Where Do We Go When We Sleep? Reflections on Soul, Consciousness, and the Space Between Life and Death

 

As a child, I remember lying in bed and wondering where I go when I fell asleep. My body would rest, yet I felt elsewhere. I could hear sounds around me—voices, movement, the world continuing—but at the same time, I was somewhere different. Sometimes I met people I had never seen before. Faces unfamiliar, yet oddly close. I often wondered: Will I ever meet these people in real life?

Even today, as an adult, there are moments when I see faces that feel familiar, though I know I have never met them. That childhood curiosity never left me—it only deepened.

Now, as I learn about sleep, the soul, and the human mind, I begin to understand these experiences through both religion and science. And the more I learn, the more I realise how little we truly know, especially about the soul.

Sleep in the Qur’an: A State Between Life and Death

The Qur’an speaks about sleep in a way that is both profound and unsettling. It does not describe sleep as mere rest, but as something far deeper.

Allah says:

“It is Allah who takes the souls at the time of their death, and those that do not die during their sleep. He retains those for which He has decreed death and releases the others for a specified term. Surely in that are signs for people who reflect.”

(Surah Az-Zumar 39:42)

This verse stopped me in my tracks. Sleep is described as a temporary taking of the soul. Death is the full taking. Some souls are returned. Some are not. This means every night, when we sleep, we enter a state that resembles death, and every morning we wake up because our soul is returned by the will of Allah.

This aligns with another verse:

“And it is He who takes your souls by night and knows what you have committed by day…”

(Surah Al-An‘am 6:60)

Sleep is not passive. It is an active divine process.

Barzakh: The Space In-Between

In Islam, there is a realm known as Barzakh—a barrier or intermediate world between this life and the next.

“Behind them is Barzakh until the Day they are resurrected.”

(Surah Al-Mu’minun 23:100)

Scholars explain that Barzakh is the state where souls reside after death until resurrection. While sleep is not the same as death, many Islamic scholars describe sleep as a partial entry into this unseen realm. This may explain why dreams feel real, why time behaves differently, why we meet people we do not recognise, and why some experiences linger in the soul long after waking.

The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:

“Praise be to Allah who gave us life after causing us to die.”

Sahih al-Bukhari (Hadith 6312)

Every night, we return to Allah in a way we barely understand.

What Science Says About Sleep and Consciousness

Science, too, admits its limitations. Neuroscience explains sleep in terms of brain activity, particularly REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, where vivid dreams occur. During this state:

• The brain is highly active
• The body is paralysed
• Sensory input from the outside world is reduced
• Internal imagery becomes dominant

Researchers in consciousness studies acknowledge that dreams often create entirely new faces, environments, and narratives—sometimes more emotionally intense than those experienced in waking life.

Yet, even modern science cannot answer:

• Where does subjective experience come from?
• Why does the mind feel separate from the body during dreams?
• Why do some dreams feel more real than reality?

Psychology calls these altered states of consciousness. Islam calls it a sign for those who reflect. Interestingly, Carl Jung, a pioneer of depth psychology, believed dreams connect us to a collective unconscious, a realm beyond personal memory. While science frames this symbolically, Islam frames it spiritually. Two languages. One mystery.

The Soul: Knowledge Withheld

When it comes to the soul, Allah is clear about our limits.

“They ask you about the soul. Say: The soul is from the command of my Lord, and you have been given only a little knowledge.”

(Surah Al-Isra 17:85)

This verse humbles both believers and scientists. No matter how advanced we become, the soul remains beyond full human comprehension. We are allowed glimpses, not mastery. Perhaps that is why sleep feels sacred. That may be why waking up is a mercy we take for granted.

When I look back at my childhood self - lying awake, questioning where I go when I sleep, I realise those questions were never childish. They were fitrah. Natural. God-given.

Sleep reminds us daily:

• We are not in control
• Consciousness can leave the body
• Life is fragile
• Death is not foreign—it is familiar

Every night is a rehearsal. Every morning is a return. And maybe those unfamiliar faces I once saw were never meant to be recognised in this world, only to remind me that there is more beyond what the eyes can see. Between waking and sleeping, between life and death, between science and faith, there is a space of humility.

In that space, we remember:

“God is sufficient for me.”

(Surah Az-Zumar 39:38)

And that is enough.