Nightmares

J.M. Debord

Description

• An in -depth examination of three important nightmare themes, more than 100 of the most common scenarios, and hundreds of secondary signs and symbols and their possible meanings
• A thorough exploration of nightmares and their meanings
• Provides clues and insights to allow anyone to understand the meaning of any nightmare
• Unlocks the hidden power and meanings of a nightmare
• Draws links and helps people understand their nightmares' meanings
• Logical organizations makes finding information quick and easy
• Thoroughly indexed
• Authoritative resource
• Written to appeal to anyone interested in dreams and self-awareness
• Publicity and promotion aimed at a wide array of websites focused on mind, body and spirit, the supernatural or paranormal
• Promotion targeting more mainstream media and websites with a popular topic
• Promotion targeting national radio, including Coast to Coast AM and numerous other late-night radio syndicates looking for knowledgeable guests
• Promotion targeting magazines and newspapers

The shooter that walks into the scene and opens fire; the violent confrontation that ends in death; the war scene with bodies ripped apart and guts blown everywhere — now we’re talking nightmares! The three scenarios outlined above are typical of nightmares, and they are symbolic enactments. Look only at the surface and you see terror, horror, violence, death. Look below the surface and you see ideas related to fear, conflict, struggle and so forth. It’s not what it seems to be at first glance, but the tendency in the general public is to view the dream imagery as literal and respond in kind.

The mass shooter dream scenario, for example, makes people want to avoid going out in public for fear of it coming true. But perhaps the better response is to turn off the video screen that’s feeding the imagery into their brain and figure out how the dream uses the imagery to tell a personal story. The idea could be as simple as fear of something related to being in public because of social pressure, germs, scrutiny, incomprehension, danger, and displays of anger.

Imagine how a dream visualizes the idea of doing violence to oneself. We use wording like that to describe situations where a person causes themself harm. Even if the harm is only psychological, it’s still felt and experienced by the body; it’s still an act of violence. A dream could visualize it as doing violence to oneself through self-harm such as cutting and mutilating. But what if the person is not aware of how bad it is or the reasons for it? Then a dream projects the action onto a character that acts violently and inflicts the wounds, or is the target, visually depicting the gap in the person’s awareness. They think the world is out to get them, but ultimately, they are the source of their troubles. The dream character that acts violently or is the target of violence is a projection of the dreamer.

The discussions offered here demonstrate how dreams visualize ideas. They don’t cover all contingencies; instead, they show you how to decode the symbolism. Begin with the simple idea and utilize your knowledge of common dream scenarios and techniques of interpretation. Say that a stranger pursues you in a dream. The simple idea in that scenario becomes the question, what’s strange that’s pursuing you? A raging war becomes the question, where is the raging battle or conflict in your life? It may be difficult to equate the dream imagery with a situation, condition, or circumstance from ordinary waking life, but view it as a comparison that’s exaggerated and dramatized and maybe the connection will be clear. And always remember to work inside out. The war scene in your dream may dramatize a war going on inside you, not the conflicts and battles of ordinary life, and it may be exaggerated to help you recognize just how powerful and important it is.

Apocalypse: A personal apocalypse is a dramatic way of saying that a person’s life is headed the wrong direction. It’s next-level trouble, beyond the ordinary tribulations. The dream author observes how we use figures of speech and says “hello, metaphor!” when the situation is right, like when something is beyond control or comprehension, or your world is falling apart. It delivers a dream about an apocalypse because the metaphor sums up the situational and personal dynamics.

The most common overreaction to an apocalyptic dream is to assume it’s going to come true. Countless false prophecies and predictions are uttered by well-meaning people who completely misunderstand their dreams, which are full of apocalyptic imagery because their minds are full of it. They dwell on fear, negativity, and worst-case scenarios. Even for people who are not so inclined, an apocalypse nightmare can send their thoughts in the wrong direction towards assuming it’s a warning about the future. The world is going to end or something like that. But the simple fact that millions of people have apocalyptic dreams, and the world is still here points toward interpreting them as figurative, not literal.

Apocalypse is another word for a huge change, and apocalypse dreams are known to accompany situations in life such as entering puberty, leaving home, joining the workforce, retirement, relationship decline and breakups, and even marriage. The dream author finds just the right way of mirroring a person’s perceptions and feelings, and if, for example, getting married or retiring is “the end of life as you know it,” an apocalypse may capture the idea better than other symbols or themes. In that way it’s the perfect metaphor.

By understanding how dreams create symbolism, it’s easier to make the correlation between an apocalypse dream and what it dramatizes. Reflect on what’s happening in your life and ask if the metaphorical idea of apocalypse fits. You may find the source in the events, situations, and conditions of your outer life, but the dream author observes your inner life, too, and tells stories about it by using the same language of symbolism, and it may be trickier to discover the parallels between the dream content and what’s happening inside you. Many dreams forecast the future and predict where things are heading, and you aren’t as likely to see the connection until afterward.

It may be obvious why you dream about an apocalypse when you are ill, in distress, or psychologically imbalanced, but not when you are entering puberty or feeling depressed. The dreaming mind, though, knows that we equate apocalypses with situations that have unknown causes — they happen, and we don’t know why, which is what a teenager can think when their body changes, or anyone can think when they are depressed and don’t know the cause. Apocalypse characterizes how they feel, and dreams respond more so to feelings than to rationality.

“I have no reason to feel depressed,” the man said. “Life is fine — no setbacks. I’m in great health. In fact, I just got promoted at work to a coveted position.” But then he dreams about an apocalypse and sees his name written on a tombstone, and he wakes up feeling like his world is not just ending, but over. It puzzles him because there’s no rational reason that explains what the dream imagery implies. He’s in his prime and doesn’t fear death and has nothing but appreciation for his success and everything that led to it. He doesn’t feel depressed; why dream about feeling not just depressed, but as low as a person can go?

It’s because tacitly he realizes this really is the end. He can rise higher in his career, but it won’t have the same thrill. He can live a charmed life but it’s only a continuation of what he knows all too well and there’s no more challenge in it. He will meet expectations, great. He’s 27 years old and his life is over.

The social point of view says that he should feel on top of the world. He’s been trying hard to convince himself it’s true. It’s not though, and his dream captures the idea with the imagery of the grave. His rise in life has locked him onto a path that can only offer contentment until his inevitable death. He won’t consider a change of career — why would he when he’s doing the high-technology job he set out to gain and beat the intense competition to get there? The grave symbolizes the idea that the life he’s made for himself is also a trap he can’t escape even if he wanted to.

An apocalypse is the biggest sort of shakeup, and that’s why the above dream uses it as a theme. The dream doesn’t speak to what is happening or has happened, it speaks to what’s needed. The dream really shook up the man. He needed it to see how he feels beneath his rationalizations.

The experience of the dream is where the answer is found. It’s a self-created experience, and we work backward by asking why he created it (subconsciously) for himself. The lack of apparent connection between himself and the symbolism of apocalypse requires him to dig deeper and ask existential questions. And when the answers start flowing, it makes sense why the dream chose an apocalypse as the story’s theme and the grave as its main symbol. Now, with the lesson in mind, he has a new way of framing the most important issue in his life, that accounts for the other half of the equation he isn’t honoring: his true feelings.

Dreams amplify our little voices, and the man’s dream is a prime example. Apocalypse, like most nightmares, is the volume cranked to 11. It’s a desperate attempt to get the attention of the ego. It’s the message that’s screamed instead of spoken. There’s only one level above apocalypse and that’s Armageddon, the worst it gets, like war is to nuclear war. A dream has reasons for presenting an apocalypse that’s felt as if the world is ending, and tracing those reasons is how you think like the dream author and work backwards to the meaning. You’re looking for something happening in you and your life that’s especially urgent.

About the Author

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part I: Monsters & Creatures

Alien / Bigfoot / Black-Eyed People / Centaur / Charon / Creature / Dark Magician / Dinosaur /

Doppelganger / Dragon / Frankenstein / Girl from The Ring / Grim Reaper / Haunted Doll / 

Hydra / Medusa / Minotaur / Mummy / Pennywise the Clown / Shadow People / Slenderman / 

Snake / Spider / Vampire / Werewolf / Witches & Warlocks / Zombie

Part II: Violence & Crime

Apocalypse / Armageddon / Incest / Kill / Molest / Murder / Nuclear War / 

Rape / Serial Killer / Suicide / Terrorist / War

Part III: Spiritual Nightmares & Dreams

Demon / Devil / Evil / Entity / Ghosts & Poltergeists & Spirits / God / Hell / Jesus / Lucifer

Bibliography

Index

Sujets

• Santé et bien-être
• Développement personnel
• développement personnel
• Dream
• Référence
• General
• Spirituality
• General officer
• Body (disambiguation)
• Reference
• Dreams
• Personal Growth

Informations

• Publié par: Visible Ink Press
• Date de parution: 29 novembre 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781578598083
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 5 Mo

Extrait

Table of Contents
Photo Sources
Introduction
Prologue
Monsters and Creatures
Aliens
Black-Eyed People
Centaurs
Charon
Creatures
Dark Magicians
Dragons
Frankenstein
The Girl from The Ring
The Grim Reaper
Haunted Dolls
Medusa
Minotaurs
Mummies
Pennywise the Clown
Shadow People
Slenderman
Snakes
Spiders
Vampires
Werewolves
Witches/Warlocks
Zombie
Violence and Crime
Apocalypses
Armageddon
Incest
Killing
Molestation
Murder
Nuclear War
Rape
Serial Killers
Suicide
Terrorism
War
Disasters and Afflictions
Cancer/Disease
Crashes
Falling
Fire
Imprisonment/Entrapment
Paralysis
Possession
Storms/Blizzards/Hurricanes/Tornadoes
Teeth
Tidal Waves/Tsunamis/Floods
Volcanoes/Earthquakes
Spiritual Nightmares and Dreams
Demons
Devils
Entities
Evil
Ghosts/Poltergeists/Spirits
God
Hell
Jesus
Lucifer
Epilogue
Index
Photo Sources
ETH Library: p. 4 .
Florida Memory Project: p. 139 .
Shutterstock: pp. 10 , 13 , 16 , 19 , 22 , 25 , 28 , 29 , 32 , 34 , 38 , 41 , 44 , 47 , 50 , 52 , 54 , 56 , 57 , 59 , 63 , 65 , 67 , 70 , 73 , 75 , 77 , 79 , 81 , 84 , 86 , 91 , 94 , 97 , 99 , 102 , 104 , 107 , 110 , 113 , 116 , 118 , 120 , 122 , 124 , 126 , 128 , 129 , 133 , 136 , 141 , 144 , 147 , 149 , 152 , 154 , 156 , 161 , 165 , 167 , 170 , 174 , 176 , 178 , 180 , 183 , 185 , 187 , 190 , 192 , 195 , 198 , 201 , 204 , 207 , 209 , 211 , 214 , 219 , 222 , 225 , 227 , 228 , 229 , 232 , 234 , 237 , 239 , 241 , 243 , 246 , 249 , 250 , 253 , 257 , 258 , 261 , 263 , 267 , 270 .
Introduction
The nightmare isn t unusual for a nine-year old. It starts off with me biking around my hometown neighborhood in Dayton, Ohio. I loved riding my bike and dreamed about it frequently. It was just a normal day doing a normal thing. Then I notice a man following me in a black convertible car, maybe a Cadillac. It s 1979 and cars like that are steel and chrome beasts that belch smog and noise. The dream zooms in to his scarred face, evil grin, and feverish eyes burning with diabolical intent. He wants me-wants my soul.
My soul. That s a big idea for a nine-year-old. As a kid I didn t think much about it or even know what it was. My family attended church occasionally, and I said my prayers at bedtime. There was a God somewhere up there in the sky, but down here on Earth, on the asphalt streets of my neighborhood, it didn t help me much as I tried desperately to outrun the evil man with the crazy eyes and the icky skin of a cadaver. I heard his terrible laughter, the howl of the predator chasing its prey. Pure terror. If he catches me, I won t just die, I ll lose my soul!
I see a streetside store. People will be inside-they will protect me. Next thing I know, I m inside the store. It s empty, and there s only one place to hide. In 1979, every convenience store in my town had a pinball machine. I dash behind it, crouch, and wait, cowering against a wood-paneled wall.
In my mind s eye, I see the front of the store. The black car pulls up. The bad man knows where I am. His shadow falls across the entrance. I feel his menace, and I m trapped. It s the end of all I am and have ever known in my nine years of life. Fade to black.
The horror of the nightmare jolts me awake. Where am I? A moment ago, I was trapped in the back of a store waiting to die in a way that would be worse than any movie I d watched. Not that I d watched much of anything scary, anyway-our 13-inch television with its telescoping antenna picked up three channels, and Bugs Bunny was my favorite cartoon. I had no conscious memory of ever seeing a scary movie; my parents didn t allow it. The popular ones of the time were The Amityville Horror and Alien . The evil man s appearance and behavior fit the archetype of the supernatural movie bad guy, but I know that now as an adult. Back then, I lived in a bubble. The world was a safe place. Adults protected me. But no one could protect me from the terrible man who wanted my soul, and nothing could stop him except by waking from the nightmare in my bed, scared and shaking and realizing where I am.
The man was gone. I was safe. For now.
Standard nightmare, right? Sure, it was terrifying, but that s why we call a scary dream a nightmare-we have a special word for the experience. And usually, the nightmare ends and that s it. Wake up, everything s fine, life goes on.
But here s where my story detours into Black Mirror territory. A few years later, a dream analyst spoke to my seventh grade enrichment class and asked for volunteers to explore a nightmare that really stuck with them. Oh yeah, I got one for ya! During the intervening years, the memory of the undead man who wanted my soul popped up randomly like stepping on a snake, a living thing lying in wait to strike when my eyes were elsewhere. Unforgettable. The analyst used a hypnotic regression process to help me reenter the dream and trace its roots.
There, in my classroom, with my classmates standing in a circle around me, their hands touching my body to anchor me in physical reality, I step back in time to see two families in a feud. Bad blood between them. The analyst asks me to question them about the feud, and all I know is that they hate each other beyond reason. He directs me to speak with them and try to end the feud. Find a compelling reason. I think about it and say, Fighting is wrong; please stop hurting each other.
Silence. They stare at me. Then all hell breaks loose. Dark words muttered. Murder in their eyes. They close in on me. Danger, danger!
The analyst pulled me out of the hypnosis, and thereafter I was a wounded animal fleeing into my teenage years with that nightmare hunting me. The gash in my psyche left a blood trail. Easy to follow. I had plenty more nightmares-they re common at that age-but the evil man blended into the background. I guess I had new problems to deal with.
Then, during my twenties, he appeared again in my nightmares with the same agenda: hunt me down and claim my soul. I d be dreaming something ordinary and suddenly a black funnel cloud would bear down like the evil man. Run, run! But never able to get away, just pray and hope that death passes over. I d wake up screaming, feeling cursed. I gave my soul to Jesus, took it back, gave it again, took it back.
By then I was a wreck. Most nights I went to sleep so intoxicated it s a wonder I dreamed at all.
Then I sobered up and used dreamwork to help me heal. It saved my life but didn t give it back. Not fully, anyway; just enough to keep me going. Something still haunted me. I d encounter people in waking life who had the same diabolical eyes as the evil man, the same lust for fear and ability to appear at just the right time to sidetrack me. I also encountered beings of light and love. They intervened before I could fall into complete despair and never return to this reality.
Soon afterward, though, the encounters would slip from my mind, and I d question what really happened. Albert Einstein said, A coincidence is a small miracle when God chooses to remain anonymous. Believing that a supernatural experience is a coincidence or imaginary puts us back to sleep, back under the spell until the next encounter shocks us out of the stupor and we remember with a terrified cry that we fell asleep on the battlefield and the battle still rages. The battle was inside me. Author Nikos Kazantzakis knows what I mean when he says in the opening to his novel The Last Temptation of Christ :
The dual substance of Christ-the yearning, so human, so superhuman, of man to attain God, has always been an inscrutable mystery to me. My principal anguish and source of all my joys and sorrows from my youth onward has been the incessant, merciless battle between the spirit and the flesh, and my soul is the arena where the two armies have clashed and met.
I d lived long enough to get really angry about being the evil man s plaything. Through dreamwork, meditation, and prayer, I gained the power to fight back, and when his minions came one night in a dream to kidnap me off a dark street and take me to him, I said no, tell me where he is and I ll go to him. I appeared inside a steel office tower with black reflective windows. Top floor. Master suite. His fortress. Dead of night, the witching hour. I see a clear glass coffin in the middle of the spacious room. Inside it lay the evil man, a vampire in his moment of vulnerability.
A trap.
Now I m standing over the open coffin and seeing him lying there, motionless. He could have walked onto the set of Star Wars and played the role of Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord. The face covered in craggy burn scars; the eyes overflowing with sickly power and malevolence; the embodiment of my pain and hate. I grab his neck and choke him, fingers sinking into his rubbery flesh, a dead fish. He just looks me in the eyes, delighted by my skyrocketing rage. I hear his slithery voice in my mind. Yes! Feed your anger-BE your anger!
I can t beat him that way. I ll only become him. The nightmare flutters away and dissolves. I m in my bed. Tears. Anguish. Despair. The battle is hopeless. Death is my only way out. I ask God to take me; I m ready to go home. Silence is the reply.
The evil man vanished from my dreams for a while. Oddly, the better I handled myself in daily life, the more he appeared in my dreams. And when I was really in a groove, his dark presence congealed behind the scenes, an evil wizard who conjured black magic and sent his minions to work against me. When I was in the gutter, he mostly let me be, and after the encounter with him in his fortress I lost my mojo and slipped back into my old ways.
Now I know why. He s a counterforce that s activated by my goodness, and his role is to neutralize me, or better yet, convert me to the Dark Side. It s a role he s played going back countless generations. My nightmares gave him a name: the Dark Master.
Now I ask you: Do you think