How to Work With Your Nightly Dreams

by Brenda Ferrimani
Part 2
Inside:
How to Remember Your Dreams
How to Record Your Dreams
How to Amplify Your Dreams
How to Incubate a Dream
Jeremy Taylors Dream Tool Kit
Robert Moss The 8-minute Plan for Dream Sharing
Copyright 2011 by Brenda Ferrimani
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means,
without the written permission of the author.
Now, for the inside of your journal!
How to Remember Your Dreams
1. To remember my dreams I must first think they are important. The
moment I start to value my inner life, giving it a little time every day, I
will start to remember my dreams more often.
2. Its good to keep a notebook or journal by my bed, for when I do have
a dream. Just having a notebook by my bed, with the intention of writ-
ing a dream down, will quite often stimulate a flurry of dream activity!
Something wakes up inside. Psyche notices Someones paying attention
to me, I think this is my chance to express myself!
3. I write the intention in my journal above the space I will record my
dream, I will remember at least one dream tonight.
4. Allow at least one morning a week to wake up without an alarm clock.
5. When I wake up, I lie still for a few moments. I reflect, What was I
just thinking? If I cant remember I try moving my body into other fa-
miliar sleep positions. Sometimes this will bring back a memory.
6. I record something in my journal, even if I dont recall a dream in the
beginning. My writing something down reinforces my intention to re-
member my dreams. I record any fragments, images, feelings that come
to mind.
7. Also helpful aromatherapy in the form of teas, bath salts, and sleep-
ing with pillows stuffed with these herbs:
MUGWORT - Carries and reflects moon energy, burned to protect, en-
hance dreams and psychic abilities, patron herb of women. Burned al-
most exclusively by Buddhists in their sacred ceremony.
LAVENDER - Attracts high, clear, tranquil energy. Calming and centering.
Makes everything seem bright and new.
HYSSOP- The essence of protection and cleansing. King Solomon used
hyssop in his temple.
ROSEMARY - The Greek and Roman Sybils burned rosemary to enter into
trance, speak with the gods, offer prophecy. Burn before sleep to protect
against nightmares. Creates a safe and inspiring space for healing and
meditation.
Some also find vitamin B supplements to be helpful in dream recall.
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How to Record Your Dreams
1. I give my dream a descriptive title that helps me locate it later when I return
to my journal. If my dream has three parts, its helpful for me to have a three part
title.
2. I record the Date, and any Day Notes. Its relevant to the question Why this
dream now? Helps me understand my dream within the context of my waking
life.
3. I record any thoughts or emotions that I have along with the dream as soon as
I awake. This also provides clues for meaning.
4. I write my dream in present tense as though its happening now. This allows
me to reenter and re-experience my dream for more ahas!
5. I Create an Index of some kind to help me locate my dreams when I need to. You
may do this by reserving a page at the end of the journal with a list of titles. Or,
as in my case, my dream journal cover serves as a Visual Index. I include images
on my front cover collage that tell me that, for instance, my jewelled white spider
dream was in the previous dream journal. I arrange my dream journals as volumes,
in order, on my shelf.
Whenever I wish to write an article, or create a dream painting, or just revisit a
dream to track my personal growth process, my dreams are easy to find!
6. I make note at the back of my journal indicating how many times certain im-
portant recurring themes and symbols occurred within the dreams of my jour-
nal. This is easier to do with some on-line dream journaling software programs,
and you may prefer to keep your journal on your computer. However, for me, that
would be missing out on a chance to enjoy my creativity and personal moments of
magic, as I spend time with my journal every day.
7. Invite sychronicity (magic moments where my inner world matches my outer
world) by pasting images throughout my journal, randomly and prior to writing
any dreams down in my book. Often I have found, with delight and surprise that
the dream I have to record will match the image pasted in months before having
the dream! (This creative idea originates with Kathleen Sullivan, dream expert from
Pacific Grove, CA. I cant take credit. Its a marvelous idea!) There are some exam-
ples from my own journals, of image and dream sychronicity starting on page 10.
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How to Amplify Your Dreams
After writing my dream, and when I can set aside time, I explore the dream
symbols. According to Dreamscaping -Chapter-Twenty-three Steps for Working
with Your Dreams, by George R. Slater:
In the process of making the dream material more fully conscious, it is neces-
sary to expand the message which has been compressed in the dream symbols.
Meaning that is held in the unconscious is communicated through dreams in the
form of symbols which partially hide its true meaning from consciousness. Dis-
guised in this way, in the form of symbols, the messages are partial, ambiguous
and fragmented. In order to be understood and received into consciousness, the
meaning needs to be drawn out or amplified.
There are many ways I use to amplify my dreams, starting with:
1. I often draw a tarot card from a deck. The message will always answer in
sychronicity and amplify the dream. Its magic!
2. I expand the dream through art and poetry.
3. I research symbols in my dreams: A reliable symbol dictionary for research
is a good thing to add to your dream references. I recommend, The Book Of Sym-
bols: Reflections On Archetypal Images (The Archive for Research in Archetypal
Symbolism) Available through Amazon for $22.00
4. I make mythological associations to archetypal patterns through ancient
stories and fairy tales. Lots of great books on mythology out there!
5. Re-enter the dream as in active imagination, hypnosis, and dream theatre.
6. I notice Synchronicity. Just live with the dream. Let it sink in. Take note of
any amazing similarities in the waking world to the dream.
7. I share my dream with a trusted friend.
8. Need more help? - Professional dream work through our site, www.dreaming-
globalilllumination.com/contact, team members are ready and eager to help you
with your dreams.
9. Find a dream group, and join a circle. I found a group near me over a decade
ago by looking in the back of Dream Network Journal, where theres a contact
person for many places in the U.S. : http://www.dreamnetwork.net Also, IASD:
(The International Association for the Study of Dreams, http://www.asdreams.
org) is a valuable resource for further dream exploration and finding a dream
community.
Dreaming With IntentionHow to Incubate a Dream
Dreaming with intention is a very powerful practice. This is dreaming with a particular
question in mind, that needs an answer from the wisest and deepest part of me. Often
when I have a creative project and I feel blocked, or if I am troubled by a life situation or
problem, I formulate a simple question to fall asleep with. The answers I receive from
my dreams are quite surprising and sometimes opposite from what my ego expects,
nevertheless very helpful and healing.
Recently Ive suffered from insomnia and not wanting to take medication, I fell asleep
asking What can I do to sleep well? - As I was falling asleep I began to see images of
an amusement park, a carousel and music. Then I heard a voice say Play! - This advice
has been invaluable!
Our team at Dreaming Global Illuminations most important event every month, Full
Moon Dreaming, is based on an intention derived from the teams exploring together
the invisible energies present during each Full Moon. Our astrologers, tarot and Qa-
balah experts are consulted along with numerology and synchronicity pointing to what
powers can be tapped into, and all this helps us formulate our groups intention for
dreaming together. Its always amazing to see the beautiful answers given to individual
dreamers who dream with the same intention.
Whether incubating a dream together or alone, here are some basic steps to
make your dream incubation a success:
1. First, formulate your question. Make it very simple and concise.
2. Write the question/intention above the space you will record your dream in
your dream journal.
3. Have your journal handy, by your bed.
4. You may wish to paste an image in your journal that evokes the energy you
want to dream about.
5. As you drift off to sleep repeat the intention in your mind and imagine the im-
age to deepen your experience.
6. As soon as you wake up write down your dream.
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The Dreamwork Tool Kit:
Six Basic Hints for Dream Work
One
All dreams speak a universal language and come in the service of health and
wholeness. There is no such thing as a bad dream -- only dreams that some-
times take a dramatically negative form in order to grab our attention.
Two
Only the dreamer can say with any certainty what meanings his or her dream
may have. This certainty usually comes in the form of a wordless aha! of rec-
ognition. This aha is a function of memory, and is the only reliable touchstone
of dream work.
Three
There is no such thing as a dream with only one meaning. All dreams and dream
images are overdetermined, and have multiple meanings and layers of signifi-
cance.
Four
No dreams come just to tell you what you already know. All dreams break new
ground and invite you to new understandings and insights.
Five
When talking to others about their dreams, it is both wise and polite to preface
your remarks with words to the effect of if it were my dream..., and to keep
this commentary in the first person as much as possible. This means that even
relatively challenging comments can be made in such a way that the dreamer
may actually be able to hear and internalize them. It also can become a profound
psycho-spiritual discipline -- walking a mile in your neighbors moccasins.
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All dream group participants should agree at the outset to maintain anonymity
in all discussions of dream work. In the absence of any specific request for con-
fidentiality, group members should be free to discuss their experiences openly
outside the group, provided no other dreamer is identifiable in their stories. How-
ever, whenever any group member requests confidentiality, all members should
agree to be bound automatically by such a request.
Jeremy Taylor 2004
Ive been very influenced by Rev. Jeremy Taylors work (http://www.jeremytaylor.com).
His tool kit below has been invaluable! It states some very vital and ethical points, I
think are important, if you want to do dream work with others.
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Robert Moss The 8-minute plan for dream sharing:
Step One: Telling the dream as a story with a title
The dreamer tells the dream as simply and clearly as possible. Leave out your
autobiography, and tell the dream as a story, complete in itself.
Start by giving your dream a title.
Step Two: The partner asks the 3 vital questions
The next step is for the partner to ask three key questions:
Question 1: How did you feel when you woke up?
The dreamers first emotional reactions to the dream are vital guidance on the
basic quality of the dream and its relative urgency.
Question 2: Reality check
The reality check question is designed to establish whether the dream reflects sit-
uations in waking life, including things that might manifest in the future. Dreams
often contain advisories about the possible future, and it is important not to miss
these messages. By running a reality check, we help to clarify whether a dream is
primarily (a) literal (b) symbolic or (c) an experience in a separate reality.
In practice, the dreamer may need to ask several specific reality check questions
focusing on specific elements in the dream. Here are a couple of broad-brush real-
ity check questions that can be applied to just about any dream:
Do you recognize any of the people or elements in the dream in waking life?
Or
Could any of the events in this dream possibly happen in the future?
Question 3: What would you like to know about this dream?
This simple question to the dreamer provides a clear focus for the next step.
Step Three: Playing the If it were my dream game
Next the partner tells the dreamer, If it were my dream, I would think about
such-and-such.
It is very rewarding to receive a totally different perspective on a dream, so shar-
ing in this way with strangers can be amazingly rewarding as long as the rules
of the game are respected. One of those ironclad rules is that we never presume
to tell someone else what his or her dream means for them; we can say what it
would mean for us, if it were our dream.
Step Four: Taking action to honor the dream
Finally the partner says to the dreamer,
How are you going to honor this dream?
Or
How are you going to act on the guidance of this dream?
Dreams require action! If we do not do something with our dreams in waking life,
we miss out on the magic. The real art of magic consists of bringing something
through from a deeper reality into our physical lives, which is why Active Dream-
ing is a way of natural magic but only if we take the necessary action to bring
the magic through.
For more: http://www.mossdreams.com/Design%202009/Workshops%20and%20Training/
Tools%20and%20Techniques/lightning_dreamwork.htm
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