Dreams and Dream-like Experiences

This study explores dreams, dream-like experiences (DLEs), and spiritual emergence processes, defined by the Spiritual Emergence Network as those marked by difficulties with psychospiritual growth. The research question was: What is the role of dreams and DLEs in spiritual emergence processes? This book addresses the question by examining historical literature from a Jungian hermeneutical perspective as well as through seven electronic interviews. It demonstrates that dreams and DLEs during spiritual emergence processes provide specific roles and functions such as healing, guidance, instruction, connection, revelation, summoning, and animating/enlivening. It further shows that their general role/function includes helping dreamers know and understand their phenomenological experience regarding the spiritual emergence process. In this sense, such dreams/DLEs may help answer questions such as: What kind of being am I growing into? What capabilities and capacities are developing within me and reaching outward toward manifestation? This work will appeal to scholars in spirituality, psychotherapy, dream work, pastoral counseling, hermeneutics, and Jungian and transpersonal studies.