The A to Z of dream interpretation : what dreams reveal about our lives, loves and deepest fears

579 Pages·2008·11.06 MB·English

by  Pamela Ball

This ebook licensed to michelle grieco. Unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this ebook is illegal.
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I would like to thank all those who have made this book possible. Firstly, Fiona
who has balanced the dual roles of daughter and editor with admirable aplomb
and who has realized that the frustration is not directed at her; secondly, Jacob
who epitomizes the generations to come and hopefully will find the book useful in
future years; thirdly, my publishers, who gave me the confidence to set out on this
labyrinthine road in the first place and, finally of course, you the readers, who
continue to be the source of much of the material in the book itself.
Arcturus Publishing Limited
26/27 Bickels Yard
151–153 Bermondsey Street
London SE1 3HA
Published in association with
foulsham
W. Foulsham & Co. Ltd,
The Publishing House, Bennetts Close, Cippenham,
Slough, Berkshire SL1 5AP, England
ISBN: 978-0-572-03332-3
This edition printed in 2008
Copyright © 2008 Arcturus Publishing Limited/Pamela Ball
All rights reserved
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as to the legality of any copying which is to be undertaken.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data: a catalogue
record for this book is available from the British Library
Printed in China
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CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 6
Modern Dream Interpretation and Analysis 7
Spiritual Dreaming 9
Inspired Dreaming 10
The Hypnagogic and Hypnopompic States 10
Sleep Disorders 12
Types of Dream 15
Keeping a Dream Journal 17
Recording Your Dream 18
Dream Management 19
Gaining Insight and Clarification 20
Symbology 21
Spiritual Imagery 23
Archetypes 29
A TO Z 39
KEY TO ENTRIES
T spiritual meaning
n psychological, emotional perspective
| everyday material aspects
N gender-specific meanings
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INTRODUCTION
‘The man who will not listen to the sublime whisper of his Overself during his
waking hours will respond more easily during his dreaming ones, when the veil
is thinner, partly because his egoistic will is more relaxed and partly because
he is actually nearer the source of consciousness.’
paul brunton
aul Brunton was one of the finest mystics of the 20th century, bridging
the gap between the spiritual and physical realms in his own inimitable
Pway. For him, dreams began within the spiritual and manifested in the
physical. We are more able to listen to, and understand, the inner self in sleep
in ways we are not able to do in waking life.
He went on to say, ‘It is dreams of this superior and spiritual character
which bear good fruit after the man awakes.’ He, then, was aware that
interpretation of dreams was an integral part of understanding the spiritual
dimensions and the spiritual self.
Dreams are perhaps one aspect of the human mind which are an integral
part of all aspects of knowledge, but which still hold their mystery no matter
which way we look at them. Regarded from a spiritual perspective they help
us to understand the Divine; from the psychological point of view they
enhance our understanding of ourselves and from a mundane viewpoint they
make sense of the world in which we live.
Following Brunton’s lead, we lay out each interpretation as follows:
First, there is the spiritual meaning indicated by the symbol T, then the
psychological/emotional perspective with the image n, followed by the
more everyday material aspects with the | emblem. Some entries also have
a fourth interpretation which gives gender-specific meanings N. There can
never be a ‘one-fits-all’ theory – we must all be honest enough to admit
that we do not know and then be prepared to take from each theory what
seems right for us.
We can use this book then as a dictionary, first listing those components
that we need to understand and then, if necessary, reconstructing the dream
so we understand the whole story. To enhance your understanding and your
dream vocabulary there is extensive cross-referencing throughout the A to Z
section: sometimes to similar images, sometimes to other entries which have
similar meanings. Often, the entries refer back to this introduction to the
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Introduction 7
Archetypes (a proven source of images) and to Symbology and Spiritual
Imagery. Gradually you will build up your own categories of meaning and
hopefully will find as you do so that the content of your dreams becomes
more meaningful and part of your everyday life.
MODERN DREAM INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS
The word ‘interpret’ is, we discover, of unknown origin but probably comes
from a Sanskrit word meaning ‘to spread among’. Therefore dream
interpretation would mean ‘to spread our dreams among others’. The
common factor that is shared by all dream interpreters is that the original
material from which dreams are fashioned is hidden.
The renowned and extremely influential psychoanalyst Sigmund
Freud’s work was based on the belief that dreams were disguised expressions
of what went on below the surface of the mind. Carl Jung, who was originally
a pupil of Freud’s, had a more spiritual perspective and said, ‘Dreams may
give expression to ineluctable truths, to philosophical pronouncements,
illusions, wild fantasies… anticipations, irrational experiences, even
telepathic visions and heaven knows what besides.’ Herbert Silberer, a
contemporary of the two, took a much more mystical approach and studied
the state between waking and sleeping. He formed the theory
of Intraversion, which necessitates the descent of the individual into
the soul/psyche from which a great deal of information and knowledge
can be drawn.
Calvin Hall in the mid-20th century developed a cognitive (relating to
intellectual activity) theory of dreams which states that dreams express
‘conceptions’ of self, family members, friends and social environment. With
Robert van de Castle he developed the quantitative analysis of dream
content, perhaps the first time that truly scientific methods had been applied
to dream analysis. He also saw dream content as metaphor – one thing
conceived as representing another: a symbol.
Then, in the late 1960s, Fritz Perls developed his own philosophy of
Gestalt which means ‘wholeness’; he believed that it was possible to reclaim
those parts of our personalities which had become lost or hidden. He called
dreams ‘the royal road to integration’. If each image in the dream is an
alienated part of ourselves, then it is wise to look at the necessity of giving
each part of the dream its own voice and the opportunity to express itself,
and therefore to become whole. Those wholenesses can then be integrated
to become a greater whole. This approach ties in with Jung’s theory of
Archetypes about which we shall learn more later.
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8 Introduction
Calvin Hall’s method of dream analysis gave rise to much research, and
arguments still rage today as to whose theories of dreaming are right. For the
layman, it would seem that the arguments can be divided into two camps,
broadly how we dream and why. Much still remains hidden because those
who believe that dreaming is purely neurological in origin cannot give a
reasonable answer as to how the images are put together to form a dream.
They appear to believe that the process is essentially chaotic and possibly
meaningless. Those who believe that dreaming is a function of the cognitive
brain – that which knows – have difficulty in explaining the randomness
of the images.
G William Domhoff of the University of California, who has used Hall’s
methods to good effect, has come to probably the most easily understood
conclusion that:
‘Dreaming is best understood as a developmental cognitive achievement
that depends upon the maturation and maintenance of a specific network
of forebrain structures. The output of this neural network for dreaming
is guided by a “continuity principle” linked to current personal concerns on
the one hand and a “repetition principle” rooted in past emotional
preoccupations on the other.’ [Domhoff, G. W. (2001). A new neuro-
cognitive theory of dreams. Dreaming, 11, 13–33.]
It has been discovered that, in the front part of the brain (forebrain), the
necessary nerve connections for what might be called coherent dreaming
are not really sufficiently mature until around the age of nine years old.
This suggests that the night terrors that very young children have are a
function of the immature brain.
The personal concerns of the dreamer – that which is happening to him
in the here and now – is linked by the dreaming mind with what has
happened in the past and had an effect on him emotionally. Setting aside for
the moment the argument that the brain itself must mature before it can
process information, one supposes that a child would not have enough
waking life experience to be able to make such links.
When the dreaming mind makes connections and brings together images
from similar experiences (Freud called it condensation), this is metaphor.
Metaphor in dreams is basically a noting and expressing of similarities.
Dreams then, according to Ernest Hartmann, one of the chief proponents of
this idea, are explanatory metaphor. Through the highlighting of the
similarity we gain understanding. Mostly, dreams will work with what is
occurring at the time in our lives, but they will also pick up past images, ideas
and concepts in an effort to have us understand and deal with what disturbs
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Introduction 9
us. This then allows us to uncover the hidden meaning more objectively.
Dream metaphor takes a somewhat abstract idea such as fear and
turns it into a recognizable picture (a monster). The best interpreter of
these pictures obviously is the dreamer himself, but it can be of help
to know the common meanings of such pictures. The language of dreams
is universal.
SPIRITUAL DREAMING
Dreams can be a useful tool, giving us a much wider perspective and fuller
appreciation of what is happening both in our world and the wider world
in general. The knowledge and information that we acquire in dreams opens
up a whole library of creativity which is ours to use if only we have the
courage. Unfortunately, it is all too easy to forget the content of a dream on
waking. We need to learn to record our dreams and an easy-to-follow
method is shown below.
Dreams also give us access to another dimension of being – spirituality
and the intrinsic use of power. Many Eastern cultures see sleep as a
preparation for death and therefore a learning experience. One definition of
spirituality is ‘the awareness of other dimensions of existence beyond that of
the purely physical, tangible realms’.
Dreams are an expression of the spiritual realm and also a bridge between
that and the tangible. Interestingly, many authors, artists, poets, scientists and
engineers are able to use their dreams creatively. Such people tend to be more
lateral in their thought processes and are more likely to remember their
dreams, which allows them to make something of a quantum leap in
understanding. Scientists and engineers do tend to be more logical and linear
in their thought processes and will not necessarily accept their dreams
without being able to prove the reality in waking life.
However, it has happened. An excellent example of this process is scientist
Friedrich Kekule’s dream of the structure of the benzene molecule. Trying to
solve the mystery of this structure, Kekule dreamt that the most important
aspect was that the molecules formed a complete ring which he saw as a
snake eating its own tail. Remembering that this dream occurred in the latter
part of the 19th century when less was known about chemistry, this dream
certainly constituted a breakthrough in knowledge.
This benzene ring provided the basis for the whole science of molecular
chemistry. This particular dream symbol echoes the ouroborus (the symbol of
the cycle of existence), which is often used in magical workings as a
protective device.
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