Sunday, April 27, 2003		Dream Theme

Dreaming of cliffs
Vinaya K. Manhas

CLIFFS as dream symbols are not considered positive. It tends to evoke fear or a feeling of loneliness and helplessness.

As per Indian thought, dreaming of standing on the edge of a cliff or a precipice is a forewarning of trouble. You are advised to change your job or business at the earliest as you could face problems on the professional front. Your business could fail, resulting in severe financial losses. If you are in a job, you face the risk of being fired or being asked to resign. So it is better that you start looking for other options before such a time comes. Should you fall and get up before you touch the ground, it means that you shall manage to avoid the oncoming troubles.

As per western thought, to dream of standing on a sheer cliff is a prediction of oncoming troubles and misfortunes. You are warned to be prepared for unforeseen calamities. Should you fall over the cliff, it foretells disaster. But if you turn back and walk away from the cliff, it means that you shall manage to escape the oncoming problems and calamities.

Psychoanalytically speaking, to dream of standing on the edge of a cliff is an indication of your awareness that you are about to face some dangers. You need to take certain decisions and that too quickly if you wish to avoid oncoming problems. You seem to be facing the unknown and have to be able to face risks. You have to overcome your own fears in order to get over your shortcomings. Spiritually, it could also denote your desire to step into the unknown. To be aware of the height of the cliff is to be aware of a vacuum within us, of the feeling of helplessness on account of some prevailing situation. It could also denote a feeling of losing control or identity, or a fear of failure.

A 21-year-old woman would often dream of standing on the edge of a cliff. Suddenly her body would become weightless and she would float down. She would not get hurt when she touched the ground below. This dream represents her helplessness and desire to give up on the prevailing situation. She seems basically a defeatist by nature who easily gets depressed and plays up even minor problems in her mind.