What’s with the crazy dreams?
Did you know that over an average person’s lifetime, they will spend 6 years dreaming, and that they will experience over 170,000 dreams?
Given that humans are very well engineered, with energy rarely wasted, it is reasonable to ask, ‘What could be so important to our wellbeing that 1/12 of our lives is dedicated to dreaming?’ Most people disregard the significance of dreams, or have a rather utilitarian understanding of its purpose- specifically to help us process and file away the experiences of each day. That may well be part of it. But what happens when we dream about exotic things which have no apparent connection to our daily lives? Take the following dream I had earlier this year:
I was wandering through a forest late at night when I discovered an old house in a clearing. Through the French doors at the front of the house, I could see an old woman lying on a wicker sunlounge. I could not tell if she was dead or alive. I was deeply concerned for her welfare, but the doors would not open. As I sat on the lawn near the front door deeply concerned about what I could do to help this woman, a lynx mysteriously appeared out of the darkness. It had an otherworldly sense about it. I was in awe of its power, but strangely I was not afraid. The lynx came right up to me and stayed by my side for a while, even brushing lightly against me before heading back into the darkness. I felt a deep sense of reassurance, even though there was no immediate resolution to the situation with the old lady.
Many branches of psychology today including psychodynamic, Gestalt and analytical psychology, attribute a far higher significance to many of our dreams than simply sorting through daily events. Sometimes our dreams help to bring to our attention important insights from a higher wisdom within us, often referred to as “the Self”. When we have a particularly numinous dream such as involving an exotic animal, we should look to myths and other associations for greater understanding of the meaning of the dream.
A lynx visiting me at the clinic!
Through research I have subsequently discovered that in mythology the lynx symbolises sharp vision, the revealing of hidden truths, secrets, and keen intuition. In many North American cultures, the lynx was believed to have the ability to look beyond appearances and perceive what is hidden beneath the surface. Greek and Norse myths credited the lynx with having the ability to see through solid objects or in total darkness. The cult of Dionysus associated the lynx with intense perception. In Finnish folklore, the lynx was a solitary mystical creature, acting as a guide and guardian, embodying the wild nature of the forest.
At the time of having this dream I was in the process of setting up my counselling practice. I wanted to support others through trauma and life challenges, but there were many uncertainties and I felt I was taking a bit of a leap into the dark. I have come to understand this dream as deeply reassuring of the path I have taken, being a profession that involves helping others find insights into their lives, to deal with hidden secrets, to perceive what is important using intuitive skills, and to provide guidance and help to face the wild forces of life. It is an awesome calling – to be undertaken with respect and a reverence for each person and for the invisible forces of life.
Dreams can give us insights that are framed in far less exotic terms too. Stories in dreams can challenge the attitude we are holding to situations or people, encouraging (or discouraging) us to follow a particular path, or bringing to our attention personal or health issues that require our attention. We may be so caught up in the present that we do not recognise the issue in our waking life. Our dreams provide another perspective to bring us to our senses.
The next time you wake up with a clear memory of a dream, perhaps you could take the time to jot it down before you forget it? Then, over subsequent days, mull it over and consider what your subconscious may be trying to bring to your attention. At Insights we encourage our clients to bring into sessions the dreams from the past week as part of the process of working together. It can be both entertaining and enlightening!