A Brief History of Dreams

By Psychic Ariel

Whether young, old, or in-between, dreams hold a fascination for everyone. And there are many interesting, magical things that can be said about dreams. Let’s explore some of these enchanting notions.

In many ancient societies, including Egypt and Greece, dreaming was considered to be a supernatural communication (sort of like a divine intervention). The belief was that dream messages could only be unraveled by priests, or others with powers of divination. Dreams were also frequently explored for their prophetic properties.

The ancient Greeks actually used to construct temples where sick people were placed in hopes of being cured. While the people slept, their dreams would occur within the confines of the temple. In this way, they believed the sick would be cured. A good example of written dreams is in Genesis. Here it was recorded that Joseph interpreted dreams sent from God to the Pharaoh. The Bible also described many incidents of dreams as divine revelation.

At the end of the 19th century in the Western world, dream interpretation was seen as an integral part of psychoanalysis. Sigmund Freud believed that all dream content was the fulfillment of wishes, conscious or not. He often used dream interpretation to treat his patients. He called dreams “the royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious activities of the mind.”

Carl Jung (1874-1961), a former pupil of Freud, believed Freud’s interpretation was too simplistic and naïve. He cautioned against blindly giving meaning to any dream symbols without first having a clear understanding of the patient’s own personal situation. Jung believed that dreams have their own language. He said that just as we do not doubt the importance of our conscious experience, we shouldn’t undermine the value of our unconscious life.

Psychologist, Calvin S. Hall (1909-1958), developed a theory of dreams in which he said dreaming was a cognitive process. Hall believed that dream images were a visual representation of personal conceptions. For example, if you dreamed about being attacked by friends, this would represent your fear of friendship.

The “sleeping prophet”, Edgar Cayce believed that through dreaming, people were given access to their spirit. He believed that all questions could be answered from the inner consciousness with the proper awareness.

Which interpretation do you believe?

Next: Some famous dreams