.
November 27th, 2021
Thus, we speak on the one hand of a personal and on the other of a collective unconscious, which lies at a deeper level and is further removed from consciousness that the personal unconscious. The “big” or “meaningful” dreams come from this deeper level. They reveal their significance—quite apart from the subjective impression they make—by their plastic form, which often has a poetic force and beauty. (Jung, 1969, p. 291 para 555)
The image has more elements when I pay attention to details. At first, it is a bunch of grapes. They remind me of a time in my life when I had a huge arbor of Concord grapes. In the late summer and early fall I would grab a cluster of them to enjoy their freshness. The burst of flavor awakened a delicious experience. The texture was both firm and soft as I pressed each one into the roof of my mouth. The flavor and color of the juice stayed on my tongue after swallowing the fruit. The memory is personal and makes my mouth water as I remember it.
The grapes show a variety of ripeness from plump to beginning to dry. They are attached to the vine which has nourished their entire life. Some of the leaves have begun to dry too. The fence posts have held them since they first began to vine.
If this image presented itself in a dream, it could be amplified in so many ways, including its upcoming transformation into its next life of wine or jam. How would you interact with the image if it occurred in your dream life?
While as a dream, it would invoke the nostalgic memories of past summers, at a teleologic context, the dream is instructing the dreamer on several apperceptive constructions. Let us explore the possibilities.
What is this dream image of ripe, inviting grapes compensating for? Where is there a dry, desiccated feeling space in your life, that could do with some grape’s energy? Where is the delicious, fresh grapes energy in your life? How can you engage this energy? What changes do you need to make in your present life to make room for the delicious, fresh grapes?
If you already have such an energy activity in your life, the dream image indicates that it is a low hanging fruit that you would be foolish to ignore! You must seize the moment and the opportunity.
Moving forward with the dream image, would you save some grapes to make wine or jam? Would you consider delaying instant gratification and make wine for a festive day and jam for a routine day? Do you have the skills and the persistence for such an alchemic process of transformation? What process would you use? Who will help you?
Still further, would you enjoy the grapes yourself or share them with a friend or someone who may appreciate these? What about your neighbor who is bedridden and may appreciate your dropping in bearing gift of fresh grapes and friendship?
The central issue is a sense of gratitude. Do you have a sense of gratitude for the gifts that the universe bestows upon you? Do you honor these gifts with a symbolic attitude and inner work necessary to harvest the full potential of these gifts? (Jung, 1976)
Points to Ponder:
- What is your first impression of the image?
- What do you identify with and what are you distanced from?
- How does a cluster of grapes impact you?
- What part of the collective does the image stimulate?
- What is the opposite of this image in your life that the image is compensating for?
- What aspects of your life offers this image and its possibilities?
- What is your life space that calls for transformation into something higher and more profound beyond instant gratification?
- How can you share your gifts with others?
- Do you have a sense of gratitude for the gifts that the universe has bestowed upon you?
.
Jung, C. G. (1969). The structure and dynamics of the psyche (2d ed., Vol. 8). Princeton University Press.
Jung, C. G. (1976). The symbolic life: miscellaneous writings, Volume 18 (Vol. 18). Princeton University Press.
Ashok Bedi, M.D., Jungian Psychoanalyst,
www.pathtothesoul.com , www.tulawellnessllc.com
Robert BJ Jakala PH.D., Jungian Psychotherapist
In a storm, the safest place is in the eye of the storm. My colleague BJ and I will share our daily reflections on this centering process from an Analytical perspective, sharing from the repertoire of our personal and professional experience. BJ is a psychologist and a photographer and will pick an image of the day that catches him in this collective crisis. I will amplify it from a Jungian Analytical perspective. We hope that this may offer you a baby step on the path to your own unique response to this chaos.
© Ashok Bedi, M.D. and Robert BJ Jakala, PH. D
Recent Comments