Tag Archive: shadow

Stressful dreams about work…

Dream: I’ve been having these stressful dreams about work. At my work, there are lights connected to electronic eyes that only turn on when there’s movement. In these dreams, for some reason the electronic eyes aren’t working and I can’t get the lights to come on. I’m stressed that the lights won’t come on, but I can’t stop to try to figure it out, because I have to handle customers, who are trying to shop (and steal) in the dark. I keep thinking that of course they’re going to steal if it’s dark and no one can see them. That’s where the dream always ends.

DreamsMaster: Dreams that throw obstacles in our way (such as lights that won’t turn on) often represent our ambivalence about achieving certain goals or continuing along a certain path in life. Since this recurring dream takes place at work, this is likely the area of your life where you may be experiencing mixed feelings.

The general theme of the recurring dream has to do with responsibility and ethics. You’re responsible for the darkness both literally and metaphorically – “of course they’re going to steal if it’s dark and no one can see them.” Symbolically, the external darkness in the dream could be an extension of some perceived internal darkness you see (or try not to see) in yourself.

Have you been feeling a sense of resentment at work, perhaps due to too much responsibility with too little reward? There’s a saying, sometimes we steal from others when we feel ripped off ourselves. Consider that maybe you need to “get the lights to come on” or gain clarity in your own life in order to feel a greater sense of control and satisfaction.

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Warning from a dead friend…

Dream: In my dream I got a warning from a dead friend telling me to tell my brother to be careful. What does this mean?

DreamsMaster: Dreams have many layers of meaning, and I don’t rule out the possibility of spirits communicating to us through our dreams. Regardless if this message came directly from your dead friend or if this friend in the dream is symbolic, it’s quite possible that you intuitively sense your brother is in some type of risky situation, and the dream is sending you a message to take action to protect him.

On a symbolic level, your deceased friend could be a shadow figure, a part of you that may be somewhat hidden from yourself and that you’ve projected onto this friend. For example, in your waking world you may be reluctant to confront others, but this friend or shadow represents a side of you that has the courage and assertiveness to speak your mind. Think about how you would describe this friend, what personality traits you would ascribe to him or her. Then, consider how you identify with those traits personally, and this may help you understand why this particular friend has appeared in the dream. Warning your brother on behalf of this person could be a way of drawing courage of your own to approach him about a situation you perceive to be risky or threatening.

Your brother in the dream may be literal or symbolic as well. On a literal level, as mentioned previously you may be intuiting that your brother is indeed in a precarious situation that you feel the need to warn him about. If it doesn’t feel like it fits that your brother himself needs to be warned, then it’s possible your brother may be a symbolic representation of yourself or someone else in your life. Just as suggested you do with the friend, think about how you would describe your brother, and then consider where in your life you identify with him and may need to be cautious yourself.

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Mad man chasing me…

Dream: I dreamed of a mad man chasing me and when we eventually got to the point I could run no more, we began throwing stones at each other. I threw the last stone until my eyes opened from the dream. What does this mean?

DreamsMaster: By “mad man” do you mean “mad” as in angry or “mad” as in crazy? Did this man in the dream remind you of anyone you know in the waking world, either personally or from a movie or TV show, for example? What adjectives would you use to describe him, in addition to “mad”?

Did any of the stones either of you threw actually hit and/or hurt the other person?

What was on your mind that night when you went to bed?

Dreams hold many layers of meaning, and the more details you can draw out of them the more success you’ll have at unearthing these layers.

As the dreamer, you’re the only one who can truly determine what the dream means. But here are some ideas to try on and see what fits, and notice what ideas of your own percolate as you read on…

Being chased in a dream is generally a metaphor for trying to escape from some real or imagined threat in the waking world. For example, the “mad man” may represent an unpleasant or “maddening” situation at work or somewhere else in your life that you’ve been trying to avoid; something or someone that you just can’t shake loose psychologically or emotionally.

The “mad man” or perceived threat may also be a shadow side of yourself, a disowned part that you judge negatively and want desperately to avoid or eliminate.

Throwing stones is an interesting choice of offense / defense. For some dreamers, this may be a visual representation of the biblical expression about “casting the first stone” in regards to taking a look at one’s own actions before blindly judging the action of another.

It’s significant that throughout the dream you are not in any real danger, and in fact seem perfectly capable of escaping harm’s way. This could be the core of the dream’s message: That although you may feel threatened and powerless in some situation you’re currently facing in your waking life, in reality you have the personal resources and power to take control in a positive way. Consider how you could be more effective wielding this power.

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Dead bodies jerking…

Dream: I’ve had this dream for many, many years. I dream that I am at a funeral home and there are three coffins with dead bodies in them, however, the bodies begin moving in jerky motion, I then go to the director and he tells me that’s what dead bodies do. Sometimes I recognize the dead people, other times no.

DreamsMaster: Interesting. Let’s take a look at each of the symbols in this dream and then piece them all together into a theme…

Funeral home: A house or home in a dream often represents our personal space or self. Along these lines, a funeral home or a “house of the dead” could represent a part of yourself that feels obsolete or lifeless, that harbors old memories or ways of being.

Three coffins with dead bodies: The number three may be a religious symbol (such as the Trinity), or it could mean something personal to you. Is there something in your life that comes in threes? Or do you have any other personal association to that number?

Dead bodies moving in jerky motion: When I project myself into your dream, I visualize this jerking as being similar to when we first fall asleep and sometimes jerk ourselves awake. How did you feel when you saw the bodies jerk? Were you afraid, or just confused?

Funeral director: This character could represent the part of yourself that is in charge, in control of the situation, even when another part of you doubts or questions.

“That’s what dead bodies do”: Even though one part of you questions what you see, another part of you “takes charge” and provides an answer for you. Interesting that you appear to take the director’s words at face value, despite the fact that the answer does not seem logical with your felt sense of the experience. Do you tend to give your power away like this in the waking world, question your intuition?

A dead person in a dream generally represents some aspect of ourselves that has become obsolete, has “died off”. If the dead person is someone you recognize but is not someone close to you, think of how you would describe that person and then consider how that person may represent your shadow side, an unseen or personally unacceptable part of yourself with those same traits you described. If the dead person is someone you know well, then seeing them dead may have to do with your relationship with that person – for example, some aspect of the relationship is over, outmoded. This is not necessarily a bad thing, though, as the other side of death is new life. Old parts of ourselves and/or of our relationships need to die in order for new aspects to be born. This is what growth is all about.

All that said, this recurring dream may be a metaphor for “out with the old, in with the new” in regards to different aspects of growth occurring in your life. The fact that the bodies are dead but still moving may represent resistance to accepting the finality of transition, not allowing the past or obsolete to “rest in peace”. Next time you have the dream, think about what was on your mind the night before, and this may provide more clues as to the message the dream is trying to relay.

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I dream of killing…

Dream: Every night I dream of killing someone I know. I don’t know why, but I always end up killing someone in my dream.

DreamsMaster: How you feel in these dreams is significant to their meaning. For example, are you angry when you’re killing, or are you remorseful? Can you identify that same feeling state in your daily life the day or night before the dreams?

Killing is an act of power. To be killing someone you know could be your inner mind’s way of trying to take control of a situation, to convert feeling powerless into feeling powerful. Have you been lacking assertiveness and giving your power away to others, to the point where you’re starting to resent them?

If a person you kill is not someone you’re particularly close to in your waking world, then your dreaming mind may be choosing that person to represent some aspect of yourself that you deem unacceptable and want to do away with. Think about how you would describe that person you killed. Do you identify with any of those traits, particularly the ones you judge negatively? If so, your dreaming mind may be sending you the message to be more accepting and forgiving of yourself.

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