It is unlikely that you will want to follow up every dream in detail, but if a dream seems significant, especially if you are going through a period of change or uncertainty, to analyse the dream in detail may be helpful in understanding your real feelings about a person or situation.
When you have time, perhaps in the evening, sit quietly by soft lamplight or candlelight and re-read the dream material you recorded that morning or listen to your dream tape.
Look up any basic dream symbols within the list given later if you are uncertain of what the dream images might mean. Now imagine each of those symbols in turn as they appeared in your dream and allow your intuition and imagination to fill in more details and if necessary expand on the setting of the image
For example, if you dreamed of a beautiful golden fish in a lake, allow your imagination to roam beyond the lake, perhaps into a nearby forest. This type of daydreaming is a very good way of drawing out the different levels of your dream. If the dream is still unclear, focus on the feelings aroused in the dream by the main symbols and as you recall them notice how they make you feel.
It might be helpful to extend some of the conversations in the dream in your mind and if the dream was unfinished or the actual ending was unsatisfactory, then create an ending. This can often guide you as to what you really want to do or what you feel deep down.
When you have interpreted your dream, add the details to your dream journal giving the date of the dream and any significant events which maybe happening in your real life at the time of the dream. Note also the location of each dream. If it is a place from the past, whether your personal past or a past world, it may have special significance to your present situation.
Sometimes past dreams represent a re-run of an old situation that needs resolution if you are to move forward. Or, as in the case of Sauna's dream, it may be an indication that you want the security you experienced in childhood or a carefree period if you are feeling tied down by burdens in the everyday world.
You could organise your dreams into categories along with a significant phrase or keyword, for example love, family, falling or wish fulfilment (where you dream of winning the lottery or getting a best-seller published). You will find your own categories emerge quite naturally. Finally, add the main individual key images plus any new insights to the A to Z dream list at the back of your journal.
