Dreams that came to pass
This writer’s dreams have been like a telescope, giving her a better view of something that is normally out of reach.
DREAMS have been real for me. They hold some form of truth and are the doorway to the future.
Even as I write, I remember a dream in which I received a beautifully wrapped parcel, a present, that came in the post. In it, I found lots of writing paper and pens.
As I am the best interpreter of my own dreams, I understood this dream. I took it as a guide to write. Coincidentally, my eldest son had encouraged me to write my memoirs and also about my achievements.
All of us run into times when we cannot sleep; I use insomnia as a time for writing. This, for me, is an active source of rest if natural sleep won’t come. I do write lyrics and put music to Bhajans (devotional songs) for some Hindu organisations. That was how I took this fantasy about dreams to write songs lately, in the names of Swami Vivekananda and Sri Ramana Maharshi, releasing two albums.
My dreams have been like a telescope that can give a better view of something that is normally out of reach. This awakens me to the meaning and joy of life.
Should I link the dreams with anything spiritual? Indeed, I feel dreams are a spiritual window and the door to enlightenment.
In one dream, I felt I had left my body behind and could see it from the ceiling. I thought I was reaching my end. Later, I was to learn, it was simply a sort of “soul travel” to see what is on the other side of life. Despite my earlier alarm, I am now at ease with it, as I am studying about soul travel, dream travel and outof-body experiences, as an Eckist.
Sometimes it is hard to recall a dream. So I jot down all I remember, no matter how trivial or foolish. I have a dream diary/ journal.
As we get older, we often lose the gift of seeing the messages or the miracles of God. We get crowded in the rush of everyday living. I feel dreaming comes from the creative imagination, which is God’s gift.
Indeed there have been prophetic dreams, very precise and with devastating consequences. In the last few months, I have had recurring dreams of losing my gems and valuables, and I would jump out of bed, feeling devastated at first, then relieved upon realising that it was just a dream.
Relying on my own judgement for the interpretation of the dream, I attributed it to my being too materialistic and felt that the Gods were giving me the guidance to give up my treasures.
Then came the sudden blow. It was not a dream. My eldest son, a genius, collapsed and passed away during a game of squash. I was distraught. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that the loss would be my son.
The sudden death of my husband was seen ahead of time in the dream state. But I didn’t want to know the secret language; neither was my mind able to accept the truth. My son had dreamt of his dad slouched dead at the wheel, near my parents’ residence. That was some 30 years ago. I too dreamt I had lost my thali, the symbol of a Hindu marriage. I woke up groggy from sleep, my conscious mind activated, and I started searching.
Just then my husband woke up, quite amused to see me on the floor, looking under the bed.
“What are you doing?” he said.
When he heard it was a dream, he remarked, “Go back to sleep. Hopefully you may get another dream as to the whereabouts of the gem”.
We always have a feast of typical Sri Lankan vegetarian dishes, a week after Deepavali, on completion of a six-day fast. One year, after the celebration, I went to sleep and had a dream. My three sons were back from Britain and, on entering the house, they went to look for “something” in the centre of the sitting room. When I related the dream to my husband, he did not react to it, but I went on to give my interpretation, saying the boys loved such vegetarian spreads and that was why they had come.
Exactly a week after that was my husband’s funeral and all my three sons were back, as if it had been planned. A couple of days before that, my husband was driving along Jalan Yap Kwan Seng, Kuala Lumpur, when he had a massive heart attack. He drove into the Australian High Commission, handed the car keys to the security guard, collapsed and died. So much for the prelude!
The suddenness of it was such a shock to me, that I would scream and say, “Where are you?”
A month later, he came in a dream: He entered the master bedroom through the balcony door, accompanied by a man whom I couldn’t see because he was hidden by the wardrobe. My husband sat on the bed but I couldn’t reach him as the main door was grilled which is not the norm.
I just shouted, “You are back! How could you leave us and go?”
He looked sad and said, “What to do?”
I screamed “If you had undergone a surgery, would you be alive?”
Before he could answer, his companion said, “No, No, No!” and my husband said, “I am with you always.”
Indeed, keeping to his word, he has appeared in several dreams, giving me guidance in issues I couldn’t handle – they were golden moments, occasions of sweet repose affecting my entire family and guiding us.
Now I understand, having experienced dream recall, there are benefits. Dreams can be prophetic and déjà vu, for instance, learning a new skill, having insights in relationships, and even getting messages from God and the Divine Spirit.
Some dreams cannot be interpreted as they are confusing dreams, or it may be the inability of my mind to accept truth head-on. This leaves me bewildered or even anxious.