ROAD

Example: My dream is of an eternal journey, which takes a road that turns into a circle or maze that is endless. Behind me is a large fat young man with blond hair. I can’t get along and he catches up with me, I say “We can’t go back we must struggle on.” He takes my wrist. I am trying to hide my fear of him and the pathway, when I wake up’ (JP). JP feels her life is something she must ‘struggle on’ with, but it is an endless circle of confusion in which she gets nowhere. This illustrates the road as a symbol of one’s approach to life. Perhaps it is her fear which creates this sense of life for her.

Example: ‘Janet my wife was cycling beside me. We came to the end of a short road. I said we should turn left, but Janet thought we ought to turn right. We got out into the middle of the road without turning either way’ (Arthur P). Crossroads, deciding which road to take: Arthur’s dream shows crossroads as depicting our many choices. Arthur’s choice involves his attempt to include his wife’s needs.

The size, richness, clean­liness, amount of people, situation of the road shows how you inwardly see either the direction chosen, or the choices con­fronting you.

See crossroads.

Example: ‘Walking alone along a road through a small town. I was heading for a place that a group of people, in a street parallel to mine, were also heading for.

A person from the group tried to persuade me that the right way to get to the place was along the street the group was walking. I knew the street did not matter, only the general direction.

The person was quite disturbed by my independence. It made him or her feel uncertain to have their leader apparently questioned. I felt uncertain too for a moment. Then I walked on and came to an open stretch of ground’ (Tony C). Tony’s dream shows how roads can represent different sorts of social behaviour.

To choose one’s individual ‘road’ may be difficult, because others are so sure they know best. Patterns of behaviour such as needing an authority figure to follow are also here depicted as a road.

Road behind: the past; what you have already achieved or done. Road ahead: the future; aspects of self not yet expressed; new areas of endeavour. Fork in road: something to decide; parting from accustomed way or relationship. Unpaved road, track off to one side: going off the beaten track or being side­tracked. Lane: individual direction. Known road: one’s associ­ated feelings with that road. Running out into road: danger. Going wrong way up one way street: going against prevailing attitudes. Going out from house into road: how others see you; being in public view. Idioms: on the road to recovery, road hog; end of the road; take to the road, middle of the road; the high road to.

See track.

Dreaming Lens: Were you on a road or trying to get to a road? What type of road was it? Was it urban or rural? What was the quality of the road? Was it a side road or a main thoroughfare? Was it rocky and steep, or winding through a forest? Was it a never-ending straightaway? Did you know where you were heading? Was the road busy, dangerous, empty, or treacherous? Were you on foot or in a vehicle?

Personal Focus: Each of us is on our own path in life. It is a combination of past choices we have made and current circumstances and decisions we are about to make that determine the road we’re on in any given moment. Such an image in a dream is representative of your current life path. It can be a snapshot of where you are and how you feel about the present moment of your journey.

The Dreaming Lens will offer you the foundation for your interpretation; however, the type of road and its environment will give you deeper shades of meaning. The more isolated the road, the more the dream relates to your private life and personal issues. A public or widely traveled road will likely connect to aspects of your life that are more social in nature.

If the vehicles in your dream are traveling fast enough to inspire anxiety, you may be expressing fears of being able to match the speed of life around you. Heavy traffic that slows you down may indicate feelings of frustration with the pace of your life and the presence of obligations and responsibility. If the road is straight and smooth, you are probably moving along comfortably toward your goals; whereas if it is bumpy or treacherous, you may be complicating your journey in some way. The sophistication of your vehicle may mirror the skills you have at your disposal; from feet to sports cars (see Driving).

If you know where you are heading, the interpretation you attach to the road will inform you of your feelings about your destination and the process you are in to get there. Not knowing where you are going is not the same as having no destination. The former implies ignorance while the latter could indicate a moment of surrender. Being on the wrong side of the road going against traffic could be mirroring resistance you are meeting in your life.

If a highway robber attacks someone in a dream, it means that he will suffer from the loss of a friend.

If one sees a ruler strolling through a rugged road in a dream, it means that he will establish justice and pave the way to righteousness and prosperity.

A straight road in a dream represents God’s path, or it could represent one’s true faith in God’s revelations, or in following the practice of God’s Messenger, upon whom be peace, or following the guidance of one’s teacher or shaikh. Walkingon a straight path in a dream means repenting from one’s sins and finding guidance. Seeing many roads in a dream means hesitancy, fluctuations in one’s faith, doubt, heedlessness, or apostasy.

A road in a dream also represents a craft, eternity, the past, aging, continuity, the good example, or the bad example.

A boat following the correct sea lane in a dream means salvation.

A road in a dream also represents a woman, one’s livelihood, truth, or death.

If a merchant sees himself walking on a road in a dream, it means that he will find new avenues to earn more money. Ahidden road in a dream means pride, innovation and selfdeception.

(Also see Lane, Roadless terrain, Wending one’s way)