Our social and cultural differences significantly affect dream content and how we perceive certain dream images when we wake. However, two rules of dream characterization remain consistent from culture to culture. The first rule is that all dream images are representations. Instead of words, your subconscious mind conveys its impression with metaphoric images of the influences affecting your life and consciousness. The second rule of dream characterization is that all dream images reflect something mental.
Dreams occur in the mental domain.
The objects and people in your dreams are not physical images. They are mental images. The vehicles, rooms, and food that appear as images in your dreams reflect mental vehicles, mental rooms, and mental food. The final stage of dream translation involves the order of the process and the context of dream imagery. Like ripples in a pond, your translation of a dream should flow from its center.