DREAMS
It is impossible that a dream not have some meaningless aspects. -Berachos 55a
כל חלומות הולכים אחר הפה
All dreams follow the mouth (the import of the dream depends upon the interpretation given to it)
Dreams: Their Meaning and Their Interpretation
Various commentators find difficulty with the notion that the meaning (and possible prophetic import) of a dream is determined by an interpretation someone inputs to that dream.
Therefore, the Maharsha presents four general categories of dreams to provide an understanding of Chaza”l’s views on dreams (contrary to Freudian theory that dreams are only a reflection of one’s experiences):
- The first type of dream has no single objective meaning; rather it carries a multiplicity of potential meanings. For example, one may see a certain image in a dream (e.g., a lettuce) and that image maybe simultaneously associated with several potential events (e.g. bitter experiences similar to the bitter lettuce leaves; or a doubling of business profit like the doubled lettuce leaves). As long as the dream remains uninterpreted, the actual meaning of the dream remains undetermined. In this respect the dream remains like a letter that has not been read; its contents are meaningless to someone who ignores them. Interpretation provides credence to that aspect of the potential meaning highlighted by the interpreter and can now move from the potential to the actual. The interpretation does not itself create meaning; rather it highlights latent elements of meaning already there.
- The second type of dream consists of a vision that does have a particular portent, whether positive or negative in nature. These dreams can also be influenced by the interpretation, mitigated or even reversed. Thus, a person can dream of a positive symbol (like a well as a symbol of peace) that can transmuted negatively
- The third type of dream is one which has true prophetic import, which has an essential meaning and cannot be influenced by interpretation. An example is the dreams of Yosef.
- Of course there are many dreams which have no import whatsoever, but are merely connected to events that a person was thinking about during the day.
The Response to Troublesome Dreams
Most of our dreams today are not messages from HaShem; they're simply thoughts that are recycled from what occupied our minds during the day. Negative dreams experienced after stressful incidents can certainly be attributed to those incidents; they don't foretell anything bad. Even an ostensibly bad dream can be turned into a good one. Chaza”l provided methods to assist a person troubled by a dream.
Fasting
One who has a bad dream may fast, for fasting has great power to avert potential bad decrees. The fast should be accompanied by repentance and disbursement of charity, as well as Torah study and prayer.
This fast is not obligatory; if the person is not concerned about the dream and considers it nonsense, he doesn't have to fast, especially today when dreams have less import than in earlier generations.
This fast is observed the day following the occurrence of the dream. In the event that the person is very distressed by the dream, he may fast on that day even if it is Shabbat or a holiday. In such a case, however, the person must fast again on the following day to atone for having fasted on a holy day. There are only two days a year when it's forbidden to fast a "dream fast": The day before Yom Kippur and Purim. If one had a bad dream about someone else, the dreamer is the one who fasts.
Please note that nowadays it is not a common custom to fast following a bad dream.
Hatavas Chalom
Another way to transform a possible bad decree implied by a dream is to do a ceremony called Hatavas Chalom (lit. "making a dream good") on the day following the dream. The ceremony calls for the one who dreamt to go to three friends (forming an informal Bais Din) and they recite various verses and prayers responsively. This prayer is printed in various prayer books.
