In the world of dreams, anything is possible – including the following equation: 1 + 1 = a pink elephant. Dreams defy the laws of mathematics, physics and logic. Yet, we all dream for about one third of of our lives. To understand dreams we must study it .
Though dreams don’t always make sense, it’s as if there is a cause to its complexity. It’s a whole other world that allows us to think and feel in ways you couldn’t otherwise entertain.
Paul McCaurtney was inspired by a dream to produce the song “Yesterday.” He thought the dream was reminiscent of a tune he heard before. Once no one claimed the tune, he turned it into his famous hit.
Once I had a dream of playing the song “Morning Has Broken” by Cat Stevens on the piano. It was a song I learned when I was 12 but now forgot. I haven’t touched the piano in over 10 years and cannot play anything other than some nursery rhyme. However, in the dream, I felt my fingers run over each familiar piano key and the complicated song simply flowed. I felt like I was 12 years old again.
It appears there exists a deeper realm to our minds – something highly receptive and intelligent.
Some dreamers experience dreams of an old friend, only to later receive a phone call from that same friend in real life. These are often called precognitive or psychic dreams. Such dreams can serve as warnings or reflect new information that were later confirmed as true. There are historical records of famous people who predicted their assassination through precognitive or psychic dreams.
Dreams appear to carry information in unusual ways. Below, are examples of theorists who believed dreams are worth exploring:
Sigmund Freud:
Freud , founder of psychoanalysis, is considered the father of all modern dream books. He believed that dreams were a reflection of our unconscious mind. He further believed that each dream hid a wish or repressed desire – most of which are sexual. According to scientific research, damage done to the forebrain associated with desire results in the inability to dream. This proves Freud’s theory : without desire , we cannot dream. This implies that dreams are highly responsive to our desires.
Carl Jung:
Jung, founder of Analytical Psychology, believed that dreams are like text in a different language and that to interpret dreams, we must learn its language. Unlike Freud, he believed dreams are not meant to conceal meaning but rather expresses meaning differently. He believed that dreams originate from the unconscious mind that seeks to regulate our conscious state. According to Jung, the unconscious mind is divided into two parts: the personal unconscious and a collective unconscious. The collective unconscious is theorized to contain an inherited experience of mankind. Furthermore, he believed dreams are purposeful , a product of the present aimed at the future, with a goal to help. His work highlights the contribution of dreams toward personal growth.
Medard Boss:
Boss, a psychoanalytic psychiatrist, viewed dreams in a very philosophical way. He believed that dreams are another way of being in the world. Boss further suggests that dreams have the ability to express emotions more accurately than reality. He explained that dreams express the concept of time and space closer to our lived experience. In a dream, we may experience a physical closeness to someone who has passed away. When in reality, they no longer exist in the world. This illustrates the ability of dreams to capture concepts of timeless and emotionally profound experiences that transcend time and physics in reality. Ultimately, he believed that a purely scientific study of dreams only handicaps the ability to access its personal meaning.
Native American Culture:
According to the rich Native American culture, a Vision Quest is a type of transcendent journey into the wilderness. It entails spending time appreciating the beauty of nature such as the mountains, flowers and trees. It is believed that the time spent meditating upon the small things in life clears the mind and lifts the spirits, allowing the mind to focus on the Vision Quest. This Vision Quest often appeared as a dream that provided great wisdom, life guidance and transcendence.
As we can see, diverse beliefs shape the different ways of studying and experiencing the dream world.
When we look at the world from different perspectives, it expands our view. In connection to dreams, different theories help us notice associations and meanings we may not have noticed before. By analyzing dreams and uncovering its multiple layers of meaning we also learn so many practical skills.
Some of the most common skills include:
Deep thinking:
Flying socks, purple skies and candy mountains are just a few of many ways dreams can manifest. Many dreamers are surprised when they don’t question these peculiarities in a dream. Yet, dreamers who reflected more upon their dreams noticed they developed a more trained eye for detail. As a result, many dreamers also begin to analyze associations between the dream and real life events . Many dreamers share the value in contemplating the way they live based on any patterns seen in dreams.
Creative study:
Like an art collage of the imagination, dreams can serve as a platform for intense brainstorming. Whether we are aware of it or not, creative solutions and ideas can manifest in the playground of a dream. Many famous artists, inventors and writers discovered brilliant ideas through the power of dreams.
Humility:
Dreams possess no fixed shape or form and are not always within our control. Though an extension of ourselves, dreams seem to carry important lessons. If our attitude towards a dream greatly influences the nature of the dream, we learn to replace control with consciousness. From this, we learn how to experience more purposeful dreams.
Lucidity:
Many dreamers who consistently journal their dreams, develop their ability to experience a deeper realm of dreaming. This realm is popularly known as lucid dreaming.
At one point, we’ve all had a lucid dream – simply put, knowing that you are in a dream. In that wakeful state, our conscious mind meets the deeper unconscious self.
In a lucid dream, we can consciously explore the dream in many ways. Some lucid dreamers change the landscape of the dream at will. Others like to talk with dream characters or fly out into space. More interestingly, lucid dreamers can confront nightmares or even converse with dreams to reveal solutions to a mental conflict.
However, during lucid dreaming states – dreams can still act in unexpected ways. Dream characters can respond differently or the dream can blank out. It’s as if dreams carry a form of intelligence and respond to lucid explorations with messages of their own.
Over time, lucid dreaming can heighten reflective awareness. With new awareness, we allow a chance to understand the Self in a consciously expanded way.
A recommended dream workbook that is light and easy to follow is called “The dream workbook” by Joe Friedman.
-By Nikita King