This article was written with Samhain, Day of the Dead, and All Soul’s Day in mind. It is truly a special time of year for many of the world’s cultures. Dreams labeled as “visitations” (aka “visitation dreams”) may often include a variety of possible “visitors,” yet I usually think of the deceased when I hear this term. This month’s article will focus on that slice of the visitation dream spectrum. Some dream reports simply include the appearance of a deceased friend or family member (like a snapshot), while other times there is a brief interaction or verbal exchange, sometimes meant to provide information. Some claim that the deceased take the dreamer to another realm in order to show them around the place, or for another reason. Either way, upon awakening, the impact appears to hold great meaning in that the dreamer feels comforted, relieved, reassured, or even propelled toward making a life change. Sometimes, although it’s much more rare, the dreamer feels disturbed, annoyed or bothered. Just like premonition dreams (see September 2016 article), the meaning of a visitation dream may be understood immediately or it may be vague – a second or third dream might be needed for clarity.

Some of my own deceased relatives have appeared in my dreams over the years. This never disturbed or surprised me. I awoke feeling good about it. When a recently deceased neighbor engaged me in a dream, I was a little surprised, yet grateful upon awakening because we had become friends just a few years before his death. He was a friendly and spiritual man, who had basically died of old age. The dream took place during the time I lived in Arizona. In this vivid, colorful dream, I’m in my bedroom looking out the window into the grassy courtyard on a bright and sunny day when he (the recently deceased neighbor) approaches me on foot. I see him walking toward me and notice that he appears younger and easily walks without his cane, practically floating. We make eye contact during our greeting and there is a brief telepathic engagement. I’m happy to see him. He seems full-of-life. When I woke up that morning, my heart was warm and I felt very grateful for this experience, albeit a brief one. Deep in my being, there was a sense of great peace. I knew that he was just fine, and that he was not completely ‘gone’ forever.

Whether it was a ‘visiting’ friend or relative, maybe you have experienced a similar dream. How were you impacted? Did you share the dream with anyone? While I’m almost always fueled by such dreams personally, I’ve rarely shared them outside of close friends and family. In fact, it has really only been a matter of months since I have made my dreams (and other experiences with nonordinary states of consciousness) public. Even as a dream researcher, I felt I could be judged negatively and be labeled as this or that. Moving away from that limitation has been quite the process. One of the reasons I began Conscious Chimera was to allow meaningful, subjective and soulful experiences to be seen and heard. I’d like to hear about your dream! Feel welcome to post your visitation dream here (or on the Conscious Chimera FB page), if you are open to sharing.

By reading about the visitation dream accounts of others, and asking for a visitation to come to us through dream, we are more likely to have such an experience. In addition, creating an altar to the deceased loved ones that come through in dreams, can be a beautiful way to continue the relationship. My largest altar holds photographs and small personal possessions once belonging to deceased members of my family that have visited me in dreams. The altar acts as a sacred space to pray, to speak, and to remember these relatives as they once were (embodied) and as they currently are (as spirit). The alter space is a place that can be approached to ask for their guidance…guidance that can come through in dreamtime.

For more information: The authors named in the last months article (September 2016) have included visitations in dreams in their publications as well, and are wonderful resources. Additional information can also be found in the publications of Kelly Bulkeley, Robert Moss, and many other scholars that research dreams.

Blessing to you this Fall Season,

Kim