I continued on with the meditation and I reached the point where I had to stand and go to the front of the room to light some incense. The next thing I knew, however, I felt myself lying on my side asleep. I knew I was asleep and it slowly occurred to me that I was lying asleep in the front of the meditation hall. Gradually I also realized someone was slowly running his hand over my back and my butt, as if to quietly make me aware that I was asleep, but not to startle me. I knew Jeff was doing this, and I realized he was doing it in a way so as not to suddenly startle me from my sleep, but just to make me gradually aware I had fallen asleep.

This gave me an opportunity to think, even while I was asleep, about what was taking place. How could I have possibly ended up on my side asleep, when just a few moments ago I had been wide awake and lighting the incense? This was indeed remarkable and I didn't have a logical answer. Obviously something quite out of the ordinary was taking place. But what? I was unsure, but I did feel glad that Jeff was there and that he was taking such a gentle approach toward me.

I felt as if I were still unable to awaken, even though I was conscious that I was lying there sleeping. And it occurred to me that Jeff also realized something important was happening to me and that his realization was part of the reason why he wasn't trying to awaken me. But I felt I should try somehow to awaken.

I began making some very slight moaning sounds. They were a bit eerie, actually. The moans slowly increased in intensity, and I even began to move about a little. I appeared closer and closer to awakening, but I remained amazed that I could be in this kind of situation to begin with.

After my moaning finally caused me to awaken, I realized the whole episode had been a dream. I was sitting in a room with Jeff and another fellow. The fellow and Jeff began talking and I soon realized that although I had formerly thought that the two of them were friends, serious differences clearly existed between them. The fellow began complaining about how Jeff had said something about the zendo at the Dallas Zen Center not qualifying as a bona fide zendo. The fellow seemed to me to be rather peevish and immature. Although I had previously been doubtful of whether I would like Jeff, I was now convinced that I should pay more attention to him, and that perhaps I should even try to befriend him. I felt a deepened regard developing toward him and I felt as if I shouldn't heed what the other fellow had to say. Someone also mentioned something about the other fellow being involved with the rodeo.

Finally I decided to tell them about the dream I had had about falling asleep twice in the zendo. I told them how I had fallen asleep the first time and how Jeff had awakened me. I then told them about falling asleep the second time and how I had felt Jeff's hands on my body. I hesitated while mentioning Jeff's hand on my body, especially my butt, hoping not to convey the false idea there had been anything sexual in his actions.

It also seemed as if there had been something else important that had happened, as if some kind of communication had taken place between Jeff and me about some words, but I couldn't seem to remember what the communication had been. I did seem to remember Jeff's talking later with the other fellow about some chemical elements, including perhaps magnesium, but I couldn't remember the words I had been talking about. Finally I said, "It took a great deal of will to force myself to awake."

Dream Commentary of March 1, 2015

Communicating with other dream-journalists in dreams seems central to the concept of the Dream Journal as a spiritual organization. Communicating in dreams does not mean having mutual dreams where actual contact takes place, but simply dreaming about other dream-journalists. This type of interaction takes place best between two people who consistently publish their dreams and who mutually read each other's dreams.