The Feeling on Awakening...

In our human dreams, we are in our bed at night at rest. Once we fall asleep, from seemingly out of nothing there appears a reality that, though we know it is only an illusion, sure feels real to all our senses and emotions.

Dramas involving the deepest expression of love or fear, with all their accompanying sidekicks, are lived and played out. People often get hurt, tortured, and even slaughtered at will. You, as a gentle, evolved soul in your waking life, do things in dreams that are unspeakable.

When you wake up from a nightmare, was anybody really hurt, really killed, really raped or abused? No, it was all an illusion!

When you were stuck in a nightmare where vicious dogs were at your throat, your feet were stuck in mud, and your voice couldn't call for help, weren't you relieved and excited when you suddenly awoke in a cold sweat and found that this was just a dream and you are not limited like that? It felt good to hug your pillow then, for the intensity of the nightmare added to the freedom and safety you felt in your secure little bed.

~ Satyam Nadeen, in:From Onions to Pearls,