Trish MacGregor - The Complete Dream Dictionary: A Bedside Guide to Knowing What Your Dreams Mean

THE
COMPLETE
DREAM
DICTIONARY

A Bedside Guide to Knowing
What Your Dreams Mean

Trish and Rob MacGregor

Adams Media
Avon, Massachusetts

Copyright 2004, F+W Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

Published by Adams Media, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
57 Littlefield Street
Avon, MA 02322
ISBN 13: 978-1-59337-109-8
ISBN 10: 1-59337-109-8
eISBN: 978-1-44051-888-1

Printed in the United States of America.

10 9 8

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

MacGregor, T. J.
The complete dream dictionary / Trish and Rob MacGregor.
p. cm.
ISBN 1-59337-109-8
1. Dream interpretationDictionaries. 2. DreamsDictionaries.
I. MacGregor, Rob. II. Title.
BF1091.M312 2004
154.6'3'03--dc22
2004004816

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee
of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers
and Associations

Contains material adapted and abridged from The EverythingDreams Book by Trish and Rob MacGregor, 1998, Adams Media Corporation. Some additional information adapted from The EverythingPsychic Book by Michael R. Hathaway, D.C.H., 2003, Adams Media Corporation; The EverythingWicca and Witchcraft Book by Marian Singer, 2002, Adams Media Corporation; The EverythingDivining the Future Book by Jenni Kosarin, 2003, Adams Media Corporation; and The EverythingMeditationBook by Rosemary Clark, 2003, Adams Media Corporation.

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Contents

Chapter 1
The History of Dreams

Chapter 2
Sleep Basics

Chapter 3
Remembering and Cultivating Your Dreams

Chapter 5
Common Dream Types

Chapter 6
More Advanced Dream Types

Appendix A
Sleep- and Dream-Related Organizations, Publications, and Web Sites

Appendix B
Books on Dreaming

Introduction

T hroughout history, human beings have wondered about the meaning of dreams. In many ancient cultures, dreams were thought to have prophetic meaning. Still other societies thought that you could control real life events through your dreams. In more modern times, Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, suggested that dreams are simply a means through which unconscious thoughts manifest themselves. But what, exactly, are dreams, and what can they tell you about your life? This book will help you to explore the origins of your dreams, how and why you dream, what common dream symbols generally mean, and what significance they hold for you in a more specific sense.

If you are intrigued by what your dreams really mean, you are probably eager to dive into this dictionary. Often, upon initial reflection, your dreams probably seem incredibly bizarre. Why do you dream about losing your teeth, or about being naked in public? What does being in class or failing tests symbolize, and why do you dream of spiders all the time? Typical dream symbols such as these have a variety of common meanings, which you will learn about in this dream dictionary. However, these interpretations are meant to serve only as a springboard for reflection, so that you can examine all the clues and then derive further meaning from the specific circumstances of your own dream.

For example, you might have a dream that includes a bird in it. When you look up bird, you will read that generally, these creatures are a positive sign. And while this might be helpful, it can also sometimes be frustrating. What if the bird in your dream turned into your mother? Or what if it was talking to you? Or what if it was impersonating Mick Jagger? These radically different dreams cant possibly have only one interpretation.

So what are you supposed to do? The key to dream interpretation lies in psychology. Dont worryyou dont have to have a doctorate in the subject. What you do need is to be able to use your instinct and your common sense. As you work with this book, read the introductory chapters first and try to develop your own personal insights into what the common symbols in your dreams mean. Through the various examples, you can begin to build a working glossary of your own personal definitions. Then, as you use this dictionary, the explanations given will add insight to your own interpretations. And when there are certain symbols in your dreams that continue to puzzle you, this glossary will also help to trigger ideas that click for you.

When using the dictionary, be careful not to rely on it totally to interpret your dreams. Ultimately, when it comes to dream symbols, there are no equivocally universal rules or meanings, so keep that in mind as you explore your dreams. Dream dictionaries do help by providing hints at the meaning of symbols that appear in your dreams, but, especially when the elements of the dream are personal, the meanings given might not totally resonate for you. Remember, no dream dictionary in the world is going to tell you the meaning of that dream you just had about your Uncle Bill, whom you havent seen for twelve years. These are the times when youre going to have to follow your instincts and look for meanings of your own, based on the circumstances of your dream.

Also bear in mind that while some dreams might be a literal message of something that is about to happen to you, others often provide a symbolic message. Pay attention to key elements and symbols, but also take note of other details the colors, the vividness, the action, and anything unusual that stands out. If you dream of a particular animal, for instance, associate it with situations and conditions in your life, institutions that you deal with, or people you know well. These types of details will all provide context clues to the meaning of your dreams.

Above all, as you first begin to explore your dreams, be patient. Know that it might take awhile for you to develop your dream recall technique, and that the way you are able to recall your own dreams will be different from anyone elses technique. For that matter, so is the information you receive in your dreams. Dream recall is like learning any other skill: The more you practice, the more you will learn to recall and interpret what you are experiencing through your dreams.

Ultimately, dreams are about soul-searching. You can ignore things that happen in your everyday life, but during your sleep your fears, desires, and even psychic visions come to pay a friendly visitor to scare the heck out of youand you dont have a whole lot of control over it.