The Healing Power of Dreams

I want to reaffirm the power of the dream to heal mind, body and spirit. The mind with it's creative power to reframe our world view creates for us, as individuals, our reality and existance. To create vibrant health mind, body, and spirit, we benefit by accepting that one very important tool for healing is learning to work with our dreams. I first published this article a couple of years ago as an introduction to working with the dream.---Enjoy!

Dreamland is a vast uncharted place that has no boundaries. I believe people do not remember their dreams because they do not know what to do with the dream, or they believe it has no value.  I intend to share a few thoughts that will help open up this aspect of self so you may explore this excellent gift—the dream. I do not record or analyze all of my dreams only dreams that seem to have real power, or appeal. Yes, I have a couple of books in my library that discuss symbols but the mind often creates symbolism specifically individualized for the dreamer and current life experience. Always double-check your proposed interpretation with your inner knowing. Working with your dreams is a good confidence builder!!

I first started studying my dreams about twenty five years ago when I attended a workshop at the Adlerian Summer School Institute the presenter was Sadie “Tee” Driekurs. The important things I learned—

1.            Everything in the dream is an aspect of yourself,

2.            Dream symbols/metaphors/actions are very rarely literal, (therefore when I dreamed I stuck a spear through my brother’s heart I realized I really did not have murderous intentions)

3.            One’s dream may have individual/cultural/national/global/and spiritual messages all at the same time and can be interpreted from each perspective

4.            It is possible to dream a dream for someone else and/or to dream a dream with someone else

5.            The dream may continue in your subconscious while you are awake, if this is needed for your growth and development,

6.  Do not worry if you cannot write the whole thing down immediately—note your emotions and anything that seems to hang around in your thoughts--a word or two to help you recall the dream later

Also I was a member of the International Association for the Study of Dreams for many years.  Key ideas I learned here are---

1.     Pay attention to the emotion you felt during the dream—write emotions down as part of the dream

2.     How to approach and utilize lucid dreaming,

3.     The historical, cultural aspect of dreaming—dreaming is not new age 

4.  Many great inventions were first envisioned in dreams

My Dream:

I was on the side of a red desert mountain.  My father said wait for him and he drove off with three other people. I saw they were showing a movie in the park at the base of the mountain. As I walked to the movie I stopped to look at a display table of books, magazines and handmade jewelry. I found a tapestry chair to sit in to watch the movie. A woman and her son came by. The son sat with me in my chair for a while and then left; he was a nice kid. A man came by and flirted with me—I flirted back. The man said why do you trust me? I said I like the way you look (his energy was good.)

The ground began to rumble and heave. People on top of the Red Clay Mountain began to run down. I said we have to go. He said it was nothing. The rumble knocked him off his feet on to his back. Two others and I helped him up. His back was covered with leaves and I brushed the leaves off. I said we need to run to the car. He said I don’t think so. A giant crack appeared on the Red Clay Mountain and I could see it was chasing the people down the mountain. I began to run. The man began to run. Sinkholes started appearing and the man was swallowed up.

Everywhere I went I told the people to run; some ran and some did not. I ran into a building because every other way was blocked. It was like a maze but I kept running. I ran through an apartment. It was beautiful with much artwork. The husband and wife were arguing and seemed oblivious to my being there and the son played video games. I said you have to run the RED Mountain is crumbling. They looked at me blankly and said what about our things? I kept running through the house past the artwork. I saw the daughter, in a pink tutu, practicing ballet in the living room. As I ran out the front door I said you must run the RED Mountain is crumbling.

I was out on the street it was chaos with hundreds of people running. I saw the parking lot with my car; most of the cars were blue but one or two were red. I got my car. I shouted go, go the red mountain is cracking. The cars took off in a line. Some few cars turned right down a gravel road; most people went straight on the highway. The gravel road went through a dark neighborhood. The highway was lighted. Then I woke up.

This dream is symbolically rich. For another person to truly understand the dream’s implication for me, one would need to know the current context of my life. The emotions I awoke with were: overwhelmed, thoughtful, purposeful, fatalistic, what will be will be. The following are standard interpretations of the notable symbols.

• RED---anger, rage, trouble, misunderstanding, human lust/desire, creativity, endocrine center, base chakra, evil, or aggression
• CLAY—something from which new things spring, can be molded/shaped/formed
• DESERT—not fertile, bleak, abandoned, lack insight or spirit, abandoned wasteland, hopelessness
• MOUNTAIN—higher state of mental development, spiritual heights, understanding awareness, where physical and mental world can be viewed clearly and understood, a challenge/ obstacle to be overcome, an ambition one has chosen
• DESCENDING the mountain—close of an experience, obstacle successfully overcome, the end of something
• FATHER—authority, leadership, power, energetic, forceful, protective
• MAN—individuality of one’s self, masculine side of one’s nature (strength, courage, determination), relates to second chakra/endocrine center, creativity
• MOVIE—see from another perspective, opinions, thoughts, world-view of others
• MAGAZINE—general information, personal insight/intuition
• JEWELRY—spiritual truths/gifts, wisdom, mental health, beauty, that which is eternal
• ART—creative ability, untapped potential, self-expression, externalize emotion, 2^nd chakra
• CHAIR—attitudes, position, stature, thoughts, foundation, belief system, one’s rightful place
• TAPESTRY—visual representation of one’s life story, soul journey, higher self, creativity, subconscious, Karmic memory
• EARTHQUAKE—warning message, break up of internal forces or situation, shattering of problem/one’s beliefs/stance/values
• DEAD LEAVES—things once part of self that now must be discarded
• CRACK—potential opening, or potential problem in current direction, belief systems are crumbling
• SINK HOLE—dark situation/experience/passage, hidden or concealed trap, hole in one’s plans/ideas/thought process
• RUNNING—anxiety, apprehension, inferiority, uneasiness, inability to handle the current experience, inner conflict
• NEIGHBORHOOD—subconscious aspects of self one has to accept and live with
• BUILDING/APARTMENT—place of residence, one’s physical body personality/current situation/experience/temporary lodging or condition; MAZE—confusion, uncertainty, lose of direction, disorganized
• ARGUMENT—conflict between parts of self, internal struggle
• VIDEO GAMES—mental focus/involvement, mental games in which one is involved
• BALLET—corresponds to balance and preparedness
• PARKED VEHICLES—rest or period of inactivity
• CAR—the physical body/self, vehicle to use in life’s journey
• BLUE—truth, insight, spiritual value, wisdom, healing, inner voice, tranquility
• TURN RIGHT—future, that which is fixed, proper choice, good judgment, correct direction; DARK—devoid of life or spirit, the unknown, to be without knowledge/insight, disheartened where one meets one’s self
• TURN LEFT—past, receptivity, open-mindedness, unconscious parts of self, intelligent/logical/focused; LIGHTED—associated with great lessons/truth, higher knowledge, spiritual insight, hope in the midst of difficulties
• Dream Images and Symbols: A Dictionary (Creative Breakthroughs Books) by Kevin J. Todeschi (Nov 1, 2003)

INTERPRETATION:

Key aspects to understanding this dream and to apply it to my current situation are to,

1)    Notice the contradictory emotions on waking up

2)     Notice the conflict between the subconscious/inner/spiritual life vs. conscious/physical/worldly life

3)    Notice standard symbols right/future vs. left/past, light vs. dark, mountains vs. sink holes, argument vs. video games/ballet 

4)    Also it is important to realize symbols are simultaneously positive and negative. This indicates a need for me as a dreamer to have active discernment and not to make quick judgments of  “goodness or badness.”

The dream is a story meant to empower me. I learned many things from the dream but simply put: I am in a period of transition (retired from my job) where I am leaving behind the surface level self that was focused on the work and physical daily needs of every day survival. I am entering a period (work that reflects who I really am) that requires balance, focus, creativity, courage, and determination as I externalize unconscious abilities and my inner insights in a new direction. The dream warns me not to get caught up in inner conflict; my own ruminations can create traps, but to brush off inner conflicts just as I would brush dead leaves off my clothes. Actually there is more meaning to the dream but this is enough for now. My hope is that this dream example encourages you to embrace the power of the dream as it releases healing and motivational energy. The dream is truly one of the greatest gifts the Creator gave us.