Where can I access information about time?

Sometimes when I am dreaming it feels real, and when I am awake it does not feel real.
Which one is it? I never die in my dreams. I have almost died, but before I do, I wake up.
I have died while awake...I only remember being surrounded by beings while I was dead. But then I woke up and lived. This has happened about 6 times. I have never tried to die, nor do I want to die. If I were to die 'permanently', would I wake up from a dream somewhere else?