Dream Cards: Understand Your Dreams and Enrich Your Life
CHAPTER ONETHE MAJOR TOOLSThe Dream Cards package contains most of the major tools you will need to begin your work on your dreams, to learn what they may teach you about your life and your attitudes and behavior in it. The system can be simple and direct in its application to dreams and your life, yet it is capable of generating considerable depth of insight and "right action" because it is also comprehensive.THE DREAM CARDSThe Dream Cards comprise a deck of 66 square cards, 49 of which have a main central image surrounded by eight secondary images reflecting the central theme of that card. These images come mostly from specific dreams of people who have been active dreamworkers for a long time. Some of the images are from my own meditative state, based on my knowledge of around 10,000 dreams of mine and those of other people with whom I have worked over the past 20 years.There are seven cards in the seven archetypal suites representing the outstanding energy dynamics of life and dreams. The archetypal suites areSOURCE, MASCULINE, FEMININE, HEROIC, ADVERSITY, JOURNEY,andDEATH -- REBIRTH.Their arrangement and relationship to each other, and to the other Dream Cards, forms the basis of my Archetypal Model which is explained later on in this book. It is enough to know at this point that the key to the whole system is that archetypal images (symbols) represent specific archetypal dynamics. There is one Dream Card for every major archetypal dynamic, each with pictorial representations of the most commonly dreamed archetypal images or symbols.In addition to these 49 cards there are tenEgocards, each of which also carries nine symbolic images, eight secondary surrounding one central. The ego is a particular function in the personality which uses archetypal dynamics but it is different from them in two basic ways.The ego has choice, the ability to send energy in one direction and not another. An archetype does not have choice. It just exists as a basic building block of the psyche and the universe. The archetypes would go on functioning in various ways whether humankind with his or her ego were around or not. Secondly, the ego has consciousness, the ability to serf-reflect, which the archetype does not have. The archetype just is.The remaining seven Dream Cards are the Personification Cards, each one associated with one of the archetypal suites. Instead of representing one specific archetypal dynamic or "great image" with its secondary images, each Personification Card depicts four mask-like faces or "personifications" attributable to its archetypal suite. The 28 personifications have been chosen as the outstanding expressions in human form of the seven basic archetypes, and represent those most appearing in dreams and cultural expressions. Thus we have four forms of THE CHILD within theSOURCEarchetype, four subpersonalities within the larger personality (see illustration below). At various times these roles will be dominant in our behavior, if only for a moment or two.The illustrations on the previous page and this page show a sample Dream Card and Personification Card. The Dream Card Characteristics Chart will be found overleaf.THE DREAM CARD CHARACTERISTICS CHARTThis chart shows the organization of the Dream Cards into the seven archetypal suites plus theEgosuite. For each, a representative primary dynamic is given, along with overall color scheme, symbolic shape, personality trait and choice. Note that the Personification Card attributable to each Archetype is shown in the bottom row. Do not take this distilled information as absolute but rather as helpful hints arranged in a useful way for quick reference. You should refer also to the Archetypal and Ego Dynamics Profile on pages 50-51 for further insight into the primary and secondary dynamics specifically represented by each card.THE WISDOM CARDSThe Wisdom Cards comprise a deck of 66 rectangular cards, one for each Dream Card. Each Wisdom Card is numbered to match its Dream Card and shows its archetype and the archetypal primary dynamic (always shown in capital letters) it represents at the top. The Wisdom Cards for the 49 archetypal suite cards and the tenEgocards carry an imagery statement (a brief description of the image on the companion Dream Card) in italics, followed by three key dynamics (always shown in italic capitals) represented by the central image on the Dream Card. A longer wisdom statement appears next and then a dream-life task, also in italics but in lighter type.Also on each of these 49 Wisdom Cards, for each secondary image (symbol) you will find an imagery statement, two dynamics represented by the image, a wisdom statement, and a dream-life task.The Wisdom Cards for the Personification Cards carry, three dynamics, a wisdom statement and a dream-life task for each of the four personifications shown on their Dream Cards.The wisdom statements give you a possible reason for having had the dream image. If the statement is relevant to you, meditate on it and use it to gain insight about your dream and its application to life. Remember, this is a system which applies dreams to life for personal growth and spiritual perspective. Dream Card dreamwork means actualizing your dreams rather than just understanding them, hence the dream-life tasks. These may be laid out in general, or sometimes quite specific terms. You do not have to do the task, but if you do it, or some variant of it, change is more likely to occur for you. There is a certain kind of knowledge which only comes from experience, and doing tasks increases our commitment to living the Dream Journey and enhancing our lives and personalities. If you have no energy for the dream-life task suggested on the Wisdom Card, devise one of your own. Do something! Don't simply intellectualize your life away.THE SYMBOL GLOSSARYAt the back of this book on page 65 you will find a glossary of over 5000 key symbols and dynamics evident in dreams and life. It is presented in two indexes: an Archetypal Index and an Alphabetical Index. The items in the Archetypal Index are classified by Dream Card dynamics according to my Seven Basic Archetypes and Ego Dynamics Model on which the whole Dream Cards system is based. This need not concern you here as it is fully explained on page 47. The items in the Alphabetical Index are arranged alphabetically and you will probably find this arrangement more convenient to look up symbols and dynamics when you first start using your Dream Cards. These pages carry a tint band to help you find this index.Even if a specific dream image is not on one of the Dream Cards it will most likely be in the Symbol Glossary with a numbered reference to the Dream Card or Cards most likely to have similar dream symbols. The Symbol Glossary also contains definitions of the archetypes and the primary archetypal dynamics.THE DREAM JOURNALI do recommend that each user obtain a blank book in which to record their Dream Card work and its results. The Dream Journal is needed to write sleep dreams in and to write up the dreamwork. It can be of any size and shape but be sure that it is large enough for you to write conveniently at length. As you become more familiar with your Dream Cards and more confident in their use you will be surprised at how powerful they are and how much you will want to record. Keep your Dream Journal by your bed, together with a pen or pencil. There is more on how to use your Dream Journal as you become more experienced in dreamwork in Chapter Four OTHER DREAMWORK METHODS on page 57.Text copyright © Strephon Kaplan-Williams 1991Dream Cards concept copyright © Strephon Kaplan-Williams 1991Illustrations © Linda and Roger Garland 1991Mandala illustration copyright © Strephon Kaplan-Williams 1991This edition copyright © Eddison Sadd Editions 1991