Lesson 8 - Why there's no such thing as a bad dream. Frightening, disturbing dreams carry different messages to different people. For some of us they signal an under-reaction to the events of our waking life; for others they signal an over-reaction. If we are ignoring painful and humiliating experiences during the day, we are apt to dream of painful and humiliating experiences at night. Such dreams alert us to the feelings we have somehow learned to ignore so that we can make changes in the way we are living. Going to the opposite extreme, many people turn life's ordinary problems and frustrations into their own private hell by worrying, obsessing, and imagining worst case scenarios from the time they wake up until the time they go to sleep. Their nightmares are a reflection of their self-induced miseries and tormented inner lives.     We must honestly evaluate what's really happening in our waking lives to decide if nightmares are indicating an under-reaction or an over-reaction. In either case, they are strong messages, important messages, and they should not be ignored. Persistent nightmares demand attention. Frightened, unhappy feelings need to be expressed to a trusted friend or an intelligent, compassionate professional. But even the worst imaginable dream is a good dream if it leads us to greater self-understanding and a positive change in the way we think and behave. Because our dreams are profoundly personal and appropriate to what's transpiring in our lives, whether we love what we dream or hate what we dream, every dream that we have only arises to heal and to teach.     Sometimes bad dreams turn into lucid dreams; we are rescued by an insight into the unreality of the danger; we are freed from our fear by a revelation. Sometimes we can overcome that which threatens us in our dream and awaken feeling more powerful and self-sufficient. Frightening dreams are opportunities to see through and overcome our feelings of fear and weakness. We can look back at what happened in the dream and how we acted and ask, "How would I change that dream?" Then we can apply the lessons learned to the things that intimidate us in our waking life.     We call a dream a "bad dream" when we don't like what happened in the dream. But, instead, we should see it as a necessary dream, and because it is strongly felt, we should see it as a great dream. And if we learn from it, and if we grow stronger and wiser because of it, we should eventually recognize that our bad dream was a good dream. In fact. it was the most perfect and most appropriate dream we could have at that particular moment in our life.   Next: Encounters with guides, gurus and gods. previous - 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - next home - teachings - history - archives - FAQs