Hari Aum.
Most of us have experienced dreaming at night. The underlying reason for dreams is not well-understood in modern science. There are various theories for the existence of dreams, ranging from the brain processing information to manifestation of hidden desires. There remains uncertainty in the scientific world, however, as to the precise cause and purpose of dreams.
The yogic opinion on dreams is complex and interesting. Yogis believe there are four states of consciousness. They say that three states are experienced by everybody, namely the waking state, the dream state, and the deep sleep state. The fourth state is the state of superconscious awareness (self-realisation) that is believed to be the destiny of all beings (though in practice, only a few strive for and attain this at any point in time).
Yogis believe that there are various types of dreams. Some dreams are indeed the result of the mind processing experiences of the waking state. Other dreams are said to be the expression of impressions or 'samskaras' from previous births. Some dreams are granted as the fruits of karma- one can work out the results of past karma in dreams.
Some dreams are said to be signs or guidance to us - these are prophetic dreams, they may be signs of positive or negative experiences that we will experience in the waking state in the future.
My guru, Sivananda, has written a detailed book explaining the yogic view on dreams- see link below for this. At the end of the book, he describes a number of dream symbols and their meanings- this is quite interesting.
http://www.dlshq.org/download/dream.htm
The ultimate yogic viewpoint is that the waking state and the dream state, both of which feel very permanent when we exprience them, are both transient. Yogis regard the waking state as a prolonged 'dream' in the sense that this state, like the dream state, is ultimately a fleeting non-permanent unreal experience. The yogi engages in spiritual sadhana in order to transcend the three lower states of consciousness, and attain the highest fourth state, the superconscious self-realised state where permanent peace, wisdom and bliss are experienced.
Sivananda says, in his books on dreams, that dreaming of God is a fortunate experience which indicates future success and elevation. I have been through a very stressful time recently due to various difficulties at work and at home. Frankly I felt in need of some encouragement from God.
Two nights ago, on MahaShivaratri night (Feb 13), I had an interesting dream. I dreamt of Lord Shiva. In the dream, I was in a Shiva temple with my parents and, in front of us, was a beautiful Shiva linga made of black stone. Shiva's three eyes were on the statue and two of them were open (they were a green colour), and He talked to us. He gave my parents some advice and then said something to me in a language I do not understand in the waking state (though it made sense to me in the dream!)- in the morning, I felt this was either Sanskrit or Tamil, and I am able to speak neither! Anyway I woke up feeling happy that I had dreamt of Shiva.
Due to work pressures, I had not done any elaborate worship for Shiva during the day or night for this Shivaratri. I simply did the usual ashtakshara japa, including before sleeping, and reminded myself that Shiva and Narayana are One- therefore when I worship Narayana, I am worshipping Shiva too. I was therefore quite surprised to have a dream about Shiva as I think of God mostly as Krishna or Narayana.
Anyway, I hope that, in accordance with my Guru's words, this dream indicates some positive developments in spiritual life, and hopefully in my worldly life too. It is not everyday that I dream of God, so this experience was interesting. I have never before had a dream where God directly talked to me. In terms of other spiritual dreams, some years ago, I dreamt of a Goddess temple with a young girl who was sitting and watching me closely- when I woke, I felt this girl represented the Goddess. Another time, many years ago, I dreamt I saw Krishna in a dream- He was going somewhere, and looked at me but did not speak. I have also dreamt of my Guru Sivananda and his disciple Chidananda. That's about it in terms of spiritual dreams. I also find that, when I sit to meditate in the morning, I get flashbacks of my dreams from the previous night- as if, memories of these are just below the surface of my conscious mind and they naturally arise when I quiet my conscious mind a little during mantra japa. Anyway, whether or not dreams indicate anything important, I guess one should spend more time thinking of God and less time analysing one's dreams, and so I will conclude here!
Hope we wake up from all dreams, both in the waking and dream state, and attain the eternal true state of bliss, beyond the pleasure and pain of dreams.
Hari Aum Tat Sat
P.S. I was listening to 'Shivashtakam', one of my favourite songs on Youtube today (see link below - it's a nice rendition). In this, the name 'Aparna kalatram' comes up as one of Shiva's names- this means 'consort of Aparna'.
Since 'Aparna' (a name of Goddess Parvati) is my first name, given to me at birth by my parents, I've always felt a connection with Lord Shiva. This name represents Goddess Parvati when She was doing intense tapas (spiritual practice) to attain Shiva as Her husband. ('Vishnupriya' is my spiritual name given at my mantra initiation).
Anyway, as I listened to this song, I thought that 'Aparna kalatram' i.e. Shiva has every right to appear in the dream of Aparna. ;) As my Guru says, Shiva and Narayana are one. Let Him give darshan in any form He pleases, I would be very happy if I could become deserving enough to see the forms of both Hara and Hari, though I worship Him as Hari/Narayana.
Shivashtakam sung beautifully by Pandit Jasraj:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ej6kihJCNTs
Most of us have experienced dreaming at night. The underlying reason for dreams is not well-understood in modern science. There are various theories for the existence of dreams, ranging from the brain processing information to manifestation of hidden desires. There remains uncertainty in the scientific world, however, as to the precise cause and purpose of dreams.
The yogic opinion on dreams is complex and interesting. Yogis believe there are four states of consciousness. They say that three states are experienced by everybody, namely the waking state, the dream state, and the deep sleep state. The fourth state is the state of superconscious awareness (self-realisation) that is believed to be the destiny of all beings (though in practice, only a few strive for and attain this at any point in time).
Yogis believe that there are various types of dreams. Some dreams are indeed the result of the mind processing experiences of the waking state. Other dreams are said to be the expression of impressions or 'samskaras' from previous births. Some dreams are granted as the fruits of karma- one can work out the results of past karma in dreams.
Some dreams are said to be signs or guidance to us - these are prophetic dreams, they may be signs of positive or negative experiences that we will experience in the waking state in the future.
My guru, Sivananda, has written a detailed book explaining the yogic view on dreams- see link below for this. At the end of the book, he describes a number of dream symbols and their meanings- this is quite interesting.
http://www.dlshq.org/download/dream.htm
The ultimate yogic viewpoint is that the waking state and the dream state, both of which feel very permanent when we exprience them, are both transient. Yogis regard the waking state as a prolonged 'dream' in the sense that this state, like the dream state, is ultimately a fleeting non-permanent unreal experience. The yogi engages in spiritual sadhana in order to transcend the three lower states of consciousness, and attain the highest fourth state, the superconscious self-realised state where permanent peace, wisdom and bliss are experienced.
Sivananda says, in his books on dreams, that dreaming of God is a fortunate experience which indicates future success and elevation. I have been through a very stressful time recently due to various difficulties at work and at home. Frankly I felt in need of some encouragement from God.
Two nights ago, on MahaShivaratri night (Feb 13), I had an interesting dream. I dreamt of Lord Shiva. In the dream, I was in a Shiva temple with my parents and, in front of us, was a beautiful Shiva linga made of black stone. Shiva's three eyes were on the statue and two of them were open (they were a green colour), and He talked to us. He gave my parents some advice and then said something to me in a language I do not understand in the waking state (though it made sense to me in the dream!)- in the morning, I felt this was either Sanskrit or Tamil, and I am able to speak neither! Anyway I woke up feeling happy that I had dreamt of Shiva.
Due to work pressures, I had not done any elaborate worship for Shiva during the day or night for this Shivaratri. I simply did the usual ashtakshara japa, including before sleeping, and reminded myself that Shiva and Narayana are One- therefore when I worship Narayana, I am worshipping Shiva too. I was therefore quite surprised to have a dream about Shiva as I think of God mostly as Krishna or Narayana.
Anyway, I hope that, in accordance with my Guru's words, this dream indicates some positive developments in spiritual life, and hopefully in my worldly life too. It is not everyday that I dream of God, so this experience was interesting. I have never before had a dream where God directly talked to me. In terms of other spiritual dreams, some years ago, I dreamt of a Goddess temple with a young girl who was sitting and watching me closely- when I woke, I felt this girl represented the Goddess. Another time, many years ago, I dreamt I saw Krishna in a dream- He was going somewhere, and looked at me but did not speak. I have also dreamt of my Guru Sivananda and his disciple Chidananda. That's about it in terms of spiritual dreams. I also find that, when I sit to meditate in the morning, I get flashbacks of my dreams from the previous night- as if, memories of these are just below the surface of my conscious mind and they naturally arise when I quiet my conscious mind a little during mantra japa. Anyway, whether or not dreams indicate anything important, I guess one should spend more time thinking of God and less time analysing one's dreams, and so I will conclude here!
Hope we wake up from all dreams, both in the waking and dream state, and attain the eternal true state of bliss, beyond the pleasure and pain of dreams.
Hari Aum Tat Sat
P.S. I was listening to 'Shivashtakam', one of my favourite songs on Youtube today (see link below - it's a nice rendition). In this, the name 'Aparna kalatram' comes up as one of Shiva's names- this means 'consort of Aparna'.
Since 'Aparna' (a name of Goddess Parvati) is my first name, given to me at birth by my parents, I've always felt a connection with Lord Shiva. This name represents Goddess Parvati when She was doing intense tapas (spiritual practice) to attain Shiva as Her husband. ('Vishnupriya' is my spiritual name given at my mantra initiation).
Anyway, as I listened to this song, I thought that 'Aparna kalatram' i.e. Shiva has every right to appear in the dream of Aparna. ;) As my Guru says, Shiva and Narayana are one. Let Him give darshan in any form He pleases, I would be very happy if I could become deserving enough to see the forms of both Hara and Hari, though I worship Him as Hari/Narayana.
Shivashtakam sung beautifully by Pandit Jasraj:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ej6kihJCNTs
No comments:
Post a Comment