Significance of Dreams

• What Do we know?
• Have you ever had recurring dreams? Dream that seemed significant
• Sigmund Freud- The Interpretation of Dream (Published 1900)

• • all details of a dream even the most ridiculous of them have significance. In his view, dreams represent the subconscious, which the person usually suppresses due to social prohibitions.

  • During waking hours, logical tendencies predominate, not allowing instinctive desires to be expressed and satisfied. According to Freud, these desires are primarily sexual.

• where we find dreams in the torah:
• • jacob’s ladder
  • Joseph’s dreams which change history- given name, “the dreamer”
  • Inmate’s dreams & Joseph shows he can interpret dreams
  • Pharoah’s dreams
  • Avimelech’s dream
  • Bila’am
• Do dreams have significance: 3 sources and directions:

Radak on Bereshit 37:9

(1) ויחלום, in this dream the meaning is crystal clear. Sun and moon refer to Joseph’s parents, whereas the stars refer to his brothers, seeing there were 11 stars in the dream and Joseph had eleven brothers. All the dreams the content of which the Torah described are to be understood as posing a riddle, a challenge to translate the symbols described in the respective dreams into the matching reality in the “real” world. This is true not only of Joseph’s dreams, but equally of the dreams of the cup-bearer and of the Chief of the bakers whom Joseph met in jail. Also Pharaoh’s dream as related in the Torah, and the dream of Nevuchadnezzar as described in the Book of Daniel follow the same pattern. All of them became reality in accordance with the manner in which they had been interpreted.

Dreams Have Significance

Ramchal, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto , 18th century Italian rabbi, Kabbalist, and ethicist (Derech Hashem 3:1:6).

When we sleep, most of what happens is that our bodies rest and our brains are given the chance to sort out the thoughts of our day.

However, something else occurs at the same time. The higher parts of our souls become slightly detached from our bodies. (This is why our first prayer upon awakening in the morning is thanking God for returning our souls to us (modeh ani). Only the lowest part of our souls – the “animal soul” all living creatures possess – stays with us overnight.) Once our souls depart our bodies, they are able to roam the spiritual planes of existence where they are most at home. While there, they may interact with other spiritual entities, such as angels, and may hear (or overhear) some of what the future holds in store for man. The message may be actual prophecy, or simply an omen – depending upon the level of being which communicates with the soul. That information might in turn trickle down into our consciousness and work their way into our dreams.

Thus, while dreaming, a person has the potential to become aware of future events which his waking soul would never be privy to – which will then become mixed in with the rest of the nonsense going through his dreaming mind.

• 9^th chapter of Brachot- all about interpreting dreams
  • Dreams are 1/60^th of death 57b????
  • 3 types of dreams will happen- 55b
• Prayer
  • Hamapil- protect us from bad dreams
  • Annulment of bad dreams: read the annulment
    

Contradiction in Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Dead 210:2- if a man dreams he made an oath, one opinion says nothing needs to be done and one says he should go to court to annul his dreams. Shu”Ar states we should follow the second opinion, thus we DO give authority to dreams.

Dreams are insignificant

• Horayot 13b
• Gittin 52a

Sanhedrin 30a

person’s father died and he could not find missing money. Father comes to son in dream, tells him where it is but that it is the second tithe and to be used in Jerusalem. He finds the money yet talmud states he has no obligation to spend it in Jerusalem.

Shulchan Aruch, Choshen Mishpat 255:9

records this incident and states, even if father said it belonged to someone and that person claimed it, you have no obligation to return it.

Dreams Have Some Significance

Brachot 55a

Rab Hisda said : [There is no reality in] any dream without a fast. Rab Hisda also said : An uninterpreted dream is like an unread letter. Rab Hisda also said : Neither a good nor a bad dream is fulfilled in every detail. Rab Hisda also said : A bad dream is preferable to a good dream. Rab Hisda also said : When a dream is bad, the pain it causes is sufficient [to prevent its fulfilment], and when the dream is good, the joy it brings is sufficient.

Rab Joseph said : As for a good dream, even in my own case, its cheerfulness frustrates it [so that it is not realized].

Rab Hisda also said : A bad dream is worse than scourging ; as it is said, "God hath so made it that men should fear before Him" (Eccles. iii. 14).

Rabbah b. Bar Hannah said in the name of R. Johanan : This refers to a bad dream. "The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream ; and he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What has the straw to do with the wheat ? saith the Lord" (Jer. xxiii. 28). What connection has "straw and wheat" to do with a dream ? But said R. Johanan in the name of R. Simeon b. Johai : Just as one cannot have wheat without straw, similarly it is impossible for a dream to be without something that is vain.

R. Berekiah said : A dream, though it be fulfilled in part, is never completely realised. Whence is this learnt? From Joseph; for it is written, "And behold the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me" (Gen. xxxvii. 9);

Rashi- every dream has some nonsense to it (Bereshit 37:10)

Chidushei Agadot 55a

כל חלום ולא טוות כו'. עיין פירש"י אבל בערוך פירש כל חלום יש בו שום ממשות אבל חלום שרואה כשהוא צם אין בו ממשות כו' ע"ש:

Resolving this contradiction

Shmuel asks this question: In zechariah, dreams have no significance (10:2) yet torah says (Bamidbar 12:6) that G-d speaks to prophets through dreams. Answer: dreams that come from angel have significance and dreams from demon, have none.

​

• Abarbanel (Bereshit 41)
  • Dreams that are pure fantasy and lack cohesion because experiences defy human experience are not real and have no import
  • Dreams in which person can see a clear meaning, should be taken seriously
• Rabbenu Bechaya (Bereshit 41:1)- there are 3 types of dreams
  • 1. One cause by bad food and indigestion- no significance
  • 2. One caused by man’s thoughts during the days which are recreated at night- no significance
  • 3. One comes from soul and has significance.
  • 
    
• Tashbetz (15^th Century in Majorca) (Responsa, part 2, no 128)
  • Some have significance and some do not
  • Shmuel’s statement about demons is not literal but refers to insignificant dreams
  • Halachic status- since we don’t know the significance of dreams with certainty, their halachic status is uncertain.
    • Case of dreaming about owing money- in case of doubt, we can never take money from one party and give to other, therefore person does not have to give the other any money
    • Case between man and G-d- we rule it more stringently in case of doubt, thus, in case of dreaming that took a vow (man-to-G-d issue), we take the strict view
• Disagreeing with Tashbetz
  • One opinion- we always treat them as insignificant unless they deal with a potential danger such as a vow (chullin 10a))
  • Extension:
    • If person bothered by dream he thinks has significance, he should recite ‘nullification of vows’ in front of 3 friends (orach chaim 220:1). Subjectively, he feels it has some danger
    • Maimonides (ta’aniyot 1:12)- if has bad dream, he should fast the next day even if it Shabbat and should examine his ways and repeont. Here too, can apply concept of potential danger in mind of the person

Summary

• In the torah, all dreams have significance
• Today, some have and some do not.
  • Disagreement what is a dream of significance and what proper reaction is, but if he is bothered by the dream, he should act upon it.

• Prophecy and dreams?
• 
  

An uninterpreted dream is like an unread letter.