Interpreting Dreams

Below, I am reproducing (with some minor tweaks) a post I wrote on July 15, 2014.

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Last night, I dreamt that I was a prince of a prosperous kingdom. Besides having great wealth and power at my disposal, I was also endowed with good looks and a strong body. I excelled in royal sports like horse riding and archery.

When I turned 18, I read the story of Prince Siddhartha (later known as Buddha). Unlike Siddhartha, I was not denied the opportunity to meet common people, but I realized I had little understanding of their daily struggles. So, with my aides and some royal guards, I set out on a journey to explore and find answers. I wanted to learn what it was like to live as a common man.

On the third day of my tour, we began climbing a small mountain range, estimating that we would reach the village on the other side by sunset. However, an overflowing river delayed us, and we were forced to halt midway and spend the night in the open.

That night, as I slept under the stars, I dreamt that I was a poor farmer, and life had always been very difficult for me. By my princely standards, this life felt like a nightmare, and the struggle between my conscious and subconscious mind woke me up with a jolt. I was so relieved to discover that I was still a prince. In that dream, I realized what it truly felt like to live an ordinary life.

After many days, I returned to the palace, and on one particular day while practicing sword fighting, I got hurt badly. The pain actually woke me up, and I realized that I am, in fact, just an ordinary person.

I am not Sigmund Freud who has written extensively on interpreting dreams. However, in my own capacity, I decided to analyze this dream phenomenon and relate it to our real world.

But the important question here is: what is 'real,' really?

I felt just as alive and emotional as a prince or a farmer. So, could it be that this life is a dream too? If I could dream within a dream, is it possible that someone (maybe God) is dreaming this life I consider real?

Which life is real: the first dream, where I am a prince; the second dream, where I am a farmer; or the third dream, which I live each day and consider to be reality? In fact, my life could be a dream of God.

After some reading, introspection, and analysis, combined with my own perspective, I believe that dreams are reflections of disordered, purposeless thinking. All dreams signify the state of one’s consciousness.

Do not try and decipher the meaning of every dream. It probably symbolizes your mental state and therefore we must adjust our waking thoughts and actions to improve our dreams. Dreams are at most a feedback mechanism and therefore can be effectively used to improve our conscious(waking) state.

If we conclude that this earthly experience is a cosmic dream, then does that mean we can be complacent in our lives? Does it call for inaction? A BIG NO. In this cosmic drama we have a role to play and we must do our job to the best of our ability.

Just as the smallest part in a massive machine has its importance, so does our role in the vast cosmic machinery. We each have a part to play, and we must play it well.

This is a place where we are meant to have fun while learning and growing—a concept I remember reading about in the book “Illusions” by Richard Bach.

According to Sri Paramhansa Yogananda, 'Life is a joyous battle of duty but at the same time a passing dream.' I wish I could practice this!

PS: I wrote the above post before watching the movie Inception. I’m aware there are similarities.