Accessing the Inner Teacher
Dreams and visualization play an important part in the Psychology of Selves.
When people begin to develop an Aware Ego Process and are able to stand between opposites, the nature of their dreams begins to change. They become clearer. They become more organized.
The intelligence of the unconscious begins to manifest in a powerful way, and the dream process itself is becoming the teacher for people.
The dream ego, or how the dreamer appears in his or her own dream, gives a picture of how the primary self is behaving. This is true of most dreams, though not all of them. Occasionally the dream ego represents not the current primary self system (or operating ego) but instead, the disowned self.
Daydreams or daytime fantasies are ways for our disowned selves to manifest.
These are going on much of the time even though many people have no awareness at all that they are, in fact, daydreaming. These daydreams play like background music—and nobody knows who put it on. For example, imagine that you are driving in your car and someone passes you and then cuts in front of you. You are angry and, in your mind, you begin to talk to that driver, expressing your outrage at what happened. This can go on for a long period of time and can totally destabilize you. Some people will continue this daydream and imagine that they drive after the other person and deliberately crash into him and hurt him. Others will have just a momentary flash of fury or a fleeting image of destruction. The “you” of the daydream generally gives us a picture of your disowned self. Your primary self may be calm, controlled and rational. The disowned self that emerges in your daydream is an energy that carries the rage, anger, and resentment that is generally kept under control.
By listening to your daydreams and by becoming aware of them you can get a picture of a disowned self. Once the picture is clear, then there is the chance to explore the self. In this example, there is a chance to learn how to stand between the control and rationality of the primary self that continues to drive carefully and the more uncivilized part of us, the angry, destructive self that can be so frightening to the rational, controlled side.
Rather than trying to change ourselves— which is always a problematical thing to do— what seems to be required is a surrender to the unconscious itself as you learn to trust that the intelligence it makes available to us has a plan and direction for you.
The surrender we refer to is not that of a passive child who gives up all responsibility. It is, rather, a surrender to a kind of knowing that is not ordinarily available to us. The deeper problems of life can seldom be solved by the rational mind alone. We need the mind, it’s true, but it is only one of our resources.
The ignition of this intelligence is not the same as having a particular religious, or enlightenment, experience. Instead, it is an ongoing process that seems to clarify and deepen the Aware Ego. It wants to help us see who it is in us that is living our lives so we can learn to take over from that part (or self) and live our life with ever more choice. This is not short-term work. It is a process that continues forever!
We are well aware of the fact that not everyone remembers dreams and we can only be grateful that there are so many different approaches to consciousness that can be utilized in the journey of personal growth. Yet, we cannot help but be amazed at how often the act of standing between opposites will initiate a dream process or to deepen an already existing one.
Where all of this leads is to a natural and organic movement within us whereby the unconscious itself becomes our teacher and gradually the bonding to the outside teacher diminishes in strength. The role of the outer teacher changes to that of a consultant to process. Finally, even this is no longer necessary and the inner teacher takes over completely.
This intelligence continues to unfold and brings new understandings. God, the Greater Intelligence, the élan vital, the Organizing Principle of the Universe, whatever you prefer to call it, manifests in many ways, as a divine mathematician.