Kim Kardashian's Mushroom:Dreaming of Celebrity Fungi

photo by dendroica cerulea

Well, it's official. Now that the Kardashian's have conquered the "real world" they are moving into our Collective Unconscious! Here is a dream I had that contained some very random images.

I was in a forest and in a clearing there was a table set up with crafts to do. My daughter was with me and so was Kim Kardashian. We were making huge (people sized) mushrooms out of black felt cloth. When the craft was finished you could throw the mushroom up in the air and it would billow out as it fell like a jellyfish parachute. Kim Kardashian turned to me and said, "I just want people to leave me alone, you know? I'm so misunderstood."

So, what does it mean? Even though the dream contains lots of images worth investigating, I am going to focus on Kim Kardashian and the mushroom.

Kim Kardashian: Carl Jung believes that we often have archetypal images in our dreams. These consist of myths and legends that have been passed down through time and now have a place in our collective unconscious. In Greek and Roman times, a pantheon of gods and goddesses provided archetypal symbols representing greed, love, pride etc. Today we worship at the cult of celebrity so it isn't surprising that celebrities might figure in our dreams as symbols. If you google Kim Kardashian you will find that she is famous, not for any obvious talents besides her beauty, but for expertly marketing herself. She could definitely be a symbol representing the preoccupation of outer appearances.

Mushroom: Looking through various dream dictionaries online, it seems there are lots of interpretations for the mushroom image. It could symbolize relationship difficulties, unhealthy desires, foolishness in amassing wealth...does any of this remind you of Kim Kardashian? Other interpretations include the mushroom as a symbol of male fertility, a symbol of the human soul, knowledge or enlightenment, or a symbol of magic. My article Dreaming of Mushrooms talks more about the mushroom symbol.

At this point, I'm not exactly sure what the mushroom symbol meant in my dream so I'm going to look at other images presented.For example, the mushroom was made out of cloth which also has to do with appearances and the way people perceive us. In my dream I liked the billowing mushroom, I thought it was cool and it gave me a good feeling so I don't feel like it was a negative image. The image of parachuting symbolizes protection. The dream took place in a forest which is a place of testing or initiation.

So the images of Kim Kardashian and the cloth represent a preoccupation with how the outer self is represented to the world. I think because of the forest setting and the way I felt about the mushroom, I'm going to say it was an image of self-knowledge. The phrase that Kim said about wanting to be left alone and feeling misunderstood seems to represent my own feelings of insecurity about how I'm perceived in the world. So thank you Kim Kardashian for dropping by my dream! Maybe next time though, you could send David Beckham?:)

Dreaming of a House

.

I love my dreams that feature a house. One reason is that a house is a symbol for your Self (ego and unconscious). Both the inside and the outside features represent the things you are dealing with. (The outside showing what you are projecting to the "outside" world and the interior reflecting on more unconscious issues). So, if the outside of your house is big and grand that's how you are, or feel you are, reflecting yourself to the outside world. If it's small and run down you are feeling insecure and bad about yourself.

In your dreams try to pay attention to what room you are in, its different features and how it makes you feel. For example a bathroom represents private matters and issues of cleanliness, whereas a kitchen may represent nurturing,health issues or family issues. If you want more specifics about what different rooms mean feel free to check out an article I wrote on the topic Dreaming of a House.

The second reason that I like house dreams so much is I love the houses that I dream about. They are so unique, detailed and quirky that they would make great movie sets. In one dream I was in a small, stone cottage. We (my family) were standing in the sitting room that had a huge stone fireplace. Suddenly, we realized that behind the fireplace was a small playroom that had been hidden all this time. It was set up like a preschool, with little tables and toys. My interpretation of that dream is that as a family, we should make the time for play together - something we probably hadn't been doing.

In another dream, we (my spouse and I) were in a older Shaughnessy type mansion that had obviously once been opulent, full of antiques, but had been let go, everything looked worn out, faded, cobwebbed. My grandma and grandpa lived there (not in real life) and they were letting us stay there. As we walked from room to room they told us that we could go anywhere except the basement. When we peaked down the stairs we saw that the basement was enormous and it was full of ghosts, darkness and other scary things so it made sense to us not to go down there. We were fine staying upstairs.
I interpreted this dream to be representative of our relationship, something that had once seemed rich had now become old and faded. A basement usually symbolizes the subconscious, things that have happened in our past or issues we want to repress. My dream was telling me (warning me) not to confront these things right now.

There are many more houses - the white, farmhouse with the front porch that frequently appears in my dreams and the very cool, mid century Erickson bungalow that sat on a mountain. I encourage you to try to remember the houses that feature in your dreams. What they reveal may give you a lot of insight into yourself and your current situations.

Dreaming of Loosing Your Teeth

Dreaming about loosing your teeth is usually associated with an anxiety about aging or making a transition in your life. This makes sense because as we mature, our teeth change i.e. we lose our baby teeth as we become an adolescent and we get our wisdom teeth when we become adults. Up until recent times, the elderly would often have lost their teeth which may be why this image continues to serve as a symbol in our dreams representing a fear of aging.

Personally, I have always associated the image of teeth falling out as one of feeling guilty. Maybe this is because the first time I had this dream, I was eighteen and it was after a night of um, doing things that my christian university would not have approved of! But actually, maybe I was just aware of making the transition into adulthood, maybe it was a fear of growing up, being able to do "adult" things.

In his book 10,000 Dreams Interpreted, which has stood the test of time (it was written at the turn of the century), Gustavus Hindman Miller devotes two pages to the interpretation of teeth as a symbol in dreams. As common with most of his interpretations, there is an abundance of folksy superstition about what dreaming about this symbol means. Here is one of my favourites. As you will see, his explanations are quite detailed.

"To dream that you pull one of your teeth and lose it, and feel within your mouth with your tongue for the cavity, and failing to find any, have a doctor look for the same, but to no effect, leaving the whole affair enveloped in mystery, denotes that you are about to enter into some engagement which does not exactly please you, and which you decide to ignore, but will later take it up and secretly prosecute it to your own disquieting satisfaction and under the suspicion of friends."

Seriously, this specific dream would be so common that it should be included in his book???
Traditional Chinese dream interpretation is a little more straightforward:
1) Dreaming of brushing your teeth means you are in good health.
2) Dreaming of growing new teeth means that your children's future looks promising.
3) Dreaming of loosing a tooth means that your parents may be greeted by a misfortune.

Much less wordy than Gustavus, but I still don't really subscribe to the idea that dream symbols foretell future events. Rather, I think that the symbol is a reflection of where we are at in our lives. Our unconscious mind has conveniently summed up our situation for us in the form of an image. Very aesthetic of it! That's my view at least. So when you dream of losing your teeth, think of it as an image reflecting your anxiety of the transitions going on in your life rather than a sign that you, or your parents, will soon be greeted by misfortune.

Flying, Falling and Jumping Dreams

(photo by Gilberto Filho)

I lumped these three dream phenomena together because they produce a similar physiological response when you are dreaming.

Falling is that sensation you feel just as you are drifting off to sleep. You feel like you are falling and you jerk yourself awake. (I do that all the time and my spouse is like "Stop that!")But you can also have a dream where you see, or feel, yourself falling, maybe off a cliff or something. I have never had this dream but apparently it means there is a feeling of not having any control of the situation in your dreams and maybe waking life.

Flying dreams are the best. If you have ever had one, you know what I am talking about because it is an incredible sensation. I once had a dream that I was flying over a lake and forest (Lake Whatcom to be specific). It was like the ride "Soaring Over California" in Disneyland. Flying is very big in Lucid Dreaming. If you can make yourself intentionally fly in your dream, you have great mind control and can then travel to wherever you want (in your dreams). Flying in your dream means you can, or feel like you can, overcome anything.You feel successful and are craving freedom or thrills (could be of the sexual kind).In flying we become the archetypal super-hero, but as Jung suggests, we should heed the warning of the myth of Icarus, who thought to make himself godlike with his fragile wings,leading to his (literal) downfall.

I included the image of jumping because that is what I tend to do in my dreams rather than fall or fly. I once had a dream where I was at the top of my stairs looking down at this purple sleeping bag scuttling across the floor below me. I was scared but knew I needed to confront this thing. So I did a swan-dive off the top stair and fell through the purple bag. Instead of splattering on the floor though, as you would think I would, I went through the bag in layers (or the bag went through me?). It felt incredible. I think the sensation might be going through the layers or levels of consciousness. At that moment, in real life, the phone rang, I answered it but had a really hard time coming "back up". (Normally I am a very light sleeper).I don't think I've had that same sensation of "going through" in real life but it would be similar to going on one of those elevator drop rides at a fair.

Maybe the reason we like amusement park rides so much is because they stimulate this same response in our brain?

River Rafting in a Convertible: Water, Journey and Cars

(photo by Horia Varlan)

This is a dream from a friend of mine. In his dream he was river rafting but not in a boat but rather a convertible car with some other people. He went to go down a chute and got thrown clear and then had to swim through the rest of the rapids on his own. He asked me what I thought this dream meant.

Water, as an image, symbolizes the emotional state. For example, if the water is calm and still, you are feeling calm and still. If there are rapids you are feeling turbulence. Travelling on water in any kind of vehicle represents a journey. Choppy water means the journey is difficult.

The convertible could represent different things depending on how one feels about convertibles; for example, freedom, recklessness, or loss of youth. My friend didn't say whether or not he was the driver. In my blog entry, Driving a Car, I talked about the significance of the driver. If my friend was driving, he was in control (or rather out of control). If it was someone else, my friend was feeling that he had given the control to someone else.

The chute image in the dream represents a tunnel (like to a different dimension or state, or reality). The fact that he got thrown from his vehicle and had to navigate the rest of the rapids on his own makes me think that maybe he is part of an organization or group of friends that he feels he needs to leave to go his own way.

Swimming symbolizes the effort my friend has to make, or is making, to get through his difficulties. It's great that he saw himself making it to the shore. This is a dream that could have played out as a nightmare, but my friend "rode it out" (like you would if you were really rafting) and came through on the other side. I think my friend can feel hopeful and confident for the future.

.

Dreaming of Frogs

(photo by Joi Ito - frog on corn leaf)

The other day, a friend told me about a dream she had. In it, she was yelling at her boyfriend who was sitting on a couch. Suddenly, he turned into a frog. She continued to yell at him, "And damn you, now you're a frog!" What did it mean?

Frogs and other types of wildlife can definitely be viewed as symbols when they appear in our dreams. I think this refutes the ideas that some people have that dreams are just the residue of our daily lives brewing in our brains. Because, why would a frog appear at that moment in her dream! (Unless she works with frogs or happened to see one that day). So, her dream is telling her that her boyfriend is like a frog. What does that mean? Well, there are several interpretations.

1) He actually has the qualities of a frog. He is slimy, has a long tongue, catches flies.
2) One dream book I read said a frog symbolizes "physical and emotional malformations". I have seen the guy and he appears to be very well formed! But it reminds me of the fairytale the Princess and the Frog where the prince is turned into a frog because of some character flaw, but he will be restored to his true identity with the kiss of a princess. Is my friend the princess who will save this man/frog?
3) A frog represents spiritual and emotional changes, and the potential for transformation (as seen by a the change from tadpole to frog).

Traditionally, a frog is seen as a good omen for money and love. What you do with the frog also has meaning. For example, holding a frog in your hand means you're going to win something and killing a frog means you are about to harm yourself (taken from Podder, 2004).

In my friend's case, she felt comfortable with the interpretation that the frog symbolized the potential for transformation and change in her boyfriend (which is what she was hoping for all along).


If you have ever had a dream about a frog, please tell me about it and comment below.

Dreaming of Vomit

(photo by Phil Gyford at flickriver)

Personally, I have never had this dream myself, but I became intrigued with the image after my daughter told me about a dream she had. In her dream she was at school and everywhere she looked people were throwing up. The people in the dream were her friends and classmates. She was disturbed by the dream, it didn't sound pleasant.

So when I did some research on this image, Dreaming of Vomit, I found that it could be interpreted both literally and symbolically. I took the information and wrote an article about it. You can see it here at my suite101 site if you're interested in more specifics. Surprisingly, this is one of my most viewed articles! Either lots of people have this type of dream or they are fascinated with the topic (and the picture I use, see above - it's pretty great).

The literal interpretation of vomiting in a dream would mean that you are trying to purge yourself of something (an idea, situation, a person). Something that is literally making you feel sick. Seeing someone else vomit, like in my daughter's dream, means that the person is, or you think they are, being false to you. Literally, they are spewing out crap! You might not be conscious of this in waking life but there may be signs that you have registered unconsciously.

I was surprised at how many symbolic or mystical interpretations there were of the image of vomiting in your dreams, especially in the Islamic tradition. Apparently, people dream of vomiting many different things and some of them are quite funny. For example, if you dream of vomiting dishes, it could mean you will lose money or property. Dreaming of swallowing pearls and then vomiting honey means you have a deep understanding of the Quran. And, my personal favourite, dreaming of vomiting a chicken and then watching it as it hops away, means that you will suffer disappointment in a relative's illness. (I find the image funny, not the outcome!)

What I like most about the image of vomiting in your dreams is that, like many dreams, the literal image and words that would describe it (being sick, purging) and analyzing what you are vomiting up (a symbol of wealth, a person, a chicken? not so much!) can tell you a lot about what your dream means.