The subconscious is a strange place. It isn't even a place, though it sometimes feels like it is. Scientists have been trying to find the answer as to why we humans have dreams. Some think it's a way for our minds to sort out all of the information we take in while awake to better store as memories, others find that dreams help us understand our emotions.
TV shows, movies, books, graphic novels, and other forms of media have portrayed the subconscious and the dreams we create in some way or another. I think my favorite depiction is from the play The Book of Mormon when one of the main characters has a dream about going to Disney World only to end up in "spooky scary Mormon hell." It's a depiction of his guilt about treating the other main character like crap and a manifestation of his arrogance rolled into one.
Dreams have always had a significant meaning to the human existence. Many biblical figures such as the two Josephs, Pontius Pilate, and St. John the Divine all had important dreams that shaped the course of Christianity (and in the first Joseph's case Judaism). There are dream interpretation websites and books for sale dedicated to help people interpret their dreams (mileage may vary with these).
As I wrote before, I occasionally will mix up a remembered dream for an actual event that took place. It usually takes me a couple of minutes to realize my mistake, but the dream or the memory of the dream feels so real that part of me thinks that it must have happened. Maybe it did in another timeline or universe, one where I made Y decision instead of X.
Some people believe that dreams can be used to tell the future. I'm not sure if I'm ready to believe in prophecy dreams, but I have had some weird ones that can be attributed to my ability to pick up on tiny details in my surroundings. For example, I was told as a little kid that when you dream about fish someone close to you is expecting a baby. I've had a fish dream (usually where I'm swimming in an ocean) a couple of times and each time, someone I knew was indeed pregnant. I think it's more that I picked up the signs that they were expecting before they chose to tell me that they were.
One particularly weird dream that came true involved my friend's significant other proposing. I was in a car with the two of them and the significant other turned around and said: "I'm so excited, I'm going to propose." I told my friend who totally brushed the dream off. The next week my friend and their significant figure went on vacation with my friend's family. The significant other proposed at the very end of the trip.
My friend was shocked and happy. The significant other told me to never have another dream about them again - like I can control that.
My point is, that sometimes dreams literally come true. My guess is that the subconscious picks up on something or other and makes a connection that the conscious mind can't. This is what causes these prophecy like dreams. Cultural norms and superstitions help shape the signs that stand out in our dreams that point us in the correct direction.
So, what do you guys think about dreams be they prophecy like, weird nightmares, vivid adventures, or lucid explorations? Most of the time I enjoy my dreams and wish that they had been real life experiences (I mean they were real in my head). They inspire my creative side and many a nightmare have been the basis for a short horror story.
I'll leave you guys with a strange dream I recently had. Maybe you'll find a meaning to it that I couldn't or you'll just think it was a funny dream.
A couple of nights ago, I had this really bizarre dream where I was camping on an island. It was really cold and wet in the dream, until a huge polar bear showed up. The polar bear popped out of the water and started trying to snuggle with me. At first I was scared, thinking the bear was going to attack or eat me. As the dream continued, the polar bear kept popping up, only to continue to try and use me as an unwilling teddy bear. Eventually I was just mildly annoyed by the whole situation (I think there were zombies running around too at this point), but that's when my alarm went off and I grumpily hit the snooze button. Then I started having a lucid dream about changes to the Land Pavilion at Disney World's Epcot park. I was kind of sad to lose my polar bear companion.
Until next week!
If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys like hearing from me.
No comments:
Post a Comment