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Gifts of the Night: Ways of Working with Dreams
November 17, 1995 @ 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm PST
The Psyche speaks through images and stories. The images are the “words” of the unconscious, and the stories-how the words are put together-are the “grammar”. Dreams, fairy tales, and visions represent different kinds of dramas, each rich with gifts from the deep waters of the unconscious.
Dreams emerge from the unconscious, carrying archetypal symbols and the wisdom of the deep self. We will emphasize the importance of experiencing dreams, rather than just interpreting them, because when dreams are experienced in a deep way, they can be transformative, catalyzing changes in real life. We will explore the use of active imagination, fairy tales and storytelling as ways of working with dreams. We will discuss three levels of Jungian dream symbolism-personal, archetypal, and community, and we will touch upon some overlooked archetypes. A dream “tool kit” will be presented. These tools include amplification of specific dream images, translating dreams into fairy tales, and sharing dreams with another person. Please bring pen and paper, and if you wish, a recent puzzling or meaningful dream to work with, perhaps to share with others.
Related Workshop: Dramas from the Deep: Active Imagination and Fairy Tale Work - a Playshop for Adults
Allan B. Chinen, M.D., is the author of four books and the psychological and spiritual tasks of aging: In the Ever After, Once Upon a Midlife, Beyond the Hero, and Waking the World. Although retired from private practice to focus on writing, he continues to teach as a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, on the voluntary faculty of the School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco. He Is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. Born and raised in Hawaii, he obtained his undergraduate and medical degrees at Stanford University, and completed his psychiatry residency and fellowship at University of California, San Francisco.
Karen Signell, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and Jungian analyst, is on the faculty of the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco, where she teaches Active Imagination. She is the author of Wisdom of the Heart: Working with Women’s Dreams, which has been translated into Danish, French, German, and Japanese; she is co-author of Sandplay Studies: Origins, Theory, and Practice.