DREAMS

Everybody has dreams. In fact we spend a third of our life asleep, and a quarter of this time we spend dreaming. This equates to around 7 years of dreams for an average person.

Nothing is more individual than a dream. They are not something that can be uncovered by a spouse or friend. They are the ultimate privacy, the deepest secrets of our personalities.

The following definitions of dreams cannot therefore be exactly the same for all concerned, but they do strike the same emotional chord in everyone, and do have common denominators.

Below are listed the most frequently found images, and explanations which are there to serve as a guide to enable you to analyse your own dreams. Enjoy !!

ABYSS 
An abyss or gulf generally symbolizes the unconscious, together with the instincts which lie within it. The abyss can also symbolize the mother, the maternal breast, or the pre-natal nothingness.
Many people dream that they are standing on the edge of a vertiginous abyss. Their fear of falling is great. This can symbolize an unconscious invitation to descend into oneself in order to find the roots of one's problems. It can also symbolize the fear of knowing the repressed parts of one's nature.

ANIMALS
A dream about animals could represent offspring or people close to us, but it is more likely to symbolize a move towards our deepest primal instincts to find our long lost spontaneity. Interaction between animals and humans in dreams could represent a need for a closer link between rational thought and the instinctive side of ourselves.

BIRTH
Many dreams about birth represent major changes or opportunities in our lives, or could signify the inception of a new project or creative idea. Symbols of birth dreams can take many forms: a hatching egg, or a newly born kitten, or even the emergence of a flower from a bud.

CHILDHOOD
A return to childhood in our dreams is not uncommon and could merely represent a wish to return to a safe and happy place, free from responsibility. But perhaps the dream is warning us to look to the future instead of remaining trapped by rose-tinted memories of the past. However, if the dream childhood is lonely and despairing, there is a strong indication that we have still to resolve something from that part of our lives.

CLOCKS
A clock or watch is a symbol of our emotions and to dream of a stopped or broken timepiece is self-evident. If the hands of the clock are turning unnaturally quickly, this could indicate that we are afraid of our feelings and perhaps lack emotional control. Or perhaps it is merely that we feel that we have not enough time to deal with an important issue in waking life.

DIGGING
Digging symbolizes a search of some kind, and could represent digging through the unconscious for the truth or an answer to some difficulty in waking life. Is the soil full of rocks and stones making the digging hard work, or is it loose and friable, thereby making life easier for the dreamer ? If the digging took place to bury something, what is it ? Perhaps the dreamer is trying to hide something, some guilt from the past or present, or is burying aspects of the self which are no longer desired.

DROWNING
Drowning dreams are common and generally indicate that the dreamer is overwhelmed either by mundane problems in waking life, or on a deeper level, by a fear of letting loose that which lurks deep in the unconscious.

EYES
A traditional symbol of the mirror to the soul, eyes can represent the healthiness of the dreamer's spirit.  On a different level, the dreamer may feel that he or she is constantly being assessed by others.  Dreaming of eyes could also denote a desire for more privacy.

FALLING
Dreams of falling are commonplace anxiety dreams and may indicate that the dreamer has over-achieved in some area, professional of emotional. Falling from the top of a building suggests that there is more to be learned before the dreamer feels comfortable with a work promotion, or elevated social status.

FLYING
Flight can mean space rockets and Concorde, or it can mean Icarus.  In dreams flying indicates a need to "rise" higher, a desire for the sublime - but alas, flights in dreams too seldom end happily.  Descent or falling are never far off.

GIANTS
Giants generally represent the authority figure of our childhood, possibly a father figure, and to dream of them in adult life suggests that the dreamer has yet to achieve complete understanding of their childhood.  It may also suggest an inferiority complex or that they feel dominated by someone or something.

HAIR
Hair symbolises vitality and therefore dreams in which we find our hair thinning or falling out often denotes a lock of confidence in our sexual appeal, or lack of self esteem.  If the hair is glossy and shining, this is is usually a positive sign, but it could also indicate vanity.

ICE
Ice in dreams can symbolise emotional frigidity or a block in creativity.  The dream could be a warning that the dreamer should attach more importance to feelings and to place more emphasis on the emotional aspect of life.

LIGHTNING
Lightning can represent the answer to a waking problem which comes to us in a flash in our dreams. Similarly it could signify a revelation or brilliant inspiration. however the dreamer should be aware that lightning is also destructive, and there are some things in our lives which might be beyond our control once we have initiated them..

MAZE
To dream of being trapped in a maze symbolises feelings of bewilderment and highlights the dreamer's inability to see a solution to a waking problem. It may also represent the unconcious and relate to the ego's effort to bar undesirable thoughts from the concious mind. However the dream is a positive one if the dreamer was helping others find their way out of the maze, suggesting power and control in the dreamer.

RAINBOWS
Relatively rare in dreams, the rainbow symbolises a bond, a union, a connection.  It is a bridge drawn in the sky. It is always an excellent symbol in dreams. It is often linked to the symbolism of the crossing, indicating important inner changes.

SHOPS
To see a shop window full of goods which the dreamer cannot afford, will often signify the dreamer's feelings of inadequacy in achieving greater things. If the dreamer is buying from the shop, this indicates a positive attitude. If the shop was well stocked, this could denote that the dreamer has adequate inner resources with which to deal with a current situation.

STAGE
If the dreamer is watching from the audience and is not involved with what is happening on the stage, the dream may indicate that he or she is not becoming fully involved with what is going on in daily life, or is a little too introverted. If the dreamer is playing a part, this could suggest that waking life has become a masquerade and it is necessary to get in touch with the dreamers true self.

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