Lucid dreaming is so yesterday.

Now, sleep scientists are focusing on a rare phenomenon in which people remain aware while sleeping — but experience no dreams, thoughts or even a sense of self.

Cracking this “unusual” sleep stage, researchers say, could turn everything we thought we knew about consciousness upside down. 3

While Western science is just now catching up to so-called “objectless sleep experiences,” Eastern cultures have been describing them for centuries.

In Hindu philosophy, the phenomenon is known as “ sushupti ,” one of the four states of consciousness. It’s described as a deep, dreamless sleep where ego, personal identity, and the outside world fade away, leaving only a pure awareness of existence.

Often regarded as a state of pure bliss, it is free from grief,

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