I just wanted to make this topic to discuss dream interpretation...I hope this helps, feel free to add anything else below.
Thank you for making the topic, Alice, because it came from the desire to communicate/cooperate. It can lead to understanding and even comfort, better sharing which can broaden our outlooks and benefit us all. It is in *how* these opportunities are met that ends up showing much about character and intent, so thank you. Even though I've always been interested and paid attention to them, nothing will focus you quite like approaching dreaming as a researcher being driven to understand what you must write about.
When I was reading early/ancient accounts as well as modern research white papers, I was struck by the persistent vagueness/guesswork from a topic that no one could quite wrap their head around. I wanted to get a handle on what dreams meant, so I could incorporate them competently. And I instinctively knew they were poorly used if only viewed through a religious filter. Yet, as I worked to categorize them, I would keep having dreams that would say to me, "Nope, not broad enough." And as I truth-seeker, I was constantly having to reevaluate impressions that, seemingly by design, didn't like to be put in boxes.
Echoes of pasts being played out? Nope, not broad enough. The playful resonance of mental reframing or personality reflection? Nope, not broad enough. The semi-lucid accounting of many finer things in existence we can never hope to experience in our waking life? Nope, not broad enough; this and much more.
Everywhere I looked, I found exceptions to the categories, such that it became amusingly like "the exceptions are more of a 'rule' than the rules". Studying dreams helped me realize that making categories only reflect our own limitations, not that of which we categorize.
This amused and grew me--stuck with me--such that I felt compelled to include hints of it in my writing. At one point in the novel, a brash student is quizzing his mentor about the surrounding dream
ether where they were meeting, and after thinking in broadest terms about what I had seen, this is the best I could come up with to imitate the understanding of someone who had been exploring dream purposes for countless of our years:
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Feeling more himself, Will grinned at Viz. “Are you avoiding my ‘boldest’ question? What is this place?”
“You expect a simple answer to the infinitely complex, a question no one can answer for anyone else. Begin by seeing this as your learning-proving ground. Your life-love-gift. It
wants you to succeed on your own, to grow in such a fulfilling way that your own question will be answered to your satisfaction
by you.
“Yet, I will offer more, sharing hints of my journey flowing from me, in joy. To my experience,
Here is the Essence of all past-and-future hope-potential, complete genius-of-awareness, giver-host of attunement, the timeless-boundless growth-space of the new-to-come.”
“Well, you lost me at ‘Here is the…past-and-future…’”
For a moment, Viz wore what seemed to be a teasing smile. “You are the one who asked.” Straightening, he admitted, “Much more is beyond my comprehension, for current-now. What you can measure
This by, reliably in all journey-steps, is your growth-of-self. Which is perfectly within its defining. And this is why I have come-been-brought to you now, when you most threaten to hurt yourself.”
“So…” Will struggled, yearned, to make the final connection. “Are you linked to here, somehow?”
Viz held up a single finger to emphasize his point. “Simply, I am here-now because I accept the need to be here. There is no force in our visit, no pushing-hurry, but
all of my learning-being.”
With a form of relief he had never experienced, in the presence of such benevolence and wisdom, Will could only manage to say, “I understand, I understand,” even as he was fading into a deep sleep.
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Though I stayed away from the site when I was researching and writing, it's a wonderful place to see so many *differences*, not only in dreams but in approaches. I've witnessed that many of those differences come from people's intent, their
pushing from their own perspective, about a subject so complex it is like a gem with infinite facets. The more of those facets we can learn about from each other, the more beautiful the gem can become to us. Even in small places comes opportunities to learn, if only we are open enough--and certainly one function of dreams is to help us be open enough to consider new perspectives!
I'm glad to be meeting you all as we hopefully learn and grow. I feel it is vital that we can see differences without feeling challenged/upset *by* them. If only we feel the wondrous complexity of dream possibilities from more than our very limited views, and this is more possible when we view others' differences for what they might be. As you dwell upon what to say and how to communicate, please remember that true, precious learning comes out of inspiration, not from being shoved.
May our dreams be meaningful to us. May they grow, expand, enrich us so that we can return the favor.
