4 Themes of Water Dreams
A dreamwork tip on water or flooding dreams…
I use symbol dictionaries very sparingly in dreamwork and I caution against any specific dream symbol dictionaries. A standard symbol dictionary can help to us to understand archetypal symbols, but it is not a substitute to the personal associations in a dream. Here are the two symbol dictionaries I use: Taschen Symbol Dictionary and Women's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets.
As for dreams about flooding and/or strong water images... Water is traditionally associated with the following:
Emotions-- we even say we are "flooded" with emotion in waking life so a dream with flooding can express a surge of emotion that is needed to be felt consciously
Fertility-- water is uterine, birthing waters are released for a baby to be born.
Unconscious material "flooding" conscious life-- sometimes if we are steeped in deep work we might have dreams about being flooded or inundated with the unconscious, which is often thought of as deep water.
The personal unconscious is often thought of as a small body of water and the collective unconscious is oceanic-- so dreams with particular bodies of water can refer to stepping into unconscious material personally or collectively.
These are just a handful of ways water can be imagined into in a dream.
In my own life, I had a series of big water dreams right before I became pregnant. I received a dream of a huge whale-like animal stuck and submerged in a deep canal (hello labor); a flooding of the upper floor of my childhood home (I had such intense brain fog during pregnancy and major psychological change in my family of origin patters that I'm still working this dream); and more.
Join me next week if you want to explore what your dreams might be communicating.
Friday, April 15th 11-12:30MST/1-2:30EST
Dreamwork: Listening to Soul