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Are Your Dreams Telling You? |
| What Are Your Dreams Telling You? You only need to do some inner reflection to find out. And yes, some expert advice never hurts. So whether you're being chased by aliens, or you pop off a tad too often in your dreams, they are all open to interpretation. By Mridu Khullar Someone's trying to kill me. That's not unusual. I get this dream frequently and I always manage to escape. This time, however, I'm in a huge mall with two female friends, and we get on the elevator. We know we're safe now because once we're on the ground floor we can head straight for the police station before the psycho killers can catch up. Except, there's an earthquake. I feel the elevator crashing to the ground. Right before my dream ends, I see the next day's newspaper: Earthquake hits mall. No survivors. "What part of you is trying to kill what other part of you and why?" asks Julie Mars, award-winning writer and lifelong student of dream theory. It's a complex dream with many symbols, she explains, and the interpretation would depend highly on my unique life circumstances and emotional well-being. Generally though, dreams like this suggest that you're looking ahead, even before your current experiences are complete. The "no survivors" part, she says, might hint that this earthquake has successfully woken up the part of me that wants to escape some truth and grounded it in reality. There have been many ideas and complex theories thrown about in relation to dreams. Psychologists, spiritual teachers, even scientists have often been fascinated by something that seems to be a creation of your mind, but many believe, is a message from your soul. Since dreams are fairly consistent across cultures and regions, experts believe they can provide you with information on what may be troubling you, and what changes you need to bring about in your life. What are your dreams telling you? Here's a primer. The Dream: You're falling through space. What it Means: "It's interesting in dream interpretation, to think in terms of the four elements—earth, air, fire, and water," says Mars. A "falling through space dream," she says is often about the mental world (connected to air), the thought process, and the critical mind. "It's about not being grounded, which could be a good or a problematic state. It's about being disconnected, in transition, unable to grasp some idea or concept that might stop the fall." Falling dreams are often accompanied by sudden jerks and reactions. Often when you dream of falling, you'll wake up right when you're hitting the ground. Some people will also fall off their beds. People who have falling dreams may be feeling insecure, fearing the loss of respect, or be worried about losing someone's love. If you land and awaken, some say that might quite literally be your wake-up call to take your life into control. Life Check: You need to de-stress and find time for inner reflection. What are your fears, your insecurities, the things you stand to lose? It may also be a sign that you need to come down from an unrealistic state of being and be more "down to earth," says Charmayne D'souza, a poet and dream analyst from Mumbai?. Are you in an inflated ego state of being? The Dream: You're dying, or someone you love dies. What it Means: "If you dream of your own death, you are contemplating the value and impact of your life," says Kelly Sullivan Walden, a Hypnotherapist, Dream Expert, and author of I Had The Strangest Dream, The Dreamer's Dictionary for the 21st Century. "Dreaming of someone you love dying is about transformation and change in your relationship with them, not necessarily a forecast of literal death." In fact, in some cultures, it's believed that to dream of someone dying actually means they're going to live a long and happy life. D'souza recounts the case of one of her students who was alarmed after she had dreamt of her father's death. In the dream, the father's dead body kept following her all over the place. "On further inquiry, it turned out that she had come to Bombay to study, against her dad's wishes, and that he was very displeased with her," explains D'souza. "So the dream indicated to her that the dominating influence over her by her father was over, but there were still traces of that influence she needed to address." Life Check: Often dying dreams symbolize the close of one chapter and the beginning of a new one in a person's life. Ask yourself what the dying person in your dream represents for you—an authority figure, a lover, etc—and work from there, suggests Mars. If you dream of a dying child, for instance, perhaps you're losing your sense of spontaneity or innocence, she says. The Dream: You're being chased and you're running away from this thing or person What it Means: There are many variations of this dream. Some people find themselves being chased by animals, others by beasts, some will remember vividly murderers with weapons, and yet others report weird chase dreams that involve robots, aliens, and movie characters. The chase dream is often bizarre and upsetting, but it isn't always negative. It could mean that you're setting out on your destiny but are running away from issues you need to face in order to move forward. On the flipside, it could also represent that you're running away from people or responsibilities. One of the most common reasons for chase dreams however is pretty basic: anxiety. When the stresses and pressures of the day become too much to handle, they may manifest themselves as monsters in your dreams. Women who've been attacked or abused often have recurring chase dreams. Life Check: Take a good look at your life and point out the sources of your frustrations and worries. What is causing the stress in your life? Can you find ways to minimize it? If your stress is work-related, consider yoga and meditation techniques that can be done for a few minutes each day. Or are you running away from an important decision, a problem, or a person? Maybe it's time to face up to the problem and solve it once and for all. If you're a woman who has been abused and has frequent dreams of being attacked, it's likely you haven't dealt with the emotions and issues surrounding that abuse, and should seek professional help. The Dream: Your teeth are falling out. What it Means: The Chinese will tell you that if you tell lies, your teeth will fall out. Some scriptures say falling teeth remind you that you're putting the word of man before the word of God. Greeks say the dream means someone close to you is sick or dying. Psychologists suggest it may be because you're attached to your appearance and how others perceive you. And if folklore is to be believed, you may be running into some money soon. (Remember the tooth fairy?) "It often means that you fear you are getting older," says Lissa Coffey, relationship expert, coffeytalk.com. "To dream of loose teeth is often a warning of untrustworthy friends. If you spit out your teeth, it is a sign of financial setbacks upcoming." Life Check: If you're dreaming of losing your teeth, you're venting your feelings of insecurity, powerlessness, financial stress, or your feelings about the loss or death of a family member, says Walden. Go ahead and accept your emotions, but don't dwell on them for too long. The Dream: You're back in school or you're about to sit for an exam but you're totally unprepared What it Means: You may have finished school three decades ago and still get this dream frequently, because the dream isn't really about school at all, but about life. "Being in school and taking an exam is a classic 'obstacle' dream," says Coffey. "There is some obstacle in your life that you must overcome." It could also be a sign that you're lacking the self-confidence to do something that you desire. Or maybe you feel that you're not living up to the expectations of others. The dream in which you're not ready for a test or failing it, is not about the test. It's about the factors causing that failure. Life Check: This dream reminds you that life is like school and you need to pay attention, says Mars. "Dreams like this are lovely reminders that the dreamer needs to think long and hard about the lessons he or she is not receiving well—or even aware of. They are clues into ways the dreamer could go—hopefully, toward personal evolution by doing the work, the homework, and the study." |
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