The Psychological Dream Interpreters

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The Psychological Dream Interpreters

 

 

1. The Sigmund Freud Approach to Dreams

 

Freud remains one of the most influential figures of the 20th

century. Freud's basic insight that our minds preserve memories and

emotions which are not always consciously available to us has

transformed the way humanity views itself ever since. Freud said that

there had been three great humiliations in human history: Galileo's

discovery that we were not the center of the universe, Darwin's

discovery that we were not the crown of creation, and his own

discovery that we are not in control of our own minds.

 

The tendency of modern people to trace their problems to childhood

traumas or other repressed emotions begins with Freud. One of Freud's

more important discoveries is that emotions buried in the unconscious

surface in disguised form during dreaming, and that the remembered

fragments of dreams can help uncover the buried feelings. Whether the

mechanism is exactly as Freud describes it, many people have derived

insights into themselves from studying their dreams, and most modern

people consider dreams emotionally significant, unlike our ancestors

who often saw them either as divine portents or as the bizarre side-

effects of indigestion.

 

Freud argues that dreams are wish-fulfillments, and will ultimately

argue that those wishes are the result of repressed or frustrated

sexual desires. The anxiety surrounding these desires turns some

dreams into nightmares.

 

 

2. The Carl Jung Approach to Dreams

 

Carl Jung is one of the most respected and recognized psychologists

of all time. Many people know Jung as one of Sigmund Freud's

followers and co-workers. Jung's emphasis in the field in psychology

had to do with dreams. Jung developed many theories about dreams, a

lot of them disagreeing with Freud. Jung was a great psychologist and

psychiatrist that changed the ways of psychology today.

 

Jung thought that dreams were a tool to help us grow, not just to

release extreme sexual desires. Jung felt that dreams were more than

about sex, they were about life. Jung said that sexual drive doesn't

even motivate us as much as the fear of death. Jung was an

inspiration to all in the psychology field. His theories are

instrumental in psychology and psychiatry fields today. He was a

brilliant man not afraid to stand on his own for what he believed in.

 

It was Jung, a contemporary of Edgar Cayce's, who found convincing

evidence for a deep level to the unconscious mind. This profound

depth, Jung felt, came from a genuine spiritual reality that hadn't

been acknowledged by Freud. Jung called this level the " collective

unconscious. " Here all minds could communicate through the use of

universal symbols - images which seem to have a common meaning among

people all over the world.

 

For example, a symbol such as a lion or a great cat has a universal

or archetypal meaning of power and vitality. Birds frequently

symbolize various kinds of love or concern; water is often suggestive

of the Spirit itself. An old woman or an old man or a grandfatherly

figure can symbolize our own " Higher Self' or our own internal

wisdom. Myths or fairy tales often have similarities among cultures,

and these similarities are shown through their universal symbols and

themes. Sometimes our own dreams may contain these kinds of

symbols.

 

Of course, not all the symbols and Images in our dreams represent the

universal or archetypal. Many, if not most, are best interpreted by

discovering the personal associations one has with that person or

object. The dream symbol of a rifle, for example, would likely mean

one thing to a gunsmith and something quite different to a victim of

war.

 

 

3. The Edgar Cayce Approach to Dreams

 

Although it is true that many of us do not make a conscious effort

to remember our dreams, everyone dreams. During the early part of

this century, while psychologists such as Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung

were demonstrating the clinical importance of dreams, Edgar Cayce was

providing average individuals with guidelines for working with what

has become one of the most practical approaches to dreams. Hundreds

of Cayce's readings deal with the subject of dreams and dream

interpretation. Perhaps the most important insights gained from the

wealth of this material is the fact that each of us is aware of much

more-about ourselves, our physical bodies, our surroundings, even our

lifestyles-at subconscious levels than we realize when we are

awake.

 

In the dream state we open our minds to many different levels of

our own unconscious. Not only are all of our previous conscious

experiences stored there, but it is also the storehouse of resources

which rarely come to conscious awareness. The subconscious has

remarkable talents for finding solutions to problems. It houses all

of our wishes, hopes, and memories of past experiences, and can also

assist us with self-examination, providing practical guidance for any

question. It even makes it possible for us to have psychic

experiences.

 

Dreams can diagnose the causes of our physical ailments, point out

the thoughts and emotions that we've tried to overlook, and often

make suggestions for improving our relationships with others. While

dreaming, we can gain awareness about our entire being: physically,

mentally, and spiritually.

 

 

 

Andrew Pacholyk LMT, MT-BC, CA

Peacefulmind.com

Alternative medicine and therapies

for healing mind, body & spirit!