Ondine Energy: Working with Water

Water is our last element for our healing energy series.

The power of water (and I heard the Captain Planet intro as I typed that. Sorry.) cannot be denied.  Human beings are mostly water, as is the earth, so, when it comes to sympathetic magic, like truly works with like.  I believe it is important that we view our bodies of water as living organisms, because if our waters are healthy, it will be reflected in our own bodies.  The health of the waters also directly influences the health of the soil, and vice versa.  Water, like Earth, is a feminine, nurturing element, and, when both are balanced, the two tend to support each other.  Water signs tend to get along with Earth signs.  Emotional Water likes the steady, comforting, warm presence of Earth, and Earth is soothed by the cleansing, fertile inspiration of Water. Earth cradles Water, and Water helps Earth make new life.  Don't think Air and Fire are left out. The warmth of the sun helps seeds sprout and the wind helps spread the seed to their new homes. All the elements are needed; it's simply that, just as Air and Fire feed each other (sometimes whipping each other into frenzies) Earth and Water just mesh.

Water is the energy of deep feelings.  We "well up" with emotion. The sea inside can be calm and sunny, or froth-capped in irritation or anxiety.  When out of balance, the emotions become a tsunami, threatening to wipe out all other aspects of the personality, including rationale, intellect, motivation, and esteem for self and others.

On a positive note, Water is the energy of compassion and empathy.  It is the element of shared tears, and we spend nine months curled up warm and safe in its embrace.  It is any wonder Water energy, as well as Earth energy, is the energy of mothers and children, and of nurturing?

Water energy is tremendously healing because it embraces and cleanses.  It cools a fever and warms a chill.  It not only accepts but wraps itself around anyone who chooses to step into it, without any discrimination or judgment. In this way, Water is the energy of unconditional love. It's a salve to anger, self-loathing, and anxiety.

Since Water can be hot or cold, and can exist in different material states (as a solid, liquid, or gas) it is extremely versatile and adaptable. This is where the admittedly cliche term "go with the flow" comes from.  If you tap into (see what I did there? I can't stop!) Water energy, you will find that it helps you calmly relax into your tasks and comfortably fit in to tight situations, just as water used to mop a floor effortlessly rolls into all the nooks and crannies and covers the floor like a blanket.

Water is also the element of the subconscious.  The ocean has been compared to outer space because of all the treasures and terrors it hides from us.  We have our own ocean inside of us--it is where all our dreams and memories are stored. It is where universal truth can be discovered through meditation. It is, according to Jung, where our primordial knowledge lies, and where the archetypes dwell.  As such, this energy is transcendent.  It propels us into other realms. It carries us on its currents through darkness (and sometimes through the sewers). If consciousness is like a river, then its head begins at the deepest part of the subconscious.

A good way to manifest creative ideas in reality, or to alleviate artist's block, is to free write or doodle--move your pen and write without any censoring or knowing where the train of thought is going. This is a good way to access that river of the subconscious, which is always brimming with ideas. When your words and shapes flow like a river, it bursts through any blockages and allows the ideas to come.  This is a good use for Water energy.  It is extremely helpful for when your imagination feels all parched and chapped.

Water is the energy of dreams and secrets.  When you pay attention to your dreams, you are tapping into Water energy, the energy of the subconscious.  These are watery visions, not always clear, like images viewed through water.  Just because you cannot see to the bottom of the pond does not mean there is nothing there, however. Looking through water helps you learn how to tell truth from illusion. It also makes you brave.  Are you willing to dive deeper into yourself?

The elemental spirits of Water are Undines. There are variations of the Undine--sometimes they are depicted as tiny water sprites, and sometimes as being identical to mermaids.   A similar creature that I think of as a Water elemental is the Selkie, or Seal-Woman of Celtic folklore.   A Selkie could remove her seal skin and become a woman, and, if a man found her seal-skin and hid it, she couldn't go back to the water, and had to marry him.  However, even if she fell in love with her husband, and had children with him, she would still go back to the sea if she ever found her seal-skin. This, to me, is an apt metaphor for Water energy people--they always are yearning for love, and their true homes.  Water is associated with parental/child love, and the bonds Water energy people can forge are unbreakable.

If You're Drowning

The best counters for Water are, naturally, Fire and Air. So if you find yourself feeling weepy, or sorrowful, or unable to stop giving, or having mood swings, try these:

1) Work out. I'm not going to go into the scientific proof that exercise is good for your mental state, because it is--it releases endorphins and other chemicals in the brain that relieve stress in depression. It also increases Fire and Air energy.

2) Get out in fresh air. If you aren't afraid of heights, go someplace high up, like a balcony, a roof, or a tree.  Take a panoramic view.

3) See my entries on Fire and Air and perform the visualizations.
Here's Fire
and here's Air

Visualization for Forgiveness of the Self and Others

If you are feeling lonely, unloved, or hateful, or are having trouble forgiving someone (or yourself), imagine stepping into a pool of water.  If you can step into a pool or a bathtub in real life, so much the better.  A visualization will work just as well on dry land, though, provided you let yourself really get into it.

As with all the visualizations, make sure you get yourself into a place where you can be relaxed and undisturbed for at least 20 minutes.  Begin by sitting or lying down in a comfortable position.  Breathe naturally for a few moments. As you pay attention to your breath, you will find it slows and deepens.

Imagine that you are approaching a pool. The pool is deep blue and turquoise. The sand around it is soft and warm. If you find the night more calming, imagine the water reflects the clear sky, and all the stars in it.

Step into the pool. The water is silky, and smells like jasmine.  You splash your face with some of it.  As it touches your face, you feel a loosening. This loosening comes from a cleansing of any guilt or shame you may be feeling.  It floats away like grime, carried by the gentle lapping of the water.   You may decide to pour some of the water over yourself, washing everything away.  Or, you may dunk yourself, like a baptism, and have a little rebirth--the symbolic intention of baptism.

Imagine someone you are angry with, or afraid of, standing at the edge of the pool. This person is unable to harm you in any way.  He dangles his toes over the edge of the water. You make eye contact with him.  He asks you, either verbally or wordlessly, if he can step in.

If the thought upsets you, don't force yourself to welcome this person into your healing pool. Perhaps, in time, with repeated practice of the visualization, you will be able to give your assent, and the person may enter the pool.

You may already feel welcoming to this person. If so, he may simply join you.  If you'd like, you can also gently splash him with the water, as well, or carefully anoint them with the water.  Don't dunk them, as you might get a little carried away (just kidding). This person leaves whenever you want him to.

When you feel you are ready, gently rise from the pool.  The sun shines gently, or the stars sparkle brightly. The path welcomes you back home. If you are doing this in the bathtub, you can visualize your feelings of guilt, shame, and/or anger being sucked down the drain when you release the stopper.

Visualization for Greater Self-Awareness

Find your place where you will be uninterrupted, a place where you will feel safe and cozy.  Focus on your breathing, and relax. In this visualization, you are diving into your own subconscious, so, wherever a question is asked, don't think to hard about the answer.  Let the images and words pop up to the top, like ducks bobbing on a lake. Just let it flow.

Visualize yourself walking on a beach.  The sand is soft and fine under your feet.  The waves are the breath of the world as they move in and out with the tide.  The water is cool and pleasant, and a shade of deep blue.  Around you are bountiful seashells of pearl and peach and blush.  Among them are chips of onyx glittering smooth.  As you walk along, picking them up, you notice they lead you right up to the rocky part of the beach.   The land slopes upward from the rocks here, and inside the slope, you see a cave mouth.

The floor of the cave mouth is damp and smooth.  Through the middle of it runs a little stream that begins deep within the cave.  The little stream is lined with rocks that make perfect stepping stones. You step from rock to rock, following the stream.

As you go deeper into the cave, it becomes lit from within with phosphorescent colors.  Pay attention to the colors your subconscious picks for this exercise. Pink is innocent and happy. Yellow is sunny, but can also be sickly to indicate fear.  Green may be dark and cool, encouraging calmness and objectivity.  It may also be oozy and gangrenous.

No matter what the color, you are not afraid. You feel a sense of well-being, and excitement about what you will discover.

You reach the end of the path, to the mouth of the stream, and find yourself in a magnificent grotto, lined with precious gems and stones, stalagmites and stalactites, and looking at them is like finding shapes in the clouds--quick! what form do your stones shape? Are they castles? Dragons? Reclining mermaids? Monsters with wide jaws, or wolves with wise eyes of amber?  What do these shapes tell you? Do you see a humongous cluster of rubies in their pure state, forming what you swear looks like a Ferrari?

Do the stones sparkle, or are they dim?

Waterfalls flow down the walls and into the pool.  Droplets spray up and land softly on your lips and cheeks. It tastes like ice wine--sweet and cool.  Looking at the surface of the pool, you see the colors that swirl around the edge.  Are these colors greens, yellows, and blues?   Or are they the colors of the sunset? Maybe the water is murky, and yet, no matter how murky the water is, you still are not afraid.

You step into the pool and swim until your feet can't touch the ground. And then you dive.

You swim deeper and deeper, and as you go you realize you can breathe.  This is a relief, and it gives you confidence. If you feel a little nervous, that's okay. Just keep breathing deeply. The deeper you go, the more you feel yourself relaxing into sinking deeper, and deeper.

Deeper......

Deeper.....

Then, you're at the bottom.

Now, what do you see?

What does it look like?

What is waiting for you, or who?

What do they have to say?

Is there an object? Can you take it back with you?

Spend as much time here as you need.  Then, gently breathe yourself back up. Imagine that each breath brings you closer, and higher, and closer to the surface.  You see the lights of the grotto getting brighter, and brighter.

When you break the surface and swim to the rocks, take a moment to enjoy the feel of the water. This is your subconscious. It is a safe, nurturing place, even when it seems scary.  It can be tough, but once you explore it, and trust it, it will be your wise coach, your friend, even your savior.

Once you are out of the cavern, stay as long as you'd like in a relaxed, meditative state.

The Queen of the Subconscious: Love, Beauty, Purity and the Queen of Cups

Cups are the suit of the feminine element of water, and the keywords are love, romance, dreams, the subconscious, empathy, artistic pursuits, and feelings.

The Queen of Cups is a person of beauty, kindness, and sensitivity.  Like all the Queens in the tarot suits, she is symbolic of the Mother archetype, with a watery disposition.  The reader's intuition, the other cards in the spread, as well as the question at hand itself, will give more insight into the role of the Queen in the questioner's life, whether or not the Queen is a person in the questioner's life or an aspect of the questioner's own Self, and whether the influence is positive or negative.

The energy of the Queen of Cups, when balanced, is soft and gentle, yet powerful. This power is one of the Water Mother--all loving and all caring.  This softness is seen in the shades of purple, yellow, and green Mary Guinan chose to illustrate the Queen of Cups in Julian De Burgh's deck.  The Celtic Cup Queen also is blonde. Cups can be associated with blondes, so if your intuition tells you a blonde is involved, go with it!
I am particularly drawn to the Queen of Cups' eyes today. The Queen of Cups' gaze on the Celtic Deck is loving, but direct. She will brook no bullshit. The Queen of Cups, although watery, is not weak. The energy of water, when balanced, is very powerful, very clear, just like the Queen's eyes.  But belying the directness is mystery. Even a clear lake has mystery--the reflections it gives may give a different impression than what is real, or it may help the viewer see something they have missed.  How appropriate that Water is the element of the subconscious, the mysterious realm inside all of us where answers can be found but are often given as riddles. What is making the Queen of Cups smile this Mona Lisa smile? Is she completely relaxed, or alert? This can be a litmus of the questioner's emotions--if you see something in a face or a gaze, go with it.

Like the Celtic Deck, Kris Waldherr's goddess (Venus, in this case) is blonde, and dressed in soft cool colors.  Her hair and veil flow like water. Her smile is serene.  The water behind her is placid--but are those mountains or storm clouds in the background? Is there anything churning under the facade of peace?  There may not be.
Venus is fitting for the goddess of the Cups suit because she is the goddess of love and beauty. Cups are concerned with love--romantic love, parent-child love, friend love, sensual love, infatuation, even the love for an art form. Emotional connection is key for the Cups.  Beauty is also important, for Cups also indicate creativity and inspiration, as well as dreaminess.  This isn't being spacey; it's tapping into a deep well of ideas and passions. It is connection to a purer part of the self and a higher intuition.  This is the archetypal energy of the Water signs--Luna, Scorpio, and Pisces.

Robin Wood's Queen of Cups is breathtakingly lovely, the picture of romance.  Like the Celtic Queen of Cups, there is a mystery about her--what is in her cup, all covered in a cloth? Whatever it is, the cloth cannot hide the light emanating from it.  That is the Queen of Cups in balance--a light shines out of those with her energy, like the sun or moon shining on the water.  They have an open, generous spirit, and a tranquil wisdom. The deep greens and purples of the Queen's cloak indicate the depth of the Soul.
The bottom hem of the Queen's dress is decorated with a scene of children and fish happily cavorting in the waves. Cups can be the suit of childlike joy, as well. Check out the seals in the background. They may look a little like rocks.  They symbolize this joy in being alive, and in delighting in one's dreams. This is deep, abiding joy.  The seals also symbolize adaptability--they live on the rocks and beaches, but can dive down very deep, bringing up juicy fish. Metaphorically, this is the balanced Cup's ability to plumb the subconscious and their deeper emotions, and then bring back treasures to "the real world." Seeing this card in a reading may indicate the questioner has this ability, or knows (or will know) someone who does, who can help them.

Now I'm going to get all mystical, but since you're reading a blog about archetypes and tarot and astrology, you have to expect that kind of thing.  

I believe in the "still, small voice" that 1 Kings 12 speaks of.  In the Bible, that still, small voice is God. It may be. It may also be our inner voice, our pure, ageless Self.  This Self lives deep within each of us, and it is our highest, greatest, purest Self. It is serene and wise.  When I see the purity of the Virginal Queen of Cups, and the clarity of her crystal goblet, I think of this pure Self.  

Is this Queen meditating? What is she visualizing? What voices does she hear? Is she preparing herself for a sacrifice, which she will meet with dignity and selflessness? Because Water is the element of deeper emotions and love, it is often also associated with the concept of selfless sacrifice. 

The love this Queen of Cups represents is not gushy or immature (though the Cups certainly can and do represent infatuation, and there is nothing wrong with that. I myself am constantly infatuated with someone or something). It is meant to make the person it is given to become better, and more attuned to the true Self, which can sometimes hurt.  

The ice in the cavern makes me think of the rune Isa, which is a vertical line that looks like an I, the letter it stood for in the ancient Germanic alphabet. This rune meant "ice," and, while we think of ice as being cold and barren, I feel that ice is also about introspection and rest. Many things happen under the ice, and as it melts it cleanses. So, I don't think of the ice in this picture as a bad thing.  I look at it as meditative.  

Because Cups are a feminine suit, the characteristics are really "exalted" in queenly form.

When a Queen of Cups card is reversed, it can indicate emotional instability, obsession, heartache, and narcissism--the Shadow side of the water element.  It can also warn of cruelty, and selfishness, especially on the part of a woman.  Depending on the question, it can also tell of blocked creativity or lack of communication with the Self.

The type of people associated with the Queen of Cups are women who are very kind, caring, sensitive, empathetic, and intuitive. It can also stand for a very creative woman, or a woman who is dreamy. These women can be older, or very mature, or a young woman with an "old soul". They may seem mysterious and/or vulnerable. It can also represent men who are very nurturing and/or intuitive.

Pee, Fawns, Genital Piercings, and the Color Pink: Not What You Think

This is a demonstration of a dream interpretation.  If anyone would like me to interpret a dream--with or without posting it anonymously online--please let me know.

A note on anonymity: all dreams are used with permission. No defining characteristics will be shared that may lead to a discovery of the "donor's" identity.  The gender of the dreamer is kept intact, unless requested.

Here are the dreams:

The dreamer is lying on a couch in pajamas. Her brother is lying on the couch across from her. They are both very lethargic, even though it is late in the day. The dreamer pees all over the couch. She panics. She runs to get paper towels and a spray bottle. Her mother cannot know about this, and she tells herself that she will just blame it on the dog.


Interpretation: The dominant feeling in this dream was that the mother might find out about the accident on the couch.  Is the dreamer hiding anything in real life? Is there anything she is frightened about her mother finding out?

Urine most obviously symbolizes shame/embarrassment, or a feeling of a loss of control over oneself. Urine, being water, can also symbolize emotions.  Upon further investigation of the dream, the dreamer recalled not feeling any particular urgency to get off the couch. Along with the fear of discovery, there was a sense of relief.  Urinating symbolized releasing emotions, and releasing these emotions brought about relief.

After this realization, things fell into place. Couches are associated with therapy.  The dreamer had recently begun seeing a therapist, something she felt she needed to do, but she didn't want her mother to know about it. So, although she was relieved to be seeing one and expressing upsetting feelings, she was also very nervous about her mother finding out.

The next dreamer had a dream with what she felt was rather disturbing imagery.  In this dream, she had a genital piercing, specifically, two safety pins that pinned her labia shut. She was desperate to remove the safety pins, but she was in a very busy bookstore.  She went into the bathroom, which was hot pink, and went into the first stall, but the toilet wasn't flushed. She found a clean stall, and tried to remove the piercings while a friend (nobody from real life, just a dream friend) called out to her outside the stall.  She managed to remove one of the piercings, with great fear of "tearing herself up."

Interpretation: This dream caused some anxiety to interpret, as the dreamer was embarrassed.  It was concluded that perhaps the piercing of the labia shut was an expression of shame about sexuality. However, the fact that she wanted the piercing removed was a sign of healing, and reclaiming of this sexuality.

It must also be noted that labia is another word for lips, that is, the lips of the mouth. The dreamer had been feeling stifled in waking life, but was getting better at communication. Again, the removal of one piercing was a good sign--she felt stronger about speaking her truth. However, the fact that one piercing still remained indicated that there was still work to be done. Perhaps her subconscious was telling her that she needed to communicate better with herself.  The dreamer felt that there were messages coming from a very primal part of her, but she felt like she was "blocked" from this information.

The appearance of the friend outside the stall indicated a need for boundaries and periods of solitude, balanced with friends who cared.  The dreamer was touched that the dream friend was concerned about her, and didn't want her to go away--just give her five minutes alone.

Pink, since it comes in many shades, comes with different interpretations.  The hot pink of the bathroom  was described by the dreamer as warm, flirty, fun, and glamorous--all can be adjectives used to describe a healthy female sexuality.

Public bathrooms are places associated with embarrassment, shame, and filth, and also symbolize boundaries and privacy.  Going to one stall, deciding she wasn't going to use it, and moving on to another, cleaner one shows autonomy and some power to make decisions. She is also getting better at placing boundaries, because there are stalls in the bathroom.  A stall-free bathroom indicates a lack of privacy and frustration about this lack.

The unflushed toilet shows a need to resolve emotions, to "flush" them away.  When questioned about this, the dreamer said she had been feeling frustrated, and was working out some unpleasant memories.

The third dream involved the dreamer being in a friend's bedroom. The bedroom was very large, dimly lit, and in soft, soothing rose colors. Along the walls were little rooms with glass windows. One was an aquarium, full of small, phosphorescent fish and a very tiny glow- in -the- dark turtle. In another "room" were some wolf cubs. One of the wolf cubs was in the room above, cuddling with a new fawn.

Deer, particularly fawns, are symbolic of gentleness, grace, and innocence.  This fawn was cuddling with a wolf cub, a symbol of the balance between loyalty and individuality.  Both of these symbols can also be considered "feminine" (the deer because of its delicacy, and the wolf for its association with the Moon). Turtles are symbolic of a talent for negotiating Earth and Water.  Both are feminine elements, the Earth the element of practicality, the physical, fertility, and abundance, and Water the element of the emotions, the unconscious, and the imagination.  Both are elements of creation, making the Turtle a creative, sustaining creature in mythology.  The phosphorescence of the turtle and the fish meant that they were equipped to go diving deep to find treasures, something the dreamer hoped she would do, metaphorically, with her friend. Further, fish are symbolic of the Water attributes, as well as the long life (they looked to be like tiny, glow-in-the-dark koi) she hoped for the friendship.

The dreamer had this dream after arranging to talk to her friend after a period of very limited contact. She was excited to speak to this friend, and saw her as having all the qualities embodied in the animals. However, she wasn't exactly sure what to expect after so long, and it was concluded that the dream was her subconscious reassuring her that the conversation would be quite comfortable (as seen in the lighting of the room and the bed). There was also a hint of sadness to the dream, as the animals were behind glass and she couldn't touch them or interact with them.  She decided that she would love to see her friend in person.

Going deeper, it was suggested that, since all elements of a dream are aspects of the dreamer, that these animals were reminding the dreamer that she, too, must strive to be gentle, loyal, and willing to dive deep and create.

So, those were the interpretations! What did you all think? Please leave any additional insights in the comments. If you would like a dream interpreted, either privately or to be posted here (with 100% anonymity) please e-mail me at turtlephoenix@gmail.com

The World

The World is the 21st and last card of the Major Arcana.  It is a card of accomplishment, completion, success, and joy.  

Barbara G. Walker 

Most cards for the World traditionally show a woman in the center of a wreath.  The woman is Gaia, the archetypal Earth Mother. She is usually nude or draped in a robe to show a return to the natural state, the purity of the womb (which is associated with the Earth; think of Mother Earth and the Shamanic ritual of burial that ends with  symbolic rebirth).  The wands she holds indicate mastery, strength, and energy--she is a balance of male and female.  The position of her legs form a backward four, a symbol of magical power.  

Flanking her are a lion, a bull, an eagle, and a pixie-like creature. Traditionally, these stood for the four Gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and also to the beasts referred to in Revelation. The pixie was a man.  Now, they can still stand for those things, indicating community with God and a higher purpose.  However, they can also stand for the four elements.  The lion, the symbol for Leo, is fire; the bull is Taurus, earth; the man is Aquarius, air--which makes the pixie a sylph; and the Eagle is Scorpio, water.  This again illustrates the balance the questioner has achieved; they are at home in all four elements and the qualities associated with each.  Thus, the World card is a card of wisdom, mastery, and balance.  

Robin Wood's World. 

Robin Wood's tarot deck shows the woman draped in a white sheet. It is white for purity, and she is draped in it to show she has achieved great honor.  Her wreath is made of fresh flowers and fruit, for she is fruitful and accomplished and surrounded by beauty.  Ribbons form the infinity symbol at the top and bottom.  The four elements are represented in the four corners, again indicating balance and mastery of the qualities of those energies, and she's holding two wands in a blessing. Stars sparkle behind her in a blue sky--her thoughts are clear, she has foresight and knowledge, and she is a "star."  

Kris Waldherr's Gaia

Kris Waldherr's goddess for the World is, of course, Gaia, the ancient Greek personification of the Earth. The sun and the moon are in position above the Earth, showing, again, a balance of masculine and feminine energy.  At the top of the card is a winter scene, and at the bottom a spring scene.  This shows a knowledge of and respect for the Earth's cycles, which is apropos to The World being an end of the cycle of the Major Arcana, a cycle began by The Fool.  

The two women supporting the Earth are symbolic, I believe, of both Western and Eastern philosophies, and the harmonious marriage of these ideas.  

Julian De Burgh and Mary Guinan's Celtic deck is reminiscent of the stunning Book of Kells. It, like the others, shows the mastery of the four elements and their qualities. The Cup is Water, the Pentacle is Earth,  the Sword is Air, and the Wand is Fire.  The two figures in the center, if you look closely, are a man and a woman bound together in an intricate knot. Their legs are crossed, and the bottoms of their feet are touching, forming the shape of a heart.  They are whole and fulfilled. 

If The World shows up in a reading, it is very auspicious and joyous. It may indicate that the questioner's entire life is going well, or that at least one aspect of the person's life is booming--pay attention to the question and any other cards.  Reversed, The World may portend postponement of this fulfillment, mastery, and joy.  There may be more steps needed in the cycle before it reaches the completion of The World. 

How Stagnant Water Saved My Sanity: Dream Interpretation

For this entry, I would like to chat about how to interpret dreams.  First, I would like to give you an example from my own dreams, because seeing the process makes it easier to do.

A while back, I was having recurring dreams about water. The water was always deep, stagnant, and oily. In one dream, I was on a yacht made out of paper trash.  When the yacht started to sink slightly, water lapped against my foot, and I panicked.  Using willpower, I forced the yacht to become more buoyant, raising it out of the water.

In my other dream about water, I was inside a boat garage, which is basically what you'd think: a garage on stilts, with a door the owner could open to drive the boat in. The garage was out in the middle of a large body of water. Any light that came in came in through cracks in the moldy, gray walls. The water was dead still and tarry. As I lay on the dock inside the garage, some of my hair trailed in the water, and I flinched away from it.  Paper floated on top of the water. There was a tiny raft outside the garage.  I remember not knowing what to do--I didn't know how to open the garage door, and I wasn't sure whether to wait for another big boat to come, or just take the raft.  I didn't know if there was any land nearby.

In my waking life, the image of that dark, stagnant, oily water disturbed me. It was undoubtedly menacing, but I wanted to know why.  Why was my subconscious showing me the same image? There was nothing obviously frightening about the water, at least not in the sense of a great white shark's dorsal fin slicing its way through the waves. There were no basketball sized giant squid eyes peering up and taking me by surprise.  The water wasn't even rough.  It was eerily calm.


I decided to do a little subconscious spelunkin' and figure out what the heck was going on.  The exercise that would help me with this was first told to me by a wonderful man named Ray Myers.  Almost ten years later, Martha Beck would also recommend this exercise, in her book Steering by Starlight.


1) First of all, write down your dream. It's best to do this first thing. I can't tell you how many times I told myself I would write a dream down and then forgot it. Write as many details as you can.

2) Second, pick an aspect of your dream that sticks out to you. For me, it was the water.

2) Third, imagine yourself as the aspect of your dream. What do you look like? What is your motivation? What are you feeling?  In my case, I had to pretend I was the water.  "Well, I know how you felt when you were water," you're saying. "You felt insane, because you are."

Be that as it may, read on.

This is my water monologue (or waterlogue. Get it?) from my journal.

I am the water. I am deep. I am dark.  I am oily. I'm stagnant. There are probably unwholesome things swimming down there [insert dirty joke here].  
I feel...I don't know.

After some minutes of frustration, I decided to come back later.  Finally, there was a clue.

I am the water. I am cold. I am numb. I feel nothing.  

Then I realized what the water symbolized.  It was clinical depression, something that I have been struggling with since I was about eight years old.  My subconscious was telling me that so far I had been able to keep from sinking into it again, but it may be only a matter of time.

This was a very sad and terrifying revelation for me.  I am grateful that my subconscious was able to send me warning signs so I could take action.

This is why it is a good thing to learn the language of our dreams, what Caroline Myss calls symbolic language. Symbolic language is how our minds give us knowledge about ourselves. You may wake up and think, consciously, I am depressed, but your subconscious mind may be giving you hints long before hand through your dreams, just as mine was.

Learning to understand your dreams also helps hone your intuition. One of the most arresting I've read is about a woman named Tricia Coburn, who kept having a recurring dream of people standing behind a barbed wire fence. The people looked like they were in a concentration camp. They were wasting away, and they were staring at the woman with imploring eyes. Sometimes, they would shout at her.

Something told Coburn to go to the doctor. They examined her, and found nothing wrong. The dreams continued.

Finally, she dreamed of the barbed wire fence, only there was nobody there. A voice said, "look deeper."

Coburn went to the doctor and had a colonoscopy. She had colon cancer, fast moving colon cancer. They had gotten it just in time.

 It is very enlightening, and simple, but sometimes not easy.  The meanings behind symbols sometimes leap out at you, and sometimes they play peek-a-boo until you understand, and sometimes they're very maddening sphinxes. Any way they show up, have fun, and have an open mind.

If anyone needs help translating a dream, please drop me a line at turtlephoenix@gmail.com.  I can walk you through a more in-depth dialogue, by e-mail, or, if you prefer, by Skype or phone. Also, please share some of your memorable dream stories in the comments.