Questions anyone?

[Jennings]

Hi Doc,

You say this, "Consider your description of dreams as a “universal language.” Would you agree that what we imagine while awake (daydreams) is not a language to be translated when we regain focus? Although the instinctual influences behind our dreams may also drive our imagination, I think our dreams are likely an interpretation of those influences rather than an immersion in those influences".

I used sexual urge as the example but the same, of course, would apply to any of our basic needs such as food or water when the day (or diurnal) dreaming and nocturnal dreaming seem to be caused by instinctual behaviour which is connected to nature, so we are driven by some unseen intelligence, nonetheless, the message is the same in each case, which is, we are driven by the need for survival. I would suggest that this drive for survival is the basis of all dreaming and it would equally apply to the animal kingdom (of which we are part).

When thirsty and day dreaming, the mind (or imagination) envisages scenes of water or possibly scenes of the consequences of being without water but the message behind those dreams is the body's need or requirement, so the message of the day dream is speaking to us figuratively rather than literally which seems to be the same with nocturnal dreaming. While I have a reasonable knowledge of the behavioural aspects of the mind, my understanding of its chemical/electrical dynamics is basic so I am acting as the devil's advocate here but, then, how would I know what I am about to say until I have said it which is another interesting conumdrum!

Survival of the fittest is an intrinsic part of nature from which we humans seem to have distanced ourselves (too broad a subject to discuss) and in this 'survival of the fittest' aspect, status, achievement, and hiearchy, are important components; so too is that which we know as the 'save face' factor. It seems that the basis of all dreaming is connected to this drive. It is the drive for survival that gives us the impetuous or passion to live without which death becomes attractive. Status in society or, the self esteem that one harbours can, frequently, be measured from the health of the individual.

The harbinger and meaning of both diurnal and noctural dreaming seem fundamentally to be the same but possibly not to neurologists or are we arguing about the same point?

[DrmDoc]

Originally Posted by ”Jennings”

I used sexual urge as the example but the same, of course, would apply to any of our basic needs such as food or water when the day (or diurnal) dreaming and nocturnal dreaming seem to be caused by instinctual behaviour which is connected to nature, so we are driven by some unseen intelligence, nonetheless, the message is the same in each case, which is, we are driven by the need for survival. I would suggest that this drive for survival is the basis of all dreaming and it would equally apply to the animal kingdom (of which we are part).

When thirsty and day dreaming, the mind (or imagination) envisages scenes of water or possibly scenes of the consequences of being without water but the message behind those dreams is the body's need or requirement, so the message of the day dream is speaking to us figuratively rather than literally which seems to be the same with nocturnal dreaming. While I have a reasonable knowledge of the behavioural aspects of the mind, my understanding of its chemical/electrical dynamics is basic so I am acting as the devil's advocate…

Hi Jennings,

I think your perspective is compelling and well considered. Given your view on the instinctual basis of all animal experience, I understand why some of us perceive no clear distinction between our conscious ruminations and dreaming. However, a clear distinction is evident in the literal nature of all conscious experience. Although daydreams may speak figuratively of the forces behind them, their depictions and our experiences within them are literal.

Literal experience does not appear to be the nature of dreaming. Although thirst, using your example, may drive our conscious visages (daydreams) of water, the thirst we feel in a dream may not suggest a specific thirst for water as a daydream might. Furthermore, the water we envision in a dream may represent some other inwardly satiating influence. The distinction between daydreams and dreams is that the images and experiences in our dreams are likely abstract descriptions of influences disassociated from their literal depiction.

Originally Posted by ”Jennings”

Survival of the fittest is an intrinsic part of nature from which we humans seem to have distanced ourselves (too broad a subject to discuss) and in this 'survival of the fittest' aspect, status, achievement, and hiearchy, are important components; so too is that which we know as the 'save face' factor. It seems that the basis of all dreaming is connected to this drive. It is the drive for survival that gives us the impetuous or passion to live without which death becomes attractive. Status in society or, the self esteem that one harbours can, frequently, be measured from the health of the individual.

The harbinger and meaning of both diurnal and noctural dreaming seem fundamentally to be the same but possibly not to neurologists or are we arguing about the same point?

Well said! Fundamentally, I think we agree on the instinctual influences that inspire both daydreams and dreams. Where we differ, I believe, in how we perceive what these experiences depict about those influences.

Originally Posted by ”Gypsy”

To make the meanings more explicit would take away our personal take on the dream, we sort out our dreams based on what our lifestyle, habits, and beliefs are, and since all of these traits change from person to person it is safe to say that metaphors provide a larger scape from which to interpret those dreams.

Hi Gypsy,

Our dreams reflect our private thoughts, feelings, and beliefs; therefore, how we react to their content when we awake is subject to our personal perspective and experience. However, our conscious opinion of dream imagery doesn’t necessarily suggest their meaning; i.e., I don’t think that the complexity of our dreams is necessarily by design.

Our sleeping brain has to awake to dream; therefore, dreaming is a type of consciousness other than true wakefulness. When our brain awakes, it does what it has evolved to do and that is to interpret influences. The wakeful dreaming brain is not connected to physical reality the way it is consciously; therefore, the influences our dreaming brain detects and interprets are those resonant within its structure. The images and experiences we encounter while dreaming are interpretations of the resonant mental influences our brain detects when it awakes amid sleep.

As interpretations of resonant mental influences, the images and experiences in our dreams likely interpret the mental affecting of life experiences. For example, buildings and food in our dreams likely describe mental structures and mental foods. In this way, in my opinion, what we dream privately conforms to a basic and universal perspective independent of what we make privately think. I welcome your continued interest.

[Laucashel]

As far as I can remember my first clear/vivid dream is when I was about thirteen then followed by many mysterious dreams in which I started to understand. Sometimes is so confusing for me but I tried to interprete and have a dream diary that help me a lot in understanding. I have some direct messages, many are prophetic that mostly have already turned into reality. I acquired many things through dreams as my guide. When I sleep God speak to me, Virgin Mary, my family that has passed away even my great grandparents they introduced themselves and other spirits they are telling me of very important messages. For me dream is spiritual and you interprete based in your beliefts and religion. I can speak different languages in my dream that I can remember some of them and it depends what nationality I am talking with. I can give an example of dream that confused me before. In my dream I was stabbed by a dagger from my back straight to my breast. It was so painful and I was agonizing big time and many blood came out. I was screaming of pain when my cousin woke me up. When I was awoke I could still feel the pain. After dreaming I felt bad for few days that I thought something might happen to me. Three months after that dream my first cousin who woke me died, he was stabbed by a dagger exactly the same what happened to me in my dream. Now can anyone tell what kind of dream is this. I already posted this dream in this site (general chit chat) but no one told me what kind of dream is this. Some said I jump into conclusion. My other dream is this, I became blind and it was very dark that I couldn't see where I am going. When I woke up I got a feeling that If not me one of the member of my family will get blind. Three months after this dream my husband became blind but it was sorted out and I thanked God. I was able to intrprete this dream based on my other dream. The more you dream the more you learn and interprete.

[Jennings]

Doc, you raised this question earlier in the thread, "Have you benefited in this way from all your dreams? Have you had dreams that seem to have no relevance to any experience in your life or that of someone you know? How do you explain such dreams? I welcome your thoughts".

I have benefited from the occasional dream but this happens rarely. Mostly my dreaming has no relevance to experiences in my life unless something impacts on me then it will appear in dream. Seldom do I recall my dreams although I tend to go through phases of recall or with no recollection whatsoever even though I could be partially aware of having dreampt. I seldom dream of anyone I know except those in my close family and then only due to some need or concern. I am often seen by others as a laid-back type of person and I probably am; I do worry but seldom take thing too seriously but mostly I am philosophic and take life as it comes. I sleep for around 6 hours nightly, seldom snore and whenever I do it would seem to be only in a mild form. I sleep soundly and awaken refreshed to face the day ahead. While dissecting dream content and trying to understand its phenomenon, dreams, otherwise, have no serious impact on my life. Their interest is one of many that I have; I guess what keeps me on the forum is that I find the challenge of examining and reasoning relaxing.

[Gypsy55]

Hi Gypsy,

Our dreams reflect our private thoughts, feelings, and beliefs; therefore, how we react to their content when we awake is subject to our personal perspective and experience. However, our conscious opinion of dream imagery doesn’t necessarily suggest their meaning; i.e., I don’t think that the complexity of our dreams is necessarily by design.

Our sleeping brain has to awake to dream; therefore, dreaming is a type of consciousness other than true wakefulness. When our brain awakes, it does what it has evolved to do and that is to interpret influences. The wakeful dreaming brain is not connected to physical reality the way it is consciously; therefore, the influences our dreaming brain detects and interprets are those resonant within its structure. The images and experiences we encounter while dreaming are interpretations of the resonant mental influences our brain detects when it awakes amid sleep.

As interpretations of resonant mental influences, the images and experiences in our dreams likely interpret the mental affecting of life experiences. For example, buildings and food in our dreams likely describe mental structures and mental foods. In this way, in my opinion, what we dream privately conforms to a basic and universal perspective independent of what we make privately think. I welcome your continued interest.[/quote]

Hi Doc
I understand what you are saying but you say it is not connected to physical reality, I would answer that, by saying that all our memories from physical reality are stored in the brain, and therfore dreams must connect with these in order to relay the necessary messages. Since our spirit has lived for many years, longer than the life of our body, I would also say that memories from other lifetimes could be accessed during the dream periods.

[DrmDoc]

Originally Posted by ”Laucashel”

…my first clear/vivid dream is when I was about thirteen then followed by many mysterious dreams….Sometimes is so confusing for me but I tried to interprete and have a dream diary that help me a lot in understanding….many are prophetic….I acquired many things through dreams as my guide….God speak to me, Virgin Mary, my family that has passed away….For me dream is spiritual and you interprete based in your beliefts and religion.

Hi Laucashel,

Contact with our departed friends and family are perhaps the most profound dream experiences. I think these experiences reinforce the belief that some part of us lives on after death.

Originally Posted by ”Laucashel”

I can give an example of dream that confused me before. In my dream I was stabbed by a dagger from my back straight to my breast. It was so painful and I was agonizing big time and many blood came out. I was screaming of pain when my cousin woke me up. When I was awoke I could still feel the pain. After dreaming I felt bad for few days that I thought something might happen to me. Three months after that dream my first cousin who woke me died, he was stabbed by a dagger exactly the same what happened to me in my dream. Now can anyone tell what kind of dream is this. I already posted this dream in this site (general chit chat) but no one told me what kind of dream is this. Some said I jump into conclusion.

It is difficult to suggest what sort of dream this was without all of its details; however, I believe our mind is capable of extraordinary fetes of calculation and perception while dreaming. The unconscious mind, in its isolation from physical reality through dreaming, can surmised the outcomes of our experiences before they occur. It may be that you were aware of some threat to your cousin’s life and your dream was your sleeping mind’s way of exploring your concern.

Originally Posted by ”Jennings”

Doc, you raised this question earlier in the thread, "Have you benefited in this way from all your dreams? Have you had dreams that seem to have no relevance to any experience in your life or that of someone you know? How do you explain such dreams? I welcome your thoughts".

I have benefited from the occasional dream but this happens rarely. Mostly my dreaming has no relevance to experiences in my life unless something impacts on me then it will appear in dream. Seldom do I recall my dreams although I tend to go through phases of recall or with no recollection whatsoever even though I could be partially aware of having dreampt. I seldom dream of anyone I know except those in my close family and then only due to some need or concern. I am often seen by others as a laid-back type of person and I probably am; I do worry but seldom take thing too seriously but mostly I am philosophic and take life as it comes. I sleep for around 6 hours nightly, seldom snore and whenever I do it would seem to be only in a mild form. I sleep soundly and awaken refreshed to face the day ahead. While dissecting dream content and trying to understand its phenomenon, dreams, otherwise, have no serious impact on my life. Their interest is one of many that I have; I guess what keeps me on the forum is that I find the challenge of examining and reasoning relaxing.

Hi Jennings,

I like your relaxed approach to life and dreaming; indeed, some of us take ourselves and dream study much too seriously. This may come as a bit of a shock, but I have been guilty of both.

Originally Posted by ”Gypsy”

I understand what you are saying but you say it is not connected to physical reality, I would answer that, by saying that all our memories from physical reality are stored in the brain, and therfore dreams must connect with these in order to relay the necessary messages. Since our spirit has lived for many years, longer than the life of our body, I would also say that memories from other lifetimes could be accessed during the dream periods.

Hi Gypsy,

Perhaps I could explain my thoughts another way, have you ever had a dream about running or perhaps having a meal? Those dream experiences did not happen in physical reality; while you were dreaming, your physical activity and meal occurred in a reality entirely of and within your mind. What I was suggesting is that dreaming is about the reality of mind and all the rules associated with that reality.

When we examine the empirical nature of the mind, we find that it is a product of brain function; therefore, all products of the mind are products of brain function. Barring brain abnormality, brain function isn’t necessarily individual or unique to each person. As products of brain function, dreams and how they depict the messages they seem to convey, do indeed conform to certain shared and universal qualities. To be clear, the science doesn’t dismiss the individual or our personal beliefs about dreaming. I think that the science causes us to look at our dreams and dreaming in a way that helps us to understand what we believe better.

[Laucashel]

Hello DrmDoc

When I dreamt of me being stabbed I was not concerned about my cousin but he is very close to me that he is like my father. That's why it's a warning to me that something bad will happen and I must be prepared. That's me everytime something bad will happen especially very close to me my family, friends and sometimes other people I have to experience first through my dream before it happen to them. There are some good news as well. I found out also that if I saw someone in my dream my interpretation is this person has a problem and I need to ask/ tell/advice if I will not do this I'm the one suffering have headache/no peace of mind until I tell this person. It took me many years of dreaming to understand my dreams that I thought I was going crazy before. Now I'm happy sharing my dreams and experiences to others and I hope this will help others who are confused about their dreams.

[Gypsy55]

Hi Drm Doc
Quote
To be clear, the science doesn’t dismiss the individual or our personal beliefs about dreaming. I think that the science causes us to look at our dreams and dreaming in a way that helps us to understand what we believe better.

That would be true if brain function alone controlled what we dream, outside influences ie emotions, God, guides, digestion, etc, influence the dreamer and thus the dreams themselves. When dealing with dreams I don't think we can map the dream scape with scientific research the way we can map the brain. You can watch and detail the brain activity during a dream, but you can't see what is happening in that dream, since previous memories are stored in the brain, each one specific to the dreamer.
My brain may store family memories in the frontal lobe, while your brain may store scientific data, therefore accessing that area would produce different dreams.

[DrmDoc]

Originally Posted by ”Gypsy”

That would be true if brain function alone controlled what we dream, outside influences ie emotions, God, guides, digestion, etc, influence the dreamer and thus the dreams themselves. When dealing with dreams I don't think we can map the dream scape with scientific research the way we can map the brain.

I understand and respect your perspective because I believe it is deeply rooted in your own experience and ideology. It is not my intent to deprive anyone of what he or she sincerely believes. However, time has shown that our personal perceptions or private beliefs do not tell all there is about the experiences we all share. Several centuries ago, personal perception told the people of that time that the earth was flat; also, spiritual and philosophical ideology of that era told the people that the sun crossed their sky because earth was the center of the universe. Several centuries later, science tells us that our world isn’t flat and it is not the center of the universe. Exploring the science give us an opportunity to learn more than what we think we know.

Originally Posted by ”Gypsy”

You can watch and detail the brain activity during a dream, but you can't see what is happening in that dream, since previous memories are stored in the brain, each one specific to the dreamer.

I agree; brain scans do not reveal the content of our dream experiences. However, dreams are not always about our memories.

Originally Posted by ”Gypsy”

My brain may store family memories in the frontal lobe, while your brain may store scientific data, therefore accessing that area would produce different dreams.

This interesting thing about the human brain is that each of its areas perform the same function from person to person; i.e., whatever memories my brain stores, is stored in the same area and in the same manner as the memories of every other person of normal brain structure and function on this planet. Where my brain stores my visual memories is the same as the place where you brain stores your visual memories. In this way, our brains are doing the same thing. It is this commonality in brain function that underlies what some perceive as the universal language of dreams. I welcome your thoughts.

[Gypsy55]

Hi Drm doc
Quote:
This interesting thing about the human brain is that each of its areas perform the same function from person to person; i.e., whatever memories my brain stores, is stored in the same area and in the same manner as the memories of every other person of normal brain structure and function on this planet. Where my brain stores my visual memories is the same as the place where you brain stores your visual memories. In this way, our brains are doing the same thing. It is this commonality in brain function that underlies what some perceive as the universal language of dreams. I welcome your thoughts.
It is well seen that you are the scientist and I am not, I agree with you that science can give you a lot of infomation about the brain and its function, you place more emphasis on the scientific approach where I must believe that the higher realms have a bigger say in what we dream. In saying that I will also agree that without both, science and divine interaction, dreams would not be the same.