Posts Tagged ‘dream’

Review of DreamQuake by Elizabeth Knox

Posted on Sunday, February 26th, 2012

Book 2 of The DreamHunter Duet

I’m going to have to read this book again to garner all the subtleties with which Knox fills her follow-up to The DreamHunters. I can’t even begin to enumerate all of its themes, which include: questions about fate, how dreams are formed, questions about their reality and/or truth, the possibility of alternate realities, the concept of living a life forward towards an already existing version of oneself, and whether or not dreams can/should be used politically.

One type of DreamHunter is the Soporif, and one ‘master’ dream (which can overshadow all others) is ‘Contentment.’  A major political figure in DreamQuake decides he is going to use these two elements to render large portions of the populace, especially DreamHunters, content to the point of being completely ineffectual. He seems to be doing this both for his own nefarious purposes, and because he believes that he is doing right by his constituents. This could be a reflection of our own world’s use of television and advertising.

The culmination of DreamQuake was somewhat unexpected, though hinted at throughout the book. I’ll leave it to you to decide what, exactly happened, and how, since I’m still trying to figure it out myself.

Dream Teas*

Posted on Friday, February 17th, 2012

There are certain herbs/spices which promote restful sleep, dreaming, and the remembering of dreams. Bigelow actually makes a tea (Sweet Dreams) which contains many of these. You can make your own, specialized tea from the following ingredients:

Dream Tea –  (drink – just before retiring; will not keep you awake)

1/4 ounce buchu (for prophetic dreams)

1/4 ounce chamomile (to purify and protect)

1/4 ounce jasmine flowers (softens and relaxes, enabling receptivity to the spiritual world)

1/2 ounce mugwort (to integrate psychic and dream experiences with daily life, multidimensional consciousness, balances transitions between day and night consciousness)

1/4 ounce poppy flower (aids sleep)

1/4 ounce poppy seed (aids sleep)

1/4 ounce rosemary (to calm and relax our minds and muscles, while improving our memory of the night’s dreamwork)

1/4 ounce rose petals (for prophetic dreams)

1/4 ounce yerba santa (increases psychic powers)

*Do not use every night, as regular usage reduces the herbs’ effectiveness; use only when you particularly desire to dream, or are requesting special help or information to come to you through your dreams.

The Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox, a review

Posted on Tuesday, January 24th, 2012

This is an amazingly fresh take on dreams and their possibilities, both positive and ‘negative.’ The idea is that there is a place, overlaying part of our planet, which only certain people called dreamhunters may enter; other folk just keep seeing the same view of earth, while the dreamhunters enter a completely different land. This Place is not mapped in the same way as we usually map things, by geological entities but, rather, by the type of dream which the dreamhunters can ‘catch’ there and then bring back to share with others in places called dream palaces. While some of these dreams are nightmares, most are at least benign, while many are comforting, exhilarating, and/or healing. There is a second book in this ‘duet’ called ‘Dreamquake’; I’ll review that book when I have finished reading it.

What Dream Jobs and Impalas Have in Common

Posted on Thursday, January 19th, 2012

My recent experiences (with being released from work, and dreams which pointed me to my new kitten companion) remind me of a client I knew who had an amazing dream that changed her life: I was riding around town in my father’s car. Doesn’t seem like much, but I asked her what kind of car it was: ‘A Chevy Impala’ Knowing that an impala was an animal, I encouraged her to look it up in an encyclopedia: “An animal able to leap great distances to avoid danger, but only if it can see where it is going to land.” This was, basically, her father’s motto: “Never quit one job until you have a new one lined up.”  She had been driving around in this car, this motto, even though her current job was sapping her energy, her strength, her joy for life. As soon as she read about impalas in the encyclopedia, she went and resigned, and within a couple of weeks she had her dream job. May we all be so blessed!

On High – A Dream of Possibilities

Posted on Friday, March 26th, 2010

My wild and crazy minister (aka “the pagan pope”) and I were having an audience with the “real” pope, who was dressed very simply in a white robe. We were all sitting cross-legged on the floor, though the pope was raised slightly on a dais. My minister took out a pipe filled with marijuana, took a few puffs, and handed it to the pope – as he did so, I placed my left hand on his back – who also took a few puffs. The air filled with smoke. At one point the pipe flared up into flames, but then settled back down to just smoke. I didn’t smoke, though I certainly got high from the smoke in the air.

Part of my “interpretation”: I am witnessing/supporting the integration of the free and structured aspects of myself, by sharing a “peace” pipe.

This dream has stayed with me for many weeks, and fills me with joy and a sense of freedom every time I think about it. I am always delighted by my minister’s freedom to be himself, and also appreciate a pope’s challenge to be himself within the constraints of his office and all of the expectations attached thereto.