I hear them whisper ''here she goes, she's off with the faeries again"

[ozzieowl]

Hullo there all you would be-if you could be faeries, pixies, gnomes, goblins and elves,
that like to stay and play a while in our wonderful fantasy realm, where, just like children,
we don't need any excuses to join in and simply enjoy re-visiting our childhood days.

I understand that it does us a great deal of good to take a break from our on-going
busy lives and set aside a little time to `get in touch with our inner child',
for this is where we are able to access our Alpha mind state again,
just as we used to daily, up 'til we started growing out of it around the age of ten.

My friend Tina Volk has kindly agreed to assist me with content here,
in a very similar way we did in a Discussion called `Our Get-A-Way Gazebo'
that can be found in Mary Snowden's Group called `Spirituality and Consciousness'
here on TBD.

I heartily encourage folk who would like to join in and post their pictures, comments
and/or replies when they are happy to, and above all to have fun and simply ENJOY!

Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand.
~William Butler Yeats, "The Stolen Child"

This is a work of fiction. All the characters in it, human and otherwise, are imaginary, excepting only certain of the fairy folk, whom it might be unwise to offend by casting doubts on their existence. Or lack thereof. ~Neil Gaiman

[ozzieowl]

The Greeks, who were influenced by the Egyptians, also practiced this form of dream incubation, as did the Romans, who were influenced by the Greeks. Greek dream temples were dedicated to the god of healing, Aesculapius. Like the Egyptians, the Greek dreamers hoped to receive special symbols associated with their god in their dreams. At Aesculapian temples, if one dreamed of an olive tree, a serpent, a beared man or a handsome youth (the latter was especially associated with miraculous cures), then the dreamer would be cured. If no healing dreams were experienced, the patient was given instruction by the temple priests for receiving healing information through visions.

[ozzieowl]

These techniques worked, according to testimonies inscribed on the temple walls, which probably were carved there to inspire the steady stream of dream pilgrims. All kinds of ailments and conditions were reportedly cured with the help of dreams, from chronic illnesses to blindness and lameness. Early physicians such as Hippocrates and Galen, both Greek, believed in the medical value of dreams. But over time, dreams lost their healing connection and became increasing associated with divination of fortune. The fathers of the Christian Church relegated dream interpretation to sorcery, and discouraged its practice.

[Tina]

[ozzieowl]

Tina, Tina, Tina......they are zactlee the things we need here,
I have read all three affirmations on each beautiful picture
and I feel so wonderful for those words finding a space in my mind - wunda - full, thank YOU!

[ozzieowl]

Psychology and archetypes

Fortunately, we've restored the dream to its rightful place as a source of benefit and help. We've rediscovered the ancient dream wisdom during the last century or so, thanks to psychotherapy. Sigmund Freud considered dreams as messages from the unconscious that expressed "day residues," or rehashes of events in waking life, as well as repressions and unfulfilled wishes. He viewed everything in a dream as symbols that expressed unconscious wishes and fantasies that have been repressed. According to Freud, dreams essentially expressed sexual conflict.

Freud's pupil, Carl G. Jung, went much further in his interpretation of dreams. Jung outlined a dream landscape filled with symbolic images of deep meaning, precognitive glimpses of the future, and telepathic communication. Jung believed that dreams are filled with symbols that have both personal meaning and archetypal meaning. Archetypes are ageless, and are universally recognized in certain symbols and motifs that show up in myth, religion, and fairy tales. Jung called them "primordial images" and "self-portraits of the instincts." An archetypal dream symbol has a larger-than-mundane-life significance.

[ozzieowl]

Jung saw dreams as tools for individuation, which is a process of integration of all parts of the psyche, a striving towards wholeness. According to Jung, all these parts of the psyche show themselves in dream, indicating where a person needs to apply attention.

Besides helping us on a psychic wholeness level, dreams also are involved with our physical well-being. Jung noticed this as well. Some of his patients reported dreams that presaged or dealt with severe illness. More recently, dream researchers have documented how dreams contain crucial information about our health, warning us of illness and providing help in healing.

[ozzieowl]

Dreamwork today

In order to derive maximum benefit from your dreams, it is essential to begin a regular habit of dreamworking. This can be undertaken alone or in a group. It's often helpful to work with someone, but even alone the dreamworker can gain valuable insight in dreams with the help of dreamwork books.

It is important to record all dreams in as much detail as possible. Dreams are ephemeral, and easily slip from memory after awakening. Immediately upon awakening, write or record everything you call recall. Leave nothing out, no matter how bizarre or trivial it may seem. Every piece or symbol in a dream has meaning, and more subtle meanings reveal themselves upon reflection, meditation, or even over time. Such things as colors and numbers have significance, too. Colors are associated with various states of consciousness, emotion and even physical health, while numbers often have associations to time periods, as well as to archetypal meanings.

[ozzieowl]

After a period of time, you will probably notice patterns appearing in your dreams. These often revolve around unresolved issues or feelings, and your dreams are seeking to call your attention to the matter.

If you have trouble recalling your dreams, there are techniques to help. Telling yourself at bedtime that you will remember your dreams does work, although it may take awhile to take hold. Remaining in bed and concentrating on the wisps of dreams also helps. Once we get up and enter full waking consciousness and the activities of the day, it becomes much harder to retrieve dream information.

It's not unusual to go through cycles in dreaming--periods when it is difficult to recall dreams, and periods in which dreams are vivid and easy to recall. Simply beginning regular dreamwork with a journal is an invitation to your dreaming self to step forward, and the dreamwork becomes easier with time.

[ozzieowl]

Once you've recalled your dreams, then how to interpret them? Numerous techniques can help you understand your dreams and learn your own personal symbols dictionary--personal meanings associated with dream images that pertain to your unique experiences and perspective in life.

Many dreams have at least some archetypal symbols in them as well. A good dream dictionary, or a symbols dictionary--see my book The Encyclopedia of Dream Symbols and Interpretations--can show you these larger-than-life meanings, which appear in mythology. These are suggested meanings for dreamwork--you must take them and see how they fit with the dream. Your intuition will tell you when something clicks. My book Dreamwork for the Soul describes in depth how to work with dreams.

[ozzieowl]

Dreamwork does not stop with interpretation. The healing power of a dream can only be fully realized when action is taken. Dreams tell us what we need to change in life, and provide us with help in how to make those changes. Action can be as simple as acknowledging something about yourself. Or, it may be changing an attitude, or even a course or direction in life.

Your dreams are one of your richest sources for guidance and healing. Once you begin tapping into their power, you can put this wisdom to use in daily life for greater happiness, fulfilment and personal growth.

###

[ozzieowl]

Thank you for coming over and adding some joy to our pages here Maggie....

[Tina]