Dream Analysis: Giving birth to a new stage in life

Dream:

I'm at the birth centre having my first child. Things do not progress and I go to the counter with my husband and we are given some red things. My husband feeds me one and then think it was a pessary and I should have inserted it. Turns out I had to eat two - they tasted like red jelly - and insert one - that is both my husband and I were right. Then I go back to the room, my husband is outside, and I insert the pessary. I look down and I can see the baby, who comes out very easily and I call my husband. (this is VERY unlike my first child's birth).

Interpretation: (by C. W. Nandi)

The dream starts off as a memory of a past event. You already gave birth to you first child. The dream is from the past. This indicates that your present subconscious is telling you something about your future using images and symbolism from your past.

The message involves you and your husband collaborating to "give birth to something new". There seems to be a misunderstanding regarding the 'red things'. Your husband feeds it to you while you thought that you should have inserted it. It turns out you were both right since you both chewed it and inserted one.

There was no rancor or animosity in the dream despite the confusion. You noticed that your childbirth went smoothly (which was not the reality of your first child's birth).

Red is a very powerful color in both eastern and western mythology. Red indicates passion, heat. It also indicates luck in some Eastern cultures. The dream indicates an undertaking that will pay off handsomely for you and your husband. This project has something to do with money. The key to it working out is that you and your husband see eye to eye and remain agreeable even if you arrive at two differing conclusions. The dream also indicates a maturing relationship, the birth of a new level of understanding between you and your husband.

Photo credit: Oddsock

The meaning of snakebite dreams

Dream:

Your blog, The Dream Pool, is fascinating, and I have a dream I'd like to submit for analysis.

I was in a large house (not my own; I don't know whose).

Suddenly I noticed that there was a poisonous coral snake sliding along the floor.

It looked just like THIS. It was about a foot long. There were a couple other people in the house who presumably went to call an emergency number so someone could come remove the snake from the house.

Soon afterward, though, I looked down and realized to my horror that the snake was crawling up my pantleg.

I reached down, hoping to grab it before it could bite me, but by then it had crawled all the way up to my stomach, and it bit me on my stomach and my hands.

No one came to help; I simply received a vague assurance that the animal control people had been called. No one called 911 to get help for my venomous snake bite.

Then I noticed that there was also a large rattlesnake in the house. It looked like THIS. It was at least 2 feet long, and as big around as a baby's arm. I managed to corral it in one of the bathrooms. No one else helped.

When the animal control people finally arrived, I told them where the rattlesnake was.

But, as soon as the bathroom door opened, the rattlesnake came out and rushed at me and bit me.

The dream ended with me suffering from two painful snake bites.

I woke up before I could die.

Interpretation: (by G. Franklin)

Earlier dream analysts (usually of the Freudian mold), might think your dream is sexual in nature. The snake is often viewed as a phallic symbol in Western traditions and mythology. However, the context of the snake images in your dream point to a different, non-sexual, interpretation. Coral snakes crawling up your pant leg notwithstanding. Both snakes in your dream are highly poisonous. The coral snake is one of the deadliest snakes in the USA and the rattlesnake's venom produces a lot of pain. It is also interesting that you mentioned that you were in a house that is not yours. Unfamiliar territory. This is a good place to start in interpreting your dream.

You were in a house that is not yours. You are in an unfamiliar setting. It appears from your dream that when the emergency occurs, there is no one to help. You feel unappreciated in an unfamiliar setting. You do not feel comfort and belonging. This setting indicates that there are situations in your life in which you feel out of place and uneasy.
Are you in a relationship that you doubt or are not fully happy in? Are you in a job which doesn't fulfill you?

Your dream is about having to make a choice. You feel that you are alone in making choices because people who you would think would care about you seemingly disappear at the moments that count (the failure to call 911 at the beginning of your dream) You don't feel in control of your life and you feel that certain situations and choices just happen to you. You fear that even when people do try to help you (finally), they can't do much (in your dream, the rattlesnake bit you even when there were Animal Control people trying to assist you).

You should think about why you feel like you have no control over certain aspects of your life. This would probably be a good time to see (honestly) if there's any addictions present in your life.

It is also very telling when you assumed you will die when you stated " I woke up before I could die". There are many dream where people see their deaths. Maybe by walking through this doorway of fear, they were able to glimpse what would liberate them in their waking lives?

Photo credits: OtisArchives2

Dream Interpretation: Drinking Tea and Psychic Abilities

Interpreter: T. F.
Query:

I dreamed about tea last night. I enjoy the occasional cup of tea, but I prefer coffee. Yet, I found myself dreaming about the new tea pots with the flowering teas. Specialty bags, my husband and I were discussing them when I surprised him with the set I have. He almost never drinks tea, yet in the dream he was so interested in it. (Someone did send me a set about 3 months ago that I never opened.) It was so very detailed and bright, vivid colors. Nothing dramatic, but it felt so real.

Interpretation:

Tea, in many cultures, represent psychic abilities. It is deemed as an herb that acts as a bridge between the waking world and a different world of possibilities, of magic maybe? Coffee, too, has a history. One of semi-medicinal qualities but, through our modern experience, something equated with the practical. With "the here and now."

Based on what you said about yourself and your dream imagery, I gather that you realize that you have "semi-magical" abilities. Perhaps, the ability to read people. The ability to, after being supplied by some facts, accurately predict the likely outcome of a given problem or situation. The power of suggestion, maybe? Frankly, it sort of freaks you out because you consider yourself a practical person. In essence, a "coffee" person. Someone who doesn't really dabble in the fantastical although it's emanation is all around you.

I suggest you explore this part of yourself even more. Instead of being afraid or uncomfortable, study it and welcome it as part of your being. As part of what makes you unique. Everyone has intuition. Only a few take the time to listen to this "magic" closely. Appreciate your gift.

Photo credit: Untitled Blue

Dream Analysis: Finding honesty in love

Dream:

I dreamt that I was walking along a rose garden with my boyfriend. We were holding hands and were both quiet that I was quite uneasy. Suddenly, his hand felt icy cold that it stung. I looked at him and was surprised to see my guy best friend staring back at me. His face was that of my boyfriend but at the back of my mind, I knew that it was my guy best friend. The ground suddenly shook and when I looked around, the roses turned into tulips. I looked at my friend again but he was gone. I tried to look for him but I couldn't find him. My current boyfriend's voice suddenly came out of nowhere, calling my name. It was then that I woke up.

In reality, my guy best friend and I have been friends since we were ten. We're both 21 years of age now. We're close just as siblings are close and we never really thought of ourselves being together. He and my current boyfriend are cousins and that's how I met my boyfriend. My best friend introduced us to each other last year. We became lovers after three months. We've been together for almost seven months now.

Interpretation:

You are confused. You know that you love your boyfriend but for some reasons, you can't help thinking of your best friend even when you are with your boyfriend. The rose garden signifies that you and your boyfriend are happily in love. But roses do have thorns, and your relationship is not as pleasant and smooth as it should be. Deep inside, you have uncertainties and doubts that you are trying to push aside. That's why you were uneasy. The sudden stinging coldness of his hand is an alarm to bid you to try to reassess how he treats you, and how you really feel about “holding his hand”.

When you looked at him that you were walking with, you saw your boyfriend but felt your best friend. It is because you were unconsciously comparing your boyfriend with your best friend. When you found out that you were actually walking with your guy best friend, the roses suddenly changed into tulips. You might want to think again, reconsider your feelings and try to reflect on what you really feel for each of them. You seem to be more comfortable with your guy best friend than with your boyfriend. Your looking for your best friend shows that you miss him, and you are missing him in a way that gives you a tinge of guilt, as implied by your boyfriend's voice calling out your name.

Photo Credits: Batega

Dream Interpretation: Abandonment and Reconciliation

NOTE: Sorry for the long hiatus. All our writers have been busy with preexisting obligations. Some of us are back now so if you've submitted a dream for analysis/interpretation, please rest assured that we'll be processing everything on a first come first served basis. Hopefully, we'll be finished with the backlog soon.

Dream:

I've been living alone since I entered college. My mother left me when I was a baby and my father is in another state, living with a woman just a few years older than me.

I dreamt that I came home to see my father and show him what a successful career woman I've become. In my dream, our house didn't have a door but I wasn't surprised. I entered our house and called out my father's name but no answer came. I looked around and noticed that our house was empty except for a chain. After staring at it for a while, I decided to call out to my mother instead. It was then that my father's mistress came and gave me flowers. I woke up.

In real life, I'm not graduating until next March. I left our house a month after my father's mistress moved into our house. I went to seek my fortune into the city, supporting my own studies and survival.

Interpretation:

Inside you is an intense desire to prove yourself and to gain your parents' support and pride over your endeavors. You are on your way to graduating through the work of your bare hands, and you want to share this success with your parents. That is what your “going home to show your father your success” implies. You have this grudge against your parents for leaving you, or for allowing you to leave, but you are more than willing to give yourselves a chance for reconciliation. That is why you found your house without a door. It symbolizes your earnest wish that your parents are open to reconciliation just as much as you are.

Their “absence” in your dream signifies that to some extent, you have learned to live your life without them. However, your calling out their name shows that you miss them, and would still love to be with them even if you've learned to be independent. Your house was empty when you entered because you feel that your successes are “empty” without them to share it with. You are yearning for parental pride and support that you have been deprived of for years.

The chain in the room symbolizes a struggle; it means both “link” and “leash”. You wish to be “linked” with your parents again. At the same time, you are relieved to break free from the bounds of home, yet something keeps holding you back like chains around your ankles: the longing for parental love and attention. The appearance of your father's “mistress” at the end of your dream is a reminder of how you still see her as an obstacle against the realization of your dreams for your family. However, the flowers signify that you are willing to forgive her as well should she give you what you've always wanted: her leaving your father.

Photo Credits: Lincolnian

Dreams and the Power of Mythology

Joseph Campbell was a mythology and religion scholar. He was a professor, writer, and lecturer. He is famous for his works such as A Hero with a Thousand Faces, The Mask of God, and Historical Atlas of World Mythology. He is also acclaimed for his famous interview with the radio commentator Bill Moyers regarding myths and the advantages of these in an individual's life.

In his 1997 interview with Bill Moyers, Joseph Campbell emphasized the way to read myths because of their relevance in the attainment of one's happiness. He said that myths should not be read literally for it is a metaphorical revelation of truth. According to him, truth is beyond words, it is beyond what man can conceive, so a myth is necessary for it tries to reveal that truth.
For Joseph Campbell, the pattern of the quest of the heroes in the mythological stories mirrors that of man's own quest, that is, journeying somewhere and finding something to bring home. But for man, this something is not material, rather, it is the joy hidden in one's own heart. And this bliss is only accessible if one takes the journey within, and if one is willing to slay the dragon within that hinders his path towards finding his bliss. Campbell emphasized that one should find and follow his bliss.

Joseph Campbell also pointed out that reading and understanding myth will help one see hope during the trying moment of one's life. And like in the heroes of mythological tales, the trials man encounter in life can strengthen him or destroy him, depending on how he perceived and analyzed the events in his life.

Joseph Campbell was not at-ease with the dogmatism of religion for it tends to see its own belief only, limited to the constraints of its dogma, and being blind to the wisdom myths can offer. He preferred the shamans who were upholders of myth over the priests of Christianity, who by their rigid adherence to dogma put Christ farther away from the Christians. Joseph Campbell cited Christ and Buddha as examples of people that can help one achieve his happiness. But he warned that these persons cannot teach one the way to be happy, no one could. Even myth does not promise the way to happiness, it only tells humanity that bliss is achievable.

Photo Credit: Mike9Alive