Sunday, August 12, 2001		Dream theme

Returning to the infant stage
Vinaya Katoch Manhas

ALTHOUG, socially quite unacceptable, yet dreaming of excreta is very common. Such a dream often makes the person wake up in a foul mood, feeling dirty. As per Indian thought to see yourself getting dirty with excreta predicts that you will fall sick. Should the dreamer see himself going to a toilet to empty his bowels, then he shall succeed in what ever endeavou he takes up.

As per western thought, to dream of excreta denotes ill health, which shall make you disagreeable and unpleasant with your friends. To see yourself as passing excreta is an ill-omen, which predicts bad luck in matters of love.

Exereta in dreams is perceived more as a psychological symbol. It represents the "vital force" of the creature, which has produced it. It is thought of as a sign of power and weakness both. According to Freud, such a dream almost always relates to the ‘anal’ state of the dreamer. The dreamer may not have progressed on a subconscious level beyond a feeling that anything to do with bodily function is dirty or self-centered. There may be an element of rebellion in the dreamer’s waking life. Playing with excreta can represent anxiety about money, as well as a fear of responsibility. If the excreta are transformed into living beings the dreamer is coming to terms with the fact that he is responsible for managing his impulses. In fact, evacuation of our bowels highlights our need to be free of worry and responsibility, or possibly the need to learn how to be uninhibited. Thus, dreams of faeces or excrement often signify our return to an infant level of expression and enjoyment, experiences that may have been relevant at the time but which we now need to let go of. There are certain aspects of our lives, which we have used up and need to give up. It can also signify the sexual act.

Retention of excreta signifies an inability to let go of your past or of previous patterns of behaviour. Generally, a child tends to withhold or refuses to empty his bowels simply to attract attention.

Excreta, in certain dreams, may also be a sign of self-contempt. In such a dream, a person tends to think of himself as being at the level of excreta.

A 17-year-old-boy who was going through a severe phase of depression would often dream of heaps of excreta all around him. He would try to walk through it without stepping on it, but would fail miserably and see himself as getting completely dirtied with it. He would wake up feeling dirty and would rush to the bathroom for a bath. In fact, at a point of time the dream became so frequent that the boy would have a bath at least 9-10 times a day, as he kept feeling dirty the whole day. The dream is a clear indication of a feeling of self-contempt. It ascertains the clinical evaluation of the person being in a state of depression. Once the boy was cured of his illness, the dreams of excreta too gradually disappeared.