Two traditions of dream reading
Dream Journal
Write what you remember of a dream below. We will pull out the symbols we recognize, read each one in the tradition you choose, and surface any pairings the tradition has notes on. For a full written interpretation by Dylan, see the instant interpretation.
The 2nd-century Greek master of dream interpretation. Artemidorus collected thousands of dreams and tracked which ones came true under which circumstances. His rule: a symbol's meaning depends on who is dreaming it, what they hope for, and what is happening in their waking life.
Or tap symbols — pick as many as you like
When these meet
chase × forest
The shadow pursuing through the unconscious. Whatever is chasing you in the dream is in the same psychic territory as you; you can turn there.
Each symbol — Artemidorus
chase
the dreamer's condition
If favorable: If you turn and face the pursuer in the dream, you will overcome the thing that has been pursuing you.
If shadowed: To be caught is to be confronted by what you have been avoiding — sometimes a literal creditor or claim.
hiding
what's happening
If favorable: To hide successfully signifies the prudence to wait out a hostile moment.
If shadowed: To be discovered while hiding warns of exposure of a secret.
running
what's happening
If favorable: To outrun a pursuer signifies you will escape a present trouble.
If shadowed: Running but making no progress is the symbol of a labor not yet ready to bear fruit.
forest
elements, landscape
If favorable: An open grove is the place of contemplation; nymphs and the gods of place favor it.
If shadowed: A dark woods you cannot find your way out of warns of confusion in counsel.
Go deeper
For an interpretation that ties these symbols together into a single woven reading, written for you — drawing from both Artemidorus and the Jungian frame — let the dream be read whole.
Instant interpretation →