to Dream - Dream Symbols

Dream symbols

Interpreting dreams often means finding understanding symbols. Although Alchera comes with a basic dream symbol dictionary to get you started, some symbols are simply too personal to be covered by a general dictionary. This article explains how to explore personal meanings of symbols.

Understanding a symbol

First of all, don't forget that not everything in a dream has to be symbolic. Some things are just what they are. That being said, the easiest method to explore a symbol is to describe or define the symbol. Some authors suggest you imagine that somebody from Mars landed in your backyard and you need to explain the object or situation.

When applied with care associating can be usefull as well. Take the symbol and consider the first thing it makes you think of. If the first association doesn't ring a bell, you can try a second or third one, but don't spend too much time on associating. If you don't find something that feels right, just let it rest for a while.

A very important guide to understanding symbols are your emotions. If you get beheaded in a dream without feeling pain or anxiety but on the contrary feel almost good about it, you know that the meaning is something completely different than the scene would suggest at first hand. Instead of representing some threat, it may represent having overanalyzed a problem and moving on to finally taking a decision.

Maintaining multiple custom dictionaries

Adding your own symbols and symbol interpretations to the dictionary is easy with Alchera. However, you may not have realized that you can use multiple custom dictionaries. This means that you can add dictionaries of your friends and simply any dictionary you like. Take a look at the Dictionary menu, the Dictionary Management item.

This may also be a good place to explain the multi-language feature of Alchera. This feature is useful for those who keep their dreams and dictionaries in multiple languages, usually the native language for private use and english to exchange dreams with others. Alchera is prepared for such use and can link the correct dictionaries to a dream whatever the language.

More information

These sites offer online dictionaries:

• Dream Moods has an extensive dictionary with many good suggestions on what symbols could mean for you.
• Aisling Dream Interpretation offers a very basic dictionary, but interesting because it links symbols also to the physical body.
• Dream Central has a Dream Dictionary. If they don't have the symbol you're looking for, you can request to have an entry added.
• Working with animal spirits is a website about shamanism, but it has wonderful descriptions for the animals in your dreams. Note March 2008: after many years the site seems to have disappeared, but let's hope it will return.
• Dreams-Dictionary.org offers several dictionaries. While you're there, check out the quotations section!