--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If we cannot remain present during sleep…" description: "\"If we cannot remain present during sleep, if we lose ourselves every night, what chance do we have to be aware when death comes? If we enter our dreams..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b1/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche-36136_after-death_if-we-cannot-remain-present-during-sleep_227333.png" --- # If we cannot remain present during sleep, if we lose… ![“If we cannot remain present during sleep, if we lose ourselves every night, what chance do we have to be aware when death comes? If we enter our dreams and interact with the mind's images as if they are real, we should not expect to be free in the state after death. Look to your experience in…” quote by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b1/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche-36136_after-death_if-we-cannot-remain-present-during-sleep_227333.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b1/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche-36136_after-death_if-we-cannot-remain-present-during-sleep_227333.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b1/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche-36136_after-death_if-we-cannot-remain-present-during-sleep_227333.png) > “If we cannot remain present during sleep, if we lose ourselves every night, what chance do we have to be aware when death comes? If we enter our dreams and interact with the mind's images as if they are real, we should not expect to be free in the state after death. Look to your experience in dreams to know how you will fare in death. Look to your experience of sleep to discover whether or not you are truly awake.” [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Awareness of consciousness in sleep reveals how we face death; dreams mirror our waking awareness. **In simple terms:** Dreams show our true state of awareness. Key Takeaway Observe sleep to gauge waking clarity. Themes mindfulness death dreams consciousness spirituality Mood reflective curious Type spiritual philosophical When to use this quote - meditation retreats - sleep studies - psychotherapy - spiritual counseling Key Concepts Buddhist practice psychology existential insight Questions to Reflect On - What does your dream life say about your waking mind? - Can sleep awareness truly predict death awareness? A Different Perspective Dreams may be unreliable indicators of ultimate awareness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [After death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/after-death/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Every night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-night/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Our dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-dreams/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) ## Related quotes > [Look to your experience in dreams to know how you will fare in death. Look to your experience of sleep to discover whether or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/look-to-your-experience-in-dreams-to-know-how-you-will-fare-in-death/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [It makes a difference what we choose to experience during sleep. Many of us think of sleep as a chance to get away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-reed/it-makes-a-difference-what-we-choose-to-experience-during-sleep-many/) [Henry Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-reed/) > [There are a lot of actors who are doing dream work where they focus on a role and try to bring it into their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-kirby/there-are-a-lot-of-actors-who-are-doing-dream-work-where-they-focus/) [Luke Kirby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-kirby/) > [“They enter the dreams, they create scenes in your dream to trick the systems. The systems think your dream was reality. They use actors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-karvouni/they-enter-the-dreams-they-create-scenes-in-your-dream-to-trick-the/) [Maria Karvouni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-karvouni/) > [Quidquid luce fuit tenebris agit: but also the other way around. What we experience in dreams, so long as we experience it frequently, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/quidquid-luce-fuit-tenebris-agit-but-also-the-other-way-around-what/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Great writers experience their dreams. They put them on paper, where others can read about them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-j-barrier/great-writers-experience-their-dreams-they-put-them-on-paper-where/) [Ellen J. Barrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-j-barrier/) > [Although the events we appear to perceive in dreams are illusory, our feelings in response to dream content are real. Indeed, most of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-laberge/although-the-events-we-appear-to-perceive-in-dreams-are-illusory-our/) [Stephen LaBerge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-laberge/) > [What we experience in dreams - assuming that we experience it often - belongs in the end just as much to the over-all economy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/what-we-experience-in-dreams-assuming-that-we-experience-it-often/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“The fact that the student enjoyed his happiness only in a dream should not diminish it, for most people experience their dreams more intensely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/the-fact-that-the-student-enjoyed-his-happiness-only-in-a-dream/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [The Mother Tantra says that if one is not aware in vision, it is unlikely that one will be aware in behavior. If one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/the-mother-tantra-says-that-if-one-is-not-aware-in-vision-it-is/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [We enter the bardo, the intermediate state after # death , just as we enter dream after falling asleep. If our experience of #…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/we-enter-the-bardo-the-intermediate-state-after-death-just-as-we/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [ Now they \[the Powers\] have started the aggression, and the extinction of our nation is imminent. If we just fold our arms and yield… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/empress-dowager-cixi/now-they-the-powers-have-started-the-aggression-and-the-extinction-of/) Empress Dowager Cixi > [For days after death hair and fingernails continue to grow, but phone calls taper off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-carson/for-days-after-death-hair-and-fingernails-continue-to-grow-but-phone/) [Johnny Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-carson/) > [After death there is nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/after-death-there-is-nothing/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [The world of imagination is the world of eternity. It is the divine bosom into which we shall all go after death of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-world-of-imagination-is-the-world-of-eternity-it-is-the-divine/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) ## More by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche > [“I don't think there is anything like the awareness of space to process emotion. That space is such an incredible processor. There is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/i-don-t-think-there-is-anything-like-the-awareness-of-space-to/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [Developing the capacity for clear light dreams is similar to developing the capacity of abiding in the non-dual presence of rigpa during the day.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/developing-the-capacity-for-clear-light-dreams-is-similar-to/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [No matter how long the room has been dark, an hour or a million years, the moment the lamp of awareness is lit the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/no-matter-how-long-the-room-has-been-dark-an-hour-or-a-million-years/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [Look to your experience in dreams to know how you will fare in death. Look to your experience of sleep to discover whether or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/look-to-your-experience-in-dreams-to-know-how-you-will-fare-in-death/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [The Mother Tantra says that if one is not aware in vision, it is unlikely that one will be aware in behavior. If one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/the-mother-tantra-says-that-if-one-is-not-aware-in-vision-it-is/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [The attempt to satisfy greed is like drinking salty water when thirsty. When lost in greed we look outward rather than inward for satisfaction,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/the-attempt-to-satisfy-greed-is-like-drinking-salty-water-when/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [Dream, rather than let yourself be dreamt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/dream-rather-than-let-yourself-be-dreamt/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [Ultimately we want to use dream to liberate ourselves from all relative conditions, not simply to improve them..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/ultimately-we-want-to-use-dream-to-liberate-ourselves-from-all/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [We enter the bardo, the intermediate state after # death , just as we enter dream after falling asleep. If our experience of #…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/we-enter-the-bardo-the-intermediate-state-after-death-just-as-we/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [All experience and phenomena are understood to be a dream, this should not be just an intellectual understanding, but a vivid and lucid experience...Genuine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/all-experience-and-phenomena-are-understood-to-be-a-dream-this-should/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [The natural purity of our mind is of no use to us if we are not aware of it, and if we do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/the-natural-purity-of-our-mind-is-of-no-use-to-us-if-we-are-not-aware/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) > [From the body of the unborn essence arises the sphere of light, and from that sphere of light arises wisdom. From the wisdom arises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/from-the-body-of-the-unborn-essence-arises-the-sphere-of-light-and/) [Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) [Explore all 13 Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-wangyal-rinpoche/) ## More After death quotes > [The world of imagination is the world of eternity. It is the divine bosom into which we shall all go after death of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/the-world-of-imagination-is-the-world-of-eternity-it-is-the-divine/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [After death there is nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/after-death-there-is-nothing/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [For days after death hair and fingernails continue to grow, but phone calls taper off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-carson/for-days-after-death-hair-and-fingernails-continue-to-grow-but-phone/) [Johnny Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-carson/) > [ Now they \[the Powers\] have started the aggression, and the extinction of our nation is imminent. If we just fold our arms and yield… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/empress-dowager-cixi/now-they-the-powers-have-started-the-aggression-and-the-extinction-of/) Empress Dowager Cixi > [You're a religious man, ... You believe in God and life after death. I also believe. When we come to the other world and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-wiesenthal/you-re-a-religious-man-you-believe-in-god-and-life-after-death-i-also/) [Simon Wiesenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-wiesenthal/) > [And after death something new begins, over which all the powers of the world of death can have no more control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/and-after-death-something-new-begins-over-which-all-the-powers-of-the/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [If the Soul sees, after death , what passes on this earth , and watches over the welfare of those it loves, then must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-pike/if-the-soul-sees-after-death-what-passes-on-this-earth-and-watches/) [Albert Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-pike/) > [When we see the many grave-stones which have fallen in, which have been defaced by the footsteps of the congregation, which lie buried under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/when-we-see-the-many-grave-stones-which-have-fallen-in-which-have/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [It is for all men that come into the world once to die; and after death the judgment! And since death is a debt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rumbold/it-is-for-all-men-that-come-into-the-world-once-to-die-and-after/) [Richard Rumbold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rumbold/) > [What we should be after death, we have to attain in life, i.e. holiness and bliss. Here on earth the Kingdom of God begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paracelsus/what-we-should-be-after-death-we-have-to-attain-in-life-i-e-holiness/) [Paracelsus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paracelsus/) > [(After death.) So few people who come across, possess awareness of any kind. All they bring along with them are worthless values. All they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-matheson/after-death-so-few-people-who-come-across-possess-awareness-of-any/) [Richard Matheson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-matheson/) > [I think I have fairly heard and fairly weighed the evidence on both sides, and I remain an utter disbeliever in almost all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-russel-wallace/i-think-i-have-fairly-heard-and-fairly-weighed-the-evidence-on-both/) [Alfred Russel Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-russel-wallace/) > [I want people to emphasize life before death as opposed to life after death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/i-want-people-to-emphasize-life-before-death-as-opposed-to-life-after/) [Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/) > [I thought of the priest who'd told me that many religions hold that it is easier to be closely connected to people we love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-thought-of-the-priest-who-d-told-me-that-many-religions-hold-that/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“And a soul would run by a living being, touch them softly on the shoulder or cheek, and continue on its way to heaven.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/and-a-soul-would-run-by-a-living-being-touch-them-softly-on-the/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) [Browse all 303 After death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/after-death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If we cannot remain present during sleep, if we lose ourselves every night, what chance do we have to be aware when death comes? 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