If
you are looking for the meanings of your dreams, you can find many
sources of dream interpretation. Dream interpretation involves
imposing meanings on the various elements of your dreams. In
other words, “a house means this, a key means this”, etc.
However,
dream interpretation is not dream analysis. I
find dream analysis is often much more helpful and far more
interesting than dream interpretation.
The
Difference between Dream Interpretation and Dream Analysis
As
I have said, dream interpretation involves imposing meanings on your
dreams. Freud wrote The
Interpretation of Dreams,
and many, many people are offering dream interpretation. Google
“Dream Interpretation” and you will find loads of information
about this. You
can also find lots of dream dictionaries and similar books.
You
will probably find many different interpretations of your dreams and
the elements within them – the people and activities, plus any
objects which appear in your dreams. Sometimes, these interpretations may conflict, and this can be confusing.
Dream
analysis, on the other hand, involves analysing the elements of your
dreams. This is done over a period of time. Jung wrote about this,
and I find his work very helpful, interesting and engaging. He also
wrote about what he called the “collective unconscious”, and the
fact that some symbols are common among all of us. But this is not
always the case.
The
elements of your dreams may be
unique to you. For example, you could have cats appear in your
dreams. It's up to you to discover what the cat represents your
unconscious mind. More about this below.
The
unconscious mind has its own language, and dreams use that language.
The dream is an attempt by your unconscious mind to communicate with
you. Learn the language of your unconscious mind and you will
discover a wealth of information.
Dream
interpretation can be helpful at times, if you are struggling to
understand the meaning of your dreams. But remember, the meaning
will often be different for every person.
Remembering
Your Dreams
Go
to bed at night with the intention of remembering your dreams. Write down anything you remember, even if it is just a tiny snippet. Keep
doing this and you will start to remember more and more of your
dreams.
Recording
Your Dreams
I
recommend you record your dreams. Keep pen and paper, or your dream
journal, by your bed so that you can write down your dreams as soon
as you awaken. Alternatively, you can record your dreams on an mp3 recorder or other
digital audio recorder if this is easier for you. You can even use
an old-fashioned cassette recorder for this.
Make
sure you record your dream in present tense – as if it is happening
now. That's because that is what the unconscious mind understands.
By analysing your dreams, you are opening up a channel of
communication between your conscious and unconscious minds.
You
will start to see certain elements repeated in your dreams. This
helps you to understand a pattern across several dreams. You are on
your way to maximising your understanding of your dreams!
Go here for an article on How to Record Your Dreams. I don't use these
methods, but you may find them useful.
Dream
Symbols
Once
you start to write down your dreams, you will start to see certain
patterns. For example, you might see a cat repeatedly in different
dreams. This would mean that, for you, the cat is a dream symbol.
In one dream, the cat might be running away; in another, it could be
eating, or playing, or hunting, or sleeping. Recording your dreams
will help you to begin to understand that different actions by the
cat have different meanings.
A
symbol can pretty much be anything – a building, a person, a colour, a time
of day, etc.
For
me, vehicles are an important symbol. I have had cars, trains, buses
and airplanes in different dreams over the years. Some of my other
symbols are staircases and elevators (lifts). My symbols are unique
to me, as yours will often be unique to you.
There
is much more to be said about dream analysis, and I shall publish
another blog post about this soon.
Analysing your dreams can help you to understand things about your life, and
give you skills to change your outcomes and improve your results. Good luck with analysing your dreams!
For
more about improving your life, go here to download my FREE (for
now)
ebook, Secrets of Manifestation.
If
you want to make progress towards achieving your goals, the first
step is to eliminate your blocks to abundance. Contact
me here if you would like help with achieving your goals and living
your ideal life.
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