Rose Inserra - Inside Your Dreams: An Advanced Guide to Your Night Visions

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

S ince the beginning of time weve wondered about our dreams and their strange symbolic language, which has intrigued, frightened, informed and inspired humanity. Weve come a long way from superstitious beliefs: when seeing a snake was a bad omen that meant youd be betrayed, or losing your teeth was a sign that a family member was going to die.

The tradition of sharing dreams goes all the way back to Emperor Augustus (63 BCE14 CE), who ordered Roman citizens to share their dreams if the dreams had anything to do with Rome. This decree came about because the emperor was saved by a dream in which he was told to leave his tent just before he was attacked. Dreaming was thus highly regarded, as it also was in the ancient civilisations of Mesopotamia, Egypt and Greece and in Celtic, indigenous and pagan traditions.

I was born in a small town 170 km south of Rome and was fortunate to be surrounded by a rich tradition and belief system that respected the old pagan ways that pre-dated Christianity. Dreaming was seen as being significant and had to be shared, especially if it was disturbing. My grandmother and aunt would take any of my dreams seriously and would take me seriously, which helped me to feel connected to my heritage. In many cultures sharing dreams is encouraged and is often a duty to the village, as it is for the benefit of everyone in the village that the dream is interpreted. The ancients trusted their deep wisdom and intuition, which often came as a result of interpreting their dreams and acting on the insights gained in those dreams.

Unfortunately, weve lost the tradition of sharing dreams, although it is just as important now as it was previously and is essential to the survival of the collective tribe we call humanity. Our dreams link us to the collective unconscious, or the shared structures of the unconscious mind. We are not so different, after all, if we share the same or similar dreams.

This book was written for the everyday reader who may or may not be a dreamer. Outside the borderlands of dreaming you will learn other valuable tools on your journey to self-awareness and spiritual knowledge. My greatest wish is to invite you into a journey of endless possibilities so you can expand into deeper dimensions of consciousness. Its ambitious, but not improbable.

Collectively we have entered a cataclysmic time... unlike the ancients, who believed they lived only by the whim of the gods. Mother Earth has unleashed her fury via bush fires, floods, drought, faunal and floral extinction and a global pandemic, and although we have placed all our faith in science to protect us we are now questioning that faith. What is science doing to help us?

We live in a world of ecological crisis and know as human beings we must make changes. Now is the time to alter our interactions with Mother Earth and allow her to regenerate, so we humans and the planet can thrive once more. These times offer a unique opportunity to reflect, create and reconnect with core values and strengthen familial bonds, and to foster independence, resilience, resourcefulness, innovation and creativity. How will we move from these liminal times? Although we are experiencing a dark night of the soul, we know that night always turns back into day.

The big picture theme of this book is collective dreaming. I never cease to be amazed at the similarities of our dreams, and it fascinates me to study the variations, synchronicities, cultural history, archetypal dream journeys, humanitys indigenous knowledge systems and conscious dreaming and all the wisdom they bring to our 21st-century mindset.

HOW TO USE THE BOOK

You may wish to adopt a dip-in approach whereby you read particular chapters of the book depending on your level of interest and energy, or you might prefer to treat the book as a practical manual and read it in sequence. A blend of the two is also perfectly fine; its your choice. Read whatever you feel compelled to read, as this is what your subconscious mind is drawing you to.

The contents of the book were written to appeal to readers with an interest in dreams and beyond. Mysticism, science, the paranormal, metaphysics, shamanism, myth, storytelling, spirituality, folklore: all of these themes are explored in the pages.

You will find questions and exercises to help you examine your dreams even further, many of which can be expanded and used repeatedly at different times along your path of self-discovery. Practices such as journeying into your dreams, imagined with guided meditations, are designed to increase the expansion of your dream awareness and dream recall. Each chapter offers a way to look at dreams and discover how you can become the ultimate dreamer.

I recommend you use a journal to record your dreams. Its an essential tool if you want to be a serious dreamer, and there are suggestions on how to record your dreams. Your dreams are unique to you because you are unique in the world this reality, at the very least. It follows then that interpretations of your dreams are personal, that your symbols and mythical motifs are yours alone. I have listed a number of generic dream meanings and questions to stimulate possibilities, but ultimately the understanding lies with you.