Dream Interpretation For many people, native and otherwise, dreaming holds the keys to power and health. Dreams often tell us far more about an illness than physical symptoms, and they provide us with deep insights. As a result, traditional shamans tend to be interested in the dreams of those they are called to work with, not only current dreams but dreams going back months or even years. For healers, dreams not only give clues to cause and cure, but they also serve as warnings. Premonitions of injury, illness, and death come through dreams. During dreaming, the rational, analytical mind is shut down. This allows us to experience direct connection with the spirit world. Anything is possible during dreaming. Dreams can be so symbolic that we are left wondering what they mean. The need to interpret dreams has fostered a market of books, websites, and classes, Many of these are quite good, but some are far too rigid to be of value. the truth is that while much of the symbolism we receive during dreams and journeys may be interpreted according to common or cultural beliefs and myths, often it is ones personal symbolism that comes through. Therefore, it is often best to develop your own ways of knowing. There are three very useful methods that will help you do just that. An association web is a wonderfully simple tool to get quick insights into various aspects of a dream. To use this, simply write down one word to use as your root word. This may be the one image, color, or event that stands out most from your dream. Then free associate and draw lines out from the root word. These secondary words may also give rise to lines of their own, creating a web of words that you associate with this image. Webs often give us insight into areas of the dream that hold the most emotional charge or need further exploration. To delve deeper into the dream and its meanings, record everything that happened in as much detail as possible. Be very specific about how you felt, what you were wearing, what colors you saw, and any associated smells, sounds, and colors. Include beings or objects that you experienced, the time of day or night, the location, and any activity that occurred. Notice that I use the term experienced rather than saw or heard. Sometimes other senses are awakened during dreaming, allowing us to experience or know of a presence without seeing or hearing it. Use the association web or this deeper record to go into meditation and find greater insight into the meanings of the dream. Pay attention to aspects that evoke various emotions or memories for you. Interpret each scene, then a series of scenes, and eventually the entire dream as a whole. Gradually interpreting from the pieces up to the whole dream has proven very effective. Practicing this method with everyday dreams only increases your ability to interpret your own symbolism. Finally, developing a dialogue with your dream can be a powerful tool for interpretation. Just as you broke the dream down above for use in an association web or trance, you break the dream down in this method as well. However, the dialogue you create is between yourself and your dream images. Be an object you saw in your dream. What does the object have to say? How does it feel? What is its relationship to the other aspects of that scene in your dream? Placing yourself in the position of dream elements offers surprising insights into their meanings. Many people find that their personal symbols repeat over time, and hold very similar meanings for them. Recording your symbols and their meanings is an ideal way to create your own personal dream reference. In your journal, you will record the most important, most personally valuable book of symbols and meanings--all specific to you. It just doesnt get any better than that. Dreams occur whether or not we consciously ask for them. It is clear that all dreams, including nightmares, can be valuable avenues to self-knowledge and healing. By decoding personal symbolism, everyone can increase their abilities to interpret the meanings of even the strangest dreams.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 21:54:10 +0000
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