Want a free spiritual development tool? You’ve got it. It’s dreams! Yep. Before there were Bibles, monasteries, or rituals, we all had dreams.
Freud called dreams “the royal road to the unconscious” meaning the hidden part of yourself. Jung felt dreams were the way to tap into the collective unconscious, which is the hidden parts of all of humanity. I believe that dreams are a part of the universal unconscious, which is the Oneness to which we all belong. As such, it’s a most profound free spiritual development tool.
DREAMS ALLOW US TO CREATE
We’re all creators of reality. Unfortunately, most of us create from our unconscious. We create from fear, so the things we see in our lives are dark, violent, and not affirming. When we create from our conscious hearts, we create things that help us to flourish, love, and prosper. This spreads love to others as well. Consequently, the world around us becomes more healthy and beautiful.
How many times have you been underneath a clear night sky and not looked up? How many times did you miss seeing the brilliant sunlight on a dewy flower? I bet you noticed the guy cutting you off in traffic and the person who didn’t hold open the door for you when your arms were full though. We can choose what to pay attention to – both in our waking world and the sleeping world. When you see beauty with your eyes open,, you’ll see beauty when you close your eyes.
THROUGH DREAMS WE CAN SPEAK TO OUR SPIRIT GUIDES
We all have spirit guides. Some are our helping ancestors. Some are animals. Our guides could also be angels or helping friends. They try to speak with us all the time, but there is a veil between our world and theirs. Communication is not always easy. However, in our dreams we can see and hear them – IF we pay attention.
How many times do you wake with a wonderful dream only to forget it five minutes later? Linger in bed. Allow yourself time to bring all the parts together, then write them down. Write down the events, the feelings, and what you think it all meant. But that’s not enough. You also have to do something with it. If you think that your dreams are telling you to slow down, slow down! If you think your dreams are telling you to get a check up, follow through.
If you had something to say to someone who wasn’t listening, you’d give up after a while, wouldn’t you? So do your spirit helpers. When this happens, you end up with what I call fluffy dreams. These are like the static on an old fashioned tv when you change the channels. They are meaningless images that help your brain process the garbage of the day. While these are necessary for healthy life, they aren’t spiritual messages. If you want spiritual messages, you have to participate in the process.
DREAMS HELP US TO SEE OURSELVES
Most people don’t really know what they look like. Our eyes look outward, so we have to get to know ourselves through what is reflected back to us. Unfortunately, for most of us, this means we rely on the good opinion of others for our self worth. That’s NOT what I am suggesting because it’s false and gives us no control. To get a more realistic view of your inside, look at your dreams.
Events, people, and places in our dreams are a reflection of us. If someone is gluttonous, it’s a sign that we are. If you see cowardice, look for that somewhere your own life. When you see beauty, know that it is within you. What about nightmares? Well, those are most often a sign that we are not paying attention so our unconscious is screaming to get us to see what we’re ignoring.
While you can ask a professional, or even a friend, to help you figure out what a dream is trying to say, the best method is to develop this skill for yourself. The problem with asking a professional or consulting a dream dictionary is that your dreams reflect back your own vocabulary. Here’s what I mean. Imagine that my favorite book when I was a child was Lord of the Flies. In that book, when someone has the conch, he’s supposed to have the respect and attention of everyone else so that he can speak. So the conch becomes my symbol for authority and respect. However, to someone else conchs might be food or be a symbol for the Caribbean. That would lead me completely off track. That leads me to the next benefit.
DREAMS TEACH US TO TRUST OUR INTUITION
When we tune into our dreams, our intuition gets stronger. Our waking hunches become more trustworthy too so we avoid veering off track and head towards growth more easily. We’re not always all that conscious when we are awake. An easy way to overcome that is to become more conscious of our sleeping messages. With such a reliable and patient teacher as our dreams, why would you not volunteer as a student?