Shatobrian,
It is true that there are so many factors that influence our individual lives. But the biggest is ourselves and by working on that you eliminate your greatest obstacles. It is not what other people do to us, it is what we do to cause other people to do things and putting ourselves in those positions that negatively affect us. The task, and it is a tough and long road to follow, is to take control of every aspect of your life as possible. And in particular the emotional life. When you leave objective thinking and live on pure emotions, as mots people do, you no longer control events around you. It is in the laws of karma that we achieve control. It is natural law that prevails over all else. that and the discipline that is needed to live by these laws. Experience teaches you this and experience is wisdom.

I don't believe in luck, nor do I believe fate has a lot to do with things. There are energies within nature that conform with actions and our individual actions must conform with the natural laws {karma}. When this is done then fate shows itself at the appropriate times. It is not luck, it is putting ourselves in a position of being in accord with the natural laws. Carl Jung wrote, "When an inner situation is not made conscious, it appears outside as fate." This means it is the unresolved emotions that influence what happens around us because those energies project themselves to those around us {projection}. Once we resolve the emotional conflicts we no longer project them outward, thus what would be considered bad luck does not occur. There is no luck at all because nothing happens. That is the best position to be in, where nothing bad happens. Actually nothing is happening other than just being in the spot where we sit at this very moment. The laws of cause and effect have no energies other than the breath we take and the space we inhabit. Of course we can't live life in one spot but we can live life in accord to the natural laws, putting ourselves in a position of accord.

Achievements are a measure of our outer selves. And we can not live without progressing. But the problem becomes what achievements are the true measure of happiness. We are script by society to think achievement is measure by material worth. After time, and this starts to take hold at mid-life {mid-life crazies/crisis} we begin to realize something isn't right, all the material worth we have accumulated doesn't satisfy. We either continue to live 'inauthentic lives' or we seek something else. That something else is the only alternative there is and it is to look inward. What we find there is our passions, those things that give 'meaning to life'. It is what Joseph Campbell called 'following your bliss'.

Campbell put it this way.
Following one's bliss, it isn't merely a matter of doing whatever you like, and certainly not doing simply as you are told. It is a matter of identifying that pursuit which you are truly passionate about and attempting to give yourself absolutely to it. In so doing, you will find your fullest potential and serve your community to the greatest possible extent.

Campbell: "If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Wherever you are -- if you are following your bliss, you are enjoying that refreshment, that life within you, all the time."

This is the inward turn and if it is not realized and followed early in life {see Lindsey's dream post reoccurring place? but not dream? then it will revisit you at mid-life. Personally I have always had a n interest in psychology but due to life's circumstances I didn't realize my passion of working with dreams and web design until I was 42. i have been with it ever since and what we are doing now, this conversation, is a product of my bliss, and your interest.

"If I do it for too long or too much (without switching to something else) I always come to the point when I get fed up with it and bored and if I then persist on doing it further."

You have to discover what it is you really love most. That is a part of the
journey. The biggest obstacle is one's own emotional self. that is what we are dealing with by analyzing your dreams. the second biggest is social duty, doing what society and other people want {family, following friends, giving into the material world}. Our vision is so narrow due to the limitations we have placed on ourselves due to social obligations. That path is strictly 'outward' and leaves little room for self introspection. But at mid-life the introspection occurs naturally and we are given a second chance. At your age you can either wait another 15-20 years or you can cast off the ties that bind you to a limited view and find your bliss. That requires discipline and when you get bored and seek something other than what is waiting for you 'within', you merely replace your boredom with something else that will become boring.

The creative self is a natural order of giving from the soul. You can have a job that gives to people all the time but if it is not your bliss you are not on your true path. The artist paints from the soul and when someone looks at a piece of art and 'sees' it is a sharing on emotions. Those are healing emotions from one soul to another. I provide interpretations to other people's dream because it is my passion and by doing this I serve others. It is the natural intent that comes with the passion that is meaningful for you and those you serve by giving from the soul. If you do it because it is merely your job you will get 'bored' and either leave the job or not do it very well. You end up nether serving yourself or others.

The skepticism you have toward others is an emotional issue, one that your dreams are trying to help you resolve. If you want to understand why you have this skepticism and it is vital that you do, then you either get a psychologist to help you or you do it yourself {that is what Iv'e done through Jung's Individuation Process. Either way the foundations for how you feel are from early life experiences and influences. Like everything else there is a reason for your emotions and by working with dreams you are delving into the unconscious where all that you 'really' are resides. The skepticism you have toward other people is mots likely due to skepticism you have about yourself. Discover what those are and you will remove much of how you feel about other people {even though much of the skepticism you feel is probably well founded you still need to learn what you are all about}.

Meditation comes in different forms. I actually meditate when I do my physical fitness routine. I'm meditating when I am working with dreams and/or designing a webpage. The meditation you are thinking of is learning 'not to think' and unless you have learned to remove all the stimulus from the outside you will never be able to be in this 'inside' world of yoga meditation. Your problem is a 'thinking' problem {as it is with most people}. That is why it is important to find your bliss so you can meditate on that. Once you discover your bliss and start a regimentation of following that path you will find it a lot easier to do yoga meditation. You have to condition yourself to look inward.

"So for me, I guess, the only real happiness so far remains the achievement-/success-related."
If you continue down that path you will always live a boring life. On the other hand if you find your bliss, well we talked about that. How do you find your bliss? What is it that you love doing most, that thing that stirs passion within you? Discover that and work toward that end and you will find meaning in life and the boredom will forever disappear. But you will have to 'slay a lot of social dragons' and with your mind set that will be a challenge. But I was in that position the first 42 years of my life before I happened upon Joseph Campbell {fate of the Synchronicity}. You have a 15 year head start to discover your passion. If my words help you toward that then I have accomplished my goal to help others. This is how it works. Once you discover your bliss you are to share those 'secrets' with others so they to can find wholeness. It is all a part of the hero journey {Campbell's Monomyth}. Everyone can qualify but only a few succeed.

Jerry

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Shatobrian,
I do appreciate your detailed response. As I stated in most dreams it is hard to determine what exactly the dream is trying to focus. All symbols can have more than one meaning and/or application. Often I see one thing within a dream and go with that meaning {see the posted dream Dream about me being kidnapped}. Your dream was not so clear and that is why I offered up more than one possibility. I saw remnants of what was there but nothing clear where I could say yea or nay to any one thing. But in the end if I can get the dreamer to look at their life and recognize something from what I provide that fits, I feel I've done my job. I believe you have supplied what was unclear in your dream.

An important factor in dream interpretation is the age of the dreamer. At the age of 27 you are still developing ideas, opinions and principles in life {an older person has already experienced this stage of life thus their dreams are often different in interpretation}. The current environment around you will be a great influence on your dreams, the therapeutic aspect of dreams attempting to help you sort through what you take in experiences you encounter. Because you are a traveler you have a better perspective than most people and that can provide a deeper sense of being. Mentally you are processing things differently than a person who has limited experiences. This is evident {for me} in your response, the fact you come across a s someone who is very aware of yourself and objective in your reasoning. that will serve you well throughout life, an objective approach as opposed to an emotional one.

I like the possibility you offered in your response about what country you wish to live and the environment you would like to be in. This reflects your 'progressive' approach {walking to get ahead}, and probably a personality trait {dreams often reveal such traits}. My sense of the dream is there was an element of oppressive mentality {neo-Nazis} that presented a conflict {dreams are about our emotional conflicts and their purpose is to help resolve them}. But the oppression may be as much about opportunities than mentalities {opportunities that let you progress in your life}. There are probably multiply reasons you are looking at in choosing a place to live. Mentalities and opportunities.

Beaches are usually symbolic of two aspects coming together {ocean and land, conscious and unconscious}. If the beach is dirty it probably indicates indicate something negative in involved. That could be a realization that you have yet to find that place you are looking for. Or as you said, "get better used to (or better adapted) to my current way of life". I think the negative in that possibility is it is not what you really want. Dreams offer insights to how you really feel and until you are able satisfy your true self there will always be a conflict. You can adapt but it is not what you really want to do. Unconsciously if not consciously you believe a better place exists.

I do want to emphasize one thing about these possibilities that needs to be considered. One mistake in life that happens all too often is we tend to look for things outside ourselves and neglect those inner things that are even more important. Although I can see where the dream is addressing the concerns about where you wish to be {it fits with where you are in life}, it would be important to look at what the 'inside' wants also. That involves the opposites of social duty vs the creative being. If you put all your emphasis on making money and neglect that thing in life you really want to do {usually to do with creativity, the muse}, you will never be completely satisfied. The spiritual aspect {beyond religious dogma} is also important {see my page Jung and Spirituality} is important to a balanced psyche. Creativity is a spiritual endeavor since we are sharing our inner most soul when we are creative. When assessing these things be aware of the inner journey. Progressing+ in that aspect is as important if not more so than the material world. Especially in later life.

I will end this post and address your other dream in another. I have already written a book and it may be easier to understand all that is being said if I make separate post on your second dream.

One last thought before I close. My working with dreams, interpreting them is the thing in life I love doing most. That and designing my websites. dream interpretation allows me to help others with emotional conflicts. My websites do that also but they are an expression of my true self. I retired last year and now instead of being indebted to social issues and responsibilities I am able to fulfill that inner world. It all has to do with meaning in life. As Joseph Campbell stated, "People say that what we're all seeking is a meaning for life. I think that what we're seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonances within our own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive." He goes on to say, "The mind has to do with meaning. What's the meaning of a flower. There's the Zen story about a sermon of the Buddha in which he simply lifeted a flower. There was only one man who gave him a sign with his eyes that he understood what was said. Now, the Buddha himself is called "the one thus come". There's no meaning. What's the meaning of the universe? What's the meaning of a flea? It's just there. We're so engaged in doing things to achieve purposes of outer value that we forget the inner value, the rapture that is associated with being alive, is what it's all about.".
This is what I am speaking to when I speak of the inner journey. A whole new world, right where you sit, without having to travel anywhere.

Jerry

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Hello Jerry,
thank you for your detailed answer. Though I don't completely agree with all your points, you have certainly provided something important for me to think on. I don't want to rush my thoughts now; I guess it would be better to analyze all this in the following days, so that I have a clearer picture of my personal situation now. You will hear from me again soon. Thanks again that you really take the time to answer me in such detail, I definitely appreciate it.

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Shatobrian,
Take your time and read the links I provided. Although we all have to make 'wise' choices in life the one thing that provides the most wisdom is experience. The links I provided are from 'sages' who have experienced the realities of life. Much of what they talk about is not known by most because it involves thinking outside the accepted 'box' and within the inner box {a box in Jungian psyche is symbolic of wholeness}. When you begin to understand what they are saying you realize their ideas are what the box is made of and not what the ego perceives {with the ego bias}. Most of it is common sense and is a part of natural law. Science is their ultimate confirmation. You get beyond concepts when you can verify. And when science is verified from experience there is little left that needs to be known.

Jerry

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