Portland 6/9/2015 5:42:51 PM
Dream Analyst, David Rivinus, Uses a Five-Step Technique to Interpret Dreams
Dream analyst, David Rivinus, uses a simple five-step
technique to help dreamers understand the symbols of their dreams. According to
him, the technique is thorough, easy to learn and works well. He claims that it
also avoids the two extreme approaches to dream interpretation that lead to the
most common problems in dream analysis.
One problematic approach is the simplistic drugstore-book technique.
He recommends steering clear of any document suggesting that a specific symbol
always means the same thing: lightning always symbolizes inspiration. “Dreams
are an extension of the dreamer’s own subconscious, and the symbols in dreams
directly reflect that particular dreamer’s thought process and experience,” he
says. According to Rivinus, a dreamer who has spent his life enjoying beautiful
electric storms from the safety of an enclosed porch will have a radically
different feeling about lightning than someone who has actually been struck by
it.
At the same time, he recommends not getting too complicated.
“You don’t need to be a specialist in Freudian psycho-sexual theory to
interpret dreams,” he says. He points out that, in odd ways, the two extreme
approaches make the same mistake; they both lock the dreamer into a
preconceived notion of a symbol’s meaning. For example, according to strict
Freudians, women are inherently envious of male sexual organs. “That is a
ludicrous assumption under any circumstances,” he says, “and it can be
especially misleading if a sexual symbol arises in a dream.” He feels it is far
better to guide the dreamer through that dreamer’s own thought process, and as
a facilitator to keep his assumptions to himself.
“What I try to do is to get the dreamer to think about the
metaphoric meaning of any symbol.” According to Rivinus, a crucial part of his
technique is simply asking the neutral question, “Tell me about it.” If a
dreamer dreams about a car, Rivinus will ask him to, “Tell me about a car.” According
to Rivinus, a typical response might be, “A car’s the thing that takes you from
one place to another.” But if the dreamer has been injured in an automobile
accident, that experience could elicit a radically different kind of answer. “The
results are far more accurate if you let the dreamer tell you what a symbol
means, rather than imposing your own interpretation on it.”
For more information, visit www.teacherofdreams.com