Dreams And Their Interpretation

Dream interpretation as an actual profession goes back at least as far as ancient Greek and Roman society, but informal dream interpretation is likely as old as dreaming itself. There is good reason to believe that people have been experiencing dreams as long as their have been people, and we know that dreams and their interpretation date back at least as far as 3000-4000 B.C. We know that because the interpretations of various dreams were recorded on stone tablets and found later by archeologists.

Many scientists and anthropologists believe that ancient peoples were unable to distinguish the difference between the real, or physical world, and the dream world, or the world of the unconscious. To many of these people, there was no distinction, and the dream world was simply an extension of the physical world.

In fact, many of these ancient cultures, and some modern ones as well, felt that the dream world is more powerful and real than the physical universe, and that dreams are the soul’s way of communing with the infinite, and gathering knowledge and wisdom from the past.

While science knows a great deal about dreams and their meaning, in many ways dreams remain as much a mystery today as when the first cavemen dreamed about the thrill of the hunt or the fear of running from faster predators.

For instance, scientists still do not know why we dream, or what the purpose of dream sleep is, but they do know that people need to dream. Volunteers deprived of dream sleep experienced all manner of psychological problems, ranging from problems concentrating to visual and auditory hallucinations.

Dream interpretation has a long and storied history, and dream interpreters have been in high demand throughout history. The interpretation of dreams was so important to the ancient Greek and Roman societies that they rode along with soldiers in battle, and advised rulers on the best course of action. Dreams were taken quiet seriously in these societies, and a dream thought to be an ill omen was enough to derail a piece of legislation or even put off a long planned battle.

The culture of ancient Egypt also gave dreams great importance, as well as religious significance. The Egyptians believed that dreams contained messages from the gods, and these messages were to be heeded. We know about the importance the ancient Egyptians placed on dreams, because dreams and their interpretations were recorded in hieroglyphs.

People who had particularly vivid dreams were given a special place in society, and thought to be blessed by the gods. Those who had special abilities to interpret those dreams also enjoyed a blessed status and a special place in Egyptian society.

Egypt was not alone in the Middle East as a source of dreams and dream interpretation. The Bible contains over 700 mentions of dreams, and many dream interpretations as well. The dreams of prophets, and the interpretations of those dreams, played a large role in Biblical history.

Dream interpretation was often looked upon as a form of prophecy, and dreams were often analyzed to provide clues to future events. Dreams were seen to be messages from gods, spirits or from departed relatives.

Dreams of Being Chased

Dreams of being chased probably have a deep, evolutionary origin. After all, our ancient ancestors actually were chased by all manner of predators, and this fear of being chased and caught has remained part of our hard wired nature.
Even today, after all fears of predation have been removed from our waking lives, dreams of being chased are there to remind us of our earlier animal nature. In modern societies, dreams of being chased can often arise from feelings of general anxiety experienced in the waking hours.
The way the dreamer responds to feels of pressure and anxiety while awake is often reflected in the dream state. Chase dreams can manifest themselves in a variety of ways. Often the dreamer will dream about being chased by an attacker or pursuer who the dreamer fears will hurt or kill them. In these dreams, the dreamer attempts to run from, hide from or otherwise outwit the pursuer. These dreams can often be very realistic, and chase dreams are some of the most commonly reported nightmares.
Chase dreams can be reactions to events in your waking life. For instance, there may be something you are supposed to do but have been avoiding. If this proposed action is a source of fear, stress and confusion, is can sometimes manifest in your dream life as an attacker or pursuer. Instead of facing your fear, you are running from it, and the attacker in your dreams represents the thing you are trying to get away from or avoid in real life.
People troubled by recurring dreams of being chased often benefit from an examination of their waking life. Finding the thing that they are running from in real life, and confronting it, is often an effective way of banishing frequent chase dreams.
In some cases the pursuer or attacker in a chase dream represents not an outside force but part of your self instead. Unresolved feelings of anger, jealousy and fear can often enter your dreams in the form of a threatening or frightening figure. In reality, the attacker in your dreams is a representation of these issues in your waking life.
Dreams where you are being chased can be easy to turn around for many people. Some people are better than others at taking an active role in their dream, but everyone who is aware of their dream should at least try to resolve a frightening dream. For instance, the next time you are being chased in a dream, try turning around and confronting the pursuer. Ask the pursuer what he or she wants and why they are chasing you.
People who are indulging in self destructive behaviors, or consumed by self destructive emotions like jealously or anger, are often troubled by dreams of being chased. Chase dreams can be an attempt by your subconscious to reach you and call attention to your self destructive behaviors.
Of course chase dreams do not always have such symbolic interpretation. Often dreams where you are being chased represent literal fear of becoming a crime victim. These type of direct fear chase dreams are more common among women than men. Women, especially those living in high crime areas, often feel vulnerable and afraid in their waking lives, and this fear can spill over into the dream state and manifest itself as a chase dream.
No matter what the reason for the chase dream, it is usually possible to reduce the occurrence of such dreams. The first step is a careful examination of the factors that are causing these dreams to occur. Whether the dream is a manifestation of a symbolic or a literal fear, confronting the thing you are afraid of is the best way to banish these frightening nighttime visitors.

Dreams of Falling

Those Dreams where you are falling are some of the most commonly reported dreams there are, and such dreams are one of the leading causes of sudden waking from a dream.
First, let’s begin by dispensing with the myth that if you hit the ground in your dreams you will die. There are plenty of fully alive human beings who have reported hitting the ground during their dreams of falling. The fact that these people were around to report this situation is proof that this legend is merely that – a legend.
Dreams of falling are most often interpreted as an indication of unresolved fears, anxieties, instabilities and insecurities. The person who experiences recurrent dreams where he or she is falling may be feeling overwhelmed by and unable to control certain situations in his or her waking life.
For instance, the dreamer may feel that his or her home or work life is out of control, and that he or she is unable to remain on top of the situation. This kind of generalized anxiety can easily manifest itself in a dream where he or she is out of control, such as a falling dream.
Falling often represents a loss of control, or feelings of helplessness on the part of the dreamer. After all, when you fall, you have no control over your direction or your pace. This feeling of being out of control and falling often represents similar feelings in the dreamer’s waking life.
Therefore those who are troubled by such dreams should be encouraged to examine their life for the source of anxiety and fear, and to confront the situation head on. Doing so often results in a lessening or even an elimination of dreams of falling.
Dreams of falling can also represent a sense of inferiority or a sense of failure in your personal or professional life. This fear could be a fear of failing in school, failing at your job, losing your social status, or failing in a relationship.
People experiencing these situations are often troubled by dreams in which they are falling. These dreams of falling can represent a perceived failure to measure up to expectations, or a fear of losing your status, losing an important person in your life, or just a generalized fear or failure.
The strict Freudian interpretation of a dream of falling was that such a dream indicated that the dreamer was contemplating giving into a sexual desire or sexual impulse.
Dreams of falling are most likely to take place during the first stage of sleep. That is because dreams at this stage are often accompanied by spasms of muscles in the arms, the legs or even the whole body. These sudden muscle contractions are known to science as a myclonic jerk.
The dreaming mind can interpret these muscle spasms as falling, and thus incorporate falling into the dream state. Often when dreamers experience this myclonic jerk, they awaken at feeling their body twitch. This fast reaction is part of the evolutionary mechanism that allows us to be awakened quickly in the presence of a threatening environment.
who do biblical and religious interpretations of dreams often see falling dreams as meaning that the dreamer is taking his or her cues from the world of man instead of turning to God for guidance and advice.