Forget asking if you dream in color or black-and-white. What if you dream in Pagan! Sure, there are many dream interpretation books on the market, but this one is from the witch's perspective, with a wonderful dictionary in the back to interpret your somnolent symbols. That means you won't be getting any Freudian analysis if, for example, you dream of snakes. If that's the case, Allrich explains. "In its shedding of its old skin, the snake again standardizes the concept of renewal, sloughing off the old, beginning anew. Snakes were sacred to the ancient Goddess, holding the meaning of earth wisdom,"(p.lu2)
But before getting to the fabulous dream dictionary (which runs over 100 pages), Allrich first discusses archetypes and how they influence our psychology and slumbers. Heavily influenced by the work of Carl Jung (who was called the "Warlock of Geneva" by local townfolk), she carefully introduces the reader to the concepts of the collective unconscious, anima/animus and the shadow, and uses clear examples, often those which show up in popular culture, such as films, to illustrate this. For example, on the prevalence of horror movies a half-century ago, Allrich writes, "Perhaps that is why vampire movies were so popular in the pre-feminist conservative 1950s. Collectively, they represented the creative drain of life energy from the acres of suburban housewives." (p. 30).
The author, who facilitates dream circles, offers the reader a number of tools to promote understanding and make the most of the information that comes through to us eight hours a day, information often ignored. She gives advice on keeping a dream journal, creating worksheets and even using the tarot to enhance analysis. Finally, she provides a spell to use before going to sleep to help to optimally interpret nocturnal messages and a few tricks to use for waxing and waning moons. A great book to deepen self-understanding.
~ review by Diane Saarinen
Author: Karri Allrich
Llewellyn Publications 2001,
pp. 22S,$12.95
