Saturday, May 29, 2010

Perchance to Dream: Your Magical World of Dreams


Dreams – they intrigue us. They mystify us. They enchant us. Sometimes they scare us. What do we do with this whole other dimension of our lives? Do we just ignore our dreaming life – or can we use dreams in some way in our lives?





We all dream. Though some of us may think we don’t, sleep research has shown that, in actuality, we all really do dream. The problem is that some of us may not remember our dreams. We remember dreams when we shift to a lighter level of consciousness (measured by brain waves) when we’re dreaming. In other words, if we hear a noise, for example, or if we shift our bodily position, we come out of the deeper level of dream-stage sleep to a lighter level of consciousness, or even wake up completely. It is only when this happens that we remember what we had been dreaming about.





Dreams are fascinating – at least they have always been to me. Indeed, I have been working with my own and interpreting others’ dreams for many, many years, and I am a firm believer that dreams give us rich material to work with in our lives, if we are so inclined – and that we can, in fact, demystify and understand our dreams.





As a step towards this, let’s look at the actual phenomenon of dreams. One interesting thing I have learned from my work with dreams is that what we lump into the broad category of “dreams�? may in truth be different types of phenomena. So the first step in understanding and working with our dreams is to know what “type�? of dream we have had.





Now this may be a surprising revelation. Dreams are dreams, right? Well, think about this for a moment: have you ever had a dream that felt different from other dreams? For instance, have you ever had a dream that felt so real that you felt that you really were somewhere else?





Well, you may have been.





As strange as this may sound, there are many theories (including some in quantum or modern physics – which I certainly don’t profess to fully understand) that alternate realities and other dimensions exist – and our nighttime experiences may actually be visits to these other realms. As eerie or “outlandish�? (no pun intended!) as this may sound, if you believe that our consciousness is not ultimately limited or bounded by our bodies, this idea can make perfect sense – because when we’re sleeping our bodies are quiet and our minds and consciousness are less bombarded by noisy feedback from our bodily functions, thus being freer to “leave the body�? and roam.





So oftentimes when we’re sleeping our consciousness is off exploring and experiencing, and some of these experiences may be translated into the form of dreams – experience dreams – whereas others may be forgotten or slip into oblivion, at least from our conscious or semi-conscious awareness.





And, to complicate matters further, the illusory veil of time may be lifted, and we can be exploring other times as well – including past lives.





So, the next time you wake up and feel like you’ve been somewhere else, remember this: maybe you have been.





(Phew! Still with me? I told you dreams were fascinating….)





As exotic as this type of “dream�? experience may be, other types of dreams may seem more mundane in comparison.





Some dreams really do represent a sorting out of the day’s experiences or working on problems, as our brains sift through and correlate information and experiences. These dreams are usually mundane and quotidian. Included in this type of dream experience, however, are very creative dreams in which we actually solve problems we’re working on and receive answers we have been looking for. A classic, and oft-cited, example of this type of creative problem-solving dream is the model of the benzene molecule, whose structure was received by Kekule, a chemistry professor, in a dream after he had been puzzling over this question; the dream was of a snake biting its own tail and twirling in a circle.





One interesting type of dream is that in which we are communicating with others on some level. If you wake up and feel that you were having a discussion or communicating with your long-lost love, you may, in fact, have truly been doing just that. In these communication dreams – or communication experiences – the person being engaged in dialogue can be living or “dead.�? Some communication can come in the form of guidance and can be coming from our spirit guides (or guardian angels, angelic presences, or whatever terminology you wish to use).





Some dreams are “psychic�? dreams, in which we receive information we have no other concrete way of knowing. These include precognitive dreams that can give us information about the future, as well as clairvoyant (French for clear-seeing) dreams that can give us glimpses of things going on in the “real world�? while we are dreaming.





Some dreams are mainly expressing fears or desires we may have, especially those that may be lying below our conscious awareness. These dreams serve to make us consciously aware of these fears or desires so that we may work on them, and these dreams may also represent our actually working on these issues at an unconscious level.





One of the richest types of dreams is that in which we are working on personal or spiritual growth issues. In these dreams we are receiving (or generating, whatever your point of view) information on these issues. These dreams can be the most content-laden and most rewarding for us to work with, as they point out things for us to look at or work on, or connections between and among factors in our lives that we may not have realized were there. These dreams may also be the most cloaked in symbols.





Many dreams are one-time scenarios that we only have once, but we also have recurring dreams, dreams that repeat the same theme over and over again, sort of a nocturnal reverie leitmotif. These dreams are usually, though not always, more significant than single dreams and can represent general issues that we are working on (whether we realize consciously that we are working on them or not). Over time, as we make progress on the underlying growth issues, we will tend to see these dreams shift and evolve.





So there is a true variety of different types of dream experiences – a veritable cornucopia of dreams. And, to make the experience even richer, any one dream can be a combination of different types of dreams. For instance, we can have a dream in which we are talking to someone we know, which takes place in another country and time period. This dream may be both an experience, in which we are actually exploring a past life, as well as a communication dream, in which we are actually exploring a past life connection with someone we know in real time and are communicating with him or her on some level in that other time period. And this dream could also have a psychic element as well, if something were revealed about the future.





This is one of the fascinating aspects of dreams. (Can you tell how excited I am about dreams?) Dreams are truly a very rich and complicated phenomenon – or set of phenomena.





Now the next question is, do we want to do anything with our dreams? I am a firm believer that looking at our dreams and attempting to work with them in some way can be very rewarding for us. They can give us information about our lives, and they can certainly give us insight into ourselves as we move along on our paths and evolve. For those of us who are into meaning and like to understand things in our lives, dreams provide a rich vein of material to mine.





I must say at this point that my orientation toward dreams starts with a spiritual assumption, and that is that we are here to learn and grow. (And wouldn’t life be boring if we weren’t?) So my work with dreams is very much colored by this assumption. And, as we learn and grow – and evolve – in our lives, dreams can be a powerful tool. Without this assumption and orientation, we may regard dreams as no more than an oddity, a nighttime venture into the irrational, and a curiosity devoid of any use or practicality.





And, interestingly, in my work with dreams, I can’t ever remember working with a dream that had no true meaning.





So, if you’d like to delve into the magical world of dreams and see what you can gain, I’ll take you on a guided tour of how you might approach your dreams. (Why not? You’ve come with me this far!)





First of all, I would recommend only working with the dreams that feel significant to you, whether you understand them or not. We often remember a dream strongly upon awakening, sometimes to the extent that it will stay with us throughout the day, resonating as it is evoked at odd times by different things. These are the dreams I would work with.





Some dream-workers recommend keeping a journal by the bed and programming yourself to wake up from every dream and record it. My approach is less active. I operate under the assumption that we’ll generally remember the significant dreams and that, if we take too proactive an approach, we might be disturbing our sleep too much. Being rested is too important in our stressful world to deliberately disturb sleep!





Once we have a dream that we feel is significant, the first step, as mentioned above, is to figure out what type (or types) of dream it was.





After we know what type(s) of dream it was, we then want to try to understand it. This is where we get into the realm of dream interpretation, because dreams are so often veiled in symbolic form. And this is also where things can become sticky, because good dream interpreting is somewhat of an art and requires skill.





It also requires intuition. So throw out all your dream dictionaries that tell you that a certain symbol has certain meanings! A dream is not a generalized story, aimed at the general populace with general meanings; it is a specific message for the dreamer alone and, as such, it is expressed in the dreamer’s own vocabulary. The dreamer alone has the keys to understanding it – or a good dream interpreter who uses intuition to decode the meanings specific for the dreamer.





And that’s another fascinating aspect of dreams: any one dream can have several different meanings – and all of them equally valid meanings for the dreamer.





So, sharpen up those intuitive pencils and let’s start tackling those dreams!





After you’ve determined what type(s) of dream you’re working with, you’ll want to follow these steps:





1. Ask yourself (or the dreamer) how you (or he/she) felt about the dream, both upon waking and in retrospect. Was it pleasure, fear, anxiety, optimism, relief, etc.? Our feelings about our dreams are keys to their meanings.





2. Allow yourself to get into a very relaxed state of consciousness and clear your mind as you go over the dream’s unfolding sequentially in your mind (or as the dreamer relates the dream to you, if it’s not your dream). What things go through your mind as you review or listen to the dream? What is evoked? What percolates up from your subconscious?





3. Instead of focusing on how “bizarre�? the dream seems, approach it as a very rich, cogent, and, yes, respectable event. If we are just focusing on the bizarre quality of dreams, this serves to distract us from their credible validity and the richness in insight they can offer to us.





4. Then work with each symbol in the dream independently. Focus on a symbol, while asking yourself (or the dreamer), “What does this mean to me (or you)?�? For example, we might feel that coins in a dream signify riches. However, if the dreamer’s husband was a coin collector, the symbol may also be saying something about the dreamer’s husband or their relationship. I once had someone relate a dream to me that she had had, very upset because there was a cat in the dream and someone had told her that a cat in a dream means death(!). When I asked this woman how she felt about cats, she replied, “Oh, I love cats!�? Well, obviously for her the cat in her dream did not necessarily mean death! Remember, too, that any one symbol can have more than one valid meaning.





5. Ask yourself what the general theme of the dream is. What area(s) of your (or the dreamer’s) life is it related to – work, relationships, childhood, etc.?





6. Go over each “story�? segment of the dream and work to understand it as a discrete little unit.





7. Put all the pieces, or segments, of the dream and their meanings together. What picture emerges? How does each segment relate to other segments?





8. Pay attention to any words or phrases that are prominent in the dream. Puns and plays on words are common in dreams and often meaningful.





9. Look for any elements that may have particular significance for you (or the dreamer). What do these elements mean? (For example, a numerologist may have numbers pop up in dreams and these numbers may have numerological significance that contributes to the dream’s meaning(s), or a florist may have flowers or plants appear prominently that may have significance.)





10. Look at the other people who appear in the dream. How do you (or the dreamer) feel about each person? Further meaning may be gained by also looking at each person as you (or the dreamer). Are these people parts of yourself (or the dreamer) that are embraced, disowned, or suppressed?





11. Remember, again, that any one dream can have several different meanings. What different meanings does the dream have? What pictures emerge? What is the dream telling you?





Working with our dreams and practicing dream interpretation can take time and patience. However, we gain more skill and confidence over time.





It can definitely be helpful to keep a dream journal of significant dreams that you’ve had, with the plan of rereading them periodically. Often when we go back and read over dreams that we’ve had a year or more ago, we can gain even more insight. We often understand our dreams even more and realize the issues that were being expressed. Going back over former dreams can also give us perspective on the shifts we’ve subsequently made in our lives, how we’ve evolved and grown.





Dreams represent wonderful and abundant material and, interestingly, we all have our own individual dream signatures, types of dreams unique to us. Some people have fairly straightforward, short dreams, while others have long epic, complicated, and interwoven oeuvres. As much as I enjoy interpreting dreams for others, I get just about as much enjoyment seeing dreamers’ “ahas�? of realization, when they suddenly see their dream make sense to them.





Dreams can give us answers we’ve been looking for. Dreams have even saved people’s lives when they’ve had heavily symbolic dreams that turned out to be about health conditions they had been unaware of, such as cancer!





Allowing yourself to explore your dreams and understand them can open up whole new vistas and dimensions for you – and definitely enrich your life. You can understand yourself more and feel more in control of your life. You can demystify those nighttime enigmas – and maybe even save your life! You can even have fun! So, allow yourself to go on a “magical mystery tour�? of dream exploration!





Sweet dreams!

Friday, May 28, 2010

Perchance to Dream: Your Magical World of Dreams


Dreams – they intrigue us. They mystify us. They enchant us. Sometimes they scare us. What do we do with this whole other dimension of our lives? Do we just ignore our dreaming life – or can we use dreams in some way in our lives?





We all dream. Though some of us may think we don’t, sleep research has shown that, in actuality, we all really do dream. The problem is that some of us may not remember our dreams. We remember dreams when we shift to a lighter level of consciousness (measured by brain waves) when we’re dreaming. In other words, if we hear a noise, for example, or if we shift our bodily position, we come out of the deeper level of dream-stage sleep to a lighter level of consciousness, or even wake up completely. It is only when this happens that we remember what we had been dreaming about.





Dreams are fascinating – at least they have always been to me. Indeed, I have been working with my own and interpreting others’ dreams for many, many years, and I am a firm believer that dreams give us rich material to work with in our lives, if we are so inclined – and that we can, in fact, demystify and understand our dreams.





As a step towards this, let’s look at the actual phenomenon of dreams. One interesting thing I have learned from my work with dreams is that what we lump into the broad category of “dreams�? may in truth be different types of phenomena. So the first step in understanding and working with our dreams is to know what “type�? of dream we have had.





Now this may be a surprising revelation. Dreams are dreams, right? Well, think about this for a moment: have you ever had a dream that felt different from other dreams? For instance, have you ever had a dream that felt so real that you felt that you really were somewhere else?





Well, you may have been.





As strange as this may sound, there are many theories (including some in quantum or modern physics – which I certainly don’t profess to fully understand) that alternate realities and other dimensions exist – and our nighttime experiences may actually be visits to these other realms. As eerie or “outlandish�? (no pun intended!) as this may sound, if you believe that our consciousness is not ultimately limited or bounded by our bodies, this idea can make perfect sense – because when we’re sleeping our bodies are quiet and our minds and consciousness are less bombarded by noisy feedback from our bodily functions, thus being freer to “leave the body�? and roam.





So oftentimes when we’re sleeping our consciousness is off exploring and experiencing, and some of these experiences may be translated into the form of dreams – experience dreams – whereas others may be forgotten or slip into oblivion, at least from our conscious or semi-conscious awareness.





And, to complicate matters further, the illusory veil of time may be lifted, and we can be exploring other times as well – including past lives.





So, the next time you wake up and feel like you’ve been somewhere else, remember this: maybe you have been.





(Phew! Still with me? I told you dreams were fascinating….)





As exotic as this type of “dream�? experience may be, other types of dreams may seem more mundane in comparison.





Some dreams really do represent a sorting out of the day’s experiences or working on problems, as our brains sift through and correlate information and experiences. These dreams are usually mundane and quotidian. Included in this type of dream experience, however, are very creative dreams in which we actually solve problems we’re working on and receive answers we have been looking for. A classic, and oft-cited, example of this type of creative problem-solving dream is the model of the benzene molecule, whose structure was received by Kekule, a chemistry professor, in a dream after he had been puzzling over this question; the dream was of a snake biting its own tail and twirling in a circle.





One interesting type of dream is that in which we are communicating with others on some level. If you wake up and feel that you were having a discussion or communicating with your long-lost love, you may, in fact, have truly been doing just that. In these communication dreams – or communication experiences – the person being engaged in dialogue can be living or “dead.�? Some communication can come in the form of guidance and can be coming from our spirit guides (or guardian angels, angelic presences, or whatever terminology you wish to use).





Some dreams are “psychic�? dreams, in which we receive information we have no other concrete way of knowing. These include precognitive dreams that can give us information about the future, as well as clairvoyant (French for clear-seeing) dreams that can give us glimpses of things going on in the “real world�? while we are dreaming.





Some dreams are mainly expressing fears or desires we may have, especially those that may be lying below our conscious awareness. These dreams serve to make us consciously aware of these fears or desires so that we may work on them, and these dreams may also represent our actually working on these issues at an unconscious level.





One of the richest types of dreams is that in which we are working on personal or spiritual growth issues. In these dreams we are receiving (or generating, whatever your point of view) information on these issues. These dreams can be the most content-laden and most rewarding for us to work with, as they point out things for us to look at or work on, or connections between and among factors in our lives that we may not have realized were there. These dreams may also be the most cloaked in symbols.





Many dreams are one-time scenarios that we only have once, but we also have recurring dreams, dreams that repeat the same theme over and over again, sort of a nocturnal reverie leitmotif. These dreams are usually, though not always, more significant than single dreams and can represent general issues that we are working on (whether we realize consciously that we are working on them or not). Over time, as we make progress on the underlying growth issues, we will tend to see these dreams shift and evolve.





So there is a true variety of different types of dream experiences – a veritable cornucopia of dreams. And, to make the experience even richer, any one dream can be a combination of different types of dreams. For instance, we can have a dream in which we are talking to someone we know, which takes place in another country and time period. This dream may be both an experience, in which we are actually exploring a past life, as well as a communication dream, in which we are actually exploring a past life connection with someone we know in real time and are communicating with him or her on some level in that other time period. And this dream could also have a psychic element as well, if something were revealed about the future.





This is one of the fascinating aspects of dreams. (Can you tell how excited I am about dreams?) Dreams are truly a very rich and complicated phenomenon – or set of phenomena.





Now the next question is, do we want to do anything with our dreams? I am a firm believer that looking at our dreams and attempting to work with them in some way can be very rewarding for us. They can give us information about our lives, and they can certainly give us insight into ourselves as we move along on our paths and evolve. For those of us who are into meaning and like to understand things in our lives, dreams provide a rich vein of material to mine.





I must say at this point that my orientation toward dreams starts with a spiritual assumption, and that is that we are here to learn and grow. (And wouldn’t life be boring if we weren’t?) So my work with dreams is very much colored by this assumption. And, as we learn and grow – and evolve – in our lives, dreams can be a powerful tool. Without this assumption and orientation, we may regard dreams as no more than an oddity, a nighttime venture into the irrational, and a curiosity devoid of any use or practicality.





And, interestingly, in my work with dreams, I can’t ever remember working with a dream that had no true meaning.





So, if you’d like to delve into the magical world of dreams and see what you can gain, I’ll take you on a guided tour of how you might approach your dreams. (Why not? You’ve come with me this far!)





First of all, I would recommend only working with the dreams that feel significant to you, whether you understand them or not. We often remember a dream strongly upon awakening, sometimes to the extent that it will stay with us throughout the day, resonating as it is evoked at odd times by different things. These are the dreams I would work with.





Some dream-workers recommend keeping a journal by the bed and programming yourself to wake up from every dream and record it. My approach is less active. I operate under the assumption that we’ll generally remember the significant dreams and that, if we take too proactive an approach, we might be disturbing our sleep too much. Being rested is too important in our stressful world to deliberately disturb sleep!





Once we have a dream that we feel is significant, the first step, as mentioned above, is to figure out what type (or types) of dream it was.





After we know what type(s) of dream it was, we then want to try to understand it. This is where we get into the realm of dream interpretation, because dreams are so often veiled in symbolic form. And this is also where things can become sticky, because good dream interpreting is somewhat of an art and requires skill.





It also requires intuition. So throw out all your dream dictionaries that tell you that a certain symbol has certain meanings! A dream is not a generalized story, aimed at the general populace with general meanings; it is a specific message for the dreamer alone and, as such, it is expressed in the dreamer’s own vocabulary. The dreamer alone has the keys to understanding it – or a good dream interpreter who uses intuition to decode the meanings specific for the dreamer.





And that’s another fascinating aspect of dreams: any one dream can have several different meanings – and all of them equally valid meanings for the dreamer.





So, sharpen up those intuitive pencils and let’s start tackling those dreams!





After you’ve determined what type(s) of dream you’re working with, you’ll want to follow these steps:





1. Ask yourself (or the dreamer) how you (or he/she) felt about the dream, both upon waking and in retrospect. Was it pleasure, fear, anxiety, optimism, relief, etc.? Our feelings about our dreams are keys to their meanings.





2. Allow yourself to get into a very relaxed state of consciousness and clear your mind as you go over the dream’s unfolding sequentially in your mind (or as the dreamer relates the dream to you, if it’s not your dream). What things go through your mind as you review or listen to the dream? What is evoked? What percolates up from your subconscious?





3. Instead of focusing on how “bizarre�? the dream seems, approach it as a very rich, cogent, and, yes, respectable event. If we are just focusing on the bizarre quality of dreams, this serves to distract us from their credible validity and the richness in insight they can offer to us.





4. Then work with each symbol in the dream independently. Focus on a symbol, while asking yourself (or the dreamer), “What does this mean to me (or you)?�? For example, we might feel that coins in a dream signify riches. However, if the dreamer’s husband was a coin collector, the symbol may also be saying something about the dreamer’s husband or their relationship. I once had someone relate a dream to me that she had had, very upset because there was a cat in the dream and someone had told her that a cat in a dream means death(!). When I asked this woman how she felt about cats, she replied, “Oh, I love cats!�? Well, obviously for her the cat in her dream did not necessarily mean death! Remember, too, that any one symbol can have more than one valid meaning.





5. Ask yourself what the general theme of the dream is. What area(s) of your (or the dreamer’s) life is it related to – work, relationships, childhood, etc.?





6. Go over each “story�? segment of the dream and work to understand it as a discrete little unit.





7. Put all the pieces, or segments, of the dream and their meanings together. What picture emerges? How does each segment relate to other segments?





8. Pay attention to any words or phrases that are prominent in the dream. Puns and plays on words are common in dreams and often meaningful.





9. Look for any elements that may have particular significance for you (or the dreamer). What do these elements mean? (For example, a numerologist may have numbers pop up in dreams and these numbers may have numerological significance that contributes to the dream’s meaning(s), or a florist may have flowers or plants appear prominently that may have significance.)





10. Look at the other people who appear in the dream. How do you (or the dreamer) feel about each person? Further meaning may be gained by also looking at each person as you (or the dreamer). Are these people parts of yourself (or the dreamer) that are embraced, disowned, or suppressed?





11. Remember, again, that any one dream can have several different meanings. What different meanings does the dream have? What pictures emerge? What is the dream telling you?





Working with our dreams and practicing dream interpretation can take time and patience. However, we gain more skill and confidence over time.





It can definitely be helpful to keep a dream journal of significant dreams that you’ve had, with the plan of rereading them periodically. Often when we go back and read over dreams that we’ve had a year or more ago, we can gain even more insight. We often understand our dreams even more and realize the issues that were being expressed. Going back over former dreams can also give us perspective on the shifts we’ve subsequently made in our lives, how we’ve evolved and grown.





Dreams represent wonderful and abundant material and, interestingly, we all have our own individual dream signatures, types of dreams unique to us. Some people have fairly straightforward, short dreams, while others have long epic, complicated, and interwoven oeuvres. As much as I enjoy interpreting dreams for others, I get just about as much enjoyment seeing dreamers’ “ahas�? of realization, when they suddenly see their dream make sense to them.





Dreams can give us answers we’ve been looking for. Dreams have even saved people’s lives when they’ve had heavily symbolic dreams that turned out to be about health conditions they had been unaware of, such as cancer!





Allowing yourself to explore your dreams and understand them can open up whole new vistas and dimensions for you – and definitely enrich your life. You can understand yourself more and feel more in control of your life. You can demystify those nighttime enigmas – and maybe even save your life! You can even have fun! So, allow yourself to go on a “magical mystery tour�? of dream exploration!





Sweet dreams!

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Dreams – Do They Have a Meaning?


There are too many recorded incidents to dismiss dreams as mere ‘vestiges of the day’ that get projected on the silver screen of the mind at night. For example, dreams have foretold impending deaths, saved people from certain fatalities, helped solve complicated problems, helped achieve some astonishing discoveries and inventions and have even turned the fortunes of many.

 

Our own experience also points to the fact that, at times, dreams do try to tell us something vital or important, but we are unable to comprehend them. The problem is that dreams don’t speak our lingo. They speak in symbols and require thorough knowledge of dream interpretation or a competent dream expert for interpretation.

 

In my years of experience in interpreting dreams, I have gained some immense insights into the meanings and workings of dreams. There are many, who claim that they don’t dream. We all do, only many of us don’t remember them on waking up.

 

Let us see some common dreams that most of us have dreamt at some point in our lives:

 

?          Exam dreams: Whether we are brilliant in studies or less than average performers, we cannot deny having had those frightful examination dreams. These run something like this: We are unable to reach the examination hall and the clock is ticking away; our pen just refuses to work; we just don’t seem to comprehend the question paper or recall the answers...the variations are endless. Fortunately, such dreams are not related to examinations at all. They suggest that we are being tested or scrutinised in some way in our waking lives. These may also be related to our self-esteem and confidence or the lack of it.

 

?          Chase dreams: Who has not broken into a cold sweat running scared from an assailant or a murderous mob in dreams? Howsoever fast we ran, the pursuer always seemed to catch up. At the exact moment of getting caught, we woke up with a start! Although these dreams can arise from an actual fear of being attacked, they often stem from our feelings of anxiety in waking life. These dreams indicate avoidance or running away from some unpalatable situation, rather than confronting it. These dreams are more common in women due to their physical vulnerability.

 

?          Naked dreams: Turning crimson with embarrassment on finding ourselves completely or partially naked in public in our dreams generally leaves us unsettled on waking up. Such dreams are often a reflection of our lack of confidence or self-esteem in real life. We may be hiding something and are afraid that others might discover it by seeing right through us. Nudity also symbolises our fear of getting caught or exposed in something that we have done. This dream can have variations, which can range from embarrassment to feeling proud about your nakedness in public. Each, of course, has different interpretation.

 

?          Falling dreams: Almost all of us have experienced getting scared out of our wits while plunging down from dizzying heights in our dreams. No amount of convincing can rid us of the fear that we will not actually die if we do not wake up before we hit the ground! Falling can be of two types – one when we wake up alarmed before we hit the ground, the other when we do a soft landing, slowing just before the point of impact. Both have different interpretations. Generally, falling is an indication of insecurity, instability and anxiety. Such dreams occur when we feel overwhelmed and out of control in some situation in our waking lives.

 

?          Dreams of losing teeth: Dreams of falling teeth are quite common. These may take the form of teeth crumbling in our hands or falling out one by one with just a light tap. Such dreams not only horrify and shock us, but often leave us with a lasting image. It was thought that such dreams represented malnutrition, which may have been true for some dreamers. Actually, such dreams reflect our anxiety about appearance and how others perceive us. Don’t we all fall for that dazzling smile! Teeth are used for biting and chewing and represent power. To dream of losing teeth indicates powerlessness in some current situation.

 

Alas, dreams are certainly not limited to these themes. Just anything can be encountered in the windows of our mind. We are sometimes left perplexed by the very nature of our dreams – Why did I see a snake in my dream? What was my long lost friend, whom I had forgotten, doing in my dream? What was that woman, whom I had met only once, getting excited about in my dream? How did I explain this mind-boggling problem so simply and accurately in my dream? The dream content is infinite.

 

All dream imagery is symbolic. Each dream symbol is person specific. In other words, what a symbol represents for one person can have an entirely different meaning for another. This is the reason why dream dictionaries generally prove useless. Of course, a common streak runs through all symbols, but they have to be interpreted in the context of the dream content.  

 

But, if you can relate the changes happening in your life to the kind of dreams you are dreaming, you can certainly take a step towards understanding the meaning. It will help you immensely by putting your mind at ease.  

 

So, don’t let your dreams go waste, you never know what you will unravel. Great opportunities and fortunes await those who are able to interpret their dreams.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Revelation


 

Revelation

 It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord (2 Corinthians 12:1).

 Spiritual revelation is the uncovering of hidden knowledge and wisdom about the wonder and adventure of living our lives in Christ. It is to discover that all God’s intentions toward us are good in bringing us forth into the image of His Son. The awareness of His goodness and infinite love is to find fulfillment in Him, which brings great joy to our hearts. Revelation is to see God exalted in His works and ways and to marvel at His wisdom made manifested in mercy and grace. How wonderful to see Him as Father and to discover the ways of being a son to Him. Even if our lives are a mess, God sees the incredible wonder of His Son coming alive, emerging, growing and maturing in us who believe. He opens our eyes to see the same in the lives of our wives, children, brothers and sisters. Revelation is God’s way to let us experience Him through His senses. He allows us by His Spirit to see what He sees, hear what He hears and feel what He feels. How glorious when He reveals to us His desires and pleasures and we revel in His joy.

 Revelation is the basis for hope in God. Hope is a vision that comes through revelation from the Spirit of God with an expectation of fulfillment. Hope is the food for our faith, which create substance in a world of unseen realities. Faith is one of three qualities Enoch and Elijah had in their relationship with God. Hope and love is the other two dimensions in a relationship with God. These graces are the doorway to dwell in the Spirit with God. They received a testimony that they pleased Him and never tasted death. When God took them they could not be found among the sons of men. Without a revelation, vision or dream people perish. Without revelation there is no hope. Without hope there is no faith to create substances for the pleasure of God. Without faith you cannot please God and he who does not manifest faith that is worked by love does not know God.

 A relationship with God starts with a revelation from God. Revelation starts with seeking and searching for godly wisdom by giving yourself to prayer and the word of God. This is the road to faith and hope that is worked by love. This is pleasing to God. Trust and love do not develop outside of a deep relationship.

 God reveals Himself to us in dreams, visions, revelatory gifts of the Holy Spirit, parables of the word and the audible hearing of the Gospel and even messages from angels. The interpretation of His riddles brings understanding to the mind and unspeakable joy to the heart. How much He delights in you when you search out concealed matters. Revelation is not so much an understanding of what God can do for you or what you can do for God, as it is an assurance of what He is to you, and a plan of what you can become to Him. Revelation comes to you that you can grow into a substance of fulfillment for God, the household of faith and the rest of the kingdom of God. The image of His Son is His delight.

 The kingdom of God is all about relationships. The purpose of God for your life is to become a son to Him by conforming to the image of Christ according to the anointing that is working in you. Revelation is most often an enlightenment to draw you in a closer relationship with God and your neighbor. It is an ever-growing awareness of what He is in you, for Him. It is a discovery of the anointing that is working in you so that you can fulfill the purposes of God for your life. Revelation is normally an unveiling of the hidden Christ who lives in you but it can also be an unveiling of any other hidden matter. However, revelation is never complete until you see God exalted and glorified in the matter. If you fail in your relationships the revelation knowledge that you obtain will puff you up and you will not grow into a fountain of worship to God and an anointed substance for others, which is not the image of Christ.

 Because of Adam’s transgression all of his offspring, unredeemed men, are dead to God spirit, soul and body. Unredeemed men are confined to the prison of the natural realm and cannot observe God who lives in the liberty of the realm of Spirit. So the realities of the Spirit are foolishness to carnal men for they are not able to see, understand or experience it. How can the dead understand the Living, or what does death and life have in common? Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand (Matthew 13:13).

 Though natural man knows God from the witness of creation, he did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful but became futile in his thoughts. The natural man cannot help but to be foolish and arrogant because he is conceived in sin and shaped in unrighteousness and iniquity. He is born blind and unless he becomes born of the Spirit he will remain blind until he dies in his sin.

 The carnal man is blind to his own place in creation. Having chosen the destructive way of independence from God, he does not understand that he is pulling the entire creation down with him. It is in this evil and destructive independent state of heart that he destroys others and creation.

 From the beginning God intends to have sons and not performers. Solomon, the wisest man that ever lived, did not love God like his father David, who loved God with all of his heart. Solomon desired God’s wisdom apart from a relationship with Him and ended up a fool serving the idols of his wives and concubines. Balaam, a mighty prophet of God, whose heart was not entirely set on God ended up in error. A revelation of God’s character and power, which is His Glory, without a deep relationship with God, does not make sense because it is the relationship that ministers life and not independent works. Anything divorced or independent from a relationship in God is legalism and brings forth death. This is to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good (law or legalism) and evil (lawlessness). Good is better than evil but it is still fruit from the tree that introduced death to the earth. This is nothing else but a quest for self-righteousness.

 You need to be born again to receive revelation from the Holy Spirit. How else will you see the kingdom of God? If you are not born of the Spirit through faith in Christ you are dead to God and you cannot enter the realm of God’s Spirit where the riches of His knowledge and wisdom is found. Jesus is the true Light, which gives light to every man coming into the world. When you turn to Christ, God commands light to shine out of darkness into your heart to give you a revelation of the glory of God in the presence of Jesus Christ. When the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ shines in your heart the ignorance that exists because of blindness, is removed. It is in His light that you see the Light of the world. The cry of the Spirit is, “Allow Me to reveal the Son of God to your heart that you may be changed into the same image.�? The nature of the Spirit of God is to open the way by leading you into all truth, which is Christ.

 Revelation is to perceive God with the eyes of the Spirit that we may come to know Him. Eternal life is to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He sent. The choice that God made to hide so many wonders from us is an act of love in that He draws us to Himself to continuously seek His face. Eternal life is for those that fervently seek to live in the presence of God and discover His hidden beauty. How will we be conformed into His image if His glory is not revealed to us or how will we tell about His power if we do not see Him exalted in His wondrous works and ways.

 It is difficult for a carnal Christian to receive spiritual revelation because the carnal man is dead to God and thus unable to receive the things of God. His fleshly mind is unable to perceive the things of the Spirit. Because he does not receive or understand the things of the Spirit he is enmity with God. He who lives according to the flesh set his mind on the things of the flesh, which is death. This is a picture of the life of carnal man that tries to figure out the things of the Spirit with his fleshly mind. Such one must pray that the God of our Lord Jesus, the Father of Glory, may give to him the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. The answer concerning mysteries and secrets is with God. Often, a person has no or little revelation because he does not seek to know the answers to the mysteries of God. A revelation has not come to maturity unless you see God exalted in His works and ways. In the day that you seek God with all of your heart you will find Him revealed in the woodwork of the detail of the Scriptures.

 During Old Testament times, God spoke to the fathers by the prophets at various times and in various ways. The Lord does nothing unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets (Amos 3:7). The Old Testament prophets prophesied concerning Christ and concerning His suffering. Yet they did not understood it as God has veiled His wisdom in plain sight from them. The wisdom of God is revealed in that Jesus has become the Mediator of a better covenant. All the things that were written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man were accomplished. Thereafter God spoke to us by His Son that He may reveal Him in which image we must come forth. A revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ set us free from the curse of the law and causes us to come forth into His glorious image as we behold Him in the Spirit. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. When we behold Him through the Spirit of God we lay hold of Him in the same manner that He laid hold of us. If the revelation is not united with faith it does not profit us. It is through faith that we are transformed into the perfect image of Christ that we behold in the Spirit. His image is the end from the beginning and it is an ever-growing image. Just as a tree planted at the waters we grow from glory to glory in Him. Every stage is perfect in Christ. To know Him is to grow and mature in Him according to the anointing that is working in each one of us. The anointing of each member of His body is unique according to its purpose and function.

 For every member to function in the glorious body of Christ emphasis must be placed on servanthood. The Lord will surely reveal His secrets to His servants the prophets. Your service to others must coincide serving the purposes of God in accordance with the anointing that are working in you. So, if you are in Christ, you are a servant of the living Christ (the Head and body). To be a servant of the purposes of men is not serving the purposes of God. O Lord our God, masters besides You have had dominion over us (Isaiah 26:13a).

Jesus the servant of the Lord, died for the joy that was set before Him, which is to see His seed. Jesus said, “Take My yoke [yoke of servanthood] upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly of heart, and you will find rest for your souls�? (Matthew 11:28). The greatest desire of God is to see us coming forth into the image of His Son, in other words, to conform to the servanthood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees (by revelation) the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son does in like manner. We are to follow in the footsteps of the Captain of our salvation and do likewise for the Lord is the vine and we are the branches. If we abide in Him, we bear much fruit. Without Him we can do nothing. In the Son, we share His godly wisdom to do the will of Him that sent us and to accomplish His work. The Holy Spirit is the One that lead and guide us into all truth. We must do what we see the Lord is doing, and do it in like manner. This is the way to enter into the labor of the Servant of the Lord and thus enter with Him into the rest of God.

Often we jump the gun and get involved in activities, which we believe might be in the will of the Lord. This is not the way to walk if we believe we are conforming into His image. We must first see and hear and afterward do as we were instructed. To live a life where Christ is not manifested in our flesh is a life severed from Him and accounts for nothing. The just shall live by faith. Faith is based on hope and hope is based on revelation.

Search for the wisdom and knowledge of the Lord diligently. In seeking the Lord with all of your heart He will reveal Himself to you. Yes, if you cry out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth comes knowledge and understanding (Proverbs 2:3-6). The Lord reveals Himself in wisdom and understanding.

The Lord did not sit in an armchair at night and say, “Father, please give me the agenda for tomorrow�?. Often, the Lord went to the Mount of Olives to pray throughout the night. In the days of His flesh He offered up prayers, and supplications with strong powerful crying and tears. The Lord prayed with intensity of spirit and in doing so the Father revealed His will to Him.

God who inspired the Scriptures is the same God that talks to us about its interpretation. Seeking diligently the interpretation of God’s riddles is to develop our spiritual perception and revelation of godly wisdom. In seeking God’s ways we will always be dependent on God, which lead us into a deeper relationship with Him so that we may grow into the image of His Son. We reach into the Lord in faith, which is beyond revelation where we are one with God and one in God that the world may believe that the Father sent Jesus to the glory of His name.

If you have a basic understanding of the interpretation of dreams and visions then the other ways in which God choose to reveal His wisdom and knowledge to you will be understood much easier. Reading the Scriptures is reading the dreams of God that needs interpretation. A dream is a series of thoughts and images in the form of a story or event. Most revelation is the response of the Holy Spirit toward God’s dealings with you or as a result of much activity. For a dream comes through much activity… (Ecclesiastes 5:3a).

People that can interpret dreams and visions are often blessed in interpreting the Scriptures accurately. Dreams, visions, tongues and parables in Scripture are events or stories that most often needs interpretation. An interpretation is the translation of objects and/or sounds into an understandable language. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter (Proverbs 25:2).

Dreams, visions and pictures occur in the imagination of man’s heart. Man is created in the image of God with an imagination like God’s where His omniscience dwell. To explain allow me to use the following example: Although Jesus suffered on our behalf as God’s Lamb to take away the sin of the world two thousand years ago, the Father told us what He saw from the beginning of the world, namely: And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of the lamb slain from the beginning of the world (Revelation 13:8, emphasis added). You may say but that was what John saw in a vision. That is true but God shared some of His omniscience with him at that moment in time. This is supernatural knowledge obtained, which would have been otherwise unknown.

Because people do not know the Scriptures (dreams of God) and the revelatory power of the Holy Spirit they err much in interpretation. I do not refer to the ability of quoting scriptures but perceiving the word of God through revelation. And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err [deceive, wander], because ye know [see, perceive, understand] not the scriptures [writings], neither the power [the ability] of God [Holy Spirit] (Mark 12:24).

God’s greatest dream is to bring us forth into the image of His Son but revelation is also directives given to us to make certain godly decisions or to prepare us for future events. Paul saw a vision about a man from Macedonia that asked for help. That was a revelation of God’s love for the Macedonians and His will revealed to Paul to preach the gospel to them (Acts 19:9-10).

Every dream and vision in the Bible and every meaningful dream thereafter has a purpose for which the Lord has sent His word to perform His will.

 The revelatory gifts (word of knowledge, word of wisdom and discernment of spirits) are also ways in which the Holy Spirit reveals to us knowledge and wisdom otherwise unknown. Often these gifts are working in conjunction with the interpretation of dreams and visions or serve as a revelatory aid to interpret the Scriptures.

 The revelatory gifts can work in isolation or together. Let me give you an example. A while a go I was in a busy shopping mall in my city. Normally I am communicating with the Lord keeping my spirit open to Him. All of a sudden a woman cursed me using the vilest language imaginable. I did not know in what way I have offended her. I look at her and said to her, “Your father raped you when you were six years old. When you were at age you marry an accountant, which abuse you before your marriage and afterward. The last straw was when he assaulted you and burned your clothing. You divorced him, left your country and you are working now in this city as a nurse.�? She was astonished and asked me, “Who told you this because all of what you had told me is the truth.�? I said to her, “God loves you and has a plan for your life.�? She started to cry uncontrollable. After ten minutes I left. I had no chance to lead her to Christ. I knew at the time that the Lord wants to deal with her on His own.

 Another occasion was when a man visited us. We sat at the kitchen table and we shared the gospel of Jesus’ saving grace with this fellow. This man started to pretend he knew God. I looked at my refrigerator and saw a vision of an African Green parrot in a cage on top of it. When the parrot saw me it flee away with a distinct noise through the bars of the cage and hid behind the refrigerator. The experience was so real that the natural and spiritual surroundings were blended into the one world of Christ. I got up to look for the parrot behind the refrigerator. It is needless to say that it was not there. In the vision I discerned that the man was in bondage (the cage) and that he was just repeating what he heard in the past (like a parrot) from his mind (color green). The Holy Spirit showed me he was pretending.

 At all times be a humble servant of the Lord. Do not be intimidated by my experiences. These experiences do not happen all the time. By sharing what the Holy Spirit has shown you from the Scriptures can be equally effective. Often you will not even realize that you have ministered to somebody’s need.

 Stay humble by making sure that the other party is blessed and edified. Do not draw attention to yourself. Do not be puffed up by the revelation the Holy Spirit has given you. Remember you are a servant of the Lord. You serve the purposes of God and you enjoy living in the presence of the Holy One. Enjoy Him.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

The Wonderful Gift of Dreams


Dreams have always fascinated me. So, 25 or so years ago, in an effort to learn more about dreams, I embarked on an exploration of sleep and dream research. I worked with dreams more and more over the years, interpreting my dreams and those of others.





I have learned some fascinating things about dreams over the years, one of which is that what we lump into the category of dreams are actually different phenomena. One commonality among these phenomena is that while we are dreaming our body is quiet – unless, of course, we are sleepwalking (or daydreaming). Aside from this commonality, however, there can be great variability in what we call “dreams.�?





So, one of the first things to remember is working with our dreams is that there are different types of “dreams.�?





1. In some, our consciousness, unbounded by our bodies and not continually bombarded by noisy feedback from our bodies, is actually off exploring other realms. These “dreams�? are actually experiences, some of which we may remember as dreams and others we may have no recall about at all. The illusory veil of time can be lifted and we can be experiencing other times, including past lives.





2. Some dreams actually are just a sorting out of our day’s activities, as our brains sort and correlate experiences and information.





3. Some dreams may actually be communication experiences in which we are communicating on various levels with other people, both those living and those transitioned. We may also be communicating with our guides and others who wish to get through to us.





4. Some dreams are precognitive and actually give us information about the future.





5. In some dreams, we are being given messages from the universe and our higher self or other levels of our own consciousness. These dreams tend to be about our personal and spiritual growth issues and can be the richest for us to work with on our paths.





6. Some dreams are one-time dreams and others are recurring. Recurring dreams are usually, but not always, more significant than single dreams and can represent general issues that we are working on (whether we are consciously aware that we are working on them or not). In these recurring dreams, we may have elements that repeat as themes, sort of a nocturnal reverie leitmotif.





These represent some general types of dreams and it is important to note that any one dream can actually be a combination of different types, sort of a cross-breeding of genres.





It can further us greatly as we evolve and grow to work with our dreams, and understanding them is the first step toward this. This can be tricky in and of itself, as many of our dreams are cloaked in symbols. Thus, dream interpretation becomes essential in working with our dreams.





I consider dream interpretation to be similar to explication of literature (which I did a great deal of and loved in high school and college) – with one major difference: it is critical to bring intuition to the task. Whereas in explicating literature we look for all possible meanings for all possible readers and applications, in interpreting dreams we look for the interpretations specific to the dreamer. And please note that it is “interpretations�? in the plural sense. One wonderful aspect of dreams is that any one dream can have several different – and all equally valid – meanings for the dreamer.





Intuition is further essential in interpreting dreams because we all have our own vocabulary in dreams, and our dream symbology and language will be highly individual. Thus, dream “dictionaries�? that list symbols and universal interpretations are no help at all in interpreting a particular person’s dream. We have to uncover the meaning of symbols specific to the dreamer, his or her own vocabulary.





Although it may take more effort to use our intuition and come up with the meanings of a dream specific for the “dreamer,�? the rewards can be rich and varied as we mine information and gain insight for ourselves and others on their paths.





Aside from working on and developing our intuition, there are some questions we can ask and some pointers in working to interpret dreams:





1. How did/does the dreamer feel about the dream, both upon waking and in retrospect – pleasure, fear, anxiety, optimism, relief, etc.?





2. What type of dream does this seem to be? (See above.)





3. Allow yourself to get into a very relaxed state of consciousness as you go over the dream’s unfolding sequentially in your mind (or as the dreamer relates the dream to you, if it’s not your dream). What things go through your mind or are evoked as you review or listen to the dream? What percolates up from your subconscious?





4. Instead of focusing on how “bizarre�? the dream seems, approach it as a very rich, cogent, and, yes, respectable, event. Focusing on the bizarre quality alone serves to distract us from the credible validity of the dream and the richness in insight it can offer.





5. Work with each symbol independently in the dream. Focus on a symbol, while asking yourself (or the dreamer), “What does this mean to me (or you)?�? I once had someone tell me she had had a dream with a cat in it and was worried because someone had told her that a cat in a dream means death. When I asked her how she felt about cats, she replied, “Oh, I love cats!�? Remember that any one symbol can have more than one valid meaning.





6. What is the general theme of the dream? What area(s) of your (or the dreamer’s) life is it related to (work, relationships, childhood, etc.)?





7. Go over each “story�? segment of the dream and work to understand it as a discrete little unit.





8. Put all the pieces, or segments, of the dream and their meanings together. What picture emerges? How does each segment relate to other segments?





9. Pay attention to any words or phrases that are prominent in the dream. Puns and plays on words are often meaningful in dreams.





10. Look for any elements that may have particular significance for you (or the dreamer). What do these elements mean? (For example, a numerologist may have numbers pop up in dreams and these numbers may have numerological significance that contributes to the dream’s meaning(s).





11. Look at the other people who appear in the dream. How do you (or the dreamer) feel about each person? Further meaning may be gained by also looking at each person as you (or the dreamer). Are these people parts of you (or the dreamer) that are embraced, disowned, or suppressed?





12. Remember, again, that any one dream can have several different meanings. What different meanings does the dream have? What pictures emerge? What is the dream telling you?





Working with our dreams can be extremely rewarding as they further our process and facilitate our personal and spiritual growth. They can point out issues we are working on or need to give attention to. Dreams, indeed, can be great gifts.





Happy dreaming!


Monday, May 24, 2010

Dream Interpretation the Old Fashioned Way



I remember sitting on my grandma’s big fluffy bed, watching her write in a faded, worn out notebook; squenched, tiny faded lips and her eyes shut tight, remembering a dream she had dreamed the night before.





“What are you doing, Grandma?�?





“Quiet child! I’m going back to the dream world for just a few minutes. Interpreting my dream, see?�?





Sitting as quietly as any kid could, breathlessly anticipating the moment she would open her eyes and smile heavenward, “Ahhh. I understand. Thank you.�? A few moments more of furtive scribbling and then we would begin our day together.





At the time, the little ritual felt sacred. I could not ask her about her private dreams, or how she knew how to interpret them, but my curiosity for such matter was overwhelming at times. As the years passed and I grew a little older, I also became bolder if not wiser.





“Grandma, I had a dream last night,�? I tossed out, ever so matter-of-factly one day. The lift in her little wrinkled eyes told me even then that she was on to me, but she indulged my cleverness.


“You did? Tell me all about it. I interpret dreams, you know,�? she smiled, knowing full well I already knew this. I would tell her my dream with all the drama and gusto I could muster, and she quickly broke it down.








“It doesn’t matter who you dream about,�? she began. “You are always everyone in your dream. Whatever you think of whatever person you see or meet in your dream, are facets of you.�?








On average, Grandma used to have four or five dreams every night that she could remember. She called some of them “brain flatulence�?, some she called “premonition dreams,�? but her favorites were called the “knowing yourself dreams.�?





“Usually my dreams are ‘knowing yourself dreams’,�? she recalled.


Grandma never let me in on her secret of interpreting dreams until the time I bought her a book I believed that she would enjoy. I don’t know what I was thinking.








Grandma cooed over the purple tulip wrapping paper containing the dream interpretation book, and I felt rather pleased with myself that I had chosen a gift for Grandma that no one else had; of course, I did have a reason for choosing the gift. It was all in my plan, see?








When Grandma tore away the last remnants of the wrapping, her small blue eyes, not entirely unexpectedly, transformed instantly into large black saucers.








“What is this?�? she demanded.








When the title of the book registered, her eyes narrowed and her gaze resembled bullets aimed at, well… you can imagine. The room seemed to shrink as Grandma stared at me in icy silence.








“I thought you would like it, Grandma. I thought you would like to read what other people thought about dream interpretation,�? I innocently manipulated.








“Why would I want to do that, dear? I know what I’m doing and I learned from a master: my own grandma.�? She handed the book to me, indignant. “Bethie, I don’t need this.�? Then, her tone softening suddenly, I knew my plan had worked. “It’s about time that I taught you how to interpret dreams like my grandma did for me.�?





I discarded the ‘offending’ book and eagerly pulled up a chair.








Grandma called her methods the old fashioned way.








“Sometimes the old way is the best way,�? she said. “When you dream about an animal, for instance, think about what that animal means to you. If you dream of a snake and you are afraid of snakes, then you are afraid of something. If you dream about a snake and the snake appears knowledgeable to you, then you are receiving knowledge of some sort. You see?�?








Grandma taught me that there are some universal signs in dreams as well, signs that will have the same meaning for many people. “Water,�? she said, “is usually your feelings. If you are drowning in a dream, it usually means that you’re overwhelmed.�?








“You really have to completely take a dream apart and put each piece in its own category in a notebook.








“First write out your dream, just as you saw it. And if you can, draw an illustration of the dream as well. Once you have it on paper, start with the obvious parts that you already know has a meaning for you.�?








Grandma’s example: Let’s say you dream about climbing a tree and there is a cat up in the tree. The cat meows at you and you think it wants down. The tree and cat are on a college university. The cat scratches you and you wake up.








According to Grandma, look first at what you know is currently happening in your life. Is there anything bothering you at work, or are there some questions and have you been wondering what the answers could be? What does the tree or a cat mean to you?








In Grandma’s old world dream interpretation, a tree to me means growth and a cat means secret knowledge. A college would be a place of learning to me. A cat scratching me, even though it seems like a bad thing, really isn’t. The cat (secret knowledge) made contact with me; I am growing from this (tree) and I am learning.


If you want to know more about yourself, interpreting one’s dreams is a good springboard. You’ll soon get the hang of it and you’ll find yourself excited to wake up in the morning, anticipating ― like Grandma did ― writing down your dreams. There are answers in dream interpretation that are only for you.








Grandma showed me that I can learn many things about myself through my dreams. She also taught me that dreams are personal, and are meant only for ourselves. There is the occasional premonition dream in which everything is crystal clear, and can even feel like it is happening in the real world. Dream interpretation is different for everyone, but my family relies on Grandma’s techniques.








One quiet afternoon, years after Grandma had passed on, I stumbled upon the dream interpretation book I had gotten her as part of my ‘plan’. I happened to notice that it looked quite worn, and when I opened it to the first page, she had scrawled some notes about how it would be better to interpret it her way.








She had written comments throughout the entire book, practically on every page, but despite this, it was clear that she had made a kind of peace with the book. It was on the last page she had written: “Dreaming is like art interpretation. One man sees a beautiful countryside in the artwork, while another sees a desolate field; but both of them have the right to their own opinion. Whatever works best for both interpreters is fine with me, but do listen to your Grandma, Bethie.�? Spoken in true Grandma Fashion, I smiled, closing the book. As the covers met, I caught a whiff of her perfume as it mixed with the dust particles floating, dreamlike, past the sinking afternoon sun.


Sunday, May 23, 2010

Hear the Voice of God : Dreams and Dream Interpretation


Dreams and Dream Interpretation



By Joseph Ho


Jan 23rd, 2009



What is a Dream?



Dream is defined as a sequence of images that passes through a sleeping person, much like a video show except that it also carries some personal emotions. Everyone have dreams but most people do not know that their dreams do have significant impact on their real life. Dream serves to warn, instruct, direct, and foretell future events in a person’s life.



Are dreams significant in a person’s life?



Dreams are the messages of the night. It is also called visions of darkness, because it is during deep sleep that our inner soul becomes sensitive to the spiritual realm. The messages in the dreamscape contain symbols which are specific to the dreamer and so a dream dictionary can not be accurately applied for any serious dream interpretation.



Dreams can truly benefit the recipient only when it is properly interpreted. Some dreams occur from having too much activity during the day and it only reflects our mood, this kind of dream does not carry any significant messages. There are however, certain dreams which bring us warning of future events in our life and these are prophetic dreams and we should pay special attention.



Types of Dreams



There are basically 3 major types of dreams.



Type I is the carnal dreams that come from the internal soul of the person. . Past troubles which we have not properly dealt with can manifest fear, anger, and sadness and caused recurring dreams.



Type II is the Spiritual Prophetic dreams which is sent by God to foretell the future. This type of dream almost always speaks about the future and they are very important to us.



Type III is the dream we get when we are hyper active during the day. This type is more confusing and leads to disturbed sleep since they are haphazard and disjointed.



How are dreams interpreted?



In the bible, Proverbs 18:16, “A gift opens the way for the giver and ushers him into the presence of the great.�?



Dreams Interpretation is a gift, it can not be easily learnt in a class setting, but it however can be imparted by a spiritual mentor. Impartation refers to the spiritual laying of hands upon the person and saying a prayer over them.


Dream is a form of divine communication that connect God with to us since God promised to tell his servant what is to come. Dream is a more complete system of authentic communication because it is a four dimensional message, it contains events, people, feelings and words or symbols. Dream can not be intercepted as in any man made device.



The dreams are interpreted much the same as the instantaneous flow of prophetic utterance, meaning given by the Holy Spirit. Peace with assurance that comes from the Holy Spirit will be the only guidance that ascertains the truth. In the book of Hosea 12:10, the bible says “I have also spoken by the prophets, and have multiplied visions; I have given symbols through the witness of the prophets.�? This refers to prophetic dreams. Although anyone can claim that they can interpret dreams, the difference between true and false interpretation is that the truth will come to pass.



Philippines 4:7, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.�?



1Corinthian 14:33, “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace.�?



JOSEPH THE KING OF DREAMS



Joseph’s first dream was about rising high above his brothers. Joseph’s second dream of rising was about his brothers and parents paying homage to him. God had prepared Joseph to interpret Pharaoh’s dream.



When God sends you two dreams on the same matter, it will surely come to pass without fail. The bible says that a matter must be established by two unchangeable facts; Matthew 18:16, 2 Corinthians 13:1 and Deuteronomy 19:15.



So why did God favor Joseph? Joseph honored his father Jacob and was obedient and trustworthy so he was chosen to be trained in God’s school of adversity. He was told by God what will happen to Egypt. Knowing is only half the solution without the how to solve it, knowledge is useless. God does not give us a warning and then we are to pray about it, in fact, we are to order our life around the dream so that we will not be affected by any crisis.



Joseph’s Interpretation of Dreams



Someone’s problem becomes our promotion and God’s making us famous by marketing us to the key people in the world.



Joseph’s first dream interpretation for the Cupbearer and the Baker in Genesis 40:1, was a preparation for him to meet the most powerful man in Egypt. Joseph’s second dream interpretation regarding the Pharaoh’s two different dreams; one about the corns and the other about the cows was God’s divine plan to exalt Joseph over Egypt. God caused Pharaoh to have those dreams.



Only the anointed one from God is able to answer this riddle. And only Jesus Christ is the baptizer of the Spirit and only Jesus can authenticate a gift and since it’s a gift, not all people are called to be interpreter of dreams. My people suffer from the lack of knowledge, Hosea 4:6. But God said in 1 Corinthian 2:9, “However, it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him. But God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.�?



Finally, dream Interpretation is a spiritual gift, and if you have a dream you should consult reputable Christians of the same faith. I pray that you will have divine messages of the night from our Lord Jesus Christ. If you need your dreams to be interpreted you can check out my website at www.kingscepter.com and send me your dreams at prophet3333@yahoo.com. Please indicate the title of your email as dream interpretation. God bless you all.


Saturday, May 22, 2010

Interpretation of Dreams and Visions


Interpretation of Dreams and Visions

 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter (Proverbs 25:2).

 God spoke to man since the beginning of time. Adam walked with God in the beginning and God spoke to him face to face.  When Adam walked with God in the garden, He taught him about creation and the purpose for cultivating and maintaining it. He also taught him about naming the animals and his relationship with them. God did not speak to him in parables because it was given to him to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. It was the will of God for him to have all things and to have it in abundance. In this they found great joy and fulfillment as they flow in absolute divine fellowship. As Adam abided in Christ His Creator and do His will, he flowed with the life force of God; he was totally alive to God always moving, vibrant and overflowing with the Spirit of God, lacking in nothing.

 After sin entered into him and the discord of sin entered his soul he lost his eternal life and divine power because he was not only casted out of Eden but, as a branch, was cut off from the Vine, Jesus Christ his Creator. Because of disobedience his heart grew dull, his ears hard of hearing and his eyes closed so that he saw but did not perceive and hear but did not understand.

 After the fall of man at various times and in diverse manners God spoke to the fathers by the prophets to the sons of Adam. Since two thousand years ago God spoke to them by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things and through whom He also made the worlds (Hebrews 1:1-2).

 In the earlier Old Testament times, prophets were called seers because the Holy Spirit enabled them to see things in the spirit realm about mysteries hidden in all time frames (past, present and future). Formerly in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he spoke thus: “Come, let us go to the seer�?; for he that is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer (1 Samuel 9:9).

 Though many prophets of old had awesome dreams and visions they did not perceive the times thereof neither what it was about. They desired to see and hear the things that the heirs of salvation see and hear today; they see and hear it but did not understand it. The Old Testament saints witnessed the mighty works of God and understood that not to themselves, but to us the heirs of salvation they were ministering (1 Peter 1: 10-12). Those things were types and shadows of heavenly things and good things to come. God has veiled His wisdom in plain sight from them. The wisdom of God is revealed in that Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.

 God’s language

 Jesus, in His ministry, used symbolic language as He taught by the parabolic method. Why is God veiling the truth? All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable he did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world�? (Matthew 13:34-35).

 Since the fall of man God conceals truth in parables, dreams and visions which need interpretation to seal the understanding thereof to the heart. The first biblical example is where Joseph’s brothers interpreted Joseph’s dream about their sheaves bowed down to his sheaf.  Jacob interpreted Joseph’s dream about the sun, moon and eleven stars that bowed down to him (Joseph). Joseph interpreted the butler’s, the baker’s and Pharaoh’s dreams. A man interprets his companion’s dream in the camp of Gideon about the barley loaf that tumbled into the camp of Midian. Daniel was the interpreter of dreams and visions to some kings of Babylon (e.g. the vision of King Belshazzar that saw part of a hand that wrote him a message on the wall of his palace).

 The prophecies of Ezekiel, Daniel and the Book of Revelation written by John are expressed in symbolic language. Why is God speaking in parables? Why is He veiling His messages to some and reveal it to others? And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?�? He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given (Matthew 13: 10-11).

 Interpretation of dreams and visions

 In 1988 while my wife was pregnant with our son, Oleg, my mother-in-law had a dream about her, pushing a red pram with a child in it. She interpreted the dream and indicated that she will have a daughter. She believes that the color blue represents a son and the color red represents a girl. This is a traditional believe in Ukraine. My wife believed her dream and interpretation. Just thereafter my wife had a direct dream (no interpretation required) that she will have a son that will be born with black hair. Although our son is blond today he was born with black hair just as she had seen him in her dream. God gave her this dream in response to a dream that was incorrectly interpreted. Sometimes God imparts revelation through dreams that require no interpretation.

 Nevertheless, most dreams and visions are veiled in symbolism and require interpretation. Then He said, Hear now my words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. Not so with My servant Moses; he is faithful in all My house. I speak with him face to face, even plainly, and not in dark sayings (Numbers 12:6-8a, emphasis added).

 We found the first account of dream interpretation in the Bible, in Genesis 37:8, where Joseph’s brother’s interpreted his dream about their sheaves bowed down to his. Jacob probably taught them how to interpret dreams, which he must have learned from his grandfather Abraham and father Isaac. In the accounts of Joseph and Daniel we found that beside themselves magicians were also interpreters of dreams. So dream interpretation was practiced since ancient times.

 Historical background of dreams in modern times

 Artemidorus of Daldus (AD 138-180), a Roman philosopher, studied symbols in dreams. He interviewed dream interpreters throughout Italy, Greece and the Near East, and noted that dreams could rarely be taken at face value. In his book “Interpretation of Dreams�?, he established principals for the interpretation of fundamental types of symbols and images appearing in dreams. His work foreshadowed in many ways the work of Freud and Jung, eighteen hundred years later, and provides an important link between the ancient and modern methods of dream interpretation.

 The Christian theologian Gregory of Nyassa (AD 331-395) published a treatise entitled “On the Making of Man�?, wherein he stated that dreams occur in sleep because the rational intellect is at rest. Because the intellect is resting, the dream mind can work through the day’s activities.

 In the thirteenth century, the Roman Catholic Church declared that the future was solely in the hands of God and that dreams could neither be prophetic, nor communicate divine revelation. People, who claimed that their dreams were divinely inspired, were condemned as blasphemous. Joan of Arc, a dreamer whose visions changed the course of French history, were burned alive at the stake in 1431 as a heretical witch, partly because the Church denied that her dreams or visions could be divinely inspired.

 Nevertheless, interest in dream interpretation never really declined. With the arrival of printing in the Renaissance, the book of Artemidorus was printed in 1518, and went through twenty editions in the next 200 years. Despite this popular interest, ascetic Protestants gave no credence to their dreams. Yet the great reformer Martin Luther taught his followers that dreams revealed their sinful nature.

 The German Romantic Movement of the late eighteen century developed various theories on dreaming. The German physicist, GC Lichtenberg (1742-99) was the first scholar to link dreams with the unconscious. By the end of the nineteenth century, dreams were recognized as products of the unconscious and linked to the source of creative and imaginative ideas.

 In England, Henry Maudsley became well known as a physician of “nervous disorders.�? He noticed that “dreams are sometimes found to go before severe illness.�? However, despite his observations, none of his peers seemed interested in the possible power of dreams.

 Freud and Jung

 Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), the founder of psychoanalyses, began the first comprehensive scientific study of dreams in the 1890’s. The result of these efforts was the publication of his book, “The interpretation of dreams�? (1900), which describes a method for the interpretation of dreams.

 Freud differentiated between the hidden meaning and its actual content. He did this by trying to reconstruct the motivation of the dream from the dreamer’s waking associations. According to Freud, thoughts that are characteristics of our early childhood strongly influence our dreams. In his view, the mysterious and absurd qualities of dreams are directly due to the need for disguising the wishes, which our conscious mind will not acknowledge. Freud stated that dreams have two principal functions: first, to attempt to fulfill our restrained, subconscious wishes that are mainly sexual and aggressive in nature and secondly, to guard our sleep. Freud believed that the content of dreams consists of our memories, but that the stimulus for a dream is always a subconscious wish that has its origin in childhood.

 Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1962) started his research similarly to Freud, and later developed his own theories. He analyzed the dreams of his patients to explore the inaccessible regions of the subconscious mind. He too believed that dreams are largely symbolic. While Freud’s wish-fulfillment theory was intended to explain the biological function of dreaming, Jung’s theory suggested also a psychological function of dreams. His view was that the function of dreams is to compensate for aspects of the dreamer’s personality neglected in his conscious life. This viewpoint does not differ substantially from Freud’s wish-fulfillment theory. For Jung, dreams attempt to reveal rather than to conceal what is in the subconscious mind. He used mythology, comparative religion, and history in interpreting the symbols appearing in dreams.

 Following on from the early work of Freud and Jung, a continual interest in dreams has existed. Many attempts have been made to find a systematic method to interpret the symbols occurring in dreams and to give a consistent meaning and explanation of these symbols. However, both

Freud and Jung concluded that the meaning of a dream differs from person to person depending on the person’s own perception of that symbol. They suggested that ascribing any consistent meaning to the symbols occurring in dreams is impossible. For example, a lion could symbolize power and authority to one person, but destruction and danger to another. They concluded that the meaning of a dream depends on the individual’s own perception of that symbol.

 We have to consider that in their research, Freud and Jung did not differentiate between the dreams of unbelievers and those of born-gain, spirit-filled believers. They mainly worked with problem-loaded people who had no relationship with God.

 They spent some time together, discussing their theories and interpreting each other’s dreams. Each rejected the other’s interpretation of the dreams. Jung believed every human being is deeply rooted and connected with the history of mankind. He established the term, common sub-consciousness, while Freud’s theory was personality centered. A growing conflict developed between Freud and Jung and the final break between them came on their trip to the United States in 1912. During this period when Jung pondered on the validity of Freud’s theory and how this theory could be linked to human history, Jung had a dream.

 He dreamt that he was in an unknown two storey house but he knew it was his house. He found himself in the upper storey in a type of salon, furnished with fine old furniture in rococo style, with many old paintings hanging on the walls. He was quite pleased with the appearance of his house and wanted to discover what the lower floor looked like. Descending the stairs, he reached the ground floor, where everything was much older, dating to the fifteenth or sixteenth century. The furniture was medieval. The floor was tiled with red bricks, and everything was rather dark. He then came to a heavy door and discovered a stone stairway that led down into the basement. There he found himself in a beautiful vaulted room that looked ancient. The walls dated to Roman times. On the floor he discovered a golden ring. With it he lifted a stone slab and saw another stairway leading down. He followed it and came into a low cave cut into the rock. Thick dust, scattered bones, broken pottery, and two human skulls lay on the floor. The skulls were partially disintegrated. Then he awoke.

 Jung asked Freud to interpret his dream, which Freud did according to his wish-fulfillment theory. Before starting with the interpretation, Freud asked Jung what two people he disliked the most. Jung mentioned his mother-in-law and wife. Freud claimed that the two skulls represented Jung’s wife and mother-in-law because he was convinced that Jung would like to see both dead. This was not true at all. Jung liked both of them very much but had deliberately misled Freud to test his interpretation skills. Freud’s misinterpretation caused the final break between the two.

 Jung’s interpretation of the dream was that the house represented a type of psychical image – where the salon with its inhabited atmosphere symbolized the consciousness, while the ground floor represented the first level of the unconscious. The further he descended into the house the darker the scene became. The lowest cave was filled with the remains of early civilization, which Jung interpreted as the world of the primitive man inside each of us. He said that the primitive psyche of man borders on the life of the animal soul, just as animals inhabited caves, before human beings started to dwell in them.

 However, Jung did not follow the basic Biblical principal that a dream comes as an answer to the questions a person pondered on before falling asleep. For example, King Nebuchadnezzar was concerned with the future of his kingdom after his death (Daniel 2:29). In the dream, God gave him the answer to his question and showed him what the future would bring. Daniel could tell Nebuchadnezzar both the question that had been in the king’s heart, and the interpretation.

 Because Jung pondered on Freud’s theory and how it could be linked to human history, God gave him the answer. Let me give you the interpretation. The house in his dream symbolized human history. Important historical periods were associated with various levels of the house. The early history was associated with the lowest part of the house, and ascending storeys represented more recent history.

 In the cave Jung found two human skulls. We can relate them to Adam and Eve as the whole floor of the cave was covered with thick dust. Adam and Eve decided to exalt knowledge above the fear of God and ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In punishment God cursed them, saying they would die and go back to the dust from which He took them.

 The basement of the house was set in the style of the Roman period. This was a decisive period where knowledge, argumentative skills and education became very important powers governing mankind, and truth was violated. The ground floor represents the late medieval times and the second storey the rococo which led to the age of enlightenment and humanism. We note that Jung was impressed by the fine appearance of the furniture and the precious paintings, all produced by the human mind. His dream showed that Freud was actually a successor of all those people who had been seeking the fruit of the tree of knowledge, valuing the power of self over the fear of the Lord.

 The house is a symbol of human achievements throughout the ages, but founded on death, dust and dead bones. All the things Jung saw in the house are dead works with no real living value (all the furniture was antiques), merely deceiving the proud. The fact that Jung saw this as his own house shows that Jung was deeply influenced by the mindsets of his ancestors, dating to the beginning of mankind. He was not, as he might have thought, independent and free in his thinking. Repeatedly in the history of mankind, the same sin has been repeated, namely not seeking the tree of life that is to know the Lord in all your ways and not to lean on your own understanding.

 Many people today are following Freud and Jung’s principals and guidelines for interpreting dreams. It is shocking to know that even spiritual leaders base their understanding of dreams on Freud and Jung’s ideas. Most of these authors work with problem-loaded clients who had no relationship with God.

 The ancient Russians were heathen. Presently, there exist many books about dream interpretation in the countries of the old USSR, which are based on heathen religious believe and superstition.

 The only and true way for dream and vision interpretation

 The Scriptures should interpret dreams and visions, and not theories or superstitious believes. The Word and the Holy Spirit are one and will never contradict each other. Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures [Word] nor the power of God [Holy Spirit] (Matthew 22:29).

 If one does not study the language of the symbol and type of the Bible some of its grandeur will be missing and dreams and visions cannot be interpreted. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter (Proverbs 25:2).

 The Bible indicates that an object may obtain a specific meaning by its inherent character. So animals, birds, fish and even objects, not referred to in Scripture, can be interpreted by their characteristics, habits and uses.

 Scriptures to support above statement are as follows: But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you; and the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you; and the fish of the sea will explain to you (Job 12:7-8). We can use the following example to explain the above scriptures. The hyena has extremely powerful jaws. It is a scavenger, although it will also attack and kill life prey. It scavenges the leftovers from other predators with little effort and become very aggressive when other animals want a share of its prey. A hyena speaks of a person that takes advantage of others.

 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard (Psalm 19:1-3).

 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse (Romans 1:20). Paul said to us that the natural was first and then the spiritual. However the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual (1 Corinthians 15:46).

 The interpretation of dreams and visions is included in the gift of interpretation of tongues (dark sayings), and it is a gift of the Holy Spirit. As for these four young children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams (Daniel 1:17, emphasis added).

Steps to interpret dreams and visions

Firstly, one must be aware that the interpretation of dreams and visions is a gift from God. Sometimes the Holy Spirit reveals the meaning immediately but at times it takes longer. It may take hours, days or weeks or even longer to receive the interpretation. So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation (Daniel 2:16).

Secondly, the symbolology and typology of the Bible should be studied in detail knowing that the Bible is written in the language of signs, symbols and types. Jesus taught in parables, thus using symbolic language. I will open my mouth in parable; I will utter dark sayings of old (Psalm 78:2).

Solomon said to impart wisdom to the godly you must understand proverbs and their interpretation. A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, to understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles (Proverbs 1:5-6).

We must pay attention to fine details in a dream such as color, direction, symbolic action, numbers and shapes. To correctly and completely interpret dreams one must take care of all details contained in the dream or vision.

God has created the color spectrum, with its seven colors, in a specific order. The colors are purple, indigo, blue, green yellow, orange and red. Red has the longest wavelength and purple the shortest. The first three colors refer to the manifestation of the Spirit. In the tabernacle of Moses the colors blue, scarlet and purple were used (Exodus 39:1). The red or scarlet color refers to the blood needed for the remission of sins.

The color green lies in the middle and therefore representing the soul, which includes the mind, emotions and will. For example, I had a vision of a green coffin while praying for somebody. It emerged that this woman feared that she might die from breast cancer at an early age, as were the cases with her mother and grandmother. I assured her that the source of her concern originated in her own mind (green coffin). It is now two decades later and she has two beautiful kids and she is just as healthy as 20 years ago.

The last three colors, yellow orange and red are associated with the works of the flesh. It does not mean that these colors only have negative meanings.

All detail is important such as direction of movement or field of vision. These details give us an indication if it is a positive or negative message and also to which timeframe it belongs. See my book “Interpretation of Dreams and Visions�? for a full explanation.

Symbolic action such as facial expressions often indicates the mood of the dream and shows if the symbols must be interpreted positively or negatively. It is necessary to emphasize that this is not to be worked out in the carnal mind but to be discerned by the Holy Spirit.

Numbers are occasionally included in the content of a dream or a vision. Numbers are a superior form of symbolism and their meanings are rarely understood. A symbol should be interpreted as it is used in Scripture. By learning the different ways numbers and other objects are used in the Bible, we can interpret accurately what they mean in our dreams and visions.

Occasionally shapes like circles, squares or triangles appear in dreams and visions. Some people reluctantly speak about them, as they fear that its source is from the devil. If all circles, squares and triangles were evil, it would mean that all creation in heaven and on earth with all their beauty is constructed by the evil one, which is not true.

The occult does associate certain circles and triangles with witchcraft, but we must ask God for the discernment between life and death and the truth and the lie. Circles, squares and triangles are discussed in detail in my book “Interpretation of Dreams and Visions.�? 

Thirdly, record the dream or vision as accurately and completely as possible. Record the dream as soon as you wake up otherwise you may forget some detail and often forget the whole dream. Record all details such as colors, numbers, direction of objects, field of vision and your mood and if it was a positive or negative experience. Do not add (never assume) or take away from the dream, as it will influence the interpretation. Have a pen and paper next to your bed to record dreams as soon as you wake up. Also take a pen and paper with you when you pray to record visions immediately after you have seen them. Sometimes you may dream or see visions and sometimes you do not dream dreams and see visions. Then the Lord answered me and said: “Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it�? (Habakkuk 2:2).

I also have a dream and vision journal on my personal computer where I record my dreams and visions because I am not good at writing down my dream the first time in strict sequential order of events. My handwritten copy is always a mess.

Fourthly, analyze the dream or vision. Make a thorough study/research of all the symbolic objects and symbols in your dreams or visions. Create a complete record of each symbolic object and symbol and then update your symbolic dictionary. State the definition or give a reasonable description of the object or symbol as well as its most important characteristics, habits and/or uses. If the object or symbol is traceable to the Scriptures, record the Hebrew and/or Greek meanings and refer to the relevant verses. An object or symbol has as many meanings (positive or negative) as it has characteristics, habits and/or uses. So, the interpretation of a specific symbol may differ from one vision to another depending on which characteristic the Holy Spirit wishes to emphasize. A lion in a particular vision may reveal the Lion of the tribe of Judah. And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof (Revelation 5:5). On a different time surrounding other conditions, a vision of a lion may refer to demonic attack. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour (Jeremiah 8:7a). The characteristic, which the Holy Spirit desires to emphasize is discerned by the Holy Spirit and not worked out in the carnal mind. Practicing the gift of interpretation of dreams and visions needs endurance. The more you know your Bible, the more Scripture the Holy Spirit can use to bring it to mind.

To update my symbolic dictionary, I use the Bible, books on the animal and plant kingdoms, Bible dictionaries, Bible encyclopedias, Hebrew and Greek lexicons and dictionaries. I also use the Internet in my research. As a rule I prefer to exclude secular material as far as possible. Occasionally secular material proves to be useful. Make use of Bible programs (e.g. E-sword), which can be downloaded from the Internet for free, the Internet and your local library as books are expensive. Over time, if you faithfully do what I tell you, you will develop a good understanding of the leading of the Holy Spirit in dreams and visions as well as the meaning of most objects and symbols. Practice makes perfect.

The Lord occasionally uses objects and symbols that relates to a person’s occupation and interests. A shopkeeper may receive dreams and visions about products, services and customers, while a professional hunter, from time to time may receive dreams and visions about wild animals, rifles, ammunition and customers.

Fifthly, you need to discern if your dream is a spiritual or natural dream. You need to know whether the Holy Spirit inspired the dream or whether it was a product of your mind.

We also need to know if the dream is symbolic (parable) or literal. Normally if something in a dream is not literal then the whole dream with all objects and symbols must be interpreted. However, there are rare occasions when this rule does not apply. Refer the chapter on dreams concerning a woman that had a dream where she saw people in a large swimming pool.

You also need to know to whom the dream refers and what the dream really means. Therefore, record the background of all dreams or visions. The background involves the activity a person was engage in or the meditation of a person’s heart or the issue a person wrestles with before he or she went to bed. Record if the prayer, experience or meditation was intense and what it was about. You need to know what the dream relates to. Is this Scriptural? King Nebuchadnezzar meditated on what would happen after his reign and God answered him: As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what will come to pass after this; and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be (Daniel 2:29).

Fervent prayer and meditation on the word of God every day, is a healthy habit. It is not good enough to believe God for dreams. Passivity will not provoke dreams and visions. When you are involved in prayer, worship, waiting on the Lord and living in the Word we minister to God and others. Then the Lord will speak to you through dreams and visions to reveal His will to you. The will of God is for your own good; to bring His Son forth in you.

Sixthly, the dream or vision needs interpretation. Ask the Lord for the interpretation of the dream or vision. Start at the beginning of the dream and interpret the objects and symbols one by one and thus the dream. Dreams may relate to you personally, to your family, to your church, your business, or be applicable to third parties, nations, countries and continents. This chapter is only an introduction to help you. You approach the interpretation of dreams and visions in the same sincere manner as when you meditate on the word and it involves the same steps. It takes time, patience and much perseverance to practice your gift.

I started to see visions after my conversion in 1973. It took me eighteen months before I started to flow in the interpretation of dreams and visions. In the beginning I saw dreams and visions but could not interpret them. One day I said to the Lord, “What is the use You are giving me dreams and visions but I cannot interpret them. What a waste.�? Immediately I received the gift of interpretation because I knew immediately the meaning of some visions I have had eighteen months before. When you ask God for the gift to interpret dreams and visions you must practice it as often as you can otherwise it will not develop.

Nobody can have a tender relationship with the Holy Spirit on behalf of somebody else. You are responsible for your own walk with God. Visit a prophetic group and learn from them. You must prepare yourself that you will make many mistakes in the beginning. You can with time mature in this interpretation gift where you become pretty accurate. However, I doubt it if there will be a time in this dispensation where you will be infallible. We know only in part and prophesy in part. For we know in part and we prophesy in part (1 Corinthians 13:9). This reality should keep you humble.

Lastly, take responsibility for what the Holy Spirit has revealed to you. Meditate on your visions and pray it through until its fulfillment and maturity. As long as you cry out for wisdom and understanding in what He has revealed to you, He will let you prosper in all areas of your life. And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him to prosper (2 Chronicles 26:5).

For more information on this subject read my book titled: Interpretation of Dreams and Visions (by Andre Niemand). It is available at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Waterstone, WH Smith, Blackwell, Books a Million and many other major online bookshops.