John: There’s more to say about this dream with the serene dog and the mountain crabs (see the first two parts: The Order of Things and The New Normal).
There are two aspects of me at play in this imagery: one aspect is able to relax into the issue (shown by the calming effect of the dog), and a second aspect that is vying for recognition (shown by the man who recognizes that whoever is going after the crabs before the official season is causing an early run-off from the mountain streams).
So this dichotomy reflects back to your dream (see The Level of Design and The Intangibles), where an act of discernment is required.
In your imagery, a woman is trying to make a decision between two energetic qualities (two items of clothing). In order for her to do that effectively, both energies have to be quieted so that they are able to move closer together.
What is surprising is that when this point is reached, the differences go away (the single, shiny glass vase replaces the two items). So everything has blended together as one.
It is the same for me. It’s inappropriate for me to carry the disturbance of an issue around in my nature anymore. When the dog is able to calm that disturbance, a shift is made and I’m shown the next awareness that I need: my probing is causing negative energy (the crabs) to be revealed.
Somewhere I still feel tension within, but it is deep enough that it doesn’t emanate out into the surroundings. Thus, my choice is simplified because what needs to be heard becomes part of a natural flow (the early run-off). In other words, there isn’t an intrusion upon, or contamination of, what’s meant to occur. The disturbance in me isn’t interfering with what can occur.
So my dream has two parts. The first has the dog that calms me, in which things can come together and there can be a blending or letting go. That enables something new to rise up – a new potential, as shown by the early run-off.
But we can also see that this new potential is still somewhat compromised by the initial disturbance because its arising doesn’t flow smoothly into its surroundings (me), but causes flooding that is unexpected (too early).
Something new is able to unfold through this conscious development, but it has consequences in the environment, which shows that it’s not completely free of my personal limitations. In other words, my baggage is still having a limiting effect on what is possible.
What rises up and is part of the flow should naturally be accommodated; yet here it’s not quite fully natural, so there is some fall-out. Parts of the ego-identity don’t just fall away completely even after letting go. There can still be traces that can negatively impact the way things naturally unfold.
At a deeper level of understanding, this dream shows that when we shake off our accepted limitations (patterns, biases, judgments) and probe the inner unknown, we challenge our accepted behavior and crab-like limitations and we force them from our inner depths closer to the surface. Where they used to affect us in a hidden way, now their effect can be seen more directly.
This is a dream that’s a precursor to events. In other words, changes are afoot and those changes affect all of life; everyone can look around and can notice how things are breaking down or changing, but they don’t realize that it’s the result of consciousness waking up.
The quality and the trait that is most prone to do this is the feminine. And it can often cause a fearful backlash, as seen throughout history with women being burned at the stake or barred from participation in certain areas of life.
Finally, this dream is showing that those who undertake a spiritual journey can, by opening up new aspects, cause disturbances in the equilibrium of life. First of all, they disturb within themselves as a cleaning up process and it can be difficult – it can make them feel depressed or sick as it causes stuff to melt early and come racing to the forefront and expose all their crabby conditions.
And then as they work with this “premature” melting of things, they are actually creating a quickening effect in terms of raising consciousness, which is a service into life, but not always welcomed by everyone.
