that is happening? The whole night seems to pass as if awake. And if you remain “as if awake” for eight hours, the night feels very long, as if it will never end. If you sleep, you forget; you do not know when the night began or ended. You sleep and it is morning. But now it feels as if all night it remained morning;…

Yesterday, although sitting in an uncomfortable position, I slept deeply through most of your lecture. I don't find your discourses boring, so why did I sleep?

Nothing wrong. If you enjoy the sleep, perfectly good. Just remember one thing: don't start snoring because that disturbs other people's sleep. A man started to snore in his seat at the opera. 'Please stop your snoring' the usher pleaded 'you are disturbing the others.' 'Look, kiddo' the man said angrily. 'I paid for this seat and I'll do as I please.' 'Yes, sir' replied the usher. 'But you are keeping everybody awake.' Sleep is good -- nothing like it. Enjoy it to your heart's desire. And sometimes it happens.... There are two possibilities: listening to me, either the talk becomes boring, then you can fall asleep; or the talk can become like a lullaby, then too you can fall asleep. The talk can become like a song around you, a warm song around you, then you can fall asleep. Or it can become a jarring note, very boring, so…

Osho, why do I always fall asleep during the discourse?

That's what happens in many car accidents. Many car accidents happen somewhere in the night nearabout between two and four, and the reason is that the driver is trying hard to keep his eyes open; by and by, he becomes capable of keeping his eyes open, and still he falls asleep. He keeps his eyes open and falls asleep with open eyes. Now this is a scientific finding. And that makes the whole problem: because he thinks he is awake he goes on driving because his eyes are open, but the sleep has taken possession of him, he is no longer aware. When you are awake, there is not much wakefulness; just a small part of you is awake. So you are not a loser, don't be worried. Whenever sannyasins come and ask me, "What should we do?" I tell them: Don't fight, otherwise you will miss me and you…

Osho, during your discourse I have observed the faces of the sannyasins. It seems they slip into a deep sleep. And my own experience is the same: the kind of sweet, deep, and alluring sleep that comes during the discourse never comes at any other time. What is the reason?

If you belong to the first kind, it is better you stop coming. If you belong to the second, then struggle, because that sleep is the mind’s old habit—you will have to break it. If you belong to the third, consider yourself fortunate and do not fight this tandra; quietly let yourself be taken by it. For whatever I am saying will not miss you in tandra; it will surely reach you. It may be that later you do not remember, because memory is very superficial; it will go even deeper. If you listen in tandra, that listening is very deep. It will penetrate to the very core of your being. If your state is tandra, do not try to break it. Then close your eyes and gently sink into it. Because what I am saying to you is not just words; within these words I am also giving you…