Jerry,

I admire your diligence at working out in such a physical way and, seeing as you are so adept at dunking that ball, it certainly proves to have worked well for you. You have inspired me to not only continue walking on a daily basis, but also to go back to one of my favourite exercises, yoga and stretching.

I used to run and lift weights in my early thirties, but just like you, I had to stop and take up walking instead, for the same reason. The high impact of running was injuring my knees so much that I couldn’t run anymore. Though I must admit I am very glad that I did take it up when I did. It allowed me to quit smoking altogether and I haven’t smoked since.

It’s very hard to believe that you have a bad back by what I see in the video! Good on you for healing yourself and seeking natural ways to stay fit, sans medication. That is indeed admirable, as Lt. Tuvok would say.

I healed my chronic migraines, fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue with only herbs (making my own herbal remedies), writing and listening to my dreams. My dreams told me why I had those difficulties with my body and as soon as I started consciously doing something about it, all my symptoms went away. A great book on this phenomenon is Healing and Wholeness by John A. Sanford, a Jungian Analyst.

”Learn to let go and just be.” Very wise advice! Hummm, I’m an Introvert, by the way, but as you know in the later years, we all have a tendency to want to balance that, so I am embracing my inner Extravert more and more. :0)

Now for my response to your question on how I perform a ritual and a little expose, which is my blog post this week.

Sorry for it being so long.

Rituals, as they relate to dreams...

A ritual is an effective way to internalise a numinous ‘fact’ – such as a dream. Jung says our dreams are already happened. They are to be treated as facts. But we seldom do this. We see the dream as something that is happening to us, apart from us, as an external event or influence. We know at the conscious level that the dream has a relationship to us, but often it’s only in a vicarious way. It’s sufficient, we think, to record the dream or perhaps tell it to someone, then either extract our own interpretation from it, or come to this forum and have you decipher it, and that’s it, the dream is done – next!

However, if we remain outside the realm/circle of the dream, focusing our knowledge of it only on the intellectual level, as if from a distance, placing it on the shelf when we are done, then we are missing out on some very important information. There are still tendrils of understanding that remain in the dream that can only be reached through other senses, other dimensions.

Marion Woodman says that one involves the whole body in an experience, in order to feel the whole, instead of only experiencing the parts of that experience.

Without involving the feeling function in a dream, without acting on what the dream tells us, and emoting its purpose once identified, the dream cannot be said to be ‘understood.’ It’s impossible to completely understand a dream, I know that, but when the aim is to attain that level of the dream that will unlock the dream’s mystery in a deeper fashion, ritual is the perfect medium.

Acting, doing something with, the images as symbols from a specific dream speaks to the message it contains, because imagery and emotion are the dream’s language. What a ritual does is re-enact in the outer world what the dream told us in the inner world. Why this is important and effective, no one knows for certain, but rituals have been performed for centuries to honour events in people’s lives. With a dream, we are honouring its presence in our life, and we are saying that we embrace its meaning. This offers a more complete assimilation of the unconscious contents presented by the dream.

Another powerful application of doing a ritual for dreams is when you have a dream that is posing more of a challenge than usual and there are certain elements that, despite your efforts, still stay out of your sphere of comprehension. A ritual can perhaps link up meanings that you had not considered before.

General Suggestions and How I Do a Dream Ritual

Incorporating the whole body, as MW suggests, one would involve different modes of experience in a dream ritual. Going back to basics, this would involve having a sacred space and involving all the senses.

Body & The Senses:

Seeing – candles, colours, bright feathers, fresh flowers, spiralling smoke, whatever draws the eye towards it in a meaningful way.

Hearing - what is audible and pleasing to the ear, drumming, rattles, singing bowls, clicking sticks, flute, or any other musical instrument of your choosing, and of course, songs from a recording or your own voice.

Smell – the candle can be scented, the flowers, or burning incense as well.
Feeling – textures as in fabrics, wooden, metal, glass, paper objects, picked up and felt with the hands at some time during the ceremony, or writing with a pen or pencil.

Tasting – might involve taking a sip of water or wine, to mark the event.
Movement also is important. Centering one’s self, grounding, doing a stretching exercise; dancing or swaying can also be included.

~*~

Incorporating symbols, tangible (sacred) objects that represent the dream’s contents is crucial to the ritual. In doing this you are taking the dream elements from your own psyche (the unconscious) and giving them a form in the physical world, thus imprinting its importance upon your waking awareness (consciousness).

Different Actions may be incorporated to embrace the dream:
Writing, talking, singing, dancing, drawing, painting, praying, meditating, walking in a circle or a spiral, as you would a labyrinth, are all activities that involve your whole self, so that this is not just a mind trip, but a whole body experience.

Inviting the Sacred to the Ritual means that you are taking this act, and your dream, seriously and solemnly while doing something about it. You attend to it with your whole heart and conscious, mindful awareness.

~*~

The above is not written in stone. Take one or two of the suggestions to make your ritual, if you like, or use every step to perform your next dream resolution. Either way is fine and I’m sure your dream – your psyche – will send you some kind of sign, in whatever small or big way, to let you know that it was worth taking the time to perform. This is all for you, so do what suits you and you alone.

~*~

Age & Gender & Location {Required}: 60, Atlantic Canada

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