Symbolism of Plants in Dreams

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Symbolism of Plants in Dreams

• Jessica Meade

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Outline

• What are dreams?
• What do plants symbolize in dreams?

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Dreams

• There is no universally agreed-upon biological
  definition of dreaming.
  
• Many anthropologists and psychologists share the
  view that dreams are individual myths and
  collective dreams.
  
• General observations show dreams are associated
  with REM sleep.

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• REM sleep is the state of sleep in which brain
  activity is most like wakefulness, which is why
  many researchers believe this is when dreams are
  strongest, although it could also mean that this
  is a state from which dreams are most easily
  remembered.
• During a typical lifespan, a human spends a total
  of about six years dreaming. (which is about 2
  hours each night) It is unknown where in the
  brain dreams originate if there is such a
  single location or why dreams occur at all.

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• Both Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung identify dreams
  as an interaction between the unconscious and the
  conscious. They also assert together that the
  unconscious is the dominant force of the dream,
  and in dreams it conveys its own mental activity
  to the perceptive faculty. While Freud felt that
  there was an active censorship against the
  unconscious even during sleep.
• Dreams are seen as being projections of parts of
  oneself. Often these are parts that have been
  ignored, rejected or even suppressed. According
  to Perls, the dream needs to be accepted in its
  own right - not broken down and analysed out of
  existence.

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• In 1977 J. Allan Hobson and Robert McCarley
  proposed a new theory that changed dream
  research, it challenged the previously held
  Freudian view of dreams as subconscious wishes to
  be interpreted. The activation synthesis theory
  asserts that the sensory experiences are
  fabricated by the cortex as a means of
  interpreting chaotic signals from the pons.

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Dreams in Culture

• Dreams have a long history both as a subject of
  speculation and as a source of inspiration.
  Throughout their history, people have sought
  meaning in dreams. They have been described
  physiologically as a response to neural processes
  during sleep, as reflections of the subconscious,
  and spiritually as messages from God or
  predictions of the future.

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• Dreams were thought to be part of a spiritual
  world, and were seen as messages from the gods.
  Likewise, the Torah (known in Christianity as the
  first five books of the Old Testament) and the
  Qur'an tell the same story of Joseph, who was
  given the power to interpret dreams and act
  accordingly. Biblical stories and actions that
  came from dreams (and visions) form about
  one-third of the entire Bible.
• Many cultures practiced dream incubation, with
  the intention of cultivating dreams that were
  prophetic or contained messages from the divine.
  In Islam, good dreams are considered to be from
  Allah and bad dreams from Satan.

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• From the 1940s to 1985, Calvin S. Hall collected
  more than 50,000 dream reports at Western Reserve
  University.
  
• The most common emotion experienced in dreams was
  anxiety. Negative emotions are more common than
  positive feelings.

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• In men's dreams 70 percent of the characters are
  other men, while a female's dreams contain an
  equal number of men and women.
  
• Men generally had more aggressive feelings in
  their dreams than women, and children's dreams
  did not have very much aggression until they
  reached teen age.
• Sexual content is not as prevalent in dreams as
  one might expect. The Hall data analysis shows
  that sexual dreams show up no more than 10
  percent of the time

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• The Russians have a herb called son-trava (dream
  herb) that is believed to induce dreams that will
  be fulfilled when placed under the pillow.
  
• Tree of dreams-Elm

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Good omen plants when dreamt about

• When seen in dreams
• -palm tree
• -olive
• -jasmine
• -lily
• -currant
• -pear
• -Rose (greatest luck associated with it)
• -dream of fruit or any crop in its proper
  season.
  

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Bad omen plants if dreamt about

• Plum
• Cherry
• Withered rose
• Walnut
• Hemp
• Dandelion
• Beans (worst luck and portends evil)
• Dream of fruits or crops out of season

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Plants that foretell long life in dreams

• Oak
• Apricot
• Apple
• Grape
• Fig

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Plants that foretell sickness in dreams

• Elder
• Onion
• Acorn
• Plum
• To dream of white flowers predicts death in the
  future.
  

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Plants indicate success in love through dreams

• Rose
• Clover
• Raspberry
• Pomegranate
• Cucumber
• Currant
• Walnut implies unfaithfulness

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Symbolism relating to plants in dreams

• garden -  a garden in full bloom is thought to
  represent the psyche and growth of the soul a
  sparse or weed infested garden may be an
  indication that the dreamer's spiritual needs
  should be tended. Seeing ones own garden could
  be interpreted as the possibility of buying a new
  house or other property. If the garden is arid,
  full of dead plants, then you and people around
  you should think twice before acting these days
  because this is symbol of a court decision and
  imprisonment.
• tree -  a symbol of knowledge and or/spirit.  The
  size and condition may indicate how one views
  one's inner strength and spiritual or
  intellectual growth.  It is seen as a precursor
  for happiness the size of the tree and vividness
  of its leaves show the level of joy and sometimes
  symbolizes longevity.
• vegetables -  on a symbolic level vegetables
  suggest the need to feed one's spirit.  It may
  also be the subconscious' way of warning the
  dreamer to eat a healthier diet for health
  reasons.

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• Planting (a tree) Planting a tree in the dream
  is a precursor of the happiness that is about to
  come. 
  
• Bush Bushes are a precursor of a new baby.
• Shrub symbolic of a new baby
• Bouquet A bunch of flowers is symbol of marriage
  for singles and good news for the married.
  

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Symbolism of Planting

• Planting seeds or bulbs can represent a new
  beginning or an investment for long-term results.
  It can also represent nurturing or participation
  in the process of life, or having the patience to
  allow a process in your life time to take its
  natural course. 
• To dream that you are planting something,
  represents your faith in what will happen in the
  future. You have an optimistic view.

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Symbolism of Plants

• A plant or plants can represent many different
  things. Some possibilities are growth,
  development, evolution, refinement, production of
  good or useful things, life force, nature, God.
• Also, pay attention to the plant and its context.
  A healthy plant might represent health or life
  force. A sick plant might represent an imbalance
  somewhere in your life. A plant can also
  represent a person, their life, or their quality
  of life.
• Also, consider what the particular type of plant
  means to you. For instance, a palm tree might
  represent a warm climate or a vacation
  destination. A fern might represent a feeling of
  dampness and shadiness or darkness. A flowering
  plant or fruit tree might represent being
  productive or making useful things.
• To see plants in your dream, indicates fertility,
  spiritual development, growth or the potential
  for growth. Alternatively,  the appearance of
  plants in your dreams reflects your caring and
  loving nature. 
• In particular, to see indoor plants in your
  dream, suggests that your growth is being
  hindered or slowed in some way. You are
  experiencing a lack of independence.
  Alternatively, the dream signify your desire to
  be closer to nature. 
• If you are estranged from your children, then the
  plants can be seen as a representative for your
  children.

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References

• Thiselton, Dyer, T.F. (1889). The folklore of
  Plants. Kessinger Publishing. US.
  
• Liungman, Carl. (1994) Dictionary of symbols. W.W
  Norton and Co.
  
• Kupper, Adam (1979). A structural Approach to
  Dreams. Royal Anthropological Institute of Great
  britian and Ireland. Pp 1-18
  
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreams
• http//www.dreamstell.net/interpretation.html
• http//www.dreammoods.com/dreamdictionary/
• http//www.mythsdreamssymbols.com/dstree.html
• http//www.umich.edu/umfandsf/symbolismproject/sy
  mbolism.html/F/flower.html
  
• http//www.umich.edu/umfandsf/symbolismproject/sy
  mbolism.html/T/tree.html

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• mead7380_at_wlu.ca