PRANA

the yogic concept of a cosmic energy or life force, similar to the Chinese idea of chi, that enters the body with the breath. Prana is thought to flow through the body, bringing health and vitality. It is considered the vital link between the spiritual self and the material self.

(See also: PRANA , Alternative Health, Healing, Body Mind and Soul)

paranormal healing: Field of metaphysical health-related practices.

It encompasses absent healing, Bach flower therapy, Bioplasmic healing, channeling, faith healing, the laying on of hands, LeShan psychic training, magnetic healing, psychic dentistry, psychic healing, psychic surgery, psychosynthesis, remote diagnosis, Seicho-No-Ie, self-healing, shamanism, the Simonton method, spirit healing, spirit surgery, spiritual healing, and Therapeutic Touch.

(See also: Paranormal healing , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

Adoption

Being adopted yourself

 Adoption themes in dreams often occur at significant points of transition or crisis in life. Being adopted in your dream can mean either that you have no human connections at the moment or that you require additional connections to remain a viable person. Dreams of this nature may occur during geographic moves, job transitions or uncertainties, or prior to marriage. Crucial questions exist concerning who adopts you, what the relationship is like with them after adoption and whether you feel glad, ambivalent or uneasy about being adopted. A pre-marital dream may include something like this one (reported by a 24-year-old groom-to-be): `I'm sitting at a card table with people I don?t know playing a game I don't understand. They are trying to teach me, but don't speak English. I get up to leave, but they take me home and treat me as their son.'

The dreamer may see himself as ambivalent about fitting into family rituals, but feeling enough acceptance from his new extended family to overcome his concerns.

Adopting another

 Obviously, the gender of the dreamer has much to say about this dream. Clinical evidence shows that men and women share equal responsibility for infertility disorders. However, women tend to internalise more anxiety about child-rearing and may feel a need to adopt to resolve their problems. Discerning the current status of the self in the life cycle and external circumstances of the woman would be important.

Does infertility run in your family tree? Are you currently planning to become pregnant, but are concerned that you may not? For both genders, adoption may revolve around a very benevolent view of the self as provider. More and more people find their motivation in making a difference in just one life. As such, the quest for justice is shifting from the hero(ine) who saves the community to the good person who helps someone else less fortunate.

For men who adopt others with ambivalence, there can be questions of virility or competence at stake. Who you adopt, and why, could be important to uncovering the meaning of this dream. Is there a significant bonding or separation occurring in your life that may be creating some unease below the surface of your emotions? Do you feel a need for emotional support that is going unmet or that you are finding new avenues to meet?

Source: iVillage, http://www.ivillage.co.uk

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Adoption , Meaning of Dreams about Adoption , Dream Interpretation Adoption )

A Theosophical definition of Chela :

Chela

(Cela) An old Indian term. In archaic times more frequently spelled and pronounced cheta or cheda. The meaning is "servant," a personal disciple attached to the service of a teacher from whom he receives instruction. The idea is closely similar to the Anglo-Saxon term leorning-cneht, meaning "learning servant," a name given in Anglo-Saxon translations of the Christian New Testament to the disciples of Jesus, his "chelas." It is, therefore, a word used in old mystical scriptures for a disciple, a pupil, a learner or hearer. The relationship of teacher and disciple is infinitely more sacred even than that of parent and child; because, while the parents give the body to the incoming soul, the teacher brings forth that soul itself and teaches it to be and therefore to see, teaches it to know and to become what it is in its inmost being  - that is, a divine thing.

The chela life or chela path is a beautiful one, full of joy to its very end, but also it calls forth and needs everything noble and high in the learner or disciple; for the powers or faculties of the higher self must be brought into activity in order to attain and to hold those summits of intellectual and spiritual grandeur where the Masters themselves live. For that, masterhood, is the end of discipleship  - not, however, that this ideal should be set before us merely as an end to attain to as something of benefit for one's own self, because that very thought is a selfish one and therefore a stumbling in the path. It is for the individual's benefit, of course; yet the true idea is that everything and every faculty that is in the soul shall be brought out in the service of all humanity, for this is the royal road, the great royal thoroughfare, of self-conquest. The more mystical meanings attached to this term chela can be given only to those who have irrevocably pledged themselves to the esoteric life.

See also: Chela , Mysticism, Body Mind and Soul

Essene way of self-healing: means of tapping psychic and healing powers of the universe. It encompasses affirmations, visualizations, color therapies, and communion with the angels of the Earthly Mother and Heavenly Spirit. (The Essenes, also called Physicians, were a Jewish sect that preceded Christianity. Their specialty was faith healing.)

(See also: Essene way of self-healing , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)

Lying

Lying is supposed to be a taboo experience. Early human history held lying as a sacred act of transgression that was not just interpersonal, but against the gods, the fates, or the cosmos. However, sociological research has found that the lie is losing much of its taboo power. Many people are adopting a fast and loose attitude with the truth in order to fulfil or protect their self-image.

Thus, interpreting dreams about lies depend a lot on where you stand with the truth in waking life. If you feel ashamed to lie, the lying dream may indicate that you are being less than genuine in a particular facet of your waking life. This may also indicate guilt in a transaction that has been ignored rather than resolved.

If you are fairly comfortable lying in waking life, then your dream is probably showing you a weakness in some area that needs to be compensated. How you choose to do this will be your business. Quite probably, you are more concerned about how others perceive you than the actual appreciation of yourself for who you are. This is especially true if your dreaming lies are being discovered.

Are you regularly lying to a particular person in waking life?

Do you find yourself exaggerating the truth or outright lying to win acceptance from others in waking life?

Do you feel others are intentionally deceiving you concerning their motives or intentions?

Is there an inner self that you feel would not be embraced if people knew you too well?

Source: iVillage, http://www.ivillage.co.uk

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Lying , Meaning of Dreams about Lying , Dream Interpretation Lying )

MIND

Mind very much resembles matter, both in its degrees of density and in its peculiarity of design. That's not surprising since the one derives from the other. We might also say that they are mirror images of one another. Just as matter varies in the size of its conglomerations, from the circumferences of giant stars and galaxies to the infinitely small subatomic world of its constituents, so mind ranges through the levels of experience infinitely above and below consciousness. There is no Not-Mind - not ever - except within the Ultimate Void itself.

Hypnosis sheds a faint light on certain levels of consciousness beneath the ordinary. By means of the intense concentration and focusing of attention that hypnosis evokes, we are able to accomplish feats of mind and body that otherwise only yogis know. Hypnosis works by forcing a thread of memory awareness deep into the mind labyrinth, which, however deeply it may penetrate the darkness, is always tied tightly to the ordinary consciousness at the top. Without that Ariadne's thread, the more deeply we were to concentrate on something, the more we would be lost to the world. The more attention we bring to bear on anything, the deeper into a simulacrum of sleep we proceed, as our surroundings and the outside world disappear into this darkness and outer sensations are walled off - presumably to prevent distraction. Since this state of concentration so much resembles sleep, in fact, the slightest lapse of the will sends us drifting towards unconsciousness. Ordinary sleep is a mirror-like repetition of the fragmentation of superconsciousness that we shall see results in abandonment of the self. However, as concentration proceeds ever more inward, the more the inner landscape is illuminated and narrowed. This "inner light" of laser-like consciousness is shared by the vegetable kingdom. (Its character can be recognized in psychedelic intoxication of various kinds). Finally, as we proceed into the unconscious itself we enter a quantum universe of our own. Here we find ourselves in the very "consciousness" of matter itself, with its links to everything in the universe. Presumably, death is but a deeper descent still, a proceeding into the actual heart of Mind, leading into the Void, which is the womb of all manifestations. Ordinary consciousness is obviously the link between higher and lower planes. It is a delicate balance between retreat into self-absorption and abandonment of the self to the sensory experience. It is maintained with great difficulty, for we have a tendency to drift out of it into one or the other of the two diametrically opposed realms of experience that it separates. These realms, of course, are infinitely more attractive than boring, old, routine mind. Within this narrow water-hole of ordinary consciousness, however, lie all the accomplishments and discoveries of human history. Indeed, it is this narrow and unreliable bridge that human society has learned to exploit as "civilization". Unfortunately, it has been examined but superficially and little has been done to stretch its dimensions or protect it from disintegration. Consequently we know almost nothing either of its limitations or its potential powers.

Heightened awareness is the opposed of focused attention or concentration. Attention becomes more and more generalized and cognizant of every petal on every flower in the garden, then every vein in every leaf. . . But now, as attention fans out, mind loses its coherency and begins to fragment. Under the influence of psychedelic drugs the attention is so fragmented that it merges altogether with the outer world and the inner self is abandoned to the chaos of the interface. The loss of the inner self, however, is usually accompanied by extreme panic as it attempts to jump from scintilla to scintilla.

For a time, the fragmentation of expanding mind can be kept under control by the use of amphetamines or cocaine in ever-increasing dosages. By means of these substances, alertness and intelligence are increased because attention is spread infinitely thin across a wider and wider spectrum of sensory experience coming in from the outer world. The "outer world" includes, of course, the consciousness of one's own body, as well as reflexive self-observation. At the same time, the inner self is being supplied with increased energy and speed too, so that it can maintain consciousness of itself and stave off chaos by racing back and forth around the ever-enlarging periphery of experience. As we are all very well aware, however, this path quickly comes to an end.

Fortunately, the heightening of externalized consciousness can be achieved without drugs, through mysticism. The sensory awareness can either be bypassed or used as the vehicle of its own transcendence. If the inner self is voluntarily released to heightened consciousness, which we sometimes refer to as leaving the ego behind in order to enter Nirvana, peace descends at once and chaos is transformed into the so-called "mystical experience." This process, once begun, can continue into such total absorption that the individual consciousness ceases to exist at any point and we could refer to that as a more or less permanent trance.

(See also: MIND , Magick, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul,)

Meditation

According to Swami Vishnu Devananda, meditation is "….a continuous flow of perception or thought, just like the flow of water in a river." A practice wherein there is constant observation of the mind, meditation brings awareness, harmony and natural order into life. It helps you dig deep into your inner self to discover the wisdom and tranquility that lie within.

Principles of Meditation

The basic points to be kept in mind in practicing meditation are:

·      Have a special place and specific time for meditation. Try doing it daily.

·      Choose a time when your mind is not clouded with worries.

·      Sit up straight with your back, neck and head in one line. Facing north or east.

·      Condition your mind such so as to remain quiet for the duration of your meditation session.

·      Regulate your breathing. Start with 5 minutes of deep breathing. Then gradually slow it down.

·      Follow a rhythmic breathing pattern - inhale and exhale.

·      Initially let your mind wander. It grows more restless if you force to concentrate.

·      Then slowly bring it to rest on the focal point of your choice.

·      Hold your object of concentration at this focal point throughout your session.

·      Meditation happens when you reach a state of pure thought. Even while retaining an awareness of duel self.

Followed diligently you will soon be able to attain a super-conscious state.

Tips on Concentration

·      At the outset, it is hard to keep your attention to keep focussed on one object.

·      So it is better to start off by limiting your field of concentration to a category of objects.

·      Choose your objects with care e.g. any four flowers, fruits, trees...etc. You must feel at ease with what you choose.

·      After concentrating on one, you can move on to the next, if & when your mind starts wandering.

This style of meditative exercise will help you control your mind down to a finer focus, teaching you the principle of single point concentration.

Meditative Postures

Yoni Mudra

·  Close your ears with thumbs.

·  Cover your eyes with your index finger.

·  Close your nostrils with your middle fingers.

·  Press your lips together with your remaining fingers.

·  Release the middle fingers gently to inhale and exhale while you meditate.

Frontal & Nasal Gazing

·  Gaze at a point between your eyebrows, seat of the 'Third Eye' or at the tip or your nose.

·  This would improve your level of concentration. At the same time, strengthening your eye muscles. Nasal gazing has a positive effect on the central nervous system.

·  Remember not to strain your eyes. Start with one minute of gazing and then slowly build it up to ten minutes.

Candle Gazing

• Place a candle at eye-level in a darkened, draught-free room.
• Close your eyes and hold an after-image of the bright flame.
• The practice steadies the wandering mind, leading you to focus with pin-point accuracy.

(See also: Meditation , Ayurveda, Ayurvedic Dictionary, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Buddha Nature

The following terms refer to the same thing: Self-Nature, True Nature, Original Nature, Dharma Nature, True Mark, True Mind, True Emptiness, True Thusness, Dharma Body, Original Face, Emptiness, Prajna, Nirvana, etc.

According to the Mahayana view, (buddha-nature) is the true, immutable, and eternal nature of all beings. Since all beings possess buddha-nature, it is possible for them to attain enlightenment and become a buddha, regardless of what level of existence they occupy ...

The answer to the question whether buddha-nature is immanent in beings is an essential determining factor for the association of a given school with Theravada or Mahayana, the two great currents within Buddhism.

In Theravada this notion is unknown; here the potential to become a buddha is not ascribed to every being.

By contrast the Mahayana sees the attainment of buddhahood as the highest goal; it can be attained through the inherent buddha-nature of every being through appropriate spiritual practice. (The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen.)

See also "Dharma Nature."

 (See also: Buddha Nature , Buddhism, Body Mind and Soul)

Self Realization: Direct knowing of the Self God, Parasiva.

Self Realization is known in Sanskrit as nirvikalpa samadhi; "enstasy without form or seed;" the ultimate spiritual attainment (also called asamprajnata samadhi).

Esoterically, this state is attained when the mystic kundalini force pierces through the sahasrara chakra at the crown of the head. This transcendence of all modes of human consciousness brings the realization or "nonexperience" of That which exists beyond the mind, beyond time, form and space.

But even to assign a name to Parasiva, or to its realization is to name that which cannot be named. In fact, it is "experienced" only in its aftermath as a change in perspective, a permanent transformation, and as an intuitive familiarity with the Truth that surpasses understanding.

See: God Realization, enstasy, liberation, kundalini, Parasiva, raja yoga, Samadhi, enlightenment.

(See also: Self Realization , Hinduism, Body Mind and Soul)

Cause-awakened one

(Jpn.: engaku; Skt.: pratyekabuddha)

Also, self-awakened one. One who perceives the twelve-linked chain of causation, or the truth of causal relationship. Cause-awakened one also means those who, in an age when there is no Buddha, realize on their own the truth of impermanence by observing natural phenomena. Because their awakening is self-gained, cause-awakened ones are also called self-awakened ones. Together with voice-hearers, they constitute the persons of the two vehicles. Unlike bodhisattvas, they seek their own emancipation without thought of preaching for and instructing others.

The Sanskrit term pratyekabuddha means "independently enlightened one" or "individually enlightened one." In the early Chinese translations of Buddhist scriptures, it was rendered cause-awakened one, which implies one enlightened through perceiving causal relation ship. The Treatise on the Meaning of the Mahayana, written by Hui-yŸan (523-592), describes pratyekabuddha as one who perceives the twelve-linked chain of causation or who awakens to the truth by observing natural phenomena such as the scattering of blossoms or the falling of leaves. Later the term was rendered as self-awakened one.

In The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra, T'ien-t'ai (538-597) distinguishes these two types of pratyekabud-dha-cause-awakened ones and self-awakened ones. Mahayana, which upholds practice to benefit others, referred to the vehicle of pratyekabuddha, or the teaching that leads one to the state of pratyekabuddha, as Hinayana (Lesser Vehicle), because it concerns only one's own salvation. The realm of cause-awakened ones is also viewed as a condition of life, in which one perceives the transience of life in the six paths and strives to free oneself from the six paths by seeking eternal truth through one's own effort. This realm or state constitutes the eighth of the Ten Worlds.

(See also: Cause-awakened one , Enlightenment, Buddhism Enlightenment, Buddhism Enlightenment Dictionary)

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 Atma:

The real Self, one's Divinity. God, the substance of everything, the spark of God within. The Atma is unchanging, immortal.

(See also:  Atma , Body Mind and Soul)

Yard

In daily life the appearance of a backyard is usually a reflection on the people living in the house. A neat and well groomed yard, with grass and flowers, usually indicates that people living there are conscientious, caring, and have enough energy to maintain their property. The yard in your dream may be a reflection of how well you have been able to maintain your internal and external environment. The backyard points to things that are less obvious and, at times, may be unconscious. It may also represent childhood memories that hold positive and negative emotions and lead to self-awareness. If the yard in your dream was a measuring unit, think about what you are measuring and if any growth has taken place.

Source: Dream Lover Incorporated, http://www.dreamloverinc.com

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Yard , Meaning of Dreams about Yard , Dream Interpretation Yard )

Intruder

Seeing an intruder breaking into your house or hurting you or someone else can be a very frightening dream. Depending on the level of fear this dream is, at times, a nightmare. The intruder breaking the law or breaking into your house may be representation of an unconscious part of your psyche. Carl Jung called the negative forces the "shadow." The intruder may be a symbol of your guilt and self-indulgent attitudes or behaviors. On the other hand, it may represent the more negative side of your nature. If you had a fearful real-life experience with an intruder through this dream you may be reliving that experience and hopefully letting go of the fear.

Source: Dream Lover Incorporated, http://www.dreamloverinc.com

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Intruder , Meaning of Dreams about Intruder , Dream Interpretation Intruder )

 Atman:

the self, supreme soul

(See also:  Atman , Body Mind and Soul)

Weeping

• Weeping in your dreams, foretells ill tidings and disturbances in your family.
• To see others weeping, signals pleasant reunion after periods of saddened estrangements. This dream for a young woman is ominous of lovers' quarrels, which can only reach reconciliation by self-abnegation.
• For the tradesman, it foretells temporary discouragement and reverses.

Source: 10 000 Dream Interpretations, by Gustavus Hindman Miller

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Weeping , Meaning of Dreams about Weeping , Dream Interpretation Weeping )

Abandoned

Watching a child realise they are alone is a heart-rending event. In a moment, he or she goes from content to worried to panicked. One of our most primitive fears is the fear of being separated from family, friends or society. In dreams, being abandoned can have several connotations that derive from psychological or physical experience. The primary interpretive question is: `Who abandoned the dreamer, and why?'

Being individually abandoned by a significant other can represent a feeling of insecurity in a relationship. This may reflect concerns about the feelings of another towards you. Are you genuinely receptive to the idea of being loved and valued, or do you view another?s affection as show?

Perhaps you view yourself as lovable as you are known, but fear that more revelation about you will lead to isolation. This could be especially true if there is a taboo experience being kept secret from the person who has abandoned you (e.g. marital infidelity). Dreams of this nature may be recurring if as a child your parents extended only conditional affection towards you.

You may see yourself as completely abandoned. This can represent a major sense of being unable or unworthy to fit into society. In this type of dream, you may not be alone in a physical sense, but lack connection with the people around you. Self-esteem issues, taboo experiences or your ability to receive love should be areas of investigation.

People who view themselves as completely abandoned within a dream often find themselves lacking connection in many day-to-day relationships or experiences. Lastly, you may see yourself as ritually abandoned. This dream experience finds others leaving you for 'your own good?. Where have you left 'unfinished business' in relationships with others? Conversely, have others left your expectations unmet or altogether unrecognised?

Source: iVillage, http://www.ivillage.co.uk

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Abandoned , Meaning of Dreams about Abandoned , Dream Interpretation Abandoned )

Pain

Physical

Pain in dreams is an interesting phenomenon. Sometimes, a peculiar sleeping position becomes the trigger event for a painful dream. It's the body's way of saying, "Hey stupid, roll over." However, the ability of the brain to produce physical stimuli that match the dream event is an amazing thing. It makes dreams that are emotionally realistic even more real.

Often, the pain sensation is related to a particular facet of body awareness or relationship disparity. Nowhere is this more apparent than in dreams of injury, infection, and amputation where physical sensations accompany visual images. Try to recall where the pain was centered, and relate that body part to aspects of your life that are applicable.

Was the pain caused by you, another person, or an object? Was it caused purposefully, or by accident?

 Was the pain acute or merely a nuisance?

Psychological

In dreams, we are often faced with dilemmas that create a lot of anxiety for the dreamer. Some of the things we do not know directly in our self-awareness are unknown because the trauma of unmediated awareness would be devastating. If dreams cause psychological pain, it should be treated much the same way as physical pain.

Does it hurt enough to get help, or just a little bit when precipitated by peculiar actions?

How often does it occur, and is it staying the same or getting worse?

Does it interfere with daily routines because the lingering pain is so troubling?

Do you feel you have enough knowledge and resources to treat the pain yourself, or does it feel as if the pain has deep roots in your life?

Depending on how you answer these questions, you may wish to seek professional help dealing with the psychological pain of dream events.

Source: iVillage, http://www.ivillage.co.uk

(See also: Dream Archives, Meaning of Dreams, Dream Interpretation, Dream Dictionary, Dream Dictionary - Pain , Meaning of Dreams about Pain , Dream Interpretation Pain )

Higher Self

The True Self. The real being who expresses the soul and the body, as opposed to what the person seems to be or thinks they are.

(See also: Higher Self , New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

inner self healing process: System developed by American-born clinical psychologist and author Swami Ajaya, Ph.D.

Its theory posits an authentic (essential, inner, true) self and a false self. , the inner self is an active inner presence, a radiant essence, core energy, the source of abundance, joy, unconditional love, vitality, and wisdom. The false self is a false image resulting from the world's shabby treatment of everyone.

The inner self healing process enables one to rediscover, come home to, and begin to live from one's true self. It involves experiential psychotherapy, complete self attunement, and meditation. Through attunement sessions, one receives the healing light of one's inner self.

(See also: Inner self healing process , Body Mind and Soul, Alternative Health, Alternative Health Dictionary)