“Tobe, you have only just begun to fathom the wonders of this land. There is another thing I need to tell you. It is one of the greatest mysteries of Inlăkesh. And after your dreams last night, I think you are ready.”

 

“There is something else?!” Tobe said with a lighthearted smile.

 

“Remember the details in your dreams?” continued Auriel. “Now look around and ask yourself if this is any different. Ask ‘What if Inlăkesh exists like a dream in a mind?’”

 

Tobe pondered it. “Oh, Auriel, it’s impossible. We have traveled long through Inlăkesh. I have touched it and breathed it. To me it is very real and solid.”

 

“What if it were but a dream of ‘solid.’ What if space and time, too, were a dream?” replied Auriel. “Mind is much more powerful than you can imagine.”

 

Suddenly Tobe's expression changed, “It is odd, but . . . I have had a strange sensation here in Inlăkesh. At times it feels like I am awake in a dream. But in no way did I ever imagine . . .”

 

Then a smile came to Tobe, “Yet, what if it were all in a mind—an amazing Mind! That would be utterly and completely . . . astonishing! But . . . no . . . surely that can’t be.”

 

Tobe began to feel nervous. It seemed as if his whole world, as he knew it, could at any moment unravel, replaced by something he was not sure was even possible.

 

“Call Inlăkesh ‘real,’ ” said Auriel, “and it will be real to you. Call it a ‘dream’ and you will see it AS IT IS. It is only your belief that makes it appear ‘real.’ That is the power of your belief.”

 

Then Tobe had another thought. “But it can’t be my mind that is creating all this,” he said. “Inlăkesh existed . . . you existed even before I came here.”

 

“Of course. There is also a collective mind thing going on,” Auriel responded, “where people are dreaming together. This gives rise to the whole shared dreamscape of Inlăkesh . . . and the world, even. I have been dreaming myself through time, just as you have. Our dreams are touching now, in time. But, like I said, what if time, too, was a dream?

 

“There is more to this dream idea, but it can wait. Don’t try to figure it out with your little mind. That will never do. It is the wrong tool and would be no fun at all!”

Tobe could hardly wait to hear more. So many pieces seemed missing to this dazzling and unbelievable puzzle of Inlăkesh.

 

Auriel rose and looked at Tobe. “Insights will come as you swim in the River. Let experience teach you. Keep things simple. Don’t force anything. Just gently tell yourself as often as you can as we move through Inlăkesh: ‘I see a world. It exists only in Mind—like a dream at night,’ and see what happens. Most importantly, have fun.”

 

Auriel started walking and Tobe followed. “But, Auriel, what about the River? I did swim in the River . . . surely that was no dream.”

 

“You are right,” said Auriel. “It was no dream. The River flows in the dream, and it flows beyond, in the Mind. It is everywhere. It is the very life of the Mind, and the very life out of which our dreams are woven. But these are just words, Tobe. You need to EXPERIENCE it. 

 

“Be ready to be lifted up at any moment into new vistas of Mind that will astonish you! You never know what will trigger a glimpse into the nature of Mind. One way to start is by stepping back into the River. Go ahead. Swim in the River. Be open and see what happens.”

 

  Tobe saw the River flowing everywhere, and he slid into It. His awareness sharpened. The body could no longer hold him. His being expanded into the River . . . and then into what felt like some kind of Mind. Like a vast Ocean of Mind!

 

  Deep in the River, he looked out at Inlăkesh and on all the life forms of the landscape—birds, deer, coyotes, ground squirrels, insects, clouds, and trees. In an instant, Tobe had the most unexpected and bizarre experience. The images of Inlăkesh did not rest upon an exterior world at all! Incredibly, they were images in this Mind—like holograms projected into a dreamscape—all hovering in this vast Mind!

 

  How is this possible?!

 

  "This Mind is holy and limitless!” Tobe could hear Auriel say, “It contains all minds and their individual dreams.”

 

  As Tobe moved deeper into the revelation of Mind, this Mind felt increasingly holy. He saw the deepening perfection of things around him. Everything resonated with purity, light, and love—interacting in total harmony within this field of Mind.

 

  It seemed to Tobe that he was looking at some well-made watch—a cosmic, watch, alive and on a huge scale, with all the gears and pieces precisely spinning and turning—ticking in time, creating the intricate, orderly design of the dream of Inlăkesh. And Tobe felt the Love of the River flowing through it all.... 

 

A bird came to rest on a nearby branch as Auriel and Tobe passed. Its happy, crystal-clear warble filled the air. Tobe stopped and looked. This bird was such a delightful wonder to look upon with its sparkling eyes, delicate feathers, and its tiny, jointed talons holding firm to the branch. Its life and its exquisite appearance, too, were pure perfection. He felt the sublime mystery of the bird’s existence, taking his breath away, as he began to sense the intelligence and will of Mind projecting the bird’s form into the mental landscape of Inlăkesh.

 

Tobe turned towards Auriel. “Everything is much more than it seems, and the miracle of what’s going on we don’t even suspect.”

 

Auriel, smiling, looked at Tobe and said, “Your life now will be even more astounding as you watch the Mind, which is also yours, dreaming this world.”

 

Tobe stood there looking in amazement at Inlăkesh. “Is there any more incredible vision to see than the dreaming of the world?”

 

A soft glow came to Auriel’s smile, “Oh, yes indeed, there is: the vision of what you really ARE!”