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7 Dream Interpretation Tips |
Let's say you are to the point where you can remember some of your dreams. Either just grabbing them on waking or writing them down before forgetting and looking at it later.
Now what about figuring out just what the heck they mean? There are dozens of books out there that will help such a The Hidden Power of Dream by Denise Linn, The Mystical Magical Marvelous World Of Dreams by Wilda Tanner, & Cloud Nine by Sandra A. Thomson to name only a few.
Just be sure to avoid ones that give dogmatic lists of what dream symbols mean period, as everyone is different suggestion are the best they can do.
Below are a few of what I hope will be some useful tips on opening the letter your inner self has sent you.
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TIP 1:
Make your own symbol dictionary. There are a number of books that are helpful in pointing out what various things can mean. But there are many things that are very unique to you due to unique things that have happened in your life.
To say the least if you have just spent the last 20 years driving a truck for a living trucks in dreams will mean more to you than the average person.
One of the first things you can do when interpreting a dream is to come up with a quick simple motto for it. Try to summarize the dream as if it were a post and you needed a header.
Then if you have the time try holding an imaginary conversation with some of the dream characters or even some of the objects in the dream. Pretend to yourself that you are interviewing it. Ask them or it a question and without pushing it see what your imagination gives as it's reply.
TIP 2:
The same techniques that are used for works of fiction can be used for dreams.
You've probably read where people have speculated on what the images in the Wizard of Oz, King Kong or even Road Runner cartoons "really" mean. Try the same on your dreams.
It might also be useful to look for standard literary devices such as setting, dramatic structure and the like in the dream. Somewhat on that tact, if you've a mind for this sort of thing look at the dream as a Tarot reading, with the things that show up in it the different "cards."
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TIP 3:
Look for verbal or visual puns. I.E. House looked at from the angle of what is housed. As you could be said to be housed in your body a house might stand in for your body.
Rock could mean a stone or something that moves you. A beach might refer to being beached... not moving or as a place to land and move inland or embark from.
Rain might mean reign or rein as in rein in. A shoe sole that stands out in a dream might be drawing attention to your soul instead.
Look at all the words and the alternate meanings, puns and metaphors they might offer up.
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TIP 4:
Try some `symbol amplification.' Look at the images again and look for cue words or sub-meanings of that word. House = building = where families live = where you live = something that's built = one among many other buildings where others live etc.
Mine each image to find it's possible associations. Perhaps write the word on a piece of paper and draw a circle around it. Put the words near or far from the center word depending on the importance of the word to you.
Think how these words relate to the one in the center? Look at it as a whole to see if they tell you something you may not have realized.
TIP 5:
Describe each image in simple, powerful terms, as if explaining its purpose and outstanding features to a Martian who knows nothing about life on Earth.
For example: House - These are buildings constructed from a variety of materials for people to live in. Sometimes one person might live in one sometimes many do. They are divided into different areas called room which have different functions. They are places for keeping our material possessions. Etc.
From this sort of exercise find what the images in your dreams mean to you.
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TIP 6:
Describe the dream but leave out the images (nouns) and concentrate on the actions (verbs) emphasize the structure of the action, all mention of specific symbols is avoided.
Such as "Someone feels attacked by something, but does nothing to about it."
From this get an idea of the emotion and feeling of the dream.
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TIP 7:
Give the dream a TITLE as if it were a story or you were giving a post a header. Let it come to you spontaneously.
Then identify any THEME or THEMES in the dream, next identify the AFFECT (emotional aspects) of the dream. Lastly look for any important QUESTIONS that the dream has brought up.
Examples:
TITLE: Flowers in Sealed Glass Bottles.
THEME(S): beautiful things locked away
AFFECT: wonder and sadness.
QUESTION: what do the flowers represent that I feel is looked away?
TITLE: Boat Ride On the Buss.
THEME(S): Something unexpectedly starts doing something it should not.
AFFECT: confusion & surprise.
QUESTION: What old path of mine has changed? Do I need to start taking some new route in my life?
TITLE: Grey Helicopter Attack
THEME(S): A vicious attack from out of nowhere
AFFECT: fear, surprise.
QUESTION: What do I feel attacked by in real life?
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