I thought I would explore the horse dream from a few days ago with active imagination, and also dialog with the owner of the horse, the woman rider, the horse itself, and me from the dream. I started with the dialog, although will put the notes from the active imagination first since it is a little more dynamic.
The essence of active imagination is to go back into the dream, interact with the different dream elements, and see how it unfolds.
ACTIVE IMAGINATION
I go back into the dream. I talk with the owner of the horse. I suggest that allowing the horse to have offspring will be good for him since he will get more excellent horses. He is mostly attached to the tradition and what’s expected of him, although he has a curious and open side. He is considering the possibility.
I tell him that I understand the wish to follow traditions. It’s not wrong, it’s good in may ways. I ask him what the purpose or essence of traditions is. Is it to support the community? To do what’s best for the community? He considers it and agrees. I suggest that in this case, the best for the community may be for the horse to have offspring and for the whole community to have the benefit and joy of more amazing horses. He seems to shift and agree.
It feels too much to bring up the other topic, about the female rider he ignores, so I talk with her instead. I congratulate her and tell her it’s because of her skills and communication with the horse that they did so well. She smiles. I ask her what her secret it. She says it is the communication with the horse, being one with the horse, that they know each other so well that they function as one dynamic unit. She knows herself as nature, which is how she can know the horse so well.
I talk with the horse. He thanks me for being on his side and giving him a voice. I ask him what he represents in the dream. He says he represents nature, the nature that’s in me and that I am, the dynamic, raw, powerful, untamed by civilization. It’s how I am without the layers of shoulds from civilization.
It’s another day and I talk with the owner of the horse again. He says he is willing to let the horse have offspring and see how it goes, although he is a little skeptical. I mention that it was the rider and the horse together that performed so well, it was the combination of the two. He says, yes, of course. I mention that she, the rider, felt a little hurt that she didn’t receive acknowledgment from him. He says he can understand that. He also says he didn’t want to publicly acknowledge her out of fear of how others would see it. I suggest he can talk with her in private and tell her that he is grateful for having her as a rider, and that he recognizes her skills and essential part in the success. He says yes.
A note: Nothing here is very surprising to me, although it does bring some things to the foreground. It also helps me connect with the dynamics within each of the dream figures. They feel real to me, because they are. They are parts of me.
See below for additional explorations with Voice Dialog. These were done first, before the active imagination, so the active imagination above is further along in the process.
DIALOG WITH THE OWNER OF THE HORSE
Who are you?
I am the owner of the horse, as you well know.
Why do you want to castrate the horse?
It’s tradition, it’s what everyone who has these kinds of horses do. You know that.
It’s an amazing horse, don’t you want it to have children so you can have more horses like that?
Maybe.
Are there any other reasons why you would want to castrate it?
I notice anger in me and it somehow feels satisfying, although I wouldn’t give that as a reason. I am angry at life.
Castration is suppressing life. Do you know where the anger comes from?
Yes, I am angry because I have suppressed so much in myself. I have denied myself a lot in life because I wanted to follow tradition, I have wanted to do what’s expected of me.
Is that a pattern P. (the dreamer) knows from his own life?
Yes, it’s familiar to him, literally. It’s from his family. His father and brother live this and consciously embrace it, and there is a connection with his mother too. He has done it too, although he consciously has a very different orientation.
Tell me more about how he has lived it.
He denied himself romantic relationships early in his adult life even if he wanted it and it felt right, because he wanted to find someone on a strong awakening path. He didn’t find anyone who matched his ideals, so he denied himself many possibilities and experiences, which he later strongly regretted.
He holds back on sharing his gifts with the world – in art, academia, spirituality and awakening, and healing. He shares a few things here, anonymously, and that’s about it.
Why have you ignored the contributions of the female rider?
For the same reason, she represents life. A part of me feels better when she is more hidden when I am not reminded of the cost to my own life that my adherence to tradition has caused.
What can P. (the dreamer) learn from you? What advice do you have for him?
There is value in tradition and what’s familiar so don’t automatically throw it away. Also, don’t follow it slavishly. Find more freedom around it.
Find the essence of what’s valuable in the traditions and continue that, although it may be in a different form and look different. In that way, you can do both.
How does P. relate to you?
He doesn’t like me very much, although he does like what I just said about finding the valuable essence in a tradition and continuing it in a different form and expression. In that area, we are aligned.
How would you like to live your life?
I would like to live in a more free way. I would like to nourish life and allow the horse to have many offspring. I would like to honor the contributions and skills of the rider. It feels better.
Can you really own a horse?
No, that’s a view that comes from tradition. Each being owns itself. I can be a steward. I have been a kind of slave owner.
DIALOG WITH THE HORSE
Who are you?
I am the horse.
What do you think about the situation in the dream?
I don’t like it very much. I love to run and use my abilities. I don’t want to be castrated. It feels unkind and limiting.
What advice do you have for P.?
Be free. Metaphorically run when you feel like it. Find the strength in you that you see in me. Find the wildness, the animal in you.
How does he relate to you?
He feels a little scared about it. I am unpredictable, wild, strong. He has put a lid on that in himself. He lived it more in his childhood and early twenties, and it came crashing down in both cases for different reasons. (First, because he felt his enthusiasm and passion were pushed down by schoolmates. Later, when he abandoned his inner guidance and most of what was deeply meaningful for him.)
DIALOG WITH THE FEMALE RIDER
Who are you?
I am the rider of the horse and P.’s close friend in the dream.
What do you think about how you are treated?
I don’t like being ignored, and that my skills and contributions are ignored. I like that P. is talking with the owner of the horse to see if he can change his mind. I would like to stand up for myself more.
How does P. relate to you?
He is a good friend, support, and ally. Although he too could stand up more for himself and me, and the horse too.
ME IN THE DREAM
Who are you?
I am you in the dream.
How do you experience the situation?