Dreams take us not into ourselves, but out of ourselves. -Richard Jones
Dreams hold us in fascination. It's an experience that takes us to another realm of existence. We try to make sense of it upon waking, that is if we can remember the dream.It's not just you and I who marvel at the series of images and events.
Scientists, researchers and psychologists have their own questions: when do dreams occur? What is the purpose of dreaming? Parapsychologists believe that dreams serve as channels for psychic communication.
Dreams transport us into a world that defies logic, transcends time, space and physical barriers. Our dreams are our own stories, a series of stories that are real in the dream world. We mingle with our long departed loved ones ,alive and very much part of our lives; celebrating with us, struggling with us, talking to us, touching us. We meet long forgotten friends or acquaintances. We meet strangers.
We move in and out from one scene to another. We travel to places we can only fantasize about .We wake up shaking with fear from a nughtmare.In dreams, we meet faces, we confront danger, we enjoy a celebration, we experience success or failure, we have adventures. We wake up puzzled and at times confused.
NATURE OF DREAMS
Sleep is essential to dreaming. This is not about lucid or active dreaming, or induced altered states to trigger dreams.Nor is it about monitored dream states in a laboratory setting. This is about the ordinary dreaming state we all experience. Dreams that visit us in our sleep, our experience , our adventures that can go from the bizarre, to the sublime , to the ridiculous and to disconnected events.
Sleep is a time to step back from the real world, from the anxieties, from the confusion, from the passions, from the logical part of us, from reality. In sleep, we drift into a world that is spontaneous, into a realm that requires no logic, no analysis, no express cerebral activity. In our dreams, we do not have to exercise judgment nor be judged.
Does the soul travel during sleep? What kind of world awaits us when we go to sleep and enter the dreams state? Are dreams inspired by God, by some beings, by spirits from our past? Are we visited by evil or tramp spirits that are believed to roam the world? Was the dream an extension of that movie we watched?
How can our spirit or soul mingle within a world totally different from our conscious world? Strong emotions find their way into our dreams. So do our innermost fears and insecurities. What about shadows? Some events in our lives cast a long shadow. Our deepest secrets may reveal themselves in another context in our dreams.
Freud and Jung were famous for their exploration of dreams. They had different approach to dreaming. Freud stated that dreams do not reflect reality,it is as varied as thoughts in the waking state. He had a regressive approach to dreams.
Jung believed that the dream psyche passes a wealth of contents and living forms equal to or greater than the conscious mind. He took the progressive approach. Jung spent years exploring his own dreams, thus providing useful information on the correlation of symbols to dreams.
There is an increasing interest in dream interpretation and working with dreams. There is a connection between our dreams and our regular lives in the regular world. Could we stop and make some relevance of our dreams and our reality? Dreams provide access to our inner world. This makes it worthwhile to explore and try to understand our dreams, and perhaps find a connecting bridge to our reality, discover those hidden creative talents.
Dreams may have a message to help us confront our demons, our deepest pain , or remind us of forgotten joys. Dreams can also be precognitive, that is, it may warn the dreamer of the potential of unpleasant events. Dreams may at times reflect suppressed or unexpressed emotions and passions. It can highlight sexual tensions.
A closer look at dreams may be helpful to our spiritual development. Some of the experiences in dreams convey wisdom, happiness and beauty, as well as pain and sorrow Dream interpretation requires patience and perseverance. A dream journal is a helpful tool and for future reference.
ELEMENTS OF DREAM INTERPRETATION
In his book : Let Your Body Interpret your Dream, Eugene Gendlin has these pointers as a guide to dream interpretation:
Experience and experiment the dream. Focus. It is not about trying to intellectualize the dream, but to experience the dream and to feel it. Listen to the stirrings within, be open to change, be forward ?moving.
Associations: Feeling- what did you feel in the dream, what in your life feels like it? Yesterday- what did you do yesterday? What preoccupied you?
Drama, place: What was the main place in the dream? Have you ever been in a place like that? How did it feel?
Story : Summarize the story-plot of the dream. What in your life is like that? Summarize the events of the dream in two or three steps.
Character: Who was the most important character. Were there unknown persons.Who do these people remind you of?
Working with characters: What part of you is that in the dream. What feelings arise when you consider a particular character. What adjectives can describe that person, be that person,imagine yourself to be a particular character.How would you feel and act ? Can the dream continue? Vividly visualize the end of any important scene. Watch and wait for any changes in images and feelings.
Decoding techniques: Symbols - think of symbols; what was that thing, what is it used for? Did you dream of a house? What shapes and colors can you remember? Were there animals?
Body analogy : Was there any object in your dream that can be an analogy for the body?
Conterfactuals: What situation in the dream is specifically different from the actual situation? Why would the dream make these changes?
Developmental Dimensions: Childhood -what childhood memories are related to your dream. Personal growth- how are you trying to develop? Are you feeling stuck in a rut lately? Sexuality ?could the dream be about your current feelings or actions towards your sexuality
Spirituality- what creative or spiritual potentials might the dream reflect?
It is believed that Gendlin's use of the body association in dream work has some precedent in the Gestalt method. He took it a step further with the bodily sense and awareness.
As strange as our dreams are at times, dreams are real to us in the dream state. It is present and vivid , yet difficult to remember when we wake up. We are puzzled about having been in another world in our sleep. The intensity of the relationships and events which we actively take part in are forgotten.
Dream becomes a forgotten language.
Bonnie Moss writes about spirituality, tools available to all to walk the path. Visit her website , a metaphysical site that offers information on tarot, crystals, aura,angels, journalling and other topics.
She is the Executive Secretary of Tarot Canada International, as well as a regular contributor of articles to the newletter, Future Endeavours. She is a tarot consultant and also does dream interpretations.
Visit her website:
http://goldencupcafe.tripod.com
executive chauffeured services Bradford .. Madison to Airport carI have been thinking a lot about the spiritual growth... Read More
No one, not even God can make us choose the... Read More
Ephesians 4:4-6 indicates that Christians ought to practice one single... Read More
Do you realize you are creating your future by the... Read More
As humans, we are the species that operate with symbols.... Read More
Your mind-body team is made up of your mind and... Read More
For some of us, EVERY DAY IS HALLOWEEN!!! If you... Read More
Getting the most from a Tarot card reading relies on... Read More
There is no incident in the life of Moses which... Read More
Today we do not experience great manifestations of God as... Read More
I have a confession.I used to have doubts about God's... Read More
The Mind in an Advanced Thought System:The center of our... Read More
The great gate is open, but travelers seek everywhere??? -... Read More
The question isn't, "Is there life after death."Rather, the question... Read More
Throughout history, what is portrayed in all religions as being... Read More
It has long been surmised that emotional trauma can lead... Read More
I have been reading a lot lately about the concepts... Read More
African-American people are natural caretakers. We do a great job... Read More
I seemed to have lost my heart. Now this is... Read More
When we find spirituality, or it finds us, the experience... Read More
At first glance it does seem that law and grace... Read More
Last Saturday, the children were down at their grandparent's house... Read More
"Our mind is capable of passing beyond the dividing line... Read More
Whadda ya know?Seriously. With absolute certainty, what do you know?... Read More
How many of you out there have ever wondered if... Read More
O'Hare Chicago prom limo ..Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, "Go, assemble... Read More
Talking about your "soul" and the deeper things in life... Read More
When God first unveils a business or ministry vision that... Read More
We are all here on this plane, thinking to ourselves... Read More
What could be a scary thought for some? How bout'... Read More
Jesus said, "No one can see the Kingdom of Heaven... Read More
Most of life can be said to be bad, or... Read More
African-American people are natural caretakers. We do a great job... Read More
(Channelled)I have been trying to ignore this title "A Man... Read More
There are moments in the believer's life when the Spirit... Read More
One of the most difficult barriers... Read More
When I was 10 years old my father decided to... Read More
Getting the most from a Tarot card reading relies on... Read More
Spiritual stuff is a hard sell Roy and one of... Read More
What's a cosmic 2 x 4 you ask? It's actually... Read More
In the responsibility we have as Christians, we are displayed... Read More
You know that the Bible tells us a lot about... Read More
Why do bad things happen to good people? Surely this... Read More
Job was a spiritual man who loved and obeyed God... Read More
Rose Ann Schwab is an internationally and world renowned professional... Read More
I have sent out hundreds of press releases for my... Read More
We humans are a funny, funny breed. We spend our... Read More
"Cast all your anxiety on Him for He cares for... Read More
"What does it profit a man to have gained the... Read More
Greetings Divine Ones, I am going to ask you a... Read More
Spirituality |