Ancestral or Spirit Guide Help for Interpreting Dreams

I’ve searched around the forum for some resources, but maybe I’m not using the right keywords. I have had a series of pretty “bad” dreams lately. I believe bad dreams don’t inherently mean that the bad thing in the dream is going to happen but it’s odd for me to have had so many in a short period of time. None of them seem to be related on the surface (Not lucid dreaming, and I’m not well versed enough in divination to use any of those tools for help yet).

In trying to make sense of these dreams, or to see if they are just random things in my mind as I sleep, I’ve tried some online dream interpretation sites. I sometimes have been able to make connections between my dream’s themes and the interpretations. But this time, I’m finding that don’t really speak to the specifics of each dream. I am thinking of asking my ancestors or spirit guides for help in the interpretation or clarity on what I need to do. Have any of you done something similar?

Since I rarely have bad dreams, I feel like I’m in between just brushing it off and taking a deeper look into them. Any suggestions on how to either find out if this is just random dreams that pop in the head or if there is some sort of message that I need to understand?

For instance, I don’t ever see the bad deed in my dream - in one case, it was just implied that I did something completely unthinkable to someone. Just implied, never “saw” it, but I was aware of the situation right after it happened in the dream. So I had to try to figure out a way to deal with it/get away with it. ← that is what makes me think I need to learn something from it? But I could also just be overthinking it!

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Have you started a dream diary? Maybe something like that would help.

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Yes - sort of. I try to either write or use the voice memo app on my phone to recall all the details of the dreams I have. So far, none have a connected theme that I can see. And also up to this point, I haven’t had a series of what I call “bad” ones. Maybe I just need to give it a bit more time and then go back and review them again.

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Someone else may have more ideas, I’m not great at dream imagery, but I do know that keeping a dream journal is a big part of parsing out what’s going on and interpreting it.

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Hello!

So I tend to follow the Jungian approach to dream analysis, as opposed to the Freudian approach. The two psychologists had very different ideas about dreams, and Jung proposes that all aspects in a dream are important and symbolic. Sometimes the feeling and emotions present in a dream are more important than the symbols used to convey the story. You may want to look at how each dream makes you feel as opposed to trying to find other connections between the dream.

I believe that dreams are messages from the subconscious mind that relate to our current life in most cases. There are several different types of dreams, which are explored in this article. Not all dreams should be interpreted in the same way, because they could have different purposes for presenting themselves. In my opinion, the vast majority of dreams are communications from your subconscious mind or higher self.

Repeated dreams (or dreams with repeated feelings or themes) are extra important because the message has not been addressed in your waking life. It might be enough to tell your higher self that you heard the message, you aren’t sure what to do about it and you want the dreams to stop. This has worked for me in the past (but now I can’t get the dreams to come back!) Stress can also cause bad dreams to happen, as well as many other factors.

My two cents.

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Thank you for sharing your experience and also the article. I’m going to read that now.

It might be enough to tell your higher self that you heard the message, you aren’t sure what to do about it and you want the dreams to stop.

This is something I haven’t thought of and may also try. I’ll also see if I can document how I was feeling the day before the dream. Good suggestions. Thank you

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Hi Robin!

Since you want to contact your ancestors, I suggest setting up an altar for them. Include photos, plants, water, and offerings (traditionally liquor, tobacco or food).

  1. Light some white and blue candles, and incense (mugwort, frankincense, yarrow, rosemary).

  2. Cast a circle and say:

“I invite all spirits and energies to remain who are happy and a good influence to me.
I banish all those energies and spirits who are negative and ask you to depart now.”

  1. State your intentions out loud, for example ask for guidance about your dreams.

  2. Go into deep meditation and be open to receive communications. If it’s your first time leaving an offering don’t set your expectations too high. It could take time to develop a relationship.

Be aware of your dreams and other messages in your daily life. If possible, keep a dream diary. Consider learning how to lucid dream, which as a technique makes it possible to as specific questions to ancestors.

Depending on your tradition and style, one of these two books should help you:

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Id take it as you not doing any wrong but somebody else thinks you did something wrong maybe intentionally. I know your sweet soul couldn’t bear to harm anyone intentionally!!!
That’s just my opinion. There is a great app called Dream Catcher Ultimate. You can use it as a dream journal and it helps you analyze your dreams. I hope you get some kind of reassurance with your dreams.

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Those are great resources @Francisco , thank you. I have wanted to explore contacting ancestors but have been hesitating until I felt like I knew more about it. The ritual steps you gave are at least a way for me to get started. I will also decide which book would be best to help me in that practice. Both seem very helpful!

@christina4 Thank you for the kind words :slight_smile: I will also check out the app again. I did have that one a while back, but didn’t use it as much as I should have to get the benefit. I think it’s time to check it out again!

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Just wanted to give an update! I did a bit more reading, checked out all the great resources posted in response to my initial questions and also did the ritual suggested by @Francisco . Although I didn’t get a specific answer or guidance regarding those dreams, I did feel like I was starting to awake my intuition. I also definitely think that the group ritual last week centered around the 3rd Eye also helped! My take away from this is to continue to practice. @Amethyst @Katy_Mysticsens @christina4 Thank you all for your help and insight!

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Try using the tarot dream spread for answers? Imo, found it to be a lot more revealing and it taking the dream fully into context (including your emotions environment), rather than using a one dimensional approach with those dream interpretation books and even the psycho-analysis, they can be helpful too, but again it’s one dimensional, one pill subscription and not taking the whole experience into context. IMO, some dreams I had were awesomely fantastic riding high, others hell-like. Ultimately, the tarot revealed to me a lot of them were just illusions, some not as great or hellish as I interpreted them to be, and some dreams relate to your journey in this world. Dreams are very personal, and some people can carry for years without closure, always having that dream loom over you. If there are other methods out there for dream interpretation, try them out as well, don’t stay in a box. Once you get the answer you need, you will know, this feeling of dissipation, puts the experience at ease, and just a lot clears up. Until you get the answer that is satisfying, better to just rule the dream as an illusion? Just to not get stuck in it?

These two spreads are helpful, and then you can ask the tarot any additional questions you have about the dream. Uncover What Your Unconscious Is Trying To Say - 2 Tarot spreads for D – Labyrinthos

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