Dream catchers

There is growing interest in dream interpretation, perhaps reflecting a yearning for deeper self-awareness. With sharing and analysing dreams online, having a moment and neuroscientists making significant progress in understanding why we dream what we dream, Asra Mavad goes on a nocturnal excursion to find out more

After firmly believing for the first 20 years of my life that I didn’t dream at all, a serendipitous interaction with a tarot card reader on Church Street, Bengaluru, changed my whole perspective.

The unassuming middle-aged man termed me a ‘sceptic’. “Everyone dreams, you’re just not making an effort to recall your dreams because you believe it’s all bogus. But in reality, dreams can be a portal into both the past and the future,” he told me.

From that day onwards, I was adamant about knowing more about my dreams. First thing every morning, I’d try to recall what I could’ve possibly dreamt about. For almost a month, I had no luck. And then on a random afternoon, I found myself retelling my dream to a friend at lunch. I couldn’t believe that I had finally remembered a dream.

Next came the task of trying to understand the dreams. I googled a scenario from the dream, and got a varied list of generic answers — ‘you’re overwhelmed’, ‘time to let go’, and other generic advice along the same lines. Unhappy with the response, I went back to my (now) trustworthy tarot reader, only to be met with a similar response, just with a few more personalised details. “You may not like the dream, but dreams don’t lie. If you’re not willing to accept the answers, you shouldn’t be looking for them,” he said. The last line stuck with me, as it is something I’ve always believed. So, I made up my mind that the world of dreams was just not for me — I’d merely overthink, and it’d do me no good. I was 22 back then.

Now 26, I recently came across an interesting event, a three-day conference in Bengaluru on dream interpretation. From yoga nidra to the role of animals in dreams, the event explored a variety of topics. I was intrigued once again. Through this event, I met Bhaskar Banerji, a holistic health practitioner who was organising the event on behalf of the International Association for the Study of Dreams, and my first question to him was ‘Why do we dream?’

Scientific or esoteric?

Scientifically, dreams occur during REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep when brain activity is high, but the purpose they serve is often disputed. “Dreams serve numerous purposes; on top of the list is memory consolidation. We go through our days experiencing all kinds of events, and at night, our brain has to decide which memories are worth holding on to and which can be discarded. For example, there are many common activities that we do every day with little variation, like using our smartphones, so storing all these repeated memories would be an inefficient use of our brain’s storage capacity. This way, dreams help us to sift through our various experiences and keep what is meaningful,” explained Banerji.

For many, dreams also act as warning signs or ‘threat stimulation’. “This is a very important function from an evolutionary standpoint. Dreams often act as a warning of impending disasters, be it at a personal or public scale. They can help one be better prepared to handle such circumstances or avoid the hazard, thus ensuring survival on both a personal and collective level,” he adds, sharing a personal example. “At the onset of Covid, I dreamt of a bug attacking my friends, and I kept trying to step on this bug and kill it, but I was unable to. It kept escaping my attempts. My interpretation of the dream at the time was that there is a new ‘bug’ amongst us, and it will elude our attempts to eradicate it. On a personal level, the dream was useful because it immediately made me aware that I need to boost my immune system to protect myself and warn my community of the impending danger.”

Additionally, dreams can also help in problem-solving, emotional resolution, and possibly provide a portal into parallel worlds. “They are a reminder that there is more to this world than meets the eye. In many ancient societies, it was believed that when we sleep, a part of our consciousness leaves our body and travels to other worlds. The most practical example of this kind of dreaming is what we call visitation dreams. These are dreams where a deceased loved one visits us in the dream state, and we interact or communicate with them. These often occur shortly after someone has died. Maybe we didn’t have a chance to say goodbye or get a proper closure. But it may also be that a deceased person has an important message for us, possibly providing some reassurance or warning us of some impending disaster,” Banerji elaborates.

Here’s a fun fact: it’s not just humans who dream; animals do too. Studies show that many mammals and birds experience REM sleep, the sleep stage linked to dreaming in humans. Brain activity during REM in animals suggests they replay daily experiences, like chasing prey or navigating environments, much like humans do in their dreams.

Meanings and metaphors

A colleague of mine often has the wildest of dreams. They sometimes involve a mystical land, a flying cycle, a refrigerator in the middle of the jungle, or sometimes it’s all a part of a single dream. Recently, while I was talking to her about one of her dreams where she described her attempt at chasing a man on a flying cycle, “I interpreted that dream as anxiety surrounding my job caused by my constant and relentless search for stories!”

But do all dreams have a hidden meaning? Are all dreams worth being interpreted? Rather than dream interpretation, dream appreciation is a more appropriate term to describe the process of understanding a dream, believes Anjali Hazarika, dreamwork facilitator and author of ‘Daring to Dream’.

“Dream application is the process of unravelling the meaning behind a dream. Dreams seem strange from the waking point of view because during sleep, the mind expresses itself in pictures, and these pictures typically speak in a language of symbols and metaphors. This demands appreciation from the point of view of the waking state. Dream work or dream appreciation creates a bridge between the two states of consciousness: waking and dreaming,” she elaborates.

While dreams are personal, experts have identified some common symbols and metaphors over the years. Some of the more common symbols are a ladder or staircase, birds, horses, and snakes. “Based on the situations in one’s life, these could mean different things for different people. For instance, seeing a snake in a dream could mean fear or an obstacle for one person and transformation or renewal for the other. It depends on the context in the dreamer’s life. Hence, it is incorrect to interpret any image or symbol by a fixed meaning,” explains Anjali. (see box) Some other common themes include falling, flying, taking an examination, missing a train or a flight, persecution (being chased), birth and death.

“Based on the dreamer’s life, a dream where the person is flying, for instance, can occur when they are in a period of life where they are feeling unsettled and ungrounded or, on the other end of the spectrum, relishing a sense of freedom,” adds Banerji. Another common theme is finding ourselves naked in a dream. “This might indicate that the dreamer is feeling exposed and vulnerable, or it might symbolise they are feeling comfortable in their skin, and able to be themselves with nothing to hide.”

A recurring dream of your partner cheating could have various meanings. “These may just be a sign that one’s feeling insecure, or there may be some tangible reason to suspect that they are true. By discussing the dreams with one’s partner, you have an opportunity to either clear up the misunderstanding if that is the case or prevent or stop behaviour that may be detrimental to your relationship. So, rather than ignoring the situation and letting it fester, the dream provides a pathway for resolution, leading to a healthier emotional state,” shares Banerji.

He encourages people to liken dream interpretation to learning a new language. “Like any language, the more time we spend investing in learning the language, the more we will be able to understand what is being communicated via that language. Think of dreaming as the language we use to communicate between our inner self and our waking self. Our inner self is always trying to guide us in the direction of health and wholeness, and it speaks to us via the language of dreams,” he elaborates.

Common dream interpretations

l Falling: If you dream of a free fall, it could mean that you feel out of control. However, if you’re falling and then start flying, it can be seen as a sign of freedom and trust in your path.

l Snakes: While snakes can symbolise potential threats and obstacles, they can also be seen as a sign of transformation and renewal. For some, it could also mean hidden emotions.

l Death: Dreams about death usually symbolise change. They can be seen as a sign to let go of certain beliefs and relationships.

l Being chased:
This is another sign of feeling a lack of control. It could also mean you’re avoiding certain responsibilities.

l Being naked in public: This could symbolise vulnerability and insecurity, stemming from a fear of judgement. On the flip side, it could also be a sign of confidence, depending on the context of the dream.

l Water: While dreams about a calm ocean could symbolise emotional balance, a stormy ocean is seen as a warning sign about an unfortunate future incident. A free-flowing river could mean that your life’s headed in the right direction.

l Exams: These dreams usually reflect anxiety. They could also hint at an upcoming decision.

My attempt at dream journalling

Even though I’m now aware that I do, in fact, dream, I very rarely remember the entire dream — only fragments. So, as an experiment, I recently started dream journalling, curious to explore the strange worlds my mind creates at night. At first, it was tough—dreams slipped away like mist the moment I woke up. But after a week of keeping a notebook by my bed and jotting down every fragment I could recall, I started remembering more. One night, I dreamt I was a time-travelling baker, entering baking contests in different centuries — ancient Egypt and Rome were particularly competitive. Another time, I was floating through a library in space, where books whispered their stories directly into my mind.

There was also a hilarious dream where I was best friends with a talking cat who ran a detective agency. We solved crimes with magnifying glasses and snacks — most likely a product of my affinity for Japanese literature. Plus, there were some nightmares dotted along the way. These dreams, though absurd, made my mornings more interesting, or even entertaining.

Dream journalling has helped me become more aware of recurring themes and feelings, like anxiety before big decisions or a craving for adventure. It’s not just about understanding myself better, but also about enjoying the ride. My dreams have gone from forgotten blurs to nightly episodes of surreal creativity. I don’t always know what they mean, but that’s part of the fun — each night is a mystery waiting to be written down.

While I continue to be intrigued by the world of dreams, I do believe looking into them can have its fair share of cons, such as overthinking. Dreams are complex and influenced by various subconscious thoughts, emotions, and external stimuli. Overanalysing them may trigger anxiety, self-doubt, or unnecessary stress, particularly if one believes the dream reflects future events or hidden truths. This can spiral into obsessive thinking, disrupting sleep, emotional well-being, and even decision-making. While it’s interesting to look into the meanings once in a while, it’s important to focus on life beyond.

Fraud or Freudian?

When you talk about dreams, you can’t not talk about the Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud. Freud believed dreams were expressions of repressed desires and unconscious thoughts. In his view, they reveal hidden conflicts, often through symbolic imagery, and offer insights into the dreamer’s inner psyche. His concept of wish fulfilment is the cornerstone of his theory of dreams, as outlined in his classic text, The Interpretation of Dreams.

“Freud viewed dreams as the ‘royal road to the unconscious’, believing they are disguised fulfillments of repressed wishes, often stemming from childhood experiences. While he acknowledged external stimuli and recent experiences could influence dream content, the core of his theory centred on the unconscious expression of desires, many of which are sexual in nature,” shares Banerji.

Freud encouraged people to interpret dreams through free association, where the dreamer speaks freely about each element of the dream without censorship. He believed this process would reveal the latent content — the analysis of the symbols and the emotional responses would lay bare the hidden, unconscious meaning.

Another perspective on dreams worth exploring comes from Ludwig Wittgenstein, an Austrian philosopher. Ludwig Wittgenstein viewed dreams more sceptically than Freud, focusing on language and meaning rather than unconscious desires. He questioned whether dreams truly “mean” anything, challenging Freud’s symbolic interpretations with a more philosophical, linguistic, and analytical perspective.

What are lucid dreams?

Lucid dreams are dreams in which the dreamer becomes aware that they are dreaming while still within the dream. This awareness can sometimes allow the dreamer to control or influence the dream’s events, environment, or characters. Lucid dreaming most commonly occurs during REM sleep and can feel vivid and immersive. Some people practice techniques to induce lucid dreams for self-exploration, creativity, or even overcoming nightmares and fears.

Sharath (name changed), a 32-year-old illustrator, discovered lucid dreaming four years ago through journalling and reality checks. One night, he realized he was dreaming while exploring a glowing city of glass, filled with animals he didn’t know. Instead of waking, he flew through surreal landscapes and met bizarre dream characters. These vivid, controllable dreams became a regular part of his life. Inspired, Sharath began sketching scenes from his dreams each morning. Over time, those sketches turned into a graphic novel series blending fantasy, sci-fi, and the subconscious.

However, can anyone achieve lucidity? Technically yes. A number of studies have shown that about half the general population have had a lucid dream at least once in their lives, so it seems reasonable to project that most people can achieve lucidity.