This dream started with my standing atop some random snowpile in a random (but familiar), street. I get told by my friend (Let's call him Jeff) Jeff, who asked me if I knew where the party was, but I had no clue. Up behind me walks this Native American kid (He thinks I am racist, irl), he stands there for a few seconds to gather his thoughts, just to point at a house that the snowpile was in front of. Nothing odd about the house, sure wasn't there IRL. Flawlessly I am "plucked" (Best word to describe it) from the pile. Where I find myself then is staring into my old closet, picking out chips with a Jeff for the party. He picks two full bags, but I was being ornery and made him take a bag and a half (One of the bags where half full), instead of the full two. So he leaves and I get a good look around my apartment. It wasn't an apartment, it was just a room, my OLD bedroom. I turn around to leave and I notice all of my close friends walk by chattering about the party. As they walked by I was drawn to the cliche theater masks belted to their hips. After the hallway cleared I walked out my door and found myself outside again, in front of the house. I proceeded to walk inside but was stopped by a blockade of those dollar store cobwebs. I pushed my way through and saw that the large house was a small concrete room. Everyone was sitting in a circle in the folding chairs, with their masks on. For some odd reason I am drawn to the ground and I see a mask with iron bars across the mouth, and I assume it is mine. I pick it up and I walk out of the "house", and somehow, again. Into my room. I put it on, walk towards my bed, and I grab hold of a flask. *At this point my 6am alarm goes off and wakes me up* I am sure I left a lot out, and I think I understand the symbolism.
On the average, people spend at least one-third of their lives asleep. While asleep, all of us dream, although we may not remember our dreams. It is important to understand exactly what is occurring while we are in that altered state so that we can use that time of sleep to enhance our functioning in the waking state. p. 18 [*]Ancient scriptures tell us that man is more than the physical body. In fact, we have two bodies: the physical and the astral, or subtle. But we are the soul! According to the ancient Vedic scriptures of India, the size of the soul is 1/10,000 the tip of a strand of hair. It is located in the heart region and is the actual life force. The physical, as well as the astral or subtle body, acts as a covering or costume that the soul wears in its journey throughout the material sphere. As we pass from costume to costume or from body to body through the process known as reincarnation, the impressions of previous lives imprint themselves on the subtle body and are carried with us during each lifetime. In the dream state, activity in the subtle body becomes more dominant than activity in the physical body. Our dream experiences are often impressions accumulated from many lifetimes. p. 18-19 [*]Dreams can be classified in many different ways. We will examine four types. The first concerns dreams that occur as a result of physiological stimulation. [...] The second category involves thoughts that are dormant in the subconscious. Whatever you think about often becomes impressed in your subconscious mind. [...] The third type of dream concerns the predominating thoughts you have when you are awake. [...] The fourth category of dreams involves those that help to work out karma, that is, lessons that are to be experienced in this lifetime. Sometimes, dreams can be used as a medium to play out the karma that one has accumulated. [...] This serves two functions: one, it saves time because the dynamics do not have to be played out in the physical realm and two, the lessons learned through the subtle body penetrate the soul more thoroughly, leaving lasting impressions. p. 19-20 [*]When one's subtle body travels outside of the physical body during the dream state, this experience is sometimes referred to as lucid dreaming. When metaphysicians are able to do this at will, the phenomenon is called astral projection or astral traveling: the ability to consciously leave the physical body and project the subtle body beyond its physical limitations. p. 20 [*]There is beauty as well as danger when you deal with the subtle realms. The beauty is that you can have realizations, revelations, and experiences that can carry over into the waking state. The danger is that you can expose yourself to negative influences. There are many positive as well as negative entities that infiltrate one’s consciousness while dreaming or disturb one during astral travel. Often they appear in the form of family members or close friends. There are also beings on the subtle plane that are in the habit of engaging the sleeping person in unwanted sexual activity. p. 21 [*]As you open up spiritually, your subtle body has a particular effulgence which attracts entities from both the divine and negative natures. You become more sensitive and aware of everything. You become more intuitive and have more experiences in the dream state. If there are messages you should receive, the impressions will always be there, even when you are asleep, and you will act on them without consciously being aware of it. If a communication is really meant for your growth, even though you may forget it or may not be able to understand its significance, it will still have an effect on your consciousness. Ultimately, both the positive and negative experiences are “quality tests” to assess your level of sincerity. p. 21 [*]When you enter an environment that is different from your normal sleeping environment, remember that every single dwelling has the energy of the people that frequent it. [...] By chanting, meditating, or even putting up spiritual pictures for the duration of your stay, you can transform the area into a place that actually augments your spiritual consciousness. If nothing is done to spiritualize the atmosphere, it will be like walking into a room filled with poisonous fumes. The converse of this is also true: by sleeping in a spiritually surcharged atmosphere, dreams that offer spir- itual realization and assistance can be obtained
Spiritual Warrior, Volume I: Uncovering Spiritual Truths in Psychic Phenomena (Hari-Nama Press, 1996) Chapter 1: Dreams: A State of Reality
