Dreams are a vital pillar in every culture and religion. For thousands of years, people have used dreams to foresee the future and uncover what the gods may have concealed. Carl Jung, on the other hand, saw practical reasons for dreams, viewing them as a gateway into the human psyche, bridging the gap between consciousness and the realm of the unconscious.
The Functions of Dreams:
– Compensation: During our waking hours, we often focus on certain aspects of ourselves while neglecting others. For instance, an employee might feel trapped, much like a prisoner, despite their vastly different lives. Yet, in both cases, dreams may place them in open spaces or even have them soaring through the skies. In this way, dreams intervene to correct and balance these facets of our psyche.
– Revelation: Dreams serve as a window into the depths of the unconscious, connecting us to suppressed emotions, unresolved issues, desires, and aspirations of which we may be unaware. If you’ve had to suppress your anger in a particular situation, this emotion may manifest itself in a dream. Similarly, if you’ve convinced yourself that you’ve moved on after being cheated on by a partner, your dream might bring it to the surface as a reminder to address it.
– Guidance: Just as dreams can help you confront unconscious problems by bringing them to light, they can also assist with issues you’re consciously struggling with. They achieve this by placing you in situations where you can view the problem from a different perspective. For example, if someone grew up in a closed community where everyone held prejudiced views, but they now find themselves in a diverse city, facing a dilemma about their behavior, their dream might portray them as a black man surrounded by racists or even as the parent of a black son.
“The dream is a spontaneous self-portrayal, in symbolic form, of the actual situation in the unconscious.”
“The dream is a series of images, which are apparently contradictory and nonsensical, but arise in reality from psychological material which yields a clear meaning.”
Carl Jung
Carl Jung spoke highly of the significance of dreams as a means to understand ourselves and the world around us, as well as a tool for self-discovery and personal growth.
