Caveats Concerning Dream Interpretation

Here are some caveats concerning the interpretation of your dreams. 

I have mentioned several times that dreams are usually not literal, with some exceptions such as telephone dreams in which literal messages are given. There is a natural tendency to interpret some elements such as common symbols like a car or house in a literal way when they appear in a dream. This can lead to misinterpretations that can have negative consequences. 

Suppose you dream that the stock market is going to crash, so you immediately sell your stocks. Although it could be a literal warning, the dream may have nothing to do with your stocks. Instead, it may involve some other aspect of your life where a crash or severe downturn occurs and the stocks are just symbolic of that event. 

As another example, suppose you dream that you should move to another named city. It is not a good idea to immediately quit your job, pack up your things, and move to that city. 

The move you need to make may be a psychological one that is symbolized by the other city. You should ask what the other city means or represents to you and ask for further guidance. If you really should make a physical move, you will receive other signals through flashes of insight or other dreams. 

Another caveat relates to the occurrence of time in a dream. Psychological time in a dream is not the same as physical time, and often an event that appears to be immediate in a dream will require some considerable time to occur in physical time. This is one of the reasons that prophecy is so controversial. 

Sometimes I have been given a time in a dream that was literal such as a dream concerning a problem with one of my eyes described in my book. Other times the reference to time was more opaque and not easily determined. The best that can be said is that the event of concern may have been associated with other events in the dream, and the key to when this event occurs is found in the occurrence of the associated events. 

The dream may simply be showing you your probable future if you make a certain decision. Whether or not this occurs, and the timing of it, is up to you. I will be dealing with this subject much more extensively in my posts next year. 

My final caveat concerns the depiction of a person or event in a dream. You may dream that your life has fallen apart, and in your waking life, that is how you feel at that moment. This does not mean that this represents your reality going forward; it means you have had a temporary setback and with the right perspective, you could have a dream the next night showing you in a positive mood and on a better path. 

Your dreams can show your state at any given time, and may do so in an exaggerated way. They are not saying that it is your lot in life. In fact, they are often a reminder that you need to make a change in your attitude, associations, or surroundings to change your current state.

A Cryptic Dream and Expanded Awareness

Last Saturday night I had a cryptic dream about a past president. In the dream, I was talking with a President of the United States. It was not Barack Obama, but seemed to be George W. Bush. I told him that I now knew his secrets. There wasn’t much more to the dream. He listened but did not respond to me. 

This dream is interesting for two reasons. It demonstrates an expanded awareness, which I will explain, and possibly has a meaning on more than one level. This dream incorporates something from the next day that I have witnessed on numerous occasions—elements from a TV program or movie not yet seen. 

Sunday morning I thought about the dream as I had breakfast and began some chores. I could not see how it related to anything that I had recently experienced or been thinking about. 

Before starting some cleaning, I looked at the TV guide for the first time, which came as an insert in the previous day’s paper. I noticed a 2-hour program on FDR covering the 24-hour period right after Pearl Harbor was attacked. 

The description said secrets revealed about FDR. I watched the program and realized that my subconscious had incorporated the secrets aspect of the program into my dream. This has happened on many other occasions, when I was puzzled by a dream only to realize it related to a movie or some TV program I watched later. 

Now, I believe this dream could be saying more than just showing me it was a precognitive view of a future event. Lately, I have been working intensely to better balance my logical deductive abilities with my intuitive ones. 

Someone who is President of the United States could easily represent my higher mind that, if followed, will lead to a uniting of my states that include the logical, reasoning and intuitive, emotional aspects of myself. My saying I know your secrets in the dream may be my belief that I have uncovered how these states should be united from the perspective of my higher mind. 

The selection of George W. Bush as the President may simply be my association of him as the last president who took us to war instead of FDR who took us to war in 1941. And the TV program the next day was readily available and perfectly suited to the message the subconscious wanted to deliver. 

In the final analysis, the dream interpretation must feel right to the person who has the dream. No one else can say that my interpretation is right or wrong because there are far too many variables that determine the symbols and their significance in a dream. 

You must discover for yourself how your mind works. When you do, you will find that dreams are not nearly as mysterious as they once appeared to be.

Recalling Dreams and Meditation

In my posts, I have written about some of the things we can do to improve dream recall and the quality of our dreams. These include the following: proper amount of sleep, avoiding strong drugs, maintaining a good diet free of junk foods, and regular daily meditation. 

The proper amount of sleep will vary from individual to individual, but you should feel refreshed when you start the day. Too little or too much sleep can be detrimental and will affect your sense of well-being and your dreams. 

Strong drugs can adversely affect your body chemistry and result in nightmares or dreams depicting a strong imbalance, as can certain foods. I am not talking about drugs prescribed for a serious medical condition. That is a completely different subject for a later posting. I am talking about artificial stimulants or depressants. However, some prescription drugs may cause strange dreams or nightmares as a side effect.

Food that taxes rather than nourishing the body can also result in dreams that depict the body’s reaction against the food and the body’s struggle to obtain homeostasis. 

Finally, meditation is a key component in our lives for obtaining the maximum benefit from our dreams. Meditation reduces stress, brings about internal harmony, and establishes our intent to be open to guidance from the higher self. 

The maximum benefit from our dreams can be obtained when the body is not struggling with imbalances. If we want solutions to problems in our daily lives, we should strive to keep the body healthy and well rested. The dreams can then focus on areas such as our jobs, financial issues, social issues, family matters, and personal growth. 

When we stray from healthy lifestyles, we are reminded as I was in my dreams. Many years ago when I was trying to improve my heath, I was occasionally eating burgers from one of the fast food restaurants. One night in a dream, I was in my kitchen with the burger and was told to put it down the garbage disposal. 

Another time, when I was entertaining, I ate too many potato chips, and drank too much wine. I dreamed that night that I entertained Babe Ruth, who was known for excessive eating and drinking. 

Daily meditation helps to bring peace and harmony into our daily lives and establishes our willingness to receive guidance from a higher power. Spiritual channels are opened when we dream, so the guidance rises above the level of the individual consciousness to a universal level. 

The advice we receive takes into consideration our spiritual lives, and is not just a creation by the body consciousness or a response to worries and concerns of the day. For those who seek visions from their dreams, a view of the future, I think that daily meditation is essential. 

There are many approaches to meditation, and some say their way is the right one. I think that success with meditation is not determined by the use of certain chants or music, yoga positions, or the following of a guru. I believe that success is determined by our willingness to let go of the inner talk we are consumed with each day, and surrender to a higher power. 

I have known some who have achieved enlightenment in a short time, and others who spend a lifetime in a futile pursuit. The goal should not be to achieve what someone else describes as success; the goal should be to enter into a silence where you can experience that sense of peace and connection to all of life. The goal should be to experience your true self. 

Next year I am going to start focusing on the nature of time and the future as it unfolds for us in our dreams. I will discuss some of the science concerning time, as well as the personal ramifications for us in our daily lives. Some say we shouldn’t know the future, and others say we can’t know the future. I intend to address the positions of both groups and provide my answer to why I think it is important that we know our “probable” future. 

At this point l will just say that events do not happen the way most people think, and our dreams show us how we create the future we experience. It doesn’t just happen; psychic forces are at work building the future long before we experience it physically.

Dreams as a Call to Action

There are many types of dreams and even more themes within a specific type. However, most dreams seem to be problem solving and relate directly to our daily lives. In Some Common Dream Themes (4/13/2015), a post about dream themes, I mentioned some of the themes one might encounter such as taking a wrong turn off a highway or failing a class. 

These dreams are about actions we are taking or failing to take in our everyday experiences. These dreams are a call to action. They are telling us that we need to take action in some area of our lives or that we need to change the action we have taken and replace it with a new action. 

The area of concern might relate to the job, family, or a personal issue such as poor health. As an example, suppose you make a New Year’s resolution to include regular exercise in your daily routine, which may be something you are not currently doing. 

Many people will make such a resolution as we enter a new year. If after a few weeks you decide you really don’t have time to continue and drop your exercise routine, you are likely to have a dream reflecting on that action. You might dream that you take a wrong turn or fail a class on biology or health. If you think about restarting your exercise program, but delay, you may dream that you are late for a class. 

The dreams mentioned are not esoteric, mysterious nighttime plays that are difficult or impossible to interpret. They deal with your daily life and usually a little reflection will make their meanings clear. Unfortunately, we tend not to want to hear about our shortcomings, whether from someone else or through our dreams. Rather than taking action, it is much easier to just push them out of our conscious minds and say they probably don’t mean anything. 

As an interesting side note, studies have shown that children as young as six or seven will often take advice from their dreams even when the same advice from parents is ignored. 

Dreams are for our benefit and can help us resolve our problems and issues. But we must act to experience their benefit. 

I have often thought about all the benefits I have received from my dreams over the course of my life, and I am puzzled by the reluctance of people to work with their dreams. I know all the reasons for this reluctance, but I am still amazed at such behavior. I think it reflects the materialism of society, the fear of who and what we are, and I think it also illustrates a misunderstanding of our relationship to our creator. 

Often when a crisis arises, people will sincerely pray for help, for an answer. If someone is desperate to find money to pay bills, the person might sincerely pray for help. But the help is not likely to come with the sudden unexplained deposit of all the money needed into his or her bank account or by the front door. It is more likely to come with the sudden opportunity to do some extra work to earn the money, the sale of possessions, or a loan from a friend or family member. 

In other words, the answer is found by accessing the creative spirit that operates through us. If someone wants a better job, the answer from a dream might be to go back to school. 

The creative force operates through us, but we need to be open and not establish blocks through preconceived notions about what we are willing to do. If we establish rigid boundaries about what we are willing to do, the advice we receive is not likely to be understood, if it is noticed at all. 

To better your life, the interpretation of your dreams cannot simply be an intellectual exercise. You must act upon the guidance received. Otherwise, it quickly becomes a pointless exercise, and the potential of dreams remains just potential. 

If you don’t find yourself challenged and at times struggling to make changes in your life based on dream guidance, then you probably aren’t working seriously with your dreams. 

Many years ago, I was exploring the booths at a psychic fair. A young woman asked me what I did related to the psychic. I said I worked with my dreams. She laughed and said, “No one cares about dreams.” She was waiting to get a psychic reading. 

Now in my book I have much to say about psychics and getting readings. For this post, let me just say that even if she found a psychic who gave her accurate and beneficial advice, I don’t think it would have nearly the same impact as making the discovery for herself through her dreams. 

A further discussion with her indicated she was looking for a quick and easy answer, for someone to do it for her. Eventually she will have to find the answers for herself. And I think a good psychic would point that out to her. There is no shortcut to self-awareness. 

I think people’s attitude towards getting help from dreams is much like their attitude toward getting answers from God through prayer. When a specific problem arises, they want an immediate answer for that problem, but want to be left alone for the rest of what they do. And this attitude affects the quality of their dreams. 

How would you feel if someone only came to you for help when he or she had a problem, but the rest of the time had no interest in communicating with you? 

Similarly, when people seek help from psychics, it is usually to get help for a specific problem. I wonder how many say to the psychic, “How can I live a better, more productive life, or how can I be of more help to people?” 

The questions seem to be more of the following nature: “Will I find Mister Right or Miss Right, or when will I get a better job?” And they don’t understand that they are the ones who have already created the answer, and if they want a different answer, they must change. And change involves a process and is not as simple as getting an answer to a single question. 

Dreams can enable that change and are a call to action, but we must listen, interpret, and be willing to act.

A Boxer's Dream

An interesting video on Yahoo Sports was highlighted yesterday. During a recent interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger, the boxer Manuel Pacquiao revealed he had a dream one week before his fight with Juan Manual Márquez in 2012 that he would be KO’d. Now I am not a fan of boxing, but this video caught my attention for obvious reasons. The interview is worth a look.

People in all occupations have such dreams that are usually only remembered when something dramatic happens in the dream. In the case of Pacquiao, probably few things could be more dramatic and important to him at that time than the outcome of a major fight. 

For most people, views of the future pass unnoticed because the dream impact is not great enough to be remembered upon awakening. Of course, this does not mean that such dreams don’t occur; the main purpose of my book and these posts is to show that they do occur on a daily basis.

Your dreams will reflect your concerns and interests. If you don’t think seeing the probable future is possible, or believe it is not something you should do, views of the future are likely to be suppressed before they enter your conscious mind. Your subconscious may be sending you views of the future, but they are blocked. 

Now there can be exceptions, such as a situation your subconscious is aware of that is life threatening to you or someone close to you. Then the subconscious may override your conscious beliefs and desires.

The best way to ensure that you are getting beneficial guidance from your dreams is to meditate daily. By opening the channels to higher forces, you will receive spiritual help that will transcend your individual limitations. And if you find visions of the future are part of it, don’t reject, or try to suppress them. You are being shown certain things for a reason. 

Also, do not ask for help from your dreams with a preconceived idea of what the answer should be. You may be shown a path that never occurred to your conscious mind, or if it did, was immediately discounted as not worth pursuing. 

As an example, suppose you are desperate to get a better job. Now you may have a dream showing you back in school because the answer lies in additional education or training. Consciously, this may not be something you want to do, or can do without some sacrifice. Nevertheless, that may be the answer. 

In future posts, I am going to discuss seeing the probable future through dreams in much more detail. I thought I would interject this topic here because of the Manny Pacquiao story.

Dream Building Blocks

There are several building blocks in the construction of a dream. Most dreams have an environment—the location and surroundings where they take place. Within the environment, we have objects that can include everyday items, people, and strange distortions or creations not found in real life.

Normal items observed in dreams can be highly symbolic, such as a house or room in which you find yourself or automobile that you are observing or driving. Remember that the subconscious operates through associations and the objects you encounter should be considered in that light. 

If you find yourself in a kitchen, the obvious association is food and the preparation of meals. And since dreams primarily deal with our daily activities and problems, you should examine your diet and the state of your physical health as it relates to what you eat on a daily basis. 

If you find yourself looking at a car in a dream, the details of what you see are likely to be important. What type of car is it and what is the condition of the car? The car often represents the physical body, and the type and condition of the car will say a lot about your physical condition and overall health. 

The house and automobile are common symbols that occur frequently in people’s dreams. I have had frequent dreams involving both houses and cars. The house serves as a look at my overall daily life, with focus on a specific room calling attention to that aspect of my life. 

The condition of the entire house or room is a comment on my entire life or an aspect of my life. The kitchen, already mentioned, often relates to my diet, the living room to daily life, the family room to the state of the family, a basement to my subconscious, etc.

The condition of my car gives me a quick look at the state of my physical health. The model of the car provides additional details. A high performance car says something different about my energy level than a slow, low performance model. 

Dreams also have themes. In her book Dreams Your Magic Mirror, Elsie Sechrist refers to a study by Japanese scientists involving dreams of students in both Japan and the United States. Among other things, over thirty recurrent themes were found. 

These themes can be failing a test, being late for a class, showing up for a class or event unprepared, running away from something, taking a wrong turn off a highway, a sexual encounter, or the positive side of these same themes such as scoring a high grade on a test or taking a right turn. 

The mood in a dream can be extremely important. In the dream, are you happy, sad, scared, angry, or in some other state of mind? These feelings add color to the dream and provide additional clues as to its meaning. 

Every detail is in the dream for a reason. Your subconscious chose one symbol over the unlimited number of other possibilities for a reason. If you find yourself looking at an object in a dream, there is a reason that the object is what you see rather than something else. 

If you put on a blue outfit, there is a reason the color is blue rather than red, brown, or some other color. If you receive or spend money such as seven dollars, that amount is significant. Putting on blue clothes can symbolize the acceptance of spiritual values and receiving seven dollars can symbolize the receipt of a spiritual gift or something of spiritual value. 

Each color or number in a dream can have a unique meaning. More on this can be found in The Man Who Sees Tomorrow in His Dreams or Dreams Your Magic Mirror. 

Dreams can contain many aspects. There may be a rather obvious practical aspect, but the dream may also contain other aspects such as your spiritual health, which is also reflected in the dream. Sometimes you will interpret part of a dream, only to return to it much later when you realize there was more to it than you first thought.

People in Dreams as Symbols

Symbols in dreams are not just messages encoded in words or physical objects like automobiles or houses. People you meet in a dream can also be symbolic, often representing someone else whose qualities are like the person in the dream in a pronounced way. 

Some authors say that the people we meet in dreams are all aspects of ourselves. While this can be the case for some of our dreams, it by no means is true for all of our dreams and the myriad of characters we encounter. 

Consider the following dream I had in which I met a female co-worker from many years ago. It was a brief encounter, and she smiled as we passed by each other.

Now I have stated in my book that my dreams foreshadow the next day’s events. Usually the order of significant or memorable events for the day corresponds to the order of the dreams. Based on the approximate time of night when the dream occurred, I thought I might encounter someone around mid-day who would be a physical manifestation of the dream encounter. 

In the early afternoon, I was ordering lunch at a counter in a local restaurant when a woman and her daughter walked by. The area was narrow and we nearly bumped into one another. 

The daughter looked at me and smiled broadly, and I realized she immediately reminded me of the co-worker in the dream. As I stared at her, I thought the woman in the dream was a perfect association for this young woman. She was had the same physique, smile, and could have passed as a younger version of my co-worker. 

Now if you think I am reaching for this interpretation, you probably haven’t worked much with your dreams. I have seen this correspondence hundreds of times over the years. I can often predict an encounter and sometimes the person involved based on the previous night’s dreams.

When a family member like my son is involved, I wait for the call or visit and can predict the nature of our conversation based on the person used by my subconscious for the association. Three or four people I have known serve as surrogates for my son in my dreams. 

People who doubt that this can occur most likely have not worked with their dreams on a daily basis, even if they are so-called experts. The world of dreams is rich and varied with the possibilities unlimited. 

No one else can tell you what your dream means; the symbols are too personal and unique to you. It is true that there are some universal symbols, but even those may contain double meanings based on your associations. 

Others may see some general theme that is involved, but the depth of the meaning and understanding of particular symbols selected by your subconscious can only be realized by you. Do not let others tell you that your interpretation is nonsense or that dreams cannot reveal the future. You must believe in yourself and your ability to understand the workings of your own mind. 

After working with my dreams for over forty years, I am not impressed with how much I have learned; I am amazed by how little I know. I am still learning new things every day. I am still feeling amazement at the variety and depth of my dreams.