The Power of Dreams Dream Forum
I have a dream forum {listed above and at the end of my posts} that has been online/internet since 2005 where I analyze/interpret dreams using Jungian concepts.It has 13,000+ posts where dreamers can post their dreams for a FREE analysis. What makes the forum unique is the responses to my analysis and follow up comments. I have found great success in my analysis, so much so there is no doubt in my mind that dreams can be properly and correctly interpreted {analyzed is a more proper term} using Jungian concepts. Possessing an intuitive ability along with an 'intuitive' understanding of Jungian concepts I am able to recognize emotional patterns in dreams and provide an accurate description of the dream message{s}. The responses to my analysis are overwhelming positive to the point few if any are seen as incorrect {this is not an exaggeration}. This can not be by mere coincidence, it 'proves' that dream images and actions can be evaluated for their symbolic and metaphorical references and conveyed in a simple language {as simply as one can when working with Jungian concepts} to the dreamer so they recognize the relevance to their waking life. Not only can I recognize the unconscious emotional energies I also can discern in many dreams personality traits as well as distinct behavior attitudes. I often include these qualities in my written analysis and most always get a positive response.
Some Conclusions I Have Found {Many Fitting Jungian Concepts}
Dreams are longer the great mystery. Here are a few aspects of dreams I have found in my analysis.
1}All dreams if not all dream images have multiply meanings/applications.
2}Many images/actions are universal, more or less fixed, more so than thought previously by most who analyze dreams.
3}The dream is all about the dreamer's emotional energies, in particular those that are conflicting and need resolution.
4}Behavioral and emotional patterns rule the dream and fit with the dreamer's conscious and unconscious life.
5}Most dreams have a distinct structure {often determined to how the dream is written} as Jung has proposed. One particular structure I have found in analyzing dreams has to do the inclusion of a child, a time frame alluding to childhood or other such references. I have found whenever this is in the first part of a dream {the Exposition} it always fits with the dreamer's childhood experiences, most often a commentary on their foundations to personality and actions in later life. I intentionally point this out in my analysis and again receive positive responses.
6} Archetypal references are rare in the way most analysts would look for them. If there are associations to archetypal energies they are mostly general in their application and not as profound.
7} The dream is a part of nature's intent. Much like the immune system is to the body, so to the dream is to the psyche.
I invite everyone to visit my dream forum and read the posted dreams, analysis, responses and comments. Not all dreams receive a response so I suggest you read the posts with several replies. Take time to read a great many of the posted dreams so you can get a true idea of the success I have found with my analysis. One thing to keep in mind when reading the posts is my analysis is most always provided with only the knowledge of the age and gender of the dreamer.
One last comment. Through my own self analysis using Jung's Individuation Process I not only have confronted my inner demons and put them in their proper place, I have also discovered a spiritual identity as well as a creative self. The creative aspect can be seen the my websites I designed and am the webmaster. The Power of Dreams is my most recent venture. My Myths-Dreams-Symbols was my first website and has been online since 1998 {it has 500+ pages dedicated to Jungian psyche and Joseph Campbell}.
I look forward to reviews and comments.
Jerry Gifford
Replies
Jerry, I loved your website and am impressed by your methods of dream interpretation. I thought you had gotten positive comments but are taking a defensive position in your own comments.
"Criticism is welcome but if you have not visited my forum and read what is there, the only ass in this conversation is those who criticize from their limited point of view. "
The ad hominem attacks may fuel a combative attitude toward what you're trying to achieve here, given the sensitivity of the members of this forum to that particular style of response.
Having said this, I think many members really like what you're doing- including Mats. Thank you for your contributions and I appreciate them especially, as a layman who is fascinated with dreams and their relevance in our lives. I may even submit a dream to your forum, if I can find one appropriate for that purpose.
Claims of a 100% dream interpretation success rate bespeaks of hubris. Ideas are not about ego.... The extent of the unknown is infinite. If you want to be a guru stay away from critical thinkers...
you need to read the posts and visit my forum before making judgments. this is about serious dream analysis not ego guru stuff. but i expected as much from those who are blinded by academic allergies.
Don't claim childhood experiences as 'everything. In most instances they are but if you are an Iraqi vet with traumatic injuries you have other emotional issues that govern your psyche. {everything is a psychological to include all physical experiences}. Or a victim of severe physical abuse or an experience later in life. What I see in dreams primarily are the underlying motivating energies. The personal experiences sometimes come through but those are hard to discern with such little knowledge about the dreamer {age and gender}.
As for the poor little you comment I have to take offense to that because I was one of those 'poor little me' as a child. My childhood formed who I became and so many bad decisions as an adult, I can trace most every element to my adulthood actions. Events in life always seem to conspire to shape things and when the tendencies are imprinted on the psyche and fate places you in an environment for those tendencies to be enforced and acted out, I for one would want to address the underlying tendencies to resolve the later life emotional conflicts {and I did successfully}. And when I did {beginning at age 42} I completely changed, from the emotional driven obsessed social being to someone who discovered meaning in a spiritual and creative identity. The same transformation Jung described of his patients when they involved themselves in Individuation Process.
Claim 'is rather about not missing the target completely' than the bullseye. The bullseye would be the dreamer connecting what I provide in my analysis and seeing if and how it fits in their life. If it were a major issue they knew it and thus confirmed my analysis. That is how I gauge success. Naming an exact personal issue requires knowing more than the age and gender of the dreamer. Penning the underlying energies does not. That is what I do with great success and which is confirmed in the responses. This is the point I want to convey, there are recognizable patterns in dreams that can be 'decoded' and from doing that paint a picture of the dreamer's true psyche self. Continued analysis and therapy will reveal the personal issues {recent and past} and then they can be worked on and hopefully resolved.
Read the posted dreams {at least 15-20 where there are multiple replies} and determine for yourself. Taking just one that does not have a real response isn't collective data. Critique the whole and not pick and choose from a personal bias. You can't properly comment if you don't do the homework.
Jerry, I have no doubt that your dream work is of great value to people. But if you claim to have solved the dream code, what you in effect is saying is that the dreams cannot be understood from another angle, and thus there is nothing more to learn. The following dream, "Out of control house", is from your dream forum, here.
"[I have a recurrent dream that I am in a house, similar to my friends' home(s), which tend to be rather lavish).] I am aware in the dream of the incredible responsibility I have to ensure that the house is looked after. During the dream I somehow manage to to completely mess the home up--it's filthy, or without my consent a party is thrown there (usually my sister [arrives with an entourage, without any prior planning]).
I spend the entire dream rushing around like a headless [chicken] trying to clean and tidy the place before the owner returns home. [I am trying] to get [people] out of the house. I am really upset during the dream. [No matter] how much I clean its never complete. The owner always comes home unexpectedly early and is extremely disappointed in me for the lack of care to the house and I feel a great sense of guilt.
At the last stage of the dream I become aware that I am also supposed to be looking after/feeding their animals, [which I have completely forgotten about]. The animals have gone without [food] for days--up to weeks. I am left with an intense feeling of guilt and disappointment."
My comment:
It seems to me that this woman lets her "sister" mess up her life. It appears that she has a shadow problem. Yet, she has also a strong feeling of responsibility and knows that her "house" is present on loan from "the landlord", who could arrive at any moment, at which point it must be tidy. It reminds me of Matthew 24:36–44 according to which we must always remain in a state of preparedness, always watching for the imminent return of the Lord. Great responsiblities has been put on her shoulders, which probably refers to personal gifts such as great talent, willpower, and/or intelligence. These are divine gifts placed in the care of talented individuals like the dreamer. But she is neglecting these "animals", forgetting to feed them. Instead her "shadow" sister consumes her time and effort. The dream is an "outline dream", which paints a picture of her present psychic life. It is evident that she must throw out that side of personality which spends her time "partying". This would resolve the inner conflict with that other side of herself that runs around like a headless chicken trying to clean the house.
So I do not believe that her anxiety has anything to do with unwarranted expectations rooted in early life. On the contrary, the dream says that she is wholly capable of living up to expectations and that these expectations are wholly reasonable, such as feeding the animals. She has not spent her life nervously living up to unwarranted expectations. Rather, in the back of her head she has come to realize that she has a responsibility not to squander her time and inheritance and that she must throw out her sister and her entourage. She appears unconscious of her gifts of life, which is the animals. This is probably due to weak self-esteem, the fact that she underestimates herself--a common problem among young women.
It seems to me that the sketchy interpretation you give could hardly be said to give a 100% account of the metaphorical meaning. Rather, I think you only see dimly. Although your interpretations are probably helpful to the dreamer, I think you miss the central point of the dream. It is not a bullseye.
M. Winther
Mats,
What happened to your other replies? You left the one criticizing my analysis of one dream {one that did not have a proper response from the dream as so many did have at the Dream Forum}. I was hoping to get constructive feedback to my post but it seems academics are not interested in possible insights from experience. I expected as much. I had rather possess the intuitive abilities than the learned knowledge. Jung most likely had both. I feel more in touch with his ideas than academia. At least I can be honest.
Jerry, I'm busy right now. I'll return with a comment later /Mats
Matts,
I am saying I have discovered 'A' method of succesfully decoding dreams using basic Jungian psyche and developed intuitive abilities. There are other methods, {websites on the internet}, that 'can' reveal what the dream is trying yo communicate. But if you look closely you will see the great majority use symbol and metaphor to support their method. Archetype has become a common term used, as has associations to mythology. These methods decode the dream much as a Jungian would, but by picking and choosing what they see fits their perspective. The important concepts they leave out handicaps them to the full and true message of the dream {in my humble/biased opinion}. Among these Freud is a second thought. If you have Jung you also have what Freud knew but using those concepts that work and not Freudian doctrine . ''Promise me never to abandon the sexual theory. . . . We must make a dogma of it, an unshakable bulwark.'' Against what, asked Jung. ''Against the black tide of mud . . . of occultism.''
Three observations about the dream you chose. Why didnt' you pick one that had a detailed response to my analysis? There are many on the first page {50 per page} of the Forum that have 3-4-5-6 follow up /responses/posts/comments. Many lay out in detail reasons for my analysis {I sometimes break down the images/action}, confirms if the analysis fits, provides additional personal and psyche information that helps us to understand other aspects within the dream. I don't give any credit to dreams that do not have a full response from the dreamer. That isn't evidence, it is a posted dream with an analysis awaiting the dreamer's response.
The dreamer did state in her very short response: "I must look into this more, having had the dream again last night. Something I clearly need to address in waking life". She didn't address my analysis but she did confirm an awareness there are emotional issues that she needs to work on {perhaps as I stated them, perhaps not}.
The second observation comes from your personal interpretation of what 'is' happening in her personal life. What you state could or could not be true. Several observations you make could be true. I could state as much about her personal life and have a good chance of being correct, the images/action make these suggestions but to state this is this with such limited knowledge aout the dreamer? When I outline a dream, and that is basically what I do, and sometimes address possible recent personal experiences, the dreamer is more able to connect not only to recent personal experiences but also the deeper unconscious issues that stimulate/motivate her to be the person and act/react as she did in that experience. Personality traits, attitudes, unconscious energies that drive her if not control her}. You are interpreting the images as if you know the 'literal' personal expereince{s} and what the the dream is focusing, and ignoring much of the symbolic values of the images/actions as to the real core of her problem. Just knowing the dreamer's gender and age, how can you say this is as fact? I pretend to be psyche, not psychic. I can read the periphery around the dream images/actions but to name personal experiences to an extent 'I know' is not how I analyze dreams. I am not an analyst who supposes they know the 'literal' dream message, I am a dream analyst that suggests what the core dream message may be, addressing the unconscious energies and not so much the personal experiences. The dreamer then connects anything I correctly suggest to their life and and, wah! la!, a positive response. They put the puzzle together, I supplied the pieces in a form they can recognize.
If you had actually read more of the dream posts you would have seen I state how I approach dreams time and again {I spell it out regularly in my anaysis}. I don't really believe you read many though, merely chose one that had no real response to make your point. You aren't being objective, just critical. To be honest I see your interpretation as a 'judgement' and not an analysis. That goes to my third observation.
Anytime someone quotes scripture as you did in your analysis, I'm sorry but I sense a bias. You can make associations to mythology by quoting scripture but I believe you are going beyond myth and into personal theology. Not only to how you analyze dreams but a personal one. I don't see you as the creditible, independent observor who possesses 'Jungian' insights {the opposite....academia} to wholly analyze dreams in a way that is correct. If the dreamer had stated it was not a bullseye I would take it seriously {again, she didn't provide any real feedback}. Yours I don't. You vs me. That's personal and doesn't help the dreamer. The convesration has taken on a personal tone {my old self thrived on that... to know thyself}. I'm looking for critique, not conflict.
You have not provided your experiences in analyzing dreams. How many have you analyzed/interpreted? I dare say most academic Jungian therapist could analyze a dream word and verse but do you have the actual experience in working with dreams with real people? Perhaps knowledge you have will restore some of the credibility.
If I were a therapist this would be the starting point and as I get to know all about the dreamer's life I would be able to discern not only the underlying energies {the house's foundations} but also the recent personal experiences. The unconscious doesn't lie, I would see the 'house' in all its true dimensions. If a woman knows she continually makes wrong choices in romantic relationships but does not know the underlying reasons, why would she need an therapist/psychologist/psychiatrist? Her best friend could tell her about those bad choices. Healing only can take place when the underlying issues are recognized and resolved. That is how I went about my personal Individuation and it is how I approach dreams. A therapist who is well versed in 'proper' dream analysis will be successful beyond all expectations. I gauge my success from the recorded data from my Dream Forum. You criticize without reading the data. No credibility in that.
Jerry
Jerry,
Indeed, online dream work is much of a guess work, because we lack the contextual material. However, I think it stimulates the dreamer to think for him/herself. I think my interpretation of Bernita's dream isn't very specific about her personal life. Rather, I discuss it in rather general terms. I just picked it at random because I didn't have time to go through the archive. I have also interpreted dreams online, some 150 or so. It is interesting and educational. Jung's gardener's son (I don't remember his name), who moved to Sweden and worked as a gardener, retold some anecdotes in a Swedish Jung paper. Jung liked very much to talk about his travels. On the other hand, he wasn't very interested in hearing what you had to say, except if you mentioned a dream, when he immediately pricked up his ears. At one occasion the boy had dreamt about a snake. Jung then told him that snakes often signify falseness. Before long, the boy's girlfriend broke up with him.
The unconscious thinks in mythological terms. That's why it is valuable to have a large mythological contextual material to draw from. If we can learn to think in symbolic terms, rather than always thinking abstractly, then it's easier to understand the dream message. However, I understand your misgivings about the tendency of "archetypalization", which amounts to mystification. Dream are more about making headway in life and resolve conflicts than about "gods and goddesses". One example of this is Freud's case "Dora", whose dreams Freud misinterpreted. I suggested alternative interpretations a couple of years ago, but added some text the other day. The article is here. Fairytales contain more substantive archetypal material, however. I interpret "The Golden Blackbird" according to M-L von Franz's method, here.
However, Dora's dreams also contain archetypes, such as number archetypes--notorious in dreams. The point is that the dream function doesn't seem to differ between outer world and inner, archetypal and personal. So that's why the personal mother and father can sometimes be understood in archetypal terms, and the sister as the shadow. This is a curious phenomenon. The unconscious mixes things together. It doesn't even make a sharp distinction between life and death, but presents death as a transition to a new phase (vid. M-L von Franz, "On Dreams & Death").
So I think your interpretations would benefit from a more mythological, i.e., animistic, approach. The dreams are still about life's difficulties; it's just that the unconscious thinks about it in animistic terms, mixing number gods and witches into the equation. From the unconscious viewpoint, we live in an animistic universe, where matter and spirit are essentially one and the same. For instance, one's personal mother could also be the mother goddess. That's why it is sometimes difficult to decide whether the dream should be interpreted on the objective level or the subjective. It is as if the unconscious doesn't know the difference between inner and outer, subject and object.
Mats Winther
"bullseye" - It reminds me of a friend who has explicitly asked me, as a layman, for a "Jungian therapy". I used a metaphor that has something universal and collective about it, but it was used in a way to reach that specific person in order to let him/her continue the work. He/she didn't ask me what I've read or heard about psychology and the first mention of the word "archetype" would have been the end of a meaningful conversation. It's equally absurd to claim that for instance childhood ("poor little you") memories are everything as that they are irrelevant.
There's much, much, more to discuss about so perhaps Jerry's claim is rather about not missing the target completely than a bullseye.
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