Posts Tagged ‘dream’
Anxiety
One of the most frequent dream themes is that of anxiety in some form. This may not be because most dreams are about things we fear, but simply because we remember those more than bland dreams. In our dreams, all that can possibly disturb us are our memories, disturbing images and our own emotions. Our dream may be about a snake, or car accident – frightening things that in the dream appear to be exterior to us.
Freud (1) in the early years of the last century pioneered explorations into man’s unconscious life and drew the attention of an organically minded profession to the role of inner unconscious conflicts in determining the sources of neurotic anxiety.
On the physiological side, Cannon (2) brought the holistic view of the organism into the situation and recognised that “anxiety may be produced by a variety of events, which have one common element. There is always a discrepancy between the individual’s capacities and the demands made on him which make self-realization impossible.” Cannon did outstanding work in the field of homeostasis and more recently other writers have enlarged our concepts although clearly there is marked discrepancy between their basic philosophies except for the recognition of the supreme importance of emotional factors in human adjustment.
But whenever we dream its images are not like real life, because a dream is nothing like outer life where things could hurt you, but is an image like on a cinema screen, so that even if a gun is pointed at you and fired it can do no damage – except if you run in fear; so, all the things that scare you are simply your own fears projected onto the screen of your sleeping mind. In the early days of moving pictures, a film was shown of a train coming fast toward them; the viewers all fled in terror, fearing the train would crush them. That is exactly the same response if you are terrified of any thing you dream of. See Masters of Nightmares
Even so, it is our emotions about the image of the snake or situation that disturbs us, and these can be changed. The image is only a mask on the surface of our emotions to enable recognition and enhancement of the raw feelings. If we can recognise what an enormous power our imagination has on our emotions and body, this can start the process of lessening anxiety. Many anxieties can be met by imagining changing the dream, confronting the fear, challenging what oppresses us.
Some of the clearest examples of what stress or the causes of anxiety are, however, can be seen in looking at the body in stress situations. For instance if we fall into or swim in icy cold water, this places the body in stress. What this means in plain language is that because the body needs to maintain it’s temperature at about 98.4 F, being exposed to cold for too long could be fatal. The condition between easy maintenance of body temperature and death through exposure to low temperature is stress.
Therefore, some causes of physical stress could be exposure to extreme heat; taking poison into the system; lack of oxygen; high levels of carbon monoxide (car exhaust fumes) etc, in the air we breath; lack of food; lack of vital nutrients such as iron, protein, etc; insufficient sleep; and so on can lead to enormous anxiety.
When we fall into cold water our body attempts to deal with the stress through its self-regulating or homeostatic processes. The glandular system will probably secrete adrenalin into the blood stream, causing the heart to speed up. But many other activities try to meet the emergency, even to such small things as the liver releasing more vitamin A to deal with the shock to the immune system. See Fear – Self-regulation
Example: It was only after my return to live in a block of flats in London that I realized how infrequently one hears a baby crying in India, how frequently in Britain. I have already suggested that the early weaning of our babies may be responsible for the slight bias towards pessimism which colours our outlook. Among the Hindus whom I studied, the opposite bias prevailed; they seemed to live in constant expectation of a stroke of good fortune. Each new acquaintance was scanned hopefully as if he might be the agent of their material and spiritual salvation; and in spite of many disappointments, these hopes would rise again.
Pessimism is closely allied to anxiety and clinically these two character traits merge into one another. It is not suggested that basic anxiety and its multiple psychosomatic manifestations are the direct sequence of our breast feeding habits but that cultural patterns in infant care contribute towards the tension and anxiety which is frequently accentuated by their experiences and by parental attitudes.”
Melanie Klein (8) has also clarified our outlook by stressing the importance of identification with the parents which is carried into adult life. At every stage the ability to identify makes possible the happiness of being able to admire the character or achievements of others. The ability to admire another person’s achievements is one of the factors making successful team work possible. Klein’s work with children has shown that even from babyhood onwards the mother, and soon other people in the child’s surroundings, are taken into the self, and this is the basis of a variety of identifications, favourable and unfavourable.
An Aspect of Anxiety
Any attempt to stress the nature of anxiety must incorporate the contention that anxiety is a natural phenomenon which the individual experiences when values essential to his existence, his sense of being and his identity are threatened. It is to be distinguished from fear in which the threat is peripheral, the intactness of the sense of being is not being threatened, the danger is objective and the individual can evaluate it and can act either in terms of flight or fight in coping with it.
Useful questions:
Can I recognise that the frightening dream is simply an expression of my emotions and has no power to harm?
What emotions am I frightened of, and do I want to continue to run from them?
What I run from controls me, can I therefore imagine turning around and facing the scary images?
See Secrets of Power Dreaming – Avoid Being Victims – Facing Fear – The Slow Breath
Apartment Flat
Suggests your basic needs such as shelter, warmth, nourishment – but usually in the sense of what you have created as your basic way of life; the values, standards, goals you have accepted as normal, or are ‘at home’ with. Also your private and personal place of comfort and ease – unless there is stress associated with it.
This will have a slightly different significance if this is a dream flat, and is one you have lived in in the dream. Therefore the questions need to be asked as to whether you lived/live alone in the dream apartment or the real apartment? Did you share the apartment with others? What was living alone or sharing like? These form the associated feelings connected with the dream apartment. See: Associations Working With; house.
Living alone: This suggests you have achieve a level of personal independence. It is a first level, but shows you have mastered the ability to earn your own way, to function as an individual in society.
Living together with another: Shows you moving toward independence but need the support of others to manage it. It might also mean you are learning the lessons of sharing and adult behaviour.
Block of Flats: Communal living but with personal space. An atmosphere created by a group, as in second example. Meeting with and dealing with or failing to deal with your relationship with others.
Example: I am in a block of flats. Lee from college has run off owing me money. Old flats I am on 4th floor; there are a few kids and dogs playing on. The roof is the same level. I realise that I can live in any of the block as they are all empty. I tell myself that I will not take any more shit from no one as I return to 3rd floor flat. As I enter I hear movement from behind door. I shit myself. I wake up and think of the c*** who robbed my cottage. I felt I had no power.
Example: I was walking near big, old, blocks of flats. I noticed one was called Matins, and thought they were for Roman Catholics. They were very worn, almost slums. I then noticed that it was all black people in these blocks. Really jet black. One called out from a balcony asking what I wanted. There was a slightly hostile feeling as they all looked at me to see what I would do or say. I was then partly my father, and said I had come for a blow, (i.e. on the saxophone or clarinet). Everybody was now friendly and crowded around. They asked me if I had my brushes with me – that is, drum brushes. I said no, and then started playing the clarinet. It was completely spontaneous, moved by the spirit, and was wonderful music.
Example: I went up to a place – either a room or cliff top – where two old women lived. They were supposed to be insane, and I was a little apprehensive, but felt I could cope if things went wrong. In the place were too large packing case things like rabbit hutches – the women were in these. I just stood about, and felt I was company for the women. I noticed a hole in the sacking that covered one box, and saw an eye looking at me through the hole. Then both the women were out, and were completely naked. One of them came up to me and looked at me. She was short, old, with a funny little face, but brown live skin, not repulsive. She said something to me, which may have been a request to be attached. I said, “What, you want to be attached here?” And put my hand on her vagina. Then she came close to me and I felt like having intercourse with her, but refrained. It seemed as if her vagina was a black void. I then went away. Later, I came back. Everything had changed. It was now distinctly a block of flats they lived in, on the top floor. I climbed up, very worried that they had gone, or been misunderstood, or something. When I saw them I realised how much had altered. They were dressed, sensible, more intelligent and generally sociable than before. I was so relieved to see this that I ran forward into the old woman’s arms, and we wept uncontrollably to be reunited in this way.
Here the dreamer is probably dealing with his feelings connected with his mother – the old woman.
Useful questions and hints:
What is the atmosphere of the apartment or what am I doing in connection with it?
Am I involved with other people, and if so in what way?
Is this apartment one I have lived in – if so what were the major experiences or life I experienced there?
Try Being the Person or Thing or Techniques for Exploring your Dreams
Ape
Impulsive unreasoned urges such as self centred grabbing of food or sexual expression without concern for the other person; mischievousness; mimicry; instinctive or intuitive wisdom about relationships, social interactions and life; folly or foolishness or feeling an idiot.
Can represent a world of experience human beings have lost and feel sorrow at its absence. Many humans have also lost the wonderful directness and ability to express their wide range of responses to life and people. In developing self consciousness, with its labyrinth of ideas and decisions, humans lost a sense of oneness with life around them. Animals have enormous remembered wisdom; remembered through instincts and complex social codes. Without it humans can feel alone in the world, a meaningless existence in the midst of uncaring circumstance. They are confronted by choices which, because they have lost an awareness of their instinctive wisdom, they often feel inadequately equipped to deal with. This wisdom is still accessible to humans who know how to listen to the unconscious, and thus discover the enormous wealth of information they have about such things as social behaviour and body language. The ape can depict this wisdom, especially if it is white haired. Or it might show the personal folly of trying to let instincts dominate us now we have self awareness. Idioms: He is just aping.
Animals have enormous remembered wisdom; remembered through instincts and complex social codes. Without it humans can feel alone in the world, a meaningless existence in the midst of uncaring circumstance. They are confronted by choices which, because they have lost an awareness of their instinctive wisdom, they often feel inadequately equipped to deal with. This wisdom is still accessible to humans who know how to listen to the unconscious, and thus discover the enormous wealth of information they have about such things as social behaviour and body language. The ape can depict this wisdom, especially if it is white haired. Or it might show the personal folly of trying to let instincts dominate us now we have self awareness. See mammal brain; animals.
Idioms: He is just aping.
The following is taken from a man’s dream journal, in which he describes how he feels when he identifies with the image of an ape.
EXAMPLE: I feel like a powerful ape at the moment. I am not holding myself back in regard to my fellow creatures. I am ready to fight, play, love, laugh. All the different bits of me are available. The question I am asking myself is how do you get people to feel it – that basic animal experience of oneself. The wonderful experience of existing, of being alive with all the powers of a living creature – physical strength, emotions of anger, tenderness, passion and sexual excitement, curiosity, awe and wonder in meeting life and the stars.
Useful questions are:
What is the non verbal, spontaneous and responsive part of me doing in this dream and in my life?
Am I on good terms with this natural part of me?
What does my dream ape want, or what is it expressing?
What can I bring to my daily life from it?
See If you use Talking As it may help you discover the natural part of you. Or – Techniques for Exploring your Dreams
Aphrodisiac
Stimulating someone or being stimulated sexually. If taking an aphrodisiac, possibly showing that you have been sexually stimulated by an event or meeting with someone. This may be something like going to a party and seeing someone who arouses you, or watching a film or reading a book – or possibly that ones imagination is doing the stimulating. It could also suggest you are feeling you need stimulus or that your natural sexual drives are lacking or low.
Useful questions are:
Is my dream about feeling turned on or needing external stimulus?
What is it in the dream that is the aphrodisiac, and what does that suggest?
Am I meeting something new sexually here?
Apocalypse
The end of the world, and the fears that go with it, depict the powerful and threatening inner and outer changes that accompany major transitions. The transition from childhood to adolescence for instance is the end of the world that existed for the whole lifetime of the individual up until that point. Such points of transition occur several times in the life of anyone who dares to grow and adapt. Menopause for women, the leaving home of children, the loss of a job, retirement, can all be represented by the end of the world – or a world.
Social changes also bring enormous stress and the ending of a way of life to many individuals. Some changes, such as the end of social welfare would be the end of the world for that individual.
Useful questions:
What is it that is radically changing in myself or my environment?
How am I meeting the changes going on in my life and circumstances?
What is the dream showing me about these changes?
See: end of world.
Apologising-Apology
Remember that apologising is different to saying sorry.
Nearly always when people dream about someone they know they automatically believe the dream is about that person. But when we think of our friend or partner our thoughts are not them – just our thoughts and feelings about them.
Your dreams are not a good indication about what other people think and are usually a reflection of your own feelings and desires. We desire to have our difficult feelings justified or acknowledged, so maybe that is what your dream depicted.
Dreaming of apologising: This suggests a feeling of inadequacy in some department of life; feelings of having acted against, or thinking of acting against your own strongest drives; a sense of not having lived your best; a sense that you are not living up to other people’s expectations, or that you are not liked by, or not as good as, other people; realisation of a mistake or lack.
Being apologised to: A recognition that some aspect of a relationship or experience has been, or is, unjust or unwarranted according to yourself. Your dreams are not a good indications about what other people think and are usually a reflection of your own feelings and desires.
Useful questions are:
What am I apologising for and does this apply in any way to waking events?
Is this an apology I am giving or receiving, or is it an expression of guilt?
If being apologised to are you accepting or rejecting the apology?
Apparitions
Apparitions are often images that have been repressed emotions and are now pressing for attention. They are often accompanied by fear or scary feelings. The fear is way to hold off the actual feelings that we do not wish to feel.
See: ghost.
Appendix
Something within yourself that may become a problem; an internal problem; possibly referring to the appendix itself. But it is often a psychological or a physical or energy problem as the following example shows. The man was using LifeStream.
Example: The movement involved not only the hips swaying left and right, but also the shoulders, or at least, whole rib cage, swinging left and right, in opposition to the hips. The result of this was an extraordinary amount of pain internally. The areas of pain were appendix area, liver area, left and right side of chest.
So intense was the pain I could only do the movement slowly and carefully at first. I was surprised at the degree of pain, also at the pain in the right of the chest, and area I have never felt discomfort. The nearest I can arrive at a description is to liking it to muscular cramp. As one massages such cramp it gradually melts. Such was the internal feelings, as if the intense pain were being massaged away, broken down, dispersed, as a lump melted.
As the pain was dispersed, the movement became more flowing and active. Last week I had to rest frequently during this movement, but this week it kept on for 30 or 40 minutes causing much heat and perspiration. Since then the pain and appendix difficulty has gone and never appeared again.
If you have had appendicitis: Feelings you associate with that time.
Having appendix out: Inner pain or problem needing attention or being attended to.
Useful questions are:
What am I vaguely aware of that might be a grumbling problem needing attention?
Do I have actual discomfort in the area of my appendix – lower right abdomen – if so maybe I should have a check?
What do I need to remove from my attitudes or from my past experience?
See Life’s Little Secrets and Easy Dream Interpretation
Applause
Desire for acclaim or giving oneself acclaim; something that you feel is worthwhile or praiseworthy – define what it is from the dream events; approval or need for approval. Such a need may be covering a deep personal uncertainty.
Useful questions are:
Am I giving or receiving applause – whatever it is can I define what it is for?
What is it my dream is suggesting is praiseworthy and how does that apply to me?
Do I feel the applause is deserved and why or why not?
Apple
Because of the way Genesis was presented it often represents temptation and the Garden of Eden. It can also link with the fruits of ones action, or the consequences of action, the fruit of ones labour; also pleasure, food or sustenance. See: food.
Here is a re-translation of the piece about the apple and the Garden of Eden.
It entered their consciousness asking, “Did Elohim really mean that I should not totally experience material existence? Surely, if I entered the sphere of opposites I would gain knowledge and experience from it?
And the divine wisdom in men warned them of the consequence of this, saying, you must not centre your consciousness in matter, for by that you will die to your cosmic awareness and have only consciousness through physical senses.
But the forces of individuation, flowing into matter, seemed to say that if they allowed their being to enter into and experience physical life, how could they lose their eternal consciousness? Instead they would gain knowledge of the opposites, of the paradox that Elohim knows.
Then the desires for this fired their will, for many spirits wished to know life in physical realms; to experience fully the knowledge of time and space, of the incompleteness of being just male or female, of looking out through the senses of a physical body, and knowing the feel of winds and water, separation and aloneness. Thus came about the fall of the angels, and many spirits fell into life within a physical body.
Here are two example showing how apples can be used in dreams:
Example: I was on a plane or a journey. On my right sat an American, very flabby, with a paunch. I was eating an Apple, (I had been on a fruit fast during the day), and my elbow sometimes touched his paunch, it felt lifeless, lacking vitality. I told him he ought to eat only apples for a while, and all the dead flesh would fall off him.
Then a young Chinese man came to me and pointed out a line marked on my apple, on the green, less developed side. He said every apple had it if one looked, and under the line was a hair, “hair of discontent.” He said this was poisonous, and best not eaten. I slid my fingernail under the line, and pulled out a long hair. I thought this was wonderful, and that I had been given real wisdom of the East.
Example: The words then came, “Eat not.” I have a strong feeling this was the forbidden apple, and in some old way, this was why I had not been able to eat apples lightly, because for the past few months, if I ate apples I suffered strong acid indigestion. Something seems wrong with my digestive system anyway, as I have had acid indigestion, pains, and now piles. I felt, though, that the apples could now beaten, and have in fact being able to eat them without ill effects since this session.
Idioms: American as apple pie; an apple a day keeps the doctor away; apple of his eye; bad apple; Big Apple; the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree; upset the apple cart.
Useful Questions and Hints:
In the dream was it a fruit you enjoyed, a temptation or something else?
What were you doing with the apple, or how did you use it?
What did you feel in the dream about the apple?
Try using Talking As, as a way of understanding the apple in your dream.
Appointment
Reminder of something we unconsciously feel we are about to meet, or something we need to meet. This can be about the importance of a relationship, or of taking care of a person or situation. An appointment can suggest the need to ‘get together’ with someone or that aspect of yourself, or that there are important things to deal with. See: romantic date for romantic appointment.
Broken missed or cancelled appointment
It depends upon what led to cancelling or missing the appointment, ask yourself was it something that you really wanted or was it something that you wanted to avoid.
Appointment book
Probably an agreement or agreements that you yourself wanted.
Doctors or healers appointment
This is usually about something that is important and so take notice of it.
Appointment with death
Usually it refers to you meeting the feeling you have about death. If you continually avoid the appointment it points to you fear of death – best to meet it. See near death experiences.
Useful Questions and Hints:
Is this dream about trying to live up to the imperatives of work, other people’s needs or deadlines I have set myself?
Is this about remembering something such as the importance of something in my life?
Have you agreed to do something and forgotten?
Try Talking As or Processing Dreams to see if you can get a clearer idea of the message of the dream.
Aquarium
Your inner world of feelings, thoughts and intuitions. It probably represents the ability to see or understand some of the usually unconscious processes in your body and yourself. It can also relate to the unconscious processes going on under the surface. Being empty or full suggests whether you are allowing your inner feelings to become know or remain empty. See: fish and sea creatures.
Example: During the weekend I had two dreams, although I was lucid at the time. I was in a huge indoor aquarium. The water was very clear, but had a slight yellowish or straw colour tinge to it. I was swimming under the water looking at the many creatures. I had a sense of being within a very ancient environment. The creatures were all primordial, each functioning in its own distinct way, some of which would be dangerous to me if I related to them wrongly – i.e. if I let them contact my skin, or get into my cavities. But I was fascinated and felt a sense of wonder and privilege. As I swam I began to feel that I was actually looking within myself to the ancient processes of the blood and cells. I had a sense that we are all the time immersed in this ancient aquarium, relating to its creatures one way or another.
Useful Questions and Hints:
What am I becoming aware of within myself?
What does the theme of this dream suggest about my inner feelings?
What creatures are in the aquarium, and are there poisonous or dangerous things in me or is it beauty?
Use Processing Dreams to explore your dream.
Arab
This depends whether you are of Arab or Islamic ethnicity. If you are then it is depicting an aspect of yourself. If not, then you need to define what your feelings and associations you have with Arabs and particularly the dream figure. In general it may represent masculinity, passionate manhood, possessiveness. See: Abroad.
Useful questions are:
If I imagine myself as this person what do I feel? For help doing this see Stand in Role under peerdream work.)
What is my relationship with this dream character and what might that represent in my waking life?
What am I doing in the dream – running; waiting searching; bargaining; pleading; looking for love – and can I see that in my life in any way?
Archaeologist Archaeology
If you are an archaeologist or involved in the work, then it relates to whatever is concerning or interesting you at the moment. But it will still probably have a more interior meaning.
It links to the process of gradually bringing your past experience to consciousness. Literally it shows you digging into what are usually your unconscious layers of yourself to unearth personal meaning and perhaps deal with past problems that were buried. See archaeologist.
Useful Questions and Hints:
Have I been ‘digging’ into myself in any way – if so what have I uncovered?
Have circumstances or events uncovered what was previously buried in me?
What part of my past are my dream images suggesting?
You can be an archaeologist by exploring the buried message of your dreams by using Processing Dreams and Peer Dream Work.
What is the archaeologist doing and what does that suggest?
Is something being uncovered or dug up, and if I describe myself as that what do I define about myself?
What are my feelings in the dream?
Have I been ‘digging’ into myself in any way – if so what have I uncovered?
Have circumstances or events uncovered what was previously buried in me?
What part of my past are my dream images suggesting?
Archer
See: Aim.
Architect
Here is the image of the process or function in us that plans, that designs in a creative and perhaps considering way. It may be about plans for a better or different living condition, or about business or even a relationship. The architect is also pointing to a process of checking and directing progress.
This might be about how you wish your ‘space’ to be, or how to use the space you have. So it might relate to your mind or attitudes. Or does you dream show you making an architects plan of your inner life or even your future?
As an architect you or your dream character can be the architect of future change.
Useful Questions and Hints:
What am I planning to change or build in my life, and does this dream relate to that?
Does this dream reflect or comment on any of my dreams or goals in any way?
What is the architect in my dream doing, and what can I gather from that if I translate it into everyday life?
Find out more by using Processing Dreams and Talking As.
If I imagine my self as the architect how do I describe myself. For help doing this see Standing in Roles.