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December 12, 2003
Make sense of dreams
New book provides rituals to help your interpretation.
CYNTHIA RAMSAY SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
If you see a cat in your dream, a beautiful song is being composed
for you. If, in a dream, your nose falls off, you will stop feeling
so angry. These are just a couple pearls of talmudic wisdom found
in The Jewish Dream Book: The Key to Opening the Inner Meaning
of Your Dreams (Jewish Lights) by Vanessa L. Ochs with her daughter,
Elizabeth Ochs.
There are a few pages of these fun interpretations in The Jewish
Dream Book, but overall it is a relatively serious book that
delves into what Judaism tells us about dreaming and provides several
different methods for encouraging, remembering and interpreting
dreams. There is discussion of how to deal with nightmares and seek
healing through dreams, as well as practices for mourning and ways
in which to connect your dreams to Torah. The book closes with a
detailed list of suggestions for further reading and information
about other Jewish Lights publications.
Vanessa Ochs is the Ida and Nathan Kolodiz director of Jewish studies
and associate professor of religious studies at the University of
Virginia. She is the author of several books and co-editor, with
Rabbi Irwin Kula, of The Book of Jewish Sacred Practices: CLAL's
Guide to Everyday and Holidays Rituals and Blessings (Jewish
Lights). Elizabeth Ochs is a student at Brown University and her
writing appears in God Within: Our Spiritual Future – As
Told by Today's New Adults (Skylight Paths). It should not be
surprising then that The Jewish Dream Book is not a quick
fix for people who are simply curious about the dream they had last
night. This is really a step-by-step dream manual, a guide for people
who want to explore their own and other people's dreams.
In the Babylonian Talmud is the saying, "A dream that is not
interpreted is like a letter that is not opened." To help with
the interpretation, the Ochs provide readers with prayers to recite
and rituals to follow both at nighttime and upon waking, and many
blessings for almost every type of dream, from one that leaves you
feeling peaceful to one that frightens or mystifies you. As well,
there are instructions on how to hold a dream court and a Rosh
Chodesh (New Moon) gathering devoted to dreams.
The court seems particularly interesting. If you have a nightmare
that has upset you, you are supposed to gather three friends or
family members who will help you confront your troubling dream through
the practice of hatavat chalom (making a dream better). In
case this ritual doesn't appeal to you, the Ochs also detail synagogue
and more private practices of transforming a nightmare into a good
dream.
The book is written for laypeople who are not at all religiously
observant or even Jewish, with definitions provided for all the
Hebrew words and phrases used, and a glossary. The Ochs help dreamers
out in Chapter 12, entitled "Practices for Linking Your Dreams
to Torah," with a number of examples of Torah passages that
may be relevant to the interpretation of a dream, recognizing that
few people these days have in-depth biblical knowledge.
An important contributor to The Jewish Dream Book is Kristina
Swarner, the award-winning illustrator of Yiddish Wisdom
and Yiddish Wisdom for Parents (Chronicle). Her artwork adds
color and warmth to the publication, almost giving the paperback
a coffee table book feel.
The Jewish Dream Book won't be for everyone's taste, but
that will be because of the subject matter rather than the way in
which the information is conveyed. For those who are interested
in what goes on in their head at night, Dream is available
from Indigo/Chapters and some other booksellers or from Jewish Lights
directly. For more information, visit www.jewishlights.com,
call 802-457-4000 or fax 802-457-4004.
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