books

Dreaming Lens: Were you reading a book? Was someone else reading? Was the book unopened? Were there many books? Were you in a bookstore or a library? Were the books identifiable or known to you? Were they in your native language? What was the content of the book(s)?

Personal Focus: Our societal perception of books and their value has changed drastically in recent times. Electronic media has already begun a process of rendering them obsolete. However, their rich heritage through the collective unconscious makes them a powerful symbol, despite the shift in how we perceive them.

As Western culture developed, only a very small minority of the population was able to read. Therefore, books became a highly valued commodity reserved only for the very wealthy, or members of religious hierarchy. In this way, books represent wisdom and knowledge. Their tangible, physical structure embodies a sense of permanence of thought as the printed word has come to be synonymous with truth and fact, whether accurate or not.

Books, as a symbol, connect to the accumulation and availability of knowledge. On a personal level, they can represent the measurement of someone’s intelligence. Many books appearing in a dream connect to higher level of intellect as expressed by the unconscious. One volume connects to a single area of information whereas a bookstore or library filled with books might symbolize abundant levels of knowledge available to those who seek it out.

Consider your relation to books and reading in life and apply it to your dream. Reading a book in a dream could indicate a need to slow down your mental processes so that you can hear your own thoughts. The printed permanence of books could indicate a need for you to be more exacting in your communication or illuminate areas where you are being held accountable for your words. Books on a shelf can mean wisdom not being utilized in some situation. Reading in a library or bookstore may mean you have tapped in to the collective unconscious where profound information is available to us all. Certain books, such as novels, can represent a desire to lose yourself in another world.

If you are surrounded by books in your dreams, this might suggest that you are more concerned with theory than practice. Depending on the kinds of books that figure in your dream, they can also suggest the world of imagination and escape. Are you surrounded by literary novels, racy best-sellers or fascinating biographies? If the books are very old, this suggests learning and inherited wisdom.

If the books are account books, this indicates a need to take care of financial matters.

Sacred books, such as the Koran or the Bible, signify a search for hidden or sacred knowledge. Dreaming of a sacred book can also represent a need to know you are heading in the right direction. To dream of an encyclopedia suggests a hunger for knowledge and new experience, as an encyclopedia represents collective human wisdom. On the other hand, it can also suggest information overload and a need to find focus. To dream you are searching in a dictionary suggests a need to find answers to a particular problem or situation in your life. It can also suggest an over-reliance on the opinions of others.

If you look up a particular word in your dream, this can be very significant (see LETTERS AND COMMUNICATION; SOUNDS). Finally, a poem is the ultimate form of self-expression, so if you are a poet, or a poet figures in your dream, or you are reading poetry, your unconscious is urging you to find a creative outlet in waking life.

Sacred texts: Higher ideals and beliefs. Spiritual development and your relationship with sacred powers.

The state of your spiritual path may be noted by the condition in which this book appears.

Matters of learning and study. Check the title for a more complete picture. Please note, however, that education can equate to “life’s lessons” too.

On a bookcase: Accumulated knowledge that you have readily accessible.

A library: On the etheric plane this may represent the Akashic records that keep track of each soul and its incarnations, and all the knowledge of the Universe.

If you feel this interpretation is correct, then what you read in such a book is very important—it is part of your spirit’s birthright.

Closed with a bookmark inside: A momentary pause in learning that is vital so that you don’t burn out or overload.

Bookstores: Acquired knowledge in a specific area.

The type of bookstore or the section of the store reveals the genre after which you’re seeking, or that which you already possess.

A dictionary reveals overdependence on other people’s opinions and suggestions for management matters, especially in business. Give your own insight an opportunity to prove itself!

Shutting a book: Closing off a chapter of your life. Resolution of an issue, the end of a belief system, or conclusion of business dealings.