Beyond This There Comes Rebirth
Dear Nancy: My life is in total upheaval right now. I am in the process of breaking away from a difficult relationship. I realize that my childlike attitudes have prevented me from creating a life that is related to but not dependent on others. I have developed no particular skills or talents to help me support myself. I fluctuate between feeling overwhelmed by it all and incredible feelings of trust that it will all work out.
This dream was powerful and compelling. I have no actual wish to die. - Alice
I am a little girl and I am swinging from an elevated crossbar. I look high above me and see a woman having a great time swinging on an upper crossbar Her agility amazes me. I make a decision to hang myself by a rope on the higher crossbar. As I climb to the upper bar, I see people below me and a man who is the Master of Ceremonies. When I have the rope around my neck, there is a drumroll, and the Master of Ceremonies signals me to jump. I jump and everything goes into slow motion. There is no pain. I feel myself going into an altered state and then everything is silent. I am in the most blissful state I’ve ever experienced.
Dear Alice: Dreams of death and dying are characteristic and natural during times of upheaval and change. These dreams can announce times of profound initiations into new ways of being and thinking. The old self must die to make way for the new life. This is the theme of death and rebirth, the natural course of life.
In your dream, it was your conscious choice to die. You go up to the higher crossbar to do this. This can symbolize that this “death” is on a higher, more spiritual level.
The woman you see on the higher bar is your older, more mature self. She is free and energetic. Is it your childlike attitudes that need to die? Do you feel the necessity to approach life from a more mature level?
The agility and freedom demonstrated by the older woman above you hints that letting go of the child will actually make you more capable and spirited in your life.
The death is painless and the bliss indicates that you need have no fear of this transition. This was a remarkable dream, Alice, one that should give you faith that you are indeed coming into your full adulthood.
Tips for readers: Dreams of death can signify different aspects of life within us and without.
If the dead person is someone who has passed away, this may be a “visitation” dream or a dream your psyche is using to clear up unfinished business with that person.
If the dead person is actually living, it may be an unconscious “death wish.” A build-up of past hurts and resentments can cause these feelings, especially if that person is someone close to us.
It may also be a reflection of how you feel about the personality or lifestyle of that person. Are they a “deadbeat?” Does their personality seem lifeless and boring?
It’s a good idea to acknowledge the possible literal meaning of the dream by contacting the person to make sure they are all right.
Most often death dreams depict the dying of aspects of ourselves we have outgrown to make way for new attitudes and ways of being. These dreams can also illustrate “dead” necessary parts of ourselves that may have been damaged through trauma or neglect.
Suicide dreams may indicate a wish to retreat from life’s problems. If suicide is a recurring dream theme, talking to a friend or counselor may be helpful.
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