In these encounters my dream brings no judgments. I
feel neither guilt nor shame, pride nor power. I simply
feel how I am. Meaning is. It is only afterward that I may
respond with a judgment, perhaps with an automatic
decision to persevere or to change course.
      One day, the phrase "dream realization" came to me. I
liked the sound of it, as it reminded me of "self-
realization." Something like self-realization is what
happens to me during those moments when, seeing
through a dream, I realize the truth of the dream's
ultraconscious vision, and I come into an awareness of
the presence of the Self.
      Reflecting on the processes that invite moments of
dream realization, I have found that it is mentally
re-experiencing the dream over and over again that
returns me to that frame of mind from which the dream's
perception arose. Also helpful is emphathizing with the
images of the dream, giving them voices with which to
speak and eyes with which to see. Along with its images,
the dream also has a story, a meaning within its
narrative, having the thrust of an allegory, requiring
only an instant to grasp. Experiencing my life in terms of
the images and story of my dream, I am often granted
metaphysical perceptions and discover that the dream
envisions even the most mundane aspects of my life in
mythic dimensions. I realize that the Self that I am, the
dreamer and creator of my life, moves in an expanded,
timeless consciousness, in contact with Olympus. The
dreams become for me seeds which have fallen from the
sky; and by nurturing them I grow to new heights of
awareness.
      Since the process of dream realization is difficult for
me to describe, I have worked to develop a more
concrete approach. The result has been "meditations" for
writing in a dream journal. Keeping a dream journal is a
tangible method for providing a reflective atmosphere
for communing with dreams. Moreover, while journal
writing involves processes that are easier to grasp, it
also allows for the elements of inspiration and surprise
that are essential to dream realization.

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