This article will look at a unique method of interpreting dreams.

Instead of consulting books for common meanings behind dreams we'll look at how to use Gestalt dream interpretation to gain meaning and significance from dreams instead.

Using the Gestalt method of dream interpretation makes it much easier to find hidden meanings and insights in dreams that otherwise would be evasive and difficult to de-code.

The main premise of Gestalt therapies is that an individual is considered a whole being. The attitudes we perceive in others and the aspects of life 'out there' are oftentimes just reflections of our own internal states. Gestalt methods highlight the importance of realizing that all we encounter in life is within us on some level. Sometimes we forget this and assume that dreams have a fixed or absolute meaning - not an inner significance. In truth - just the opposite is often the case.

Identification In Dreams

Oftentimes people talk about "having a strange dream" because of the contents of the dream. There are several sensible reasons that dreams often appear strange to us however:

1. Dreams occur on an amoral level of consciousness. This means that our dreams often do not adhere to the ethical values our conscious ego has. 
2. Dreams are metaphorical. Not logical. Dreams represent aspects of ourselves that we cannot see through the lens of the conscious ego.
3. Dreams use 100% of our mental-creative expression capabilities. Conscious ego uses less than 10%. Therefore some experiences in dreams are just "off-the-chart" of what we consider to be logical.

The result then is that we wonder "what could this dream mean?" but while we wonder this we often push the dream out of the acceptance of the conscious ego. In other words - "it's just a dream" - we proclaim. I believe that that Gestalt methods give more credence to the internal significance dreams have rather than just brushing them off as amoral, illogical and too far 'out-there'.

The consequence is that perhaps we run to common interpretation websites and jump to quick conclusions about what dreams mean. Gravitating towards wild Freudian deductions and taking each interpretation to-the-letter is useful in cases far and between.

The Gestalt method of dream interpretation is far more accommodating when we'd like to use dreams for self-examination.

The Secret Is Inside You

In Gestalt dreamwork we consider each part of a dream to be a part of reflected part of ourselves. Sure it might be amoral. Sure it might be illogical. But are we moral all the time as human beings? Do we act in a logical manner all the time? Sometimes our conscious ego does act in those manners, but a lot of the time we act according to subconscious desires and motivations that we are not aware of. 

Those desires and motivations are what we encounter in dreams.

Now of course we cannot encounter them as logical and sensible experiences - since our conscious ego has deemed them not logical enough to give in to in the first place. But we can experience them as metaphors, stories, and unrealistic worlds.

The important part of Gestalt dreamwork is not brushing these dreams off as weird and separate from us, but rather realizing that each aspect of the dream could well be a part of ourselves.

If I dream about a fire - the fire could well be a representation of an internal emotional state that has not been acknowledged. If I dream about a character that I do not like much - it could well be representing a part of who I am that I am not willing to look at.

How To Practice Gestalt Dream Interpretation

I recommend keeping a dream journal and writing down each dream as soon as possible (i.e. upon waking up). Instead of just jotting down what happened in the dream also make the following considerations -

1. Consider - which emotions did each of the characters represent for me? Do these characters represent past elements of who I am or perhaps future elements of who I strive to be?
2. Consider the dream environment. Does the dream environment represent something of significance for me?
3. Consider other elements of the dream.

Projecting Consciousness Into Each Element

One technique that can help in this process is when we project our own consciousness into each element of the dream (in retrospect). For example, upon waking up I might have recalled dreaming about a waterfall. I can project consciousness to that element of the dream to look for the significance. 

For example - what was unique about the waterfall? how would I feel if I was the waterfall? - which element of who I am does the waterfall represent?

This is an over-simplistic example but it demonstrates the main principle behind the technique. You can begin to ask "how can I see a part of me in each of the characters, environments and elements in this dream?" to realize the significance each one has.

Dreams are seldom comprised of elements that have no emotional associations at all. So if I further the prior example and consider what it would be like to be the waterfall in the dream this might trigger a hidden emotion that the waterfall represents. In each of the dream-elements we can discover a part of ourselves.

Doing this we are able to de-code the hidden meaning behind each metaphor in the dream - the aspects of ourselves trapped inside the dream.

Overcoming Fear

This technique is as effective for overcoming fear in dreams and lucid dreaming. If a frightening demon with sharp teeth and an appetite for human flesh jumps out of the corner in a dream the natural response would be fear. But the natural response to all other elements in our dreams tend to be appropriate too - even while we maintain that the dream is not real.

That seems a bit ironic once we consider it.

How can I be afraid of a demon that represents a part of me - a manifestation of an emotion in the dream? If I'm afraid of it then I'm just afraid of another part of me. This is the same as being afraid when we see a shadow behind us at night, but once we realize the shadow is our own the fear disappears.

One Step Further - Spiritual Sight

The techniques in this Gestalt article resemble those in the Spiritual Sight online course at this blog. To learn more about interpreting dreams, astral projections and mental images sign up for the course here.