04-25-2009, 03:31 PM
Hello SilentThought and All as One,
I enjoyed reading this thread and the group here has all given such great input! I appreciate the opportunity to share some of how I’ve been “using dreams in this fashion”. I have been actively working with dreams, OBE, or what I call “Journeying” for two decades now. I would call it my “primary path” or tool. I hope what I share is valuable to others. I apologize in advance for the long post, but wish to share what I can and won’t likely have time to write in detail later.
As to the uses mentioned by Ra, I think I’ve had many experiences with all of them…but I’m not sure I understand what he means by the first one, but I think I do. As I read it, and understand it, I guess I’d put it more simply as: “Issues/blocks and lessons you are learning in life appear in symbolic dreams.” Many replies to your post talked about how to work with these and there are many books of course. I’ve read quite a few books on dreaming. I was once going to write a book about dreaming until I read one that was so incredible and great that I thought, “He’s written all I wanted to and much better than I could.” I looked for it so I post it, but it’s at another house…I will endeavor to get the title and post it at a later date. IMO it makes all other books on the subject nearly obsolete.
Personally, in working with dreams I do things similar to what has been mentioned by others. A big help is to keep your eyes closed when you first awaken from a dream and review it…replay it in your mind’s eye and watch it all again. Sometimes you’ll start at the middle and then get the parts before that you didn’t recall at first. Go through it several times and try to watch and remember all of it you can…but I agree that it’s best to basically “review fast”. Certainly do not engage your mind at all in trying to make any sense of it at all at this point. Just review or replay. Also, this in-between state of awareness can sometimes help you recall dreams from previous nights that you’d lost…also be aware you can get to this same limbo state as you are falling asleep (if not too exhausted). I’ve had times I was going to sleep and actually recalled over 10 different dreams I’d had in the past weeks and had forgotten all of them. One time while replaying a dream in the morning I recalled that I’d been having the exact same dream for 3 nights in a row but had just kept forgetting it.
If it’s in the middle of the night write down a few sentences, as a summary to jog your memory in the morning or a tape recorder would be better. If it’s in the morning, after replaying it in your mind with eyes closed and not moving when you wake, grab your morning tea/coffee or whatever and go write it down. When I do this part I first close my eyes and watch it again and try to look at all the details. I do this review a bit slower then than the one in bed. Next I write it down and include every single detail I can recall. This takes a while, but it’s amazing that many times the key to understanding will be in the details. They can make a huge difference in interpretation. In other words, a symbol like house may represent your consciousness…but noting that the upstairs carpet was dirty, old, and didn’t reach the edges of the room anymore may be telling you that you higher consciousness (upstairs) has changed and expanded and it’s time to let go of some old beliefs and put in some new ones to fit your expanded awareness. So, sometimes the details provide huge clues for interpretation. As I write down the dream in detail I’m focused only on that…no attempt to ponder or analyze is made.
When that’s done, I do a very important step. I think about the type of dream or experience it was. I very much have had the same experiences and understanding as Thorne mentioned. Simply put: There are many types of experiences we can have during the night. Only one of which is what people mean when they say “dreaming”. Even within “dreams” there are differences. So, I try a first guess at what really may have happened. I think of categories as basically: STORAGE DREAM – your brain is filing away information from the days events…who cares, SYMBOLIC DREAM - to understand subconscious/ego issues (lower chakra blockages current catalysts trying to clear) so these need interpretation, HEALING EXPERIENCE – sometimes our guides, soul, or other beings can do energetic work with our various levels of being, especially if we request/ask for it prior to sleep (hint) so these usually don’t need interpreting but more just gratitude. Although often you’ll find events that day or week where you’ll continue that healing so it’s good to kinda be “informed”. Usually I find that you don’t recall the actual healing, but instead basically get a translated movie of what happened…which appears to you as a dream. PRECOGNITIVE DREAMS – Which are really more of an experience event because your awareness is journeying outside linear time/space and/or you are connecting with higher levels of self to receive this information. JOURNEYING EXPERIENCES – which can be from astral travel to journeying in the 5th density in your etheric/light body, or beyond, in higher bodies such as the spiritual or soulic. These journeys of your awareness/consciousness can be made either to the inner kingdoms or to other actual worlds/densities. These relate to “accessing the gateway to infinity” and using “dreaming” as a gateway or portal to travel/journey. GUIDANCE – These can be many and varied as to the source and type…we can get guidance from our council of guides, our own higher-self, our soul, our spiritual friends, masters, and teachers, etc. They can sometimes be like dreams, but the character is an actual entity/guide, or sometimes nearly just like a direct conversation…usually telepathic…with no visuals at all or very few…I’m reminded of what Thorne described here and have definitely had these…they are precious!
So then, at this point I’ve written it down and try to figure out if it was a symbolic dream or not in the first place. For me, it’s silly and pointless to try to analyze healing experiences or journeys…they are what they are on face. Often they are so distinct there is no confusion. Other times, I’ve found that journeys can actually appear to be dreams because I believe what happens is that as our awareness returns from higher places…basically we “encode” or “translate” the experience into more “worldly” or “normal” images and experiences. I think this is done in part to aid in recall, and in part so that we can make sense of it using our minds visuals, language, etc. If I’m confused, I’ll first try to interpret it as a symbolic dream and only if it just plain makes no sense at all that way I’ll chalk it up to being a journey. Most journeys I have are so different than dreams it’s just really obvious.
If I think it’s symbolic, I go with the basic premise that everything is a symbol of something about me, my life, or an aspect of me. Every character or person, every object…everything is to be taken as a symbol about you. It’s always all about you. Just ask yourself, “What are my thoughts/feelings about this person/thing.” And there you have the meaning. If the character is a guy you know whose a fear based skeptic, then maybe it’s referring to the part of you that’s like that…say your ego/lower self. Go through all the details and see what the symbols mean…I write a whole different section after the details for the analysis. I start at the beginning and write the meanings for it all. Then I re-read the dream now knowing the meanings and it all just sort of “clicks” and makes sense what it’s about…then I basically write that up as the summary or “moral of the story” sort of analysis. Then I ponder what to do about it if anything. Usually I’m just left with a much clearer understanding of what’s already going on in outer experiences and I have a better understanding of why I’m creating and using those catalysts. Don’t get tempted to think your dream characters are actually about them the real person. Now, if it’s a journey or a precognitive dream they certainly are about that person! That’s why it is critical for me to understand clearly if it was a symbolic dream, precognition, journey, etc.
Experiences I’ve had recently have been: I was having many journeys to some very great places in both the outer and inner worlds. Concurrently, I was having precognition dreams that were odd in that every night I’d have one, but they were more about lessons/guidance/wisdom in general. But, what was odd was that amazingly, the next day that is exactly what I’d have experiences in my life be about. It was bizarre in that I would experience it on that level at night, and then the exact same thing during the day. The difference being that at night it was the general wisdom or distilled knowledge of the experience, but during the day I lived through it and saw all the details that led to those wisdoms being gained. Ra talks about how the higher-self is a gift projected back from the 7th density to the 6th by the soul as sort of “consolidated” wisdom from all experiences. We here are still in linear time yet experiencing them…that is why the higher-self can guide and know and give the precognitions…from it’s perspective, it’s already happened or known. This happened for weeks and actually gave me both a lot of laughs and comfort as I watched every day unfold in details/experiences already knowing what I was learning through them, and kind of a very spooky de ja vu that just went on and on. The past two weeks it’s shifted to precognitions that are from 3-6 days in advance of events. These have been hugely beneficial as I’ve been dealing with very powerful catalysts and experiences…the effect is that as I’m going through the experiences I kinda have a comfort, hope, or clarity of how it is actually good, perfect and will work out fine…especially because when I’m in the midst of that it really doesn’t look like that at all. So, you get to kinda have hope and a foreknowledge of what it’s about and how it will turn out to nearly “hold your hand” as you go through the really tough stuff. Awesome and very appreciated.
The last purpose Ra mentions then is the use of dreams by the adept. That is exactly what I was talking about with “journeying” and using nighttime experiences (“dreaming”) as a portal or gateway…a portal for going through the gateway to infinity. Truly a topic/thread unto itself. Naps are great for working with that intentionally.
I know this has grown long, so I’ll close with just saying again what Thorne said that is really important and key…both to dreaming/journeying…and any other spiritual path: The more activity, awareness, intention, attention and focus of will you put into it…it will radically increase, beckon spirit, and manifest powerfully accordingly. Actually, writing down dreams and working with them each morning is better at increasing recall and their power as a path than maybe what you’ll find written on the paper…so it works unto itself! Another key I’ll share is: Each night to pray or state your intent to dream, journey, or have healing whilst you rest…as you wish. Your stated intent, choice, and asking for assistance is incredibly powerful indeed!
short answer to your question SilentThought is that I’ve had the most incredible and powerful experiences and gains by working with dreaming…as I said, it is what I would call my primary path or way…The Way of the Dreamer…it is an inner path and requires no outside tools to walk. In time, the two worlds, or dreams, actually blend into one…and the Dreamer can barely tell the difference…and when he leaves his body for the last time on this planet…he flies in awareness freely where he will, and just keeps on dreaming as though nothing at all had happened to his little shell.
I wish everyone wonderful dreams, journeys, and recall of them J
I enjoyed reading this thread and the group here has all given such great input! I appreciate the opportunity to share some of how I’ve been “using dreams in this fashion”. I have been actively working with dreams, OBE, or what I call “Journeying” for two decades now. I would call it my “primary path” or tool. I hope what I share is valuable to others. I apologize in advance for the long post, but wish to share what I can and won’t likely have time to write in detail later.
As to the uses mentioned by Ra, I think I’ve had many experiences with all of them…but I’m not sure I understand what he means by the first one, but I think I do. As I read it, and understand it, I guess I’d put it more simply as: “Issues/blocks and lessons you are learning in life appear in symbolic dreams.” Many replies to your post talked about how to work with these and there are many books of course. I’ve read quite a few books on dreaming. I was once going to write a book about dreaming until I read one that was so incredible and great that I thought, “He’s written all I wanted to and much better than I could.” I looked for it so I post it, but it’s at another house…I will endeavor to get the title and post it at a later date. IMO it makes all other books on the subject nearly obsolete.
Personally, in working with dreams I do things similar to what has been mentioned by others. A big help is to keep your eyes closed when you first awaken from a dream and review it…replay it in your mind’s eye and watch it all again. Sometimes you’ll start at the middle and then get the parts before that you didn’t recall at first. Go through it several times and try to watch and remember all of it you can…but I agree that it’s best to basically “review fast”. Certainly do not engage your mind at all in trying to make any sense of it at all at this point. Just review or replay. Also, this in-between state of awareness can sometimes help you recall dreams from previous nights that you’d lost…also be aware you can get to this same limbo state as you are falling asleep (if not too exhausted). I’ve had times I was going to sleep and actually recalled over 10 different dreams I’d had in the past weeks and had forgotten all of them. One time while replaying a dream in the morning I recalled that I’d been having the exact same dream for 3 nights in a row but had just kept forgetting it.
If it’s in the middle of the night write down a few sentences, as a summary to jog your memory in the morning or a tape recorder would be better. If it’s in the morning, after replaying it in your mind with eyes closed and not moving when you wake, grab your morning tea/coffee or whatever and go write it down. When I do this part I first close my eyes and watch it again and try to look at all the details. I do this review a bit slower then than the one in bed. Next I write it down and include every single detail I can recall. This takes a while, but it’s amazing that many times the key to understanding will be in the details. They can make a huge difference in interpretation. In other words, a symbol like house may represent your consciousness…but noting that the upstairs carpet was dirty, old, and didn’t reach the edges of the room anymore may be telling you that you higher consciousness (upstairs) has changed and expanded and it’s time to let go of some old beliefs and put in some new ones to fit your expanded awareness. So, sometimes the details provide huge clues for interpretation. As I write down the dream in detail I’m focused only on that…no attempt to ponder or analyze is made.
When that’s done, I do a very important step. I think about the type of dream or experience it was. I very much have had the same experiences and understanding as Thorne mentioned. Simply put: There are many types of experiences we can have during the night. Only one of which is what people mean when they say “dreaming”. Even within “dreams” there are differences. So, I try a first guess at what really may have happened. I think of categories as basically: STORAGE DREAM – your brain is filing away information from the days events…who cares, SYMBOLIC DREAM - to understand subconscious/ego issues (lower chakra blockages current catalysts trying to clear) so these need interpretation, HEALING EXPERIENCE – sometimes our guides, soul, or other beings can do energetic work with our various levels of being, especially if we request/ask for it prior to sleep (hint) so these usually don’t need interpreting but more just gratitude. Although often you’ll find events that day or week where you’ll continue that healing so it’s good to kinda be “informed”. Usually I find that you don’t recall the actual healing, but instead basically get a translated movie of what happened…which appears to you as a dream. PRECOGNITIVE DREAMS – Which are really more of an experience event because your awareness is journeying outside linear time/space and/or you are connecting with higher levels of self to receive this information. JOURNEYING EXPERIENCES – which can be from astral travel to journeying in the 5th density in your etheric/light body, or beyond, in higher bodies such as the spiritual or soulic. These journeys of your awareness/consciousness can be made either to the inner kingdoms or to other actual worlds/densities. These relate to “accessing the gateway to infinity” and using “dreaming” as a gateway or portal to travel/journey. GUIDANCE – These can be many and varied as to the source and type…we can get guidance from our council of guides, our own higher-self, our soul, our spiritual friends, masters, and teachers, etc. They can sometimes be like dreams, but the character is an actual entity/guide, or sometimes nearly just like a direct conversation…usually telepathic…with no visuals at all or very few…I’m reminded of what Thorne described here and have definitely had these…they are precious!
So then, at this point I’ve written it down and try to figure out if it was a symbolic dream or not in the first place. For me, it’s silly and pointless to try to analyze healing experiences or journeys…they are what they are on face. Often they are so distinct there is no confusion. Other times, I’ve found that journeys can actually appear to be dreams because I believe what happens is that as our awareness returns from higher places…basically we “encode” or “translate” the experience into more “worldly” or “normal” images and experiences. I think this is done in part to aid in recall, and in part so that we can make sense of it using our minds visuals, language, etc. If I’m confused, I’ll first try to interpret it as a symbolic dream and only if it just plain makes no sense at all that way I’ll chalk it up to being a journey. Most journeys I have are so different than dreams it’s just really obvious.
If I think it’s symbolic, I go with the basic premise that everything is a symbol of something about me, my life, or an aspect of me. Every character or person, every object…everything is to be taken as a symbol about you. It’s always all about you. Just ask yourself, “What are my thoughts/feelings about this person/thing.” And there you have the meaning. If the character is a guy you know whose a fear based skeptic, then maybe it’s referring to the part of you that’s like that…say your ego/lower self. Go through all the details and see what the symbols mean…I write a whole different section after the details for the analysis. I start at the beginning and write the meanings for it all. Then I re-read the dream now knowing the meanings and it all just sort of “clicks” and makes sense what it’s about…then I basically write that up as the summary or “moral of the story” sort of analysis. Then I ponder what to do about it if anything. Usually I’m just left with a much clearer understanding of what’s already going on in outer experiences and I have a better understanding of why I’m creating and using those catalysts. Don’t get tempted to think your dream characters are actually about them the real person. Now, if it’s a journey or a precognitive dream they certainly are about that person! That’s why it is critical for me to understand clearly if it was a symbolic dream, precognition, journey, etc.
Experiences I’ve had recently have been: I was having many journeys to some very great places in both the outer and inner worlds. Concurrently, I was having precognition dreams that were odd in that every night I’d have one, but they were more about lessons/guidance/wisdom in general. But, what was odd was that amazingly, the next day that is exactly what I’d have experiences in my life be about. It was bizarre in that I would experience it on that level at night, and then the exact same thing during the day. The difference being that at night it was the general wisdom or distilled knowledge of the experience, but during the day I lived through it and saw all the details that led to those wisdoms being gained. Ra talks about how the higher-self is a gift projected back from the 7th density to the 6th by the soul as sort of “consolidated” wisdom from all experiences. We here are still in linear time yet experiencing them…that is why the higher-self can guide and know and give the precognitions…from it’s perspective, it’s already happened or known. This happened for weeks and actually gave me both a lot of laughs and comfort as I watched every day unfold in details/experiences already knowing what I was learning through them, and kind of a very spooky de ja vu that just went on and on. The past two weeks it’s shifted to precognitions that are from 3-6 days in advance of events. These have been hugely beneficial as I’ve been dealing with very powerful catalysts and experiences…the effect is that as I’m going through the experiences I kinda have a comfort, hope, or clarity of how it is actually good, perfect and will work out fine…especially because when I’m in the midst of that it really doesn’t look like that at all. So, you get to kinda have hope and a foreknowledge of what it’s about and how it will turn out to nearly “hold your hand” as you go through the really tough stuff. Awesome and very appreciated.
The last purpose Ra mentions then is the use of dreams by the adept. That is exactly what I was talking about with “journeying” and using nighttime experiences (“dreaming”) as a portal or gateway…a portal for going through the gateway to infinity. Truly a topic/thread unto itself. Naps are great for working with that intentionally.
I know this has grown long, so I’ll close with just saying again what Thorne said that is really important and key…both to dreaming/journeying…and any other spiritual path: The more activity, awareness, intention, attention and focus of will you put into it…it will radically increase, beckon spirit, and manifest powerfully accordingly. Actually, writing down dreams and working with them each morning is better at increasing recall and their power as a path than maybe what you’ll find written on the paper…so it works unto itself! Another key I’ll share is: Each night to pray or state your intent to dream, journey, or have healing whilst you rest…as you wish. Your stated intent, choice, and asking for assistance is incredibly powerful indeed!
short answer to your question SilentThought is that I’ve had the most incredible and powerful experiences and gains by working with dreaming…as I said, it is what I would call my primary path or way…The Way of the Dreamer…it is an inner path and requires no outside tools to walk. In time, the two worlds, or dreams, actually blend into one…and the Dreamer can barely tell the difference…and when he leaves his body for the last time on this planet…he flies in awareness freely where he will, and just keeps on dreaming as though nothing at all had happened to his little shell.
I wish everyone wonderful dreams, journeys, and recall of them J