In the dream someone shows me a proof copy of a book cover. It was flat, not wrapped around the spine of a book. It was the illustration, and may have had words on the front. The back was an extension of the illustration and only included a white box in the lower left corner with a bar code. I remarked that the cover was fabulous, amazing. It incorporated teal and green shades with white. It was a landscape and may have had a house or building in the distance. The back and spine portions were darker than the front. The shape was not typical of today's publishing. The entire cover was perhaps five inches wide and 8 ½ inches tall (would make a very skinny book!), and I thought it was an ideal shape for poetry. The impression of the cover was one of peace.
Awake, I recalled the dream from earlier in the night. I felt it had some special significance. Now, writing about it, I don't quite know why it is significant. The fact that the back had no copy caught my attention.
This dream has lots of symbolic words in it. Some of the meanings fit with the apparent context of the dream, and some feel a bit out of place. See what you make of the symbols and their definitions. Do they relate to the dream? If so, do you get the connection logically? Intuitively? Some other way?
Back: When you see the back of a person in a dream, you are focusing on the structure of that person's being. The spine is the body's principal support and even clothed it represents the perceived strength of the individual. Also, you may not be able to recognize the person if his or her back is turned to you, and you may not even be able to identify the person's sex with certainty.
Book: Generally books symbolize the record of something. They can provide that record to inform you, or they can symbolize the fact that records exist. To "make book" is to place a bet on a sure thing. To "book a reservation" is to record that you plan to take action at some time in the future.
Box: All receptacles symbolize the feminine, the hidden, and the unconscious. None of these are inherently destructive, but they all have hidden aspects that evoke curiosity and sometimes dread. Pandora certainly found the contents of her box to be a mixed blessing. However, you will never know what your dream box contains until you open it. Sparring, or boxing, in the ring symbolizes the struggle to deal with the contents of your mind and the events in your daily life. The more vigorous the fight, the more difficult your problem. Still, you are in the ring because you know both how to protect yourself and how to forge ahead.
Building: Architecture is the result of human activity. Buildings reflect the human body and human functions in their details. For example, windows parallel eyes and the ability to see beyond one's own body. In addition, the particular type of architecture is significant to the meaning of the dream. The complexity of architectural elements suggests the complexity of even the simplest building in a dream-it symbolically represents the complexity of our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual existence. Thus buildings suggest that the dream is not as simple as it may appear on the surface-investigation will very likely turn up a hidden significance.
Five: The number five is associated with the pentagram. It is also the extension of four points into a center. The ancient Greeks found its proportions so satisfying that they used the number five to establish the golden mean. Five-pointed patterns are found throughout nature in the arrangement of seeds within fruits, the ratios involved in the growth of certain shelled animals, and the basic counting systems of antiquity. It symbolizes the principle of expansion.
Green: Green reflects sensation. In the Buddhist system green reflects the capacity for effective action. Green is the color of the heart chakra. It is also the color of church vestments during Trinity season. Green reflects growth, and thus the earth. It may symbolize growth or new growth in a dream. Typical emotions associated with green are envy and jealousy.
House: Houses in dreams symbolize the dreamer's entire being. The nature and shape of windows, doors, and rooms suggest the state of the psyche and its general organization and tidiness. Some say the windows symbolize the eyes, and the door symbolizes the mouth. The foundation suggests your feelings of stability in waking life at the time of the dream. The flow of air through the house may indicate the movement of thought, while water images suggest movement in the unconscious. Fire suggests intuition, and floors and their coverings suggest the practical foundation of the mind. When analyzing a part of a house in a dream, you will want to consider its color, quality, state of repair, and suitability to the dream situation. If the image is one you recognize, the meaning may be evident. If it is not one you recognize, or if it is distorted, then seek meaning in its unusual character. For example, stairs may seem ordinary enough at first, but they may become steeper and more difficult as you ascend or descend. This would suggest that the dream situation makes it difficult for you to become more objective (ascending), or more difficult to delve into unconscious material (descending).
One: One symbolizes unity of being. Unity is a principal of action-your best activities occur when you are unified in your intention. Unity is a transcendent reality, and one is a singularity among variety.
White: The color white is associated with purity in alchemy and connected with the Ascension of Christ (and other religious figures). It is sometimes associated with pardons and also the appearance of deities to human beings. White reflects spiritual purity and also innocence.
Sources
Dreams: Working Interactive, by Stephanie Clement and Terry Rosen, published by Llewellyn
