Approximate reading time: 91 minutes

Understanding Dreams: Culture, Religion, and Psychology

Dreams have long been a subject of fascination and intrigue across various cultures and religions around the world. They have been perceived as mystical messages, omens, or even portals to other realms. In many world religions and cultures, dreams hold significant spiritual and psychological importance, often seen as a means of divine communication or a reflection of the inner self.

In the realm of psychology, dreams are viewed through various lens. Modern psychology examines dreams to understand the workings of the subconscious mind, emotional states, and even as potential indicators of psychological disorders. This intersection of cultural, religious, and psychological perspectives on dreams offers a rich field of study, blending ancient wisdom with contemporary scientific inquiry.

From a religious standpoint, dreams have been integral to the narratives of many faiths. In Islam, dreams are considered a form of spiritual insight, with some being seen as messages from God (Rahman & Rashid, 2019). Similarly, in Christianity, dreams have often been interpreted as divine messages, as seen in the biblical stories of Joseph and Daniel (Green, 2017). Hinduism also places significant emphasis on dreams, viewing them as symbolic and sometimes prophetic, reflecting one’s karma and life path (Patel, 2018).

Culturally, the interpretation and significance of dreams vary widely. Indigenous cultures, such as the Native Americans, have traditionally viewed dreams as a connection to the spiritual world and a source of guidance and wisdom (Wilson & Yellow Bird, 2017). In African cultures, dreams are often seen as a means of communication with ancestors and the spiritual realm (Adams & Kambon, 2019).

In psychology, the study of dreams has evolved significantly since the days of Freud and Jung. Contemporary research often focuses on the neurological aspects of dreaming, exploring how dreams are formed in the brain and their potential functions in processing emotions and memories (Hobson & Pace-Schott, 2017).

The study of dreams, therefore, presents a unique convergence of spirituality, culture, and science. It offers a fascinating glimpse into the human psyche, reflecting both our deepest spiritual beliefs and our growing understanding of the human brain and its functions. Let’s take a look at several dream theories by Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, Rosalind Cartwright, Alan Hobson as well as some empirical research by neuroscientists.

When Can Dreaming Occur?

• REM Sleep: Most dreaming occurs during REM sleep, characterized by rapid eye movements and brain wave patterns similar to wakefulness. This stage is known for vivid dreaming. (Hobson, 2001; Vogel & Traub, 1968; Pagel, 2008; Cohen, 1976; Hobson, Pace-Schott, & Stickgold, 2000)
• Non-REM Sleep (Stages 1 and 2): Dreaming can also occur during non-REM sleep, particularly in stages 1 and 2. Stage 1 is associated with theta waves and is a transitional phase between wakefulness and sleep. Stage 2 is characterized by sleep spindles and K-complexes. (Hobson, 2001; Zhang & Wamsley, 2019; Stenstrom, Fox, Solomonova, & Nielsen, 2012; Onheiber, White, DeMyer, & Ottinger, 1965; Pagel, 2014)
• Non-REM Sleep (Stage 3): Dreaming can occur during stage 3 of non-REM sleep, often referred to as deep sleep or slow-wave sleep, characterized by delta waves. (Waldbaum, 1969; Henry, 2020)

Understanding Dreams: Psychological Theories

Sigmund Freud thought people could increase self-awareness and gain valuable insight to help them deal with the problems they faced in their lives. Freud made distinctions between the manifest content and the latent content of dreams. Manifest content is the actual content, or storyline, of a dream. Latent content, on the other hand, refers to the hidden meaning of a dream. For example, imagine you have a dream where you’re flying. In the dream, you feel exhilarated and free, soaring above the landscape below without a care in the world. The manifest content of this dream is simply the act of flying. It’s what happens in the dream, the storyline you remember when you wake up.

The latent content, or the hidden meaning of this dream, might represent a desire for freedom or escape from the pressures and constraints of your daily life. The sensation of flying freely could symbolize a longing to break free from restrictions and explore new possibilities.

Carl Jung believed that dreams allowed us to tap into the collective unconscious. The collective unconscious, as described by Jung, is a theoretical repository of information he believed to be shared by everyone. According to Jung, certain symbols in dreams reflected universal archetypes with meanings that are similar for all people regardless of culture or location.

Alan Hobson, a neuroscientist, is credited for developing activation-synthesis theory of dreaming. Early versions of this theory proposed that dreams were not the meaning-filled representations of angst proposed by Freud and others, but were rather the result of our brain attempting to make sense of (“synthesize”) the neural activity (“activation”) that was happening during REM sleep. Recent adaptations (e.g., Hobson, 2002) continue to update the theory based on accumulating evidence. For example, Hobson (2009) suggests that dreaming may represent a state of protoconsciousness. In other words, dreaming involves constructing a virtual reality in our heads that we might use to help us during wakefulness. Among a variety of neurobiological evidence, John Hobson cites research on lucid dreams as an opportunity to better understand dreaming in general. Lucid dreams are dreams in which certain aspects of wakefulness are maintained during a dream state. In a lucid dream, a person becomes aware of the fact that they are dreaming, and as such, they can control the dream’s content (LaBerge, 1990).

Rosalind Cartwright believes that dreams simply reflect life events that are important to the dreamer. Unlike Freud and Jung, Cartwright’s ideas about dreaming have found empirical support. For example, she and her colleagues published a study in which women going through divorce were asked several times over a five-month period to report the degree to which their former spouses were on their minds. These same women were awakened during REM sleep to provide a detailed account of their dream content. There was a significant positive correlation between the degree to which women thought about their former spouses during waking hours and the number of times their former spouses appeared as characters in their dreams (Cartwright, Agargun, Kirkby, & Friedman, 2006).

Understanding Dreams: Neuroscience Research

Recent research has consistently shown that our daily experiences, especially those that are emotionally significant, often influence our dream content. This connection suggests that dreaming may be a process where we integrate and process memories and emotions from our waking life (Eichenlaub, Cash, & Blagrove, 2017; Schredl, 2017; Schredl & Hofmann, 2003). Moreover, the emotional content of our dreams often reflects our waking emotions (Schredl & Wittmann, 2005). Studies have found that individuals with a peaceful and content waking life tend to experience more positive dreams, while those with anxiety are more likely to have negative dreams (Sikka, Pesonen, & Revonsuo, 2018). Additionally, recent research (Horikawa, Tamaki, Miyawaki, & Kamitani, 2013) has uncovered new techniques by which researchers may effectively detect and classify the visual images that occur during dreaming by using fMRI for neural measurement of brain activity patterns, opening the way for additional research in this area. All together, these findings above collectively highlight the connection between our waking and dreaming states, suggesting that dreams are more than random images; they are a reflection and extension of our daily lives and emotional experiences.

Watch this video: The Dreaming Mind: Waking the Mysteries of Sleep (82 minutes) 

“The Dreaming Mind: Waking the Mysteries of Sleep” video by World Science Festival is licensed under the Standard YouTube licence.

Where do our dreams come from, why do we have them, and what do they mean? Can we harness them to foster creativity, solve problems, and prepare for the future? What’s happening in the brains of so-called lucid dreamers, and can new developments in this cutting-edge field of research help us unlock the mystery of consciousness itself? Researchers Deirdre Barrett, Ken Paller, and Antonio Zadra join Brian Greene for a discussion about the mystery and power of dreams and where our minds go after midnight.