DREAM MEANING IN CHINESE MEDICINE

Both Jung and Freud came to understand dreams as a manifestation of our subconscious mind working out the emotions and issues of our lives. In Chinese medicine, dreaming is most closely associated with the Shen (or Spirit), which is said to reside in the Heart. If your Heart energy is strong and balanced, the Shen is anchored at night, and it is easy to fall asleep, to avoid broken sleep, and to have an appropriate amount of dreaming. However, when the Heart is either weakened or harassed by some manner of imbalance, then we see symptoms such as insomnia, broken sleep, and excessively vivid and/or disturbing dreams.

Looking back at the ancient Chinese medical texts, we can be more specific and find that the symbols that occur in our dreams can be used diagnostically to indicate various imbalances in the body.

“When the Liver is in excess, one dreams of being angry” but “when the Liver is deficient, one dreams of forests in the mountains”.

In the traditional Chinese medicine system, which associates different emotions and different elements with each organ, anger is the one most closely related to the Liver, so this may come as no surprise. With regard to the dreams associated with the deficient Liver, we can remember that the wood element and Spring-time energy are also closely related to the Liver. It is this energy that offers us creativity and vision and drive, and when this is lacking, the dreams about forests can be expressing our need for this.

“If the Spleen is deficient, one dreams of being hungry” and “when the Stomach is deficient, one dreams of having a large meal”.

The whole concept of the Spleen in Chinese medicine is to do with our digestive system. In truth, my own personal view is that the characeteristics attributed to the Spleen more closely relate to the Pancreas, and many scholars view these organs as jointly encapsulated in the term Spleen. Like the Pancreas in western medicine, the Spleen is responsible for digestion and also for sustaining our energy levels (think about the dual processes of the Pancreas in producing the bulk of our digestive enzymes and also its control of insulin and sugar metabolism). So when our Spleen is weak, we crave further nourishment to keep us going, and this manifests in our dreams.

The Stomach is slightly different. This has less of a role in controlling digestion and acts merely as a vital vessel in which food is processed. Disorders of the Stomach commonly tend to lead to voracious appetite, and again we can see this manifesting in the dream.

“When the Kidney is weak, one dreams of swimming after a shipwreck; if the dream takes place in winter, one dreams of plunging in water and being scared” and “when the Kidneys are weak, one dreams of being immersed in water”

The Kidney is associated with the Water element and the season of winter. The emotion most closely associated with the Kidney is fear (or, conversely, the absence of fear). The Kidneys are also associated with our congenital health and are seen to determine our general well-being, so it is perhaps most important of all to listen to what dreams about them may be telling us.

“When the Heart is weak, one dreams of fire” and “when the Heart is excess, one dreams of laughing, when deficient, one dreams of mountains, fire, and smoke”.

We are back to the Heart with regard to specific imbalances. The Fire element is associated with the Heart, and it is what gives us our passion for life. The most important Heart emotion is joy (or, sadly, in some cases, the absence of joy). Laughter (and singing) are associated with joy and the Heart, but when there is excess fire heating the Heart, laughter can be inappropriate and excessive.

“When the Lung is deficient, one will dream of white objects and murderous events” and “if it is in an excessive stage one dreams of battles in action.”

White is the colour of the Metal element in Chinese philosophy (unlike the Greek tradition, which we are more familiar with in the west, Chinese philosophy identifies five elements), and Metal is the element of the Lung. Metal is associated with order and organisation, and this may be mirrored in the strategy and planning that go into the fighting of battles. The fact that this is identified in the dream with warfare, rather than peaceful endeavour may be indicating that the preoccupation with organising our lives has become dysfunctional.