Greetings,

This is the last day of my 5 day self retreat. I practice Mahasi noting style. My practice has looked liked this the last few days.

1) 5-15 minutes of concentration on breath, until I hit Jhana or some level of calmness and tingling pervading my body.
2) Shift into noting, usually starts off really quick, [5-10 minutes] (I believe this is the A&P)
3) Dullness hits, mind starts wandering. I might do some open eye noting or walking meditation or just get up for a bit [Times varies between, 5-40 minutes] (I believe this is the dark night?)
4) Then suddenly, energy arises out of nowhere and I enter equanimity. Clarity, speed and concentration picks up. I can start focusing at the centre of my attention again. 
5) High EQ? (I'mnot 100% sure this is high EQ but...) - At this stage I drop the noting, things become very fuzzy. My tinnitus becomes extremely audible, kind of overtones the other sensations and dominates awareness. The other sensations are still there as vibrations popping in and out of awareness, but are less discernible. Concentration feels very sharp. 

Anyway, story goes, I had about a 2 hour session before. It was dark night for about 30 minutes and then EQ for the rest, don't think I went into high EQ. Just before going to make lunch I decided to take a quick nap. I still had a lot of energy from exiting the EQ stage but there was a light drowsiness. During the nap I had a mild case of sleep paralysis, my mind was awake but body felt paralysed. It felt like I was choking, so I told myself breath....breath....breath...and then I can't tell if it was immediately after that, since I was semi-unconscious, then lying there, with awareness of my body in the darkness, I felt this jolt go from the top of my head to bottom and back up. Very visceral effect. I instantly woke up and thought could this be it? When I woke up, there was zero sleep inertia. I felt extremely light, as if something was lifted off me. I then decided to meditate for just a bit. Immediately went into EQ and then high EQ very shortly after. There was zero tension and I didn't feel disturbed by any thoughts (I mean this is supposed to be the effect of being in EQ, but it felt even lighter for some reason). The last few days I've been getting a bit of tension in my chest when breathing and this feeling of effort or trying. But after I woke up the tension and feeling of effort or trying has completely dissolved, like i really just don't give a shit anymore. 

This could very well be complete delusion. Opinions ?!?!

P.S. In addition, just did another sit, for now, my concentration has become laser sharp like it has never been before. I can will myself into the Jhanas, and dip straight into EQ/high EQ....

Hi Tommy,

Not exactly while sleeping but a few of my friends/students have awakened when momentarily waking up in the night. These awakenings have happened during an intensive dialoque aimed at awakening which usually lasts for a few days between myself and them. I recall Eckhart Tolle's awakening also happened somehow like this.

Baba

Happened to me too during a Goenka retreat on day 5 or 6. Woke up in the middle of the night, fully awake and hi-eq (I had been in hi-eq all along in lucid dreamless sleep during the first part of the night). I told myself: "I might as well meditate since I am fully aw-BLIP! What was that? Was that it?!"

Besides having my Stream Entry (or possibly Second Path) in the middle of the night shortly after waking up (see other post), I've had a repeat fruition in my dreams once. Very intense, pleasurable and with light shows (rainbows shooting out of my crown chakra). If you do a bit of search on this forum, you will see that there are discussions about whether meditative "achievements" attained during sleep count or not, but there is no definitive answer to this, as far as I can tell. I would suggest to keep on practicing as before, and see what time will bring

Well, if it was SE, you should be getting into Review territory (the jhana mastery could be a big indicator). Can you do repeat fruitions?

Still no signs of review fruitions yet after two days. My sits now start off in A&P and progressing to EQ and then high EQ very fast, within 10 minutes. Hard to detect any of the dark night stages. I kind of just sit in high EQ for a long time with fluctuations in energy and tranquility and eventuating into nothing. I notice thoughts of wanting of fruition, since it should be expected that if I've had the blip then I should be able to get these fruitions.

During one sit today, I was at a point where I was silently noting and I could just feel all the sensations arising, and even thoughts arising with no attachment to them, and then started kind of blanking out, coming back, blanking out, coming back, but then was disturbed by a thought of "is it going to happen, I remember something about these blank gaps before the mind jumps towards fruition. 

Despite the lack of repeat fruitions, there is still a profound change in the way I feel, like thoughts and sensations don't have that emotional sting to them anymore, I can kind of just almost instantenously drop them and then re-engage in the present. I still have a ton of unprecedented energy. I was thinking, if it was stream entry,  I might not able to have these review fruitions yet because I haven't experienced them in a normal sit, so I don't really understand how they come about. Otherwise if it wasn't stream entry, oh well, I guess I'll just continue sitting. 

Starting off at A&P is a classic sign of being in review. And not everybody gets repeat fruitions, especially after the early paths. 

So the rapid cycling starting off with A&P each time, combined with the baseline shift in increased well-being and the much easier access to jhanas would all point to SE. But you are in touch with he teacher, right? What does he/she say?

He said there are 3 telltale signs of stream entry, i.e. Starting off in A&P, being able to access the Jhanas at will and repeat fruitions / realizing you are on a new cycle. The first two which I seem to satisfy. I suppose in a few weeks time I will know, since if I attained stream entry then I should be back to mind and body in a few weeks time..

Cool! Well (preliminary) congrats then! It's a big deal!

And keep us posted on your progress!

Great! I would love to know more about other people who have a practice that naturally progresses during sleep too, so do keep us posted!