There have been many ideas about possible reasons. Even Jung postulated various functions of dreaming. Yet it seems all such functions can be surmised from Jung's theory of psychic energy, otherwise known as libido. Jung observed that psychic energy behaves similarly to physical energy, e.g. responding to polarities.
In particular, a common function of dreaming is
| to balance opposing attitudes in consciousness and in the unconscious. |
The task of the conscious mind is to recognize the guiding message from the unconscious, which is typically delivered not in any direct way but rather by symbols, i.e., by representations which are dense with meaning while defying any verbal description.
Jung also believed that we are always dreaming but that in waking life the light of consciousness distracts us from the dream. Yet we are not always distracted, and Jung maintained that fantasies, visions and especially active imagination have the same quality as night-time dreaming.
Many dreams have to do mainly with the residue of recent days, perhaps with personal matters that have created tension. If so, the dream may have a balancing function between the personal consciousness and the personal unconscious. The setting may be different, though, when there is already a significant polarity in the collective. Consider, e.g., the atmosphere during corona times, which tested Ego boundaries for all of us. On the other hand, independent of the outside environment, one may be living at such a rapid pace, inwardly or outwardly, that Ego boundaries become overstretched.
In the cases described here, archetypal material from the collective unconscious may emerge in dreams. For example, people often encounter mythological symbols when starting an individual analysis. Also, during the restrictive corona times, a conspicuously large number of clients in the psychotherapeutic practice had dreams about bicycles or torn-off roofs. The similarities were independently recognized by a wide variety of people as symbols of inner freedom.
In our dream group we will want to be perceptive to the type of dream being presented. Dream groups are typically focused on dreams from the personal unconscious, but deeply symbolic material may also be enriching for the group.
