Responses to the Dreams of the World: Page Three

Response to Stephanie's dream:

You should underline the key elements of this dream and do personal associations with them. The personal associations really control the meaning of the dream to you.

I will comment on the cultural/archetypal dimension, but this must be colored by the personal associations and on what is going on in your real life.

Snakes usually connote some important aspect of the psyche that is trying hard to reach consciousness. The snake bite has been associated with healing since at least the time of the early Greeks...and with self-knowledge in our earliest mythologies.

Death usually means change...real, dramatic, change in ego consciousness. It usually predicts events that will result inthe "death" of your present ego attitude and a change to another. Here, the snakes indicate a healing and more self-knowledge as a part of this change. In what ways are you "dead"? Prepare yourself for life and healing. This dream says it is coming. This type of dream is very scary, but it is one of the most hopeful dreams for life and healing.

Response to S. Butler-Conner's dream:

In order to understand the symbols in any dream, you need to do your own personal associations with them. List each of the key elements in the dream and write at least five associations with each.

I will speak in some generalities about the elements in this dream since I do not know your personal associations or life context.

Usually twins (or something in duplicate) indicates an unconscious content that is struggling to become conscious. In your dream, it is a "baby." What are the "babies" in your current life (projects, goals, activities, etc.) that you desire to birth?

There is fear about this birth, because the "babies" disappear. Does this reflect an attitude of fear about a life project that you are trying to birth or which you have just birthed?

In your search for the discovery of the result of the birthing, you are alone. Your husband in not helping you. The dream does suggest a helpful "woman." This woman may be a real woman in your life or an inner feminine helper. Only you can know this.

A disturbing dream, but one which affirms that you have help in finding your "baby" which has been or is about to be birthed.

Response to Malissa's dream:

Dear Malissa:

It seems that you are afraid of dreaming. Coming to consciousness is very hard work and sometimes very frightening. However, not getting conscious is even more frightening! To know yourself in your dreams could give you choices and help you see yourself as the whole and wonderful being that you are. Perhaps you could remind yourself before going to sleep that you will be able to meet whatever comes to you with openness and strength. Now while awake, face the "stalker": ask "who are you?" and "what do you want from me?" Then write his/her answers. Try writing in your journal about your feelings and questions about your day before you go to sleep. Remember that the dream is your deepest self, your own inner wisdom speaking to you toward your own fullest expression of yourself. See our tapes I and II.

Response to Karyn's dream:

In our process of gaining self knowledge, it is necessary for us to understand and to acknowledge the "demons" inside us. For some of us this is harder. We want to think we are a "good" person...that there are no evil urges or bad potentials in us. The harder we try to deny this, the more w are likely to have to confront our evil in our dreams. Carl Jung called this part of us the Shadow. It is all those parts of ourself that we do not allow expression because they are bad or inappropriate. If we can accept these parts of ourself as being real, understanding that we CHOOSE not to express them because they are destructive or unacceptable to us to express, we can grow to a fuller understanding of ourselves and of other people. One of the dangers we face if we do not understand these demon parts of ourselves is that we "project" them on other people, seeing them only as "bad" rather than knowing that most of us are a mixed bag...trying to emphasize and live our better selves.

Listen to this dream and do some serious examination of the demon parts of yourself. This is much more likely to lead to real goodness.

Response to Jennifer Duran's dream:

Dear Jennifer,

When I first read your dream, I read "interstates" as "inner states". Maybe my projection...maybe my intuition that your inner states are just that roller coaster like...not very well grounded. If you find yourself in dream-like states of consciousness very often, you might do some hard work to separate your conscious, ego state from your unconscious dream state. One of the best ways to do this is to faithfully record your dreams and keep responding to them in a dream journal. That will leave you free to pursue your ego activities when you need to...focus and be task oriented...reminding yourself that you will have a time to entertain your dream images and feelings when you get back to your dream journal. See our new tape on TRANSPORTATION.

Response to Robert's dream:

Dear Robert,

You have interpreted the dreams yourself with your feeling about the irridescent blue..."feelings of fascination and dread"...what if you substitute that phrase for the color in the dreams? Now also do some active imagination with the color...paint with it...find it and use it...The eerie quality associated with it is its kind of "other worldliness"...Does the color's appearance warn you of some problem of disassociating in each of the settings of the dreams?

We will soon make a tape about colors in dreams. In the meantime let this blue fascinate you into delving deeply into the issues surrounding the place and time in your life when it appears...You might find WOMEN IN MEN'S DREAMS helpful.

Response to Caila's dream:

Dear Caila,

It seems as if you have had an inner dream guide for a very long time. What have you done with this story? Have you written it like a fairy tale? Painted it? Explored each of the rooms, trying to learn what you could there? It is time to engage with the dream. Write it..paint it...make such a space in miniature. Relate to the dream. what if you respond to Edward as an imaginal inner guide and ask him for direction in your life? See our tapes on ACTIVE IMAGINATION and MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS.

Response to Erwin's dream:

Dear Erwin,

What if you think of "having sex with" as "making connections with"? Does the dream compensate for some lack of connection with others ...some isolation in you at this time? On the other hand, you are very young...does the dream express some instinctual energy ..just feeling very sexual...and not acting on it ( probably for good reasons!)...see our tape on ALCHEMY IN RELATIONSHIP.

Response to Marissa's dream:

Dear Marissa:

Why are you so interested in what this man, these men are doing? What does his friend symbolize for you? Do you want a relationship with him? The dream might warn you of his sexual choice which would save you the pain of pursuing someone who could not really respond to you...or it might express your fears about men or about your own sexuality. Write your associations to this particular man and see how those qualities might exist in you. You will find our tape on MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS helpful.

Response to Karen's dream:

Dear Karen:

Who is the ghost in your house? What haunts you? Write associations with old England, pirates, cult, your contemporaries, and puppy. Get at least five adjectives or memories for each element. Now substitute these associtions for the images in the dream and you will begin to understand the message, What was goin on in your everyday life when you had the dreams? How might the dreams speak to that conflict or situation? See our tapes I and II for helpful instruction in working with your dreams.

Response to Marisa's dream:

Dear Marisa:

What do you know about tornadoes? Do you remember Dorothy and the Wiard of Oz and how Dorothy's journey began with a tornado which blew her out of her comfortable childhood home? What "storm" might be brewing in you? That the image is recurring would seem to insist that you respond to it... What would happen to you if you were actually in a tornado? How might you be denying the "stormy" state in your emotional life right now? Do some active imagination with tornado...paint it, dialogue with it...ask what it wants to change or destroy in your life? See our tape on ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response to Mary Douglas's dream:

Dear Mary,

Sounds like you are invited to explore "mouse" in yhour personality...and there are two sides to the "mouse" in you...the mean white one and the little brown one. What qualities do you associate with mouse? How are you like these qualities? How might you imagine giving room...(houses) to this mouseyness in yourself? Read about mice in some American Indian stories, like JUMPING MOUSE. If you have a mouse in your hair...you have a lot of imagination about "mouse"..Do some active imagination,,,some art, some writing about "mouse". See our tapes I and II.

Response to Thomas Burnham's dream:

Dear Thomas,

You are with Jim: what do you associate with Jim besides his homosexulity? With that part of yourself it seems that you really "trip out" as it were...you are able to be carrried away by this "bald, black man" who is like a magical wizard shadow...he helps you see the value in your imagination and spiritual "tripping". How can bring this sense of excitement and adventure into other realms into your life without destroying your ego's sensibilities? I wonder if the golden orbs don't compensate for your lack of valuing such imagination and aesthetics in yourself? See our tape about MEN IN MEN'S DREAMS.

Response to rob's dream:

Dear Rob,

It is as if this dream invites you to explore your fear of flying. How is it different to be in the "middle" of the plane than in the "front"? What do you associate with the sharp incline of take-off? Might it be that taking an actual flight puts you in touch with how "ungrounded", not in the "middle", you might be in your everyday life? Are you too high up in some way? What images does your fear evoke? Falling? Going even higher? Use Active Imagination to carry through with the fantasy: what happens if the worst happens? Write down whatever images come to you. Go through the fear. See our tape about BIRDS AND OTHER FLYING CREATURES as well as Tape II on ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response to Michael Smith's dream:

Dear Mike,

Yes, the dream catcher weavings which you see around are imitations of American Indian totems..and I think it is the Ojibwa tribe; I am not sure. We hope to use that as a metaphor for the mind itself being the intact web for catching messages from the unconscious. Regarding your teeth. What is the conflict between your bottom teeth and your top teeth? Maybe you could get at it through making associations with "top" and "bottom"? Do you have a "top": and a "bottom" ego position? Teeth are about being able to bite into life, into the material which feeds one...A strong ego is able to "bite into" a situation or into unconscious material (feelings, dreams, fantasies, etc.) and chew on them until they can be assimilated. Your dream says that the conflict between "top" and "bottom" is breaking up that capacity for you. Write an active imagination between your top teeth and your bottom teeth. What are the basic conflicts in your psyche? Look at our tape on MEN IN MEN'S DREAMS.

Response to Aimee Ault's dream:

This dream reflects a feeling of being exposed, Aimee. Whenever we appear "undressed," it is helpful for us to look at our real life to see where we feel vulnerable and exposed. Having no pants on might indicate that the exposure or vulnerability is in the sexual area. Since it is about sixth grade that we really start to mature sexually, I would suggest that you really examine this as an area of vulnerability.

Response to Stacey Flanagan's dream:

Dear Stacey,

The key to understanding your dream is to figure out what "smoking" means to your unconscious. List at least five personal associations to the word. Then, think about what message your unconscious is trying so hard to give you, substituting your own associations in the dream.

The Dictionary of Mythology, Fokelore and Dream Symbols has the following to say about smoke: "Anger, darkness, destruction, disease, punishment, obscurity. Dream significance: deep sorrow or painful worries. It is a Christian symbol of vanity.

Your own associations are the ones that count. Put them back in the dream story. Do you get a clearer picture about something that is really happening in your life?

I want you to try your hand at interpreting your dreams and send it to me.

Name it:

What is the primary feeling of the dream:

List the characters :

List the other key elements.

Make at least five associations with each of the characters and key elements.

Now, retell the dream story substituting your associations for each character and key element.

Send me this directly and I will comment on your analysis. I want to help you learn to do this yourself.

Response to Mark Henderson's dream:

Dear Mark,

Read the article now posted in the Dream Circle on our site. It explains the difference between the objective and subjective level of dream interpretation. Briefly, this "person" holding you back who becomes more aggressive when you "land on him" (is the dream punning?) can be either a real person in your life or a masculine part of yourself which is not fully integrated.

Look around in your life to see if there is real person who fits the description (a male "holding you back" whom you have the ability to "land on" in some way. If there truly is not anyone, then think about the undeveloped masculine parts of yourself. Have you watched our videotape, MEN IN MEN'S DREAMS? This tape really gives you a lot of suggestions about dealing with these shadow masculine parts.

In your real waking life, do you have the feeling that you are "in a race" in some way? In your dream, you are in a boat...this seems to be a small individual craft...such a boat usually indicates a situation where you are pretty much alone, in control of a conscious process, but "floating" in the water of the unconscious. Then the race seems to shift, from the water (the unconscious) to land. There is some kind of hurdle to overcome, and "somebody" is holding you back. Is this a part of yourself...or someone in your life?

When you "fall" on them, they become more agressive.

You think the "race ends" at your home (in your personal, individual abode), but it doesn't...it ends somewhere else. The somewhere else seems to have something to do with the town or neighborhood.

This kind of dream feels like a reflection of something that is going on in your life. You will know what it is. The warning I see is that you need to understand that the ending is not as personal as you now think, it is more general, more to do with a larger piece of society than just your personal home.

Good luck with whatever the race is!

Response to John Day's dream:

The first thing to understand about a dream is that it speaks symbolically, not literally. In this dream you "are insane and kill everybody." At that point in your life, the unconscious was doing one of two things: 1. it was reflecting how you felt about yourself and other people...you felt crazy and as though you wanted to "kill" every body (that means stop them, change them) or 2. you were pretending (maybe even fooling yourself) into thinking everything was fine, but really underneath you were feeling pretty bad and repressing it so it came out in your dream. Sometimes when we kill people in a dream, we are desperately trying to change something in ourselves and our dream expresses it as a "killing"; since the "people" in our dreams are usually parts of ourself, we need to look first at what is happening to the other parts of ourself. Whichever message the dream had for you then, it was pretty unhappy time for you. I hope it is past.

Response to Natalie's dream:

In our dreams the other people usually represent parts of ourself. Do some associations with your friend: When I think of my friend I think about __________ or qualities my friend has are ______________, ______________, _______________ or describe the kind of person your friend is.

Now think about these qualities as an aspect of your own self. How was that part of yourself sad at the time. That part needed comfort. How could you comfort and soothe that part of yourself. Can you close your eyes and really picture comforting yourself as you comforted your friend?

This is a dream that is giving you some advice about how to know yourself and how to take care of yourself.

Response to Mel's dream:

Do five or six associations with "elevators." When I think of elevators, I think of 1_______________ 2)_____________ 3)______________ 4)_______________etc.

When I think of elevators, I think of going up or of going down. In the language of the psyche, going up means to go into your head, to think. Going down means going into the unconscious, into your "grounding," into feelings.

The places in your dreams seem to be places where there are a lot of people, where values of the collective or of society control. There is a lto going on in these places that you want to get away from. But your dreams say that the problem about your getting way from these places is that the "elevators" don't work.

I would think that means there is a lot going on the "other people" part of your life that you would like to get away from. Some of it appears genuinely threatening to you and to the "friendly" parts of yourself. However, you are unable to move "up and down." In what way are you cut off from your thinking and feeling in real life? How would your really thinking things through and figuring out how YOU really feel about things change your life for the better.

These dreams warn you that it is time to do that.

Response to true's dream:

Since people in our dreams usually represent parts of ourself, it is important to do associations with the person to see what aspects of ourself they might represent. List five qualities of your boyfriend: what kind of person is he? When you think about him as a person, what do you think of?

Can you picture these qualities as decribing a masculine part of yourself? In your dream, you are in a part of your psyche (your house, but not your house) where there is a party going on. Here, you are "stoned" and he is "stoned." In what part of your life, psyche are you really out of it?

Here, your "secret" is exposed and the masculine companion betrays you over and over and over.

This dream warns you about a negative complex that is centered in this part of your life where you exist "stoned." Good things don't happen here. You need to become more conscious, more aware so that you can change this.

Good luck!

Response to heidi's dream:

You need to do associations with the friend in the dream and with the "teacher"/witch. Questions that help you do associations are, When I think about her, I think about____________________; Some qualities she has are__________________; She reminds me of _____________________________. People in dreams are usually parts of our own psyche, and we need to observe "people" as aspects of our own psyche that are acting or demanding or doing in relation to our conscious ego.

In this dream, as a result of your participating in an "experiment with energy" (what could this mean in your real life?) you "fly." Flying in a dream usually indicates that we are "too high" in relation to something that is going on in our life; it usually symbolizes an ego inflation of some kind. Whatever it is in your life is somehow associated with this witch/teacher. Watch out!

The part of yourself that is like the "betraying friend" is still demanding of your conscious ego. But the dream shows an appropriate response on your part to these demands: you agree to do the part that interests you, but not to take on the job that really belongs to "her". This is good advice...an image of your placing appropriate limits.

Perhaps the dream segments are arranged in the order they are to show an inappropriate, then an appropriate response to an aspect of yourself. It would be easy for you to "participate," but then you "fly."

The question of appropriate limits is a difficult one in life. This dream gives you some warnings and solutions!

Response to Marlene Hawes's dream:

Dear Marlene:
Did you send another dream about a Christ figure and a red cardinal? I think you would do well to do some research about cardinals, both in the church and in nature. Also have you thought that this image might be compensatory to a more dogmatic message that you attend to, coming out of Jesus' mouth? It suggests a more natural and beautiful message of renewal. Since the image is with you again it is particularly important. Pay attention...Find pictures of cardinals, draw them...read about them. See our tape on BIRDS AND OTHER FLYING CREATURES.

Response to Paula's dream:

Dear Paula:
In what way are your living your life in such a way that it is as if you are back in that old apartment? What do you associate with that time and place? How is the "ghost" of your mother operating in your psyche now? The "useasy feeling" seems to involve both your mother and your husband: what qualities do you associate with each of them. How would they get along? Does the dream show you in what way you might be acting like your mother in relationship to your husband, thereby creating "uneasy feeling"? See our tapes on RELATIONSHIP and WOMEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS.

Response to Susan Banks's dream:

Dear Susan:
The dream points out that you are not present to your "fire"...you are not related to that primal energy in yourself...being unconscious of such a strong force in oneself...being up in the trees, as it were, is murder...One is to be responsible to and for her emotions and her energy. It is imperative that you get conscious of your feelings and own them. If you generally have trouble being in touch with your "fire"..seek professional help..find a trusted psychotherapist and talk to her/him.

Response to Cyndi's dream:

Dear Cyndi:
What is it that you find so attractive about this singer? Write down the qualities that you associate with him...those might be the qualities in yourself..also in a loved one...that you would like to be held by. Let yourself know those qualities in yourself. How might you find that place in you who could love you for who you are rather than for a certain way of looking? How can you love your own particular way of being? Most dreams are not telpathic, so don't spend your life waiting for Duran Duran...but do spend some time thinking about developing those qualities you admire so much. See our beginning two tapes about RELATING TO YOUR DREAMS.

Response to Anna's dream:

Dear Anna:
What season of the year is it in which this dream recurrs? what do you associate with that season? The dream says that your soul resides behind your heart...heart generally symbolizes feeling, emotion, values...so your soul is behind what you love, value, want in a personal way. Have it out with this evil force...take with you whatever talisman, helper, personal guide that you may need. Ask him what he wants of you? Listen to what he says.. Write it all down. Tell him what you want that might be different than his values. Stand your ground. See our tape on MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS. You might also find help in Linda Leonard's book, ON THE WAY TO THE WEDDING.

Response to Bill Caver's dream:

Dear Bill:
At the end of this dream, you walk off the end of the pier into the water...no fear, just amazed at the purity of the water...How do you feel about such an ending? I wonder about the appropriateness of your action and wonder if the dream warns you that you may be walking "off the deep end" not noticing the danger to yourself. The pure, clear water is very attractive, but can also be perilous if not related to appropriately. Would you not be afraid if such an event happened in your daily life? Work with the dream. Write associations to Dave, business office, double doors ( double motives?) , the pure, clear water. In the dream Dave tells you to walk out to the water and wait. You do not wait. After substituting your associations for the images in the dream and rereading it, rewrite the dream and see what would happen if you do what you are instructed to do: wait. See our tape on MEN IN MEN'S DREAMS.

Response to Rick Boyer's dream:

You should view the tornado in a symbolic manner (as you should view everything in dreams!). Our dreams use a symbolic language. The trick is doing both personal and cultural/archetypal associations with these key elements to uncover their meaning/message in the real waking world.

Do five associations with a tornado (don't think about the dreams). In real life, what do you think about when you think about a tornado? List five.

With these in mind, think about the collective/cultural feeling about tornados...destructive, powerful natural forces which seem to behave in a random manner. One never knows when or where the funnel will set down and destroy everything. So there is a particularly strong feeling that it is out of one's control; maybe a feeling of impotency is triggered.

Put these associations (your personal ones plus these broader ones) in your dream stories. What is going on in your life that is bringing you near to this threatening kind of influence? Do your dreams provide a clue for your actions to escape or neutralize this? It seems to me that your dream about the broken gun that belonged to a father (some pattern of "broken" masculinity that you too may have to deal with) is what directed the tornado to you. You might be really helped in dealing with this by watching our tape, MEN IN MEN'S DREAMS. It has a lot of material about the father and the problems men have to deal with in our culture...and some suggestions and solutions.

These are powerful dreams. Don't ignore them! The fact that they are reoccurring means this problem really needs your attention.

Response to Jonathan's dream:

Whenever there is an animal in our dreams, we need to make associations with the animal to discover the meaning of the dream. An animal usually represents some deeper part of ourself, an instinct or qualitiy that we associate with the particular animal we are dreaming about.

Make at least five associations, qualities, etc. with your dog. Now look at those associations to see what you need to understand about yourself. When a quality or aspect like this is "shooting" at us, it is trying to "enter" us like a bullet. It wants recognition and acceptance...it wants to be in your mind! It can represent a quality or instinct that we are repressing, that we need to pay attention to.

You expect to get some help from some male aspect (do associations with Bill D.) that is 25? What might 25 be besides someone's age? Age was what I thought about.

The message of the dream is fairly clear. Pay attention to the quality or instinct that your dog reminds you of! It will stay or become hostile to you unless you focus on it!

Response to Magenta's dream:

Remember that dreams speak in a symbolic language.

To interpret the language of a dream, we must do our personal associations. These associations are then substituted into the dreamstory . Pick out the key elements: for example, Fred, the two strange boys, belts, rape, police. Beside each of these list five qualities, things, feelings, etc. that it reminds you of (in waking life...don't think about the dream at this stage).

Now substitute these back in the story in place of Fred, the boys, belts, etc. and read the new story.

I will make some general observations...but remember your associations control.

There are two types of masculine in your dream, one is helpful and one is threatening. A rape is a penetration. this means some aspect of the masculine wants to get into you. This is probably something about men that you devalue that wants you to think about it as valuable...maybe to accept as a part of yourself...your inner masculine may not be valued unless it takes the form of whatever kind of masculine Fred represents. The "police" usually represent the collective view of the "guarding" masculine...the collective values of the adult male guardians in your life. They are not helpful to you.

I think this dream is calling to you to accept some part of your inner masculine that is threatening and contains a little bit of a warning that you have to be careful not to lose the "Fred" aspect as you reevaluate your present limited view of the masculine. Our videotapes MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS and THE INNER OTHER might help you address this issue.

This dream is valuable. Listen to it!

Response to Ron L.'s dream:

You should view the tornado in a symbolic manner (as you should view everything in dreams!). Our dreams use a symbolic language. The trick is doing both personal and cultural/archetypal associations with these key elements to uncover their meaning/message in the real waking world.

Do five associations with a tornado (don't think about the dreams). In real life, what do you think about when you think about a tornado? List five.

With these in mind, think about the collective/cultural feeling about tornados...destructive, powerful natural forces which seem to behave in a random manner. One never knows when or where the funnel will set down and destroy everything. So there is a particularly strong feeling that it is out of one's control; maybe a feeling of impotency is triggered.

Put these associations (your personal ones plus these broader ones) in your dream stories. What is going on in your life that is bringing you near to this threatening kind of influence? Do your dreams provide a clue for your actions to escape or neutralize this?

These are powerful dreams. Don't ignore them! The fact that they are reoccurring means this problem really needs your attention.

Response to Sheila Devaney's dream:

Dear Sheila:
What do you associate with this house?...wood floors and washed walls? Write down your associations. What was your life like at three years old? at 18? Also, what happened in your life 3 years ago? eighteen years ago? Write down these associations. What do you associate with biker outfit? How do you feel about it? In what way do you see that you are indeed like this dream-boy, man? Write these ideas down. Write dow the numbers...play with them. Sometimes numbers are very specific, sometimes they are the most mysterious message in a dream. It is hard not to take them as literal prediction, etc. They are also symbolic, it may be a long time before you understand them What might those numbers mean to you is you associate them with something other than the telephone? Address? age? dates? See our tape on MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS. Substituting your asspciations, see what meaning you can weave out of the dream. Write a dialogue with this man. Ask him what he wants of you? Let him speak, follow the instructions about ACTIVE IMAGINATION in our tape by that title.

Response to Lane's dream:

Dear Lane:
This dream has such a drastic shift in feeling-tone...from bucolic peaceful nostalgia to terrifying angst...Name the dream...Look at the parallel suggested between the present-tense activity and your early childhood. Was you childhood frought with such dangerous crossings with you father in the midst of what looked so peaceful? What is it about that early part of your life do you need to re-experience? re-visit? What might the dream tell you about the dangers inherent in becoming to nostaligic? How might you re-write both scenes to accomodate to the dangers inherent in any journey? to keep yourself safe? Perhaps you could write a poem about a country road to help express the feeling shift in the dream. See our tape about ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response to Janelle's dream:

You need to do some associations to find the meaning of this dream. Do as least five associations with each of the following (doing associations means listing things the element makes you think about, reminds you of, or makes you feel):

1. answering the door

2. balloons

3. crying (without sound)

4. crying (with sound)

5. red

The balloons become "people" when you "blow them up." Think about that pun! Does the combination of your associations with ballons with some people in your life or with some parts of yourself make any sense to you?

Whenever something appears in duplicate in a dream, it may signal something from the unconscious that is about to surface. Whatever this is in your psyche has to do with "crying" and with "red." When I think of red, I think of blood (menstruation?) or of passion. Is something related to one of those in your life about to "blow up" and cause a great deal of sadness?

Your dreams have an intelligence that can help you and that can warn you. Listen to it!

Response to Tommy's dream:

Response #1:

Dear Tommy:

This is the kind of dream in which one is forced to see his shadow....what you would never do, you are doing! that the dream is recurring makes it imperative that you face its messages. In what way might you and your friend be "robbing a bank"? What do qualities do you associate with "friend"? What do you associate with "bank"? That the police officer is shot and killed might symbolize your complete negation of you own rules..boundaries.."the law". What are the clures you have left behind? What are you feeling afraid of getting caught at? What "robbery" might your ego (you as dreamer) have pulled on the "bank" (your storage of money, or energy)? the anxiety about getting caught is so great that you consider killing off whatever fyour friend means to you also. Maybe you can identify with this "taking" part of you by writing a monologue as the bank robber: I am the one who robs the bank and I ........I kill off the police.... Then write as "the police": I am the police and I.....

In myths and fairy tales, stealing is often the way the hero becomes conscious...Prometheus stole fire from the gods. Hermes steals cattle from Apollo. Archetypally, stealing is the process by which one level of consciousness ( in this case, the dreamer, your ego) gains access to a larger level (the bank). Every gain in conscousness produces a certain level of guilt and anxiety...It is as if we are tempted to become more conscious and then are fearful that we will be punished by the "gods" for our newly gained consciousness. Do something with this dream. Write monologues as I have suggested. Write what would happen if you got caught. See our tape on MEN IN MEN'S DREAMS, about facing one's shadow. And also look at ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response #2:

Dreams speak symbolically. To understand their language we must do associations and then substitute our associations back in the story to get the point of the message the unconscious is so "desperately" trying to make.

It would really help you to watch the first tape in our series, THE LANGUAGE OF DREAMS. It is RELATING TO YOUR DREAMS: THE METHOD.

In this dream, you need to underline each of the key elements and do at least five associations with each element. Associations: what does the person remind you of, what do you think about when you think about him or it...qualities...feelings.

In this dream, you need to do associations with your friend, bank, robbery, killing. It is your own personal associations that control the real meaning to you.

I will give you some of my thoughts. The primary characters in the dream are you (your dream ego) and your male friend. What are the masculine characteristics that the two of you represent. In this drama those masculine qualities are "acting together." They are cooperating. Is your friend like you? Is he different from you in "the kind" of man that he is? Look at this as parts of yourself. These qualities are joining togther in a way that "kills" another man. What part of your masculine self has been killed, deadened, desensitized by the cooperation of these other qualities? A part of you is pretty upset about this...is afraid, threatened, concerned about being found out.

I think it would be helpful for you to consider what part of yourself has been so left out or disposed of. Even if it is negative, a recognition of it is necessary for you to achieve wholeness. There is something about the Shadow that is bothering you on a very deep level...our Shadow is our undeveloped potential, negative and positive.

This dream is warning you that you need to pay attention to your Shadow. Listen to it!

Response to Spiderwoman's dream:

Dear Spiderwoman:
So your feet just won't let you get into that marble church! I remembered the talk of "backsliders" in fundamentalism and laughed. How do you feel about the church? What qualities do you associate with marble? cold, hard, old, stable? These are the "steps" that your feet just won't take. Have a dialogue with your feet. Ask them why they won't go up the marble steps. Write down what they say in return. And listen to them. Respond with your concerns about not going in. Ask your feet where they do want to go. See our tape about ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response to Buddha's dream:

Dear Buddha:
I see that you have done a great deal of thinking about the dream since you have recorded it. Please try now to think of it symbolically rather than so concretely. Write personal associations (memories evoked, synonyms, adjectives, experiences, feelings ) about the major elements in the dream: the wall, 10 year old child, woman with white scarf, elderly man with native American headdress, Henrik, Tibetans, tneel, etc. Now try substituting these associations for the images in the dream. What in you is like the Great Wall of China...with only the smallest opening...filled with snow( or very frozen feeling). The dream invites you to bvreak through this wall and meet some repressed, forgotten elements in yourself...the ten year old child and the white-scarffed woman. What was your life like at ten years old? What might have happened to you ten years ago? What is so frightening about this pair? In what way are you like a Tibetan...a refugee in exile? There seem to be two guiding forces in your psyche..Henrik, your own native Danish wisdom and spiritual heritage and the elderly native American man. What spiritual paths do each of these guides represent in you? And then there is your identity with the Eastern Buddha? Might the dream invite you to consider "unearthing" some very native spiritual wisdom in yourself and some feelings about a woman and a child of ten? Rewrite the dream using the associations and see if this great wall in you can begin to dissolve. Imagine tunneling under...or breaking through? Which way might you choose? It seems that if you stay underground you come out like the Tibetans. What would happen if you could break down this great wall in yourself? How might you be informed by Henrik and the Indian? Record your dreams regularly and try to work with them symbolically...as inner reality. The first six tapes in our series would be inspiring to you and helpful, I bet!

Response to Dora Stewart's dream:

Dear Dora:
What would be your feeling about a wedding in a shopping center? What do you "observe" about weddings in general? Think of wedding as a joining of two opposites...What opposing ideas in you might come together in a shopping center? The "repeat" wedding gets even more casual and untraditional with the guests wearing shorts and t's..Is "shopping" a metaphor for something you are looking for? Have you had a wedding? Do you fantasize about weddings? Might you have a too-idealized illusion about weddings that the dream image balances? Imagine a shopping center wedding. Wrtie out the fantasy. Write out your fantasy of the wedding you would want. How do these fantasies compare? Write your dreams regularly and respond to them with some kind of active imagination.

Response to Rob Houser's dream:

Dear Rob:
Yes, dreams do put together what seem like the most incongruous things...but in the unconscious, everything belongs together. Dreams use concrete images for metaphoric language...dreams make us conscious of what we have repressed or left out or mis-perceived in our everyday lives...not "just short-circuits" but very specific circuitry. What did you make of her dream? What does she associate with "shower"? She is in the "shower" and you guys still have your clothes on...You are not even in the "shower"...Is there someway she experiences herself really getting into, really getting wet, with the work and you two not? Might the dream reveal some personal, perhaps sexual energy she feels toward you and is not able to bring forth? How might she be more "in it" or revealed in ways which you and your friend are not? You are young..where is the sexual energy? You might all find meaning in our tapes about the MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS and WOMEN IN MEN'S DREAMS.

Response to Jill's dream:

Response #1:

Dear Jill:
Sorry we missed your earlier dream. The question in this dream seems to be is your boyfriend dead or not? Have you accepted the reality that the relationship with him is dead? On the other hand, the newspaper and so on, seem to say "He", the relationship is not dead. You seem to keep grieving the end of the relationship and then starting the fantasy of connection with him again. Does the dream reflect your difficulty with separating from somebody and really letting it go (letting it die)? Death often symbolizes separation...we must let some things die in order to get on with our lives. Perhaps you are, or were, too identified with this person, and you need to let his influence on you die...and you can't quite do that. What qualities do you associate with the male figure? How are you like those qualities? How might you develop a relationship to the "man" in yourself...your power, your creativity, your assertiveness? See our tape MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS.

Response #2:

A dream seldom speaks literally. It speaks in symbols that we need to interpret in order to learn what message the unconscious is allowing to surface.

The way we figure out what these symbols mean is by making associations with them. Generally, I would direct you to go through the dream and to underline the key elements, then move to the associations. Here, the similarity of these dreams seems to indicate that there are only two elements that you need to work with: 1. Your ex-boyfriend 2. Death

List the qualities of this boy/man. What kind of person was he? One or two words for each quality. What do you think of when you think about him as a person?

Now think about these qualities in yourself. Do they appear to be "dead"?

Associate or substitute other words for death...for example, gone, underground, change, etc.

Other people tell you that these qualities are "dead." This is very disturbing to you. You learn (or know on a deep level) that this is not true.

There seems to me to be a real caution in this dream not to listen to other people who "know" things about you. Trust yourself...and look for those qualities within that appear to be dead. If they are good qualities, let them surface and express them. If they are negative, look squarely at the fact they exist in you and respectfully accept that shadow part of youself, knowing that "you" can decide what is appropriate to express in real life.

Response to Justin's dream:

Response #1:

Dear Justin:
Think of at least six synonyms for the word "executed". Write them down. Substitute these synonyms for "executed" in the dream and see if it begins to have meaning. Perhaps you are facing some very frightening life change right now? What has to be "executed"? Write your dreams regularly and keep a dream journal with your assocaiotns and your feeling response to the dreams. See our Tape I.

Response #2:

Whenever we are to be "killed" in some manner, this is usually a message from the unconscious that we need to "end" some conscious ego attitude that we have. Sometimes it predicts a dramatic change in the way we look at life or in the way we live life. Is there something you know that needs to be changed?

You should do associations with the "electric chair." It is interesting that your psyche uses this as a metaphor for what will bring about this change, or death. Electronic makes me think of computers, electronic devices, etc. What does it make you think of? This is a clue as to where to look for the agent that will cause the change.

Good luck!

Response to Stephanie's dream:

Response #1:

Dear Stephanie:
If you are serious that you feel "crazy", find some professional help..call a psychotherapist and talk about your situation. It seems thatin this dream you are living in a world of "castles, moats, and vampirism". How might your consciousnes, perhaps about men, in particular, be caught in a medieval frame? It is as if your fear, symbolized by your "being chased" turns you into a vampire in return. How might you face your fears more directly? Imagine facing whoever is chasing you. Ask them what they want from you. Listen to what they say. You are not in the castle, just in the moat. What attitudes and feelings do you have that keep you "in the moat"? In a symbolic way, I wonder if you don't need to "bite into" the masculine in order to get more solid ground in your psyche; perhaps in order to get out of a kind of fairy-tale consciousness. The blood is real life...maybe that's what you need to get your teeth into. See our tape on MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS.

Response #2:

You are not crazy!

Dreams speak in symbolic language. This one is simply bringing its message in a way that gets your attention!

If money is not a problem, you really should watch our first videotape which gives you a step by step METHOD to analyze your dreams, then tape three, MEN IN WOMEN's DREAMS.

You dream vividly. Dreams have intelligence that can help us live our life in a more stable, balanced manner. I'm not going to go through the whole METHOD because it is too lengthy, but I want to hit some highlights so that you have help with this dream.

The setting of this dream is something you should notice. It is a castle...an ancient time...an archaic time for your psyche. This speaks to the "oldness" of the pattern you are dealing with in your psyche.

You are dealing with the common pattern of the threatening man that appears in many women's dreams. You should do associations with this man. List five things he makes you think of. What qualities are you fearful of? If the nam is known to you, describe the kind of man he is. If he is unknown to you, what do unknown men like this remind you of. What do you think of when you consider him? These are the qualities that you are frightened of in the masculine. You think they want to hurt you.

Your struggle in the dream results in your killing him...but in a way that suggests a solution to your problem. You "get your teeth" in him and "drink his blood." You need to get "your teeth" in this issue and really take in the essence of what it is you are fearful of. If you are able to do this, you will be able to change (kill) the threat you feel.

Listen to this dream and spend some time really analyzing the fear you feel, where it comes from, why it is there. Take this in and digest it...and you will see some good changes in your life.

Response to Pumpkin Seeds's dream:

Response #1:

Dear Pumpkin Seeds:
What activity do you share with your Dad that might be threatening to take you "over the edge"? This rather pleasant "hell" world has a tricky system...what does "A", F%7, etc. mean to you? Are those figures a clue about what activity this might be? Do you feel anxious with your Dad? It seems that the real drawback to being in "hell" is loss of contact with your mother; you can't communicate with her from there. Think of what you might be doing that creates this kind of anxiety and pleasure combination. Create an imaginal way to stay " on the road" at the beginning of the dream. Where would you go if your dad heeded your warning and did not go too close to the edge? Write that dream. Look at our tapes on ACTIVE IMAGINATION and MEN IN MEN'S DREAMS

Response #2:

This must have been a disturbing dream. I want you to work through it piece by piece. Do this in the following order:

1. Name the dream (one or two words). This helps focus on the message as a whole. 2. What is the feeling of the dream? Again, one or two words. 3. Now underline the key elements: for example, Dad, car, no guard rails, water, hell, devil, mother, etc. 4. Beside each of the key elements, list five associations (what you think about when you think of......, what qualities he or she or it has, what they remind you of). 5. Then go back to the dream stry and insert these associations. That will give you your own personal meaning.

Let me give you some of my thoughts, which MUST be incomplete because I do not know your personal associations or life context.

One of the issues in this dream is whether or not your "mom and dad" refer to your actual parents or to that part of your inner self that is identified with each of them. You should look at the dream from both angles after you have done the associations to see which feels right to you.

Being in a car with somebody can mean being "with" them in some kind of energy or motivation way or with them in some project or activity. your "father" is driving this car in a way that scares you. He (or that part of yourself) does not listen to your warnings and you "fall off" the cliff (sometimes indicates a too high or unrealistic view of where you are). You are plunged into the water (unconscious or intense feelings). This is not pleasant.

Then you are in hell.

Your dream seems to indicate that if you can communicate with your mother about where you are that you can get some help. But "the devil" interferes.

Dreams have an intelligence that we can draw on to help us in life. This dream points to communication with your "mother" as a source of help.

Listen to it!

Response to Laura Frost's dream:

Dear Laura:
The blonde child with eyes in his mouth and ear is very interesting. Draw him...Perhaps if you can develop a realtionship with this ability to see, you won't need to be so afraid and running away so much. What was so needing to be run from in your high school experience? This little "seer" might help you understand yourself and your environment more clearly...helop you "see" what yuou need to see. Look at our tape on ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response to Stephanie's dream:

Dear Stephanie:
This dream demonstrates that we can experience more than one state of being at the same time...you are dead, you are observing, you are being bitten, you are aware...What do you associate with the metaphor of "being dead"..."being killed", "being bitten"? How have you been "killed"? Are you depressed? Do you feel "dead" There are two other forces in the dream: the one lying next to you and the wall honeycombed with snakes. Who is the person lying next to you? Imagine it if you don't know. What is the "wall" in your life? It is as if you are paralyzed with acold, deadly fear between the wall and the person next to you in bed. The wall of snakes is a symbol of a lot of energy...the snakes are not in a writhing mess; there are neatly compartmentalized in the wall...If you thinnk of snake as basic psyche energy, basic life force, what is strange is that the being bitten by the snakes does not bring you to life? If the snakes are a temptation to consicousness, what might that bring to life? If you are feeling as dead as you are in the dream, you might seek profesisonal help to process your life situation. See our tape on SNAKES and on ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response to Tammy's dream:

Dear Tammy:
This is a very long and complicated dream..so I will just touch on a few points. Take time to go through the dream and write associations to the major elements....kittens, Wal-mart, ghosts, Lurch, Grandpa, 11 years old...books about spirits..And substitute these associations for the images in the dream. Basically, I wonder if there is some resistance to going to work in you...wanting to get paid for taking care of kittens, as welll as Lurch... or is this theme a compensation for your working way too hard? Then there is your interest in the spirit world..the idea of ghosts and do you believe in them or not? what do you think about that? What "haunts" the bathroom at Wal-mart? What attitude, memory, experience haunts you from there? What might you write about? Have you read Isabell Allende's HOUSE OF THE SPIRITS? Write your dreams every morning and work with them. You will find help in our tapes I and II.

Response to Sal's dream:

Response #1:

Dear Sal:
It seems that Mr. Lincoln guides you in fixing up an old haunted house. Think of the house as a mirror of your Self. What do you associate with Abe Lincoln? He was certainly a hero for many of us. Write down what he means to you. Now substitute those qualities for him in the dream...those are the qualities in yourself which can help you rebuild your sense of self...fix up and renew your self. What is your house haunted by? what ghosts of the past might limit you? Write a letter to yourself from Abe Lincoln..pretend...and then write to him, asking whatever you might want to know..asking for whatever encouragement you might need. Keep this dialogue going in a journal. This Mr. Lincoln is a very wise and powerful force in your psyche who can always be your personal guide. See our tape on ACTIVE IMAGINATION.

Response #2:

The way to understand this dream is to look at each of the key elements and do associations which you substitute back in the dream story. An old house usually signifies an old psychological situation. Does this particular old house have personal meaning to you? If not, "look" at the old house and do associations with it to obtain clues as to which psychological situation it may be referring to.

Clearly, Mr. Lincoln is a key element. Do your personal associations first. Then consider his role in "preserving the union." Is he giving you assistance here to integrate a past psychological split-off? His advice seems to indicate a solution that involves "nailing" something down and "repainting?

What in your life needs to be "nailed" down or "remodeled"? The personal associations you have done will help you to focus on the past problem that needs some attention in your current life.

The fact that the house is "haunted" speaks to how much you are still bothered on a deep level by this"old house."

Your dream gives you some very positive help with this old situation. Listen to it!

Response to Pilar's dream:

Dear Pilar:

What would it mean to you to find a lock of grey hair in your beautiful brown hair? Look at our tape on FEMALE ADORNMENT. Make associations with "brown hair" and with "grey hair" and then substitute these associations in the dream.

Response to Kell Allman's dream:

Dear Kell:

You might find some ideas in our tape on TRANSPORTATION.. "car" is usually a sysbol for our way of getting around, our energy carrier..I wonder if you find it hard to 'PUT ON THE BRAKES", to "stay in the driver's seat"? Do you have trouble managing your energy and your motivation...sometimes "get carried away", etc.? When you fell yourself having trouble telling your dreams from reality, you might do well to seek professional help...That kind of confusion can be very disorienting and debilatating..See a psychotherapist in your area.

Response to Joan's dream:

Dear Joan:

The nerve of him! What do you associate with Al Pacino? Might the dream correct for some image you have of yourself as glamorous and romantic? Maybe you are a little more human than your ego wants to deal with? What would happen if you accept his advice and "brush your teeth"? Then would he "kiss" you some more? Play with the dream and feel into its "deflation". Are you afraid that you would be unacceptable as a romantic interest to a glamorous man? Does your own masculine turn on you in that way, pointing out flaws just when you are feeling intact? See our MEN IN WOMEN'S DREAMS tape.

Response to Janet Thiessen's dream:

Dear Janet:

Yes, sometimes dreams prepare us for the future. I assume you did not get hurt in the bombing in Atlanta? How did the bombing hurt you? What about your "shoulder"? "Shouldering" responsibility? Your husband notices that you are hurt and advises that you get help. What might he, or your own inner masculine, see that you need help with? Look at the details of the dream in a personal way as well as feeling the connection with other people which you do. Precognition is a burdensome and questionable gift! See Tape I and II about the other functions of dreams.