Utility of Daily Routine
The mysterious world of dreams
What does the dream you had last night mean? Clearly, a dream can affect the way you feel throughout the day. A dream symbolizes your hope, fear, or even what may happen to you in the future, or serves as a mirror that reflects what is on your mind. Let us find out more about the mysterious world of dreams.
📝Text by. Su-bin Cho
The most common type of dream people have
People have four or five different dreams a night on average. Once you wake up, however, you simply cannot remember most of them. So there are so many dreams people dream, but there are some common threads that go through all the dreams. Dreams can be classified by key scenes or key words. In other words, quite a large number of people have similar dreams. Then, what are some of the most common dreams that people repetitively have? The most frequently recurring key word in dreams of Korean people is “snake.” The snake is considered evil or ominous both in the East and the West. However, the snake is viewed as an auspicious sign when interpreting dreams. The interpretation can vary depending on the color of the snake, but in most cases, the appearance of a snake in a dream suggests that you are expected to encounter unexpected good luck, or something you are currently working on will go smoothly, or you will get well soon if you are ill. If a big snake enters your house or attempts to strike, it means good luck is in store for your family, or a stranger will visit you and bring you good luck. If you avoid or kick the stranger out, the good luck will escape you. If you are bitten by a snake or you dream about a swarm of snakes, it is mostly likely a dream about the forthcoming conception of a baby.
People try to interpret dreams and understand what they symbolize not only in Korea but also other countries around the world, yet how dreams are interpreted varies from country to country. In Korea, what is considered negative in reality often symbolizes something positive and vice versa. It is not the case in some countries. For example, in Korea, if you are sick in your dream, it means your luck will improve health-wise. In the United States, however, it means you may experience difficulty with your business or someone else may steal your idea. In Germany, if you dream about being ill, it is interpreted as a sign of an inevitable predicament. It is also widely viewed as a warning sign in communities of African tribes and in Muslim culture.
Dreams are interpreted differently in different cultures depending on how people view dreams. People in the West think a dream is a reflection of the psychological condition of the person, but it is regarded as a vehicle to convey a message in the East. In tribal societies, people think a dream is a divine revelation that serves as a guideline when making an important decision.
The interpretation of dreams varies from country to country.
A prophetic dream of Admiral Yi Sun-shin
“Today is July 7th according to the lunar calendar. Last night, I dreamed about Won Gyun and I getting together and having a meal. When the food was served, I was sitting in a seat higher than that of Won Gyun and he appeared to be pleased.” This is a scene from Admiral Yi’s dream as described in Najung Ilgi: War Diary of Admiral Yi Sun-shin. At the time, Yi did not have any title but Won Gyun was the commander who was leading the navy of the Joseon dynasty. A mere 10 days after the day Yi had the dream, Won Gyun lost the Chilcheonryang sea battle and fell from grace. The dream was a sign that the tables would be turned for the two men.
Admiral Yi often had prophetic dreams during the war, with things developing just like in his dreams a few days later. Ahead of the Battle of Myeongnyang, Yi said, “In my dream, a prophet told me, ‘Do this and you will have a big win. Do this and you will lose.’” Yi said he learned the strategies to defeat the Japanese navy in the upcoming battle in his dream.
When you want something so desperately, you may sometimes find an answer in your unconsciousness. The same was probably true for Admiral Yi. So determined to win the battle, he gave himself a clue on how to win it in a prophetic dream.
In the movie Inception directed by Christopher Nolan, the main character uses dreams to steal ideas from others or implant memories in their brain. He infiltrates the subconscious of the targets and controls the space where he is engaged in a chase. All this happens while he is aware that he is dreaming. Can we control our dreams just like in the movie? If we can stay aware that we are in the world of the unconscious, we can control our dream. It is called a lucid dream. A lucid dream helps you relieve stress or restore your suppressed ego. A lucid dream can help you come to terms with bad experiences you have in waking life. The best way to have lucid dreams is to keep a diary. If you keep records of what you dream about right after you wake up and continue to expand your memory, you will become more aware of signs that are shown in your dreams.
But you should not obsess over lucid dreaming because it may cause sleep disorder or trouble in your daily activities as you confuse dreams with reality. Even worse, if you are immersed in a sweet dream for too long when the reality is tough, you may find yourself becoming increasingly tempted to deny the reality. You may straddle dreams and reality like Dom Cobb does in the movie Inception, but remember that, after all, happiness lies in reality.
How can you control your dream?
