   dream interpretation is the process of assigning meaning to dreams. in many ancient societies, such as those of egypt and greece, dreaming was considered a supernatural communication or a means of divine intervention, whose message could be unravelled by people with certain powers. in modern times, various schools of psychology and neurobiology have offered theories about the meaning and purpose of dreams. ==early history== ===eastern mediterranean=== one of the earliest written examples of dream interpretation comes from the babylonian epic of gilgamesh.thompson, r. (1930) the epic of gilgamesh. oxford: oxford university press.george, a. trans. (2003) the babylonian gilgamesh epic: critical edition and cuneiform texts. oxford, uk: oxford university press. gilgamesh dreamt that an axe fell from the sky. the people gathered around it in admiration and worship. gilgamesh threw the axe in front of his mother and then he embraced it like a wife. his mother, ninsun, interpreted the dream. she said that someone powerful would soon appear. gilgamesh would struggle with him and try to overpower him, but he would not succeed. eventually they would become close friends and accomplish great things. she added, "that you embraced him like a wife means he will never forsake you. thus your dream is solved."oppenheim, a. (1956) the interpretation of dreams in the ancient near east with a translation of an assyrian dreambook. transactions of the american philosophical society, 46(3): 179â373. p. 247. while this example shows the tendency to see dreams as mantic (as predicting the future), ninsun's interpretation anticipates a contemporary approach. the axe, phallic and aggressive, symbolizes a male who will start as aggressive but turn into a friend. to embrace an axe is to transform aggression into affection and camaraderie. later, a compendium of dream omens, the "dream book" or iÅ¡kar zaqÄ«qu was assembled. in ancient egypt, priests acted as dream interpreters. hieroglyphics depicting dreams and their interpretations are evident. dreams have been held in considerable importance through history by most cultures. the ancient greeks constructed temples they called asclepieions, where sick people were sent to be cured. it was believed that cures would be effected through divine grace by incubating dreams within the confines of the temple. dreams were also considered prophetic or omens of particular significance. artemidorus of daldis, who lived in the 2nd century ad, wrote a comprehensive text oneirocritica (the interpretation of dreams).artemidorus (1990) the interpretation of dreams: oneirocritica. white, r., trans., torranc
Analytical_psychology Divination Dream Freudian_psychology