Stream
During an 1 1/2 hour nap Friday morning (at Jen's office), there was an unbroked, continious stream of consciousness - through falling asleep, deep sleep phase, dreams and waking up. It witnessed it all, or "I" witnessed it all, and also was aware of what was happening throughout.
This is pretty typical when we are engaged in any form of practice where awareness becomes aware of itself as distinct from its content. It is the personality - the organism with its patterns of sensations, emotions, thoughts - that goes to sleep. When awareness is identified with its content - with this personality - that too goes asleep. When it awakens to itself as separate from its content, it can continue to stay in awareness even while the personality is sleeping.
I had this happening for several years after/during my opening experience in my teens/early 20s. At the time, it came with very strong energies and intensity - with a sense of tapping into infinite awareness (beyond dualities), learning and reorganization (of personality and more) during sleep. This time, it was very calm and ordinary.
Friday night and Saturday, I did a Big Mind workshop with Genpo Roshi in Portland.