Regarding your question about whether there has been research if it’s possible to communicate with a person one dreams about, as hinted at before, the answer hinges on whether the image of the person in the dream is mostly about the dreamer himself or herself (called a “subjective” dream), or whether the person actually represents the outer person whom the dreamer knows and regularly interacts with (called an “objective” dream).
Analyst Dr. Marie Louise von Franz who was a decades-long collaborator of the famous psychiatrist Dr. Carl Jung describes in the book “The Way of the Dream” how to distinguish between mostly objective dreams from subjective dreams.
An example is given of a man who dreams his wife is stealing his car and he asks how does one determine if it’s referring to an outer problem in his marriage or a problem within himself. She writes:
“That is the most ticklish problem of all. The dreamer will often be inclined to think ‘There, you see, that’s exactly what she is doing. She is forever taking away my ways of moving about. She is always interfering’…
To interpret these dreams correctly, one has to know the whole marital situation and have an idea of the wife’s objective behaviour. Then one can evaluate whether it is a projection or whether it refers to the wife. Sometimes it refers to both…
Generally, I would say that about eighty-five percent of the dream motifs are subjective, and therefore I recommend interpreting most dreams subjectively. One should always ask ‘What is it in me that does that’ instead of taking the dream as a warning against other people.”
Analyst Mary Ann Mattoon in “Jung and the Human Psyche: An Understandable Introduction” adds that if the person’s image in the dream is an exact photographic likeness and not “different” from the outer person in any way, then it’s more likely that the dream is somehow commenting on the actual person and her or his relationship dynamic with the dreamer.
But if the person is “different” in any way, and especially if she or he is not really currently involved in the daily life of the dreamer, then this points to the image being mostly about an inner aspect of the dreamer.
If the dream is “subjective”, then the dreamer can “communicate” during waking hours with the image of the person previously seen in the dream who stands for a part of the dreamer’s psyche. The method of communication is called “Active Imagination”. In “Jung Lexicon”, analyst Daryl Sharp writes:
“The object of active imagination is to give a voice to sides of the personality, particularly the anima/animus and the shadow, that are normally not heard, thereby establishing a line of communication between consciousness and the unconscious.”
The “anima” is the technical name that your ex in your dreams would be given in this case.
However, an active, critical attitude is needed on the part of the ego when verbal dialogues are entered into and they are not totally safe without professional supervision because the psyche has two sides, one beneficial but also one that can be deceptive and harmful if the ego isn’t aware enough about how to deal with what the inner figure says in a knowledgeable enough way.
Having said that, analyst Robert Johnson’s book “Inner Work” describes the method of Active Imagination (as well as how to approach looking at one’s own dreams) in a clear and reliable way. Other books about Active Imagination include Mary Watkins’s “Invisible Guests” and “Waking Dreams”. The technique is also described to some extent in “Man and his Symbols” edited by C. G. Jung.
A more recent book, “Imaginal Figures in Everyday Life: Stories from The World between Matter and Mind” by analyst Mary Harrell, is also very good.
Regarding dreams that in the end relate directly to objective people you know (as in “shared dreams” etc.), unusual ones are technically called “telepathic” dreams (that is, not ones whose meaning is connected to the correction of an attitude or lack of insight etc. about an actual relationship with an outer person). Although there are all kinds of theories about this topic, probably the most reliable are Carl Jung’s thoughts on this subject:
“Another dream-determinant that deserves mention is telepathy. The authenticity of this phenomenon can no longer be disputed today. It is, of course, very simple to deny its existence without examining the evidence, but that is an unscientific procedure which is unworthy of notice. I have found by experience that telepathy does in fact influence dreams, as has been asserted since ancient times. Certain people are particularly sensitive in this respect and often have telepathically influenced dreams. But in acknowledging the phenomenon of telepathy I am not giving unqualified assent to the popular theory of action at a distance. The phenomenon undoubtedly exists, but the theory of it does not seem to me so simple. In every case one must consider the possibilities of concordance of associations, of parallel psychic processes which have been shown to play a very great role especially in families, and which also manifest themselves in an identity or far-reaching similarity of attitude.”
Anyway, I hope that these ideas can help to answer your questions and please don’t hesitate to ask any others that you might think of.
|
|
Bookmarks