Mapping the Inner Landscape: Decoding the Symbols of our Dreams and Daily Lives 
by Susan Zummo

Life is always talking to us, but how do we know exactly what it is trying to tell us? The thoughts and emotions that form our daily lives are constantly reflected back to us through the universal language of symbols. I believe that these symbols reflect what is inside each of us; our lessons and our blessings. Decoding the events and symbols in our lives enables us to view into our depths and learn the answers to our life’s questions.  

Carl Jung is a good place to start because he believed that symbols were a universal language which expressed collective unconsciousness memories and instincts shared by all people. Archetypal symbols could include the hero, monster, mother, father, mandala, sacrifice and the mask.  Jungian therapy deals extensively with dreams and fantasies. Interpreting or decoding these symbols in their dream context would provide insight into the nature of the individual and indicate a path of healing. However, it would be foolish to assume that all symbols have the same meaning to all people since each person brings their own experience to interpret the symbol. Someone who nearly drowned will have a different view of a deep lake than someone who loves to fish. So always ask what each symbol means for you when interpreting your lessons and blessings.  

So let’s begin with the house. In order to decode events happening in the home, we want to look at the function of that room. For example, the kitchen can be the room in which we nourish ourselves or socialize with the family. Therefore, a dream that takes place in the kitchen might be calling our attention to the need to nourish ourselves or our family. The kitchen is also known as the heart of the house and may symbolize the physical heart.  If an appliance in the kitchen stops functioning, we need to look at what that appliance does to determine what is being reflected back to us. Appliances that have a thermostat or regulate temperature speak to regulating emotions (trying to stay cool or overheating).   

The bedroom could speak to whether or not we are getting enough rest or give an indication as to the level of intimacy in our lives while the bathroom references the elimination of toxins or wastes either literally or emotionally. Children’s rooms represent the children and will give an indication of what is happening with their inner landscape. A teenager’s messy room reflects the confusion and emotional upheaval they are feeling inside.   

Electricity is about energy flow and the nervous system in your body. For example, electrical shorts in the wall sockets of the living room might indicate a build up of energy that has no outlet for expression. Pay close attention to which room in the house the electrical problem occurs for clues into what is being reflected from within you. If it is happening in the living room, it may mean that we are being called upon to share our energy with friends and family.  

Water in the home may represent emotion or spiritual energy. Therefore leaks in the roof would mean a high spiritual energy (coming in from above) attempting to come into the home, but because the home is not able to sustain the energy it must find its way in through cracks in the shell.  Leaky basements speak to past emotional issues in the subconscious that are attempting to come into the conscious awareness; something percolating up from the past that needs to be dealt with and healed.  

Now let’s turn our attention to the symbols in our cars. Our cars, like our bodies, take us where we need to go in the world. They are literally the vehicle that conveys us from one destination to another. So our vehicles speak about our ability to move through life and the environment we live in.  Again, we look at the car as a representative of us. The right side of the car is masculine; the left side feminine. The front of the car is about future events and the rear past events. An accident which impacts the left rear bumper of the car calls our attention to an issue in the past with a female.   

Specific parts of the car are also great symbols for our own inner workings. For example, the engine is the heart of the car, so engine trouble means emotional or physical difficulty with the heart. The transmission allows the car to shift gears, gain momentum and move forward therefore transmission trouble says we are having difficulty making the shifts and changes necessary to accomplish our goals.  

Of course, when interpreting the different parts of the car you will want to first look at its function and then use your intuition to determine exactly how that relates to your personal circumstances. For example, the windshield functions as our window to the outer world. Cracks in the windshield inhibit our ability to see clearly and let us know that we are not seeing our circumstances through clear eyes. Denial is taking place as we go forward and we all know that can cause mishaps and accidents. Remember that your intuition is always going to give the correct answer.  

In my healing practice, I’ve had the privilege of working with people who’ve had injuries resulting from car accidents. Without exception, those who had the most severe injuries always told me the same truth. Prior to the accident which caused their acute physical state, they’d had a series of less severe accidents that they didn’t pay attention to or stop to think about. Looking back, each one stated that they had been forewarned but had ignored the signals being given.  

Lastly, I want to turn to the language the body speaks when attempting to gain our attention. As you may already know, the right side of the body is the masculine side, the left feminine; injuries on the left refer to a woman or feminine energy, the right a man or masculine energy.  As we look at different areas of the body and ailments, we want to follow the same rule for cars and houses.  Look first at what function that body part plays to determine its symbolic meaning.  Eyes are like windshields and windows, they are about seeing clearly.  Ears are all about hearing the truth.  Young children may have chronic ear infections because they are unable to block out or process the things they are hearing in the home.  Older adults often lose their hearing as a way of blocking out the rest of the world whose message is unfamiliar and changing.  

The lungs take in life sustaining breath and are also the mechanism through which the soul enlivens the body.  Smoking, congestion or lung diseases block us from fully living both physically and spiritually. Similarly, congestion whether in the lungs or head is a red flag for the body trying to work anger out of the system.  Of course, congestion in the lungs would reference pain and hurt over past wounds while congestion in the head alerts us to the physical impact of angry thoughts.   

Fear and the frustration experienced when trying to control the world, loved ones or the self is located in the stomach causing ulcers and gastronomic ailments. Stress related ailments will have multiple symbolic events attached to them.  Diseases often occur after years of neglect, poor habits and/or stress which eventually break down the natural immunity of the body and impact the entire system.  Chronic heart disease may be follow a lifetime of strained relationships and difficulty with experiencing love.    

Once something settles into the physical body we are left with no choice but to deal with what has taken root in us. We cannot ignore the body when it breaks down even if we have managed to ignore all the preceding events.  We must stop everything and attend to body or we cannot move forward in any way.  How wonderful would it be to see the signs in advance and begin to work with the knowledge we gain from reading the symbols in our lives.  This way we would have insight gained from the use of our intuition to deal with our lessons and issues before they become debilitating or life threatening.  I would much rather replace the range/oven in my home than the engine in my car or have a heart by-pass.  Whether life is speaking to us through physical events or dream symbols we should listen through symbol interpretation and “hear” the correct prevention to make changes while it is still an easy task.

©Copyright Susan Zummo

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