AwakeningtoaNewDay

ThomF.Cavalli,Ph.D.

"Areyouamanoragod?"Buddhareplied,Iamawake.
Greatpeoplealwaysseemtohaveawayofgivingindirect
answers.But,theirresponsesleaveyoutothinktwiceand
thenrealizewhytheyaregreat.Wisdomdoesntcomefrom
theego,itflowsoutofourhigherSelf.Tofullyunderstand
Buddhasresponseandwhatitmeanstobeawakenedwell
needtoinvestigatehowthemindworks,thenatureofmyth
andrealityandthepsychologyofconsciousness.
ThegreatmythologistJosephCampbellmadeacritical
distinctioninexplainingthepowerofmyth.Thedifference
betweenamyththatreadslikefairytaleandonethat
revealswisdomhasmoretodowithhowwethinkthanthe
contentsofthestory.Campbellpointedoutthatsome
peoplereadmythologyinaconnotativewaywhileothers
utilizeadenotativeapproach.If,forexample,weapplythe
lattertoBuddhasanswer,thenweareleftwithhimsimply
sayingthatheisphysicallynotsleeping.Taken
connotatively,Buddhaistellingusmuchmoreaboutthe
natureofconsciousness.Infact,heisnotavoidingthe
questionbutpointingoutthatbeingawaketranscends
categoriesofman,mineral,plantorgod.Inessence,heis
declaringhisenlightenment.
Beforesuchdistinctionsweremade,peopletendedtobe

literalandthingswereunderstoodinamoreconcreteway.
Arock,forexample,couldsimultaneouslybeamineralas
wellasacontainerthathousedagod.Today,wereferto
thiswayofmagicalthinkingasanimistic.
Developmentally,bothourbrainandmindmovefroma
concretetoanabstractpsychologywhilemagic
predominatestheformerandreligionandspiritualitythe
latter.Inearlyhistory,magicandsciencewerenot
distinguishedfromeachother.Magicevolvedoutof
scienceoverthecourseofmanycenturies.Hencethe
saying,Yesterdaysmagicistomorrowscience.
Ontheworldstageweobserveparalleldevelopments
betweentheworldbelow(theconcrete,denotativerealm)
andtheworldabove(theabstract,connotativerealm)with
linksbetweenmagic,shamanismandultimately,modern
science.Themissinglinkbetweentheoldandthenew
scienceisalchemy;itcombinedinvaryingbalances,the
concretewiththeabstract,theliteralwiththeconnotative,
symbolicways.Historically,alchemywasthefirst
laboratoryscience,butitsexperimentsincludedasmuch
psychology,prayandmeditationasitdidphysical
manipulationofsubstances.Analchemistsworkplace
typicallycontainedanaltar(oratory)andlaboratory;the
realityofmatterandthestuffofwhichdreamsaremade
wentintotransmutingmindsandmetalsintosuperior
creations.
Toanalchemist,Buddhasreplyindicatedaveryhigh

degreeofconsciousrealization,whattheysymbolizedas
thephilosophersstone.Thisstone,thelapis,wasno
ordinaryrock,butratherastonethathadextraordinary
propertiestotransmuteinferiorsubstancesintosuperior
forms.Thesetransformationswerebothmaterialaswellas
mental.Inotherwords,successdependedonexperimental
proceduresandextraordinarychangesinthemindofthe
adept.Tobeawakemeantthatthealchemistandhis
producthadtranscendedthelimitingcategoriesofthe
materialisticworld.
Alltoooftenwedismisstheseearlypioneersasquacks,
charlatansorgreedymoneymongers.But,indoingsowe
alsodiscountgreatscientists,menlikeIsaacNewton,a
prodigiousalchemist,andproducts,likealcohol,sulfuric
acidandbrandythatwerederivedfromalchemical
experimentation.Infact,wewouldneedtoreconsiderone
ofthemostpowerfulbranchesofcontemporaryscience
quantumphysics.Foritisnolessradicalincollapsingthe
majorcategoriesoftime,spaceandenergythanalchemy.
Toaquantumphysicist,beingawakeisnomorethanone
ofmanypossibilitiesopentoconsciousness,eachhavingits
ownprobabilityofmanifestinginreality.Thealchemists,
liketheancientChinesephilosophers,believedthat
subjectivevariablesplayacrucialroleininventionaswell
asdiscovery.Synchronicityisclosertotheirnaturethanthe
causeandeffectparadigmsoftheWesternworld.Like
quantumphysics,alchemyhasadreamlikequality
inasmuchasitstrivestoimaginewhatishappeningin

natureperseinsteadofmodelssuperimposedonit.
Quantumphysiciststagpotentialeventswithsomedegree
ofprobability,butpsychologicallyitbecomesincreasingly
moredifficulttodothisaseventsstrayfurtherandfurther
fromtherationalrealm.Obviously,theprobabilitythatI
willgetsomesleeptonightishigh,butwhatisthe
probabilitythatIwilldreamofHermesormyneighbor?
Thatwedreamalsocarriesahighprobabilitybecauseall
mammalsdream.Infact,humansdreamanaverageof
ninetyminuteseverynight.Abetterquestioniswhetherwe
recallourdreamsthenextday.Unfortunately,Isuspectthat
thisprobabilityisratherlowduetoourtendencytoreduce
thevalueofdreamsbyusingadenotativeapproach.The
mindeithertakesforgrantedliteraleventsordismisses
othersthatdontmakesense.Takenatfacevaluedreams
appearconfusedanduseless.But,ifweconsiderdreams
fromaconnotativeviewpoint,thenawholenewworld
opensup.
DreamsoccurinfourREM(rapideyemovement)cycles.
EEGtracingsshowthatdreamshappenaswemoveoutof
deepsleepandtowardwaking.Mostofusavoidwakingup
outofadreamunlessitisanightmare,inwhichcasewe
sometimesdenytheterrorsimplybyregaining
consciousness.Neuroscientistshavetheorizedthat
dreamingandmemoryareintricatelyrelatedandhave
shownthattheneuropathwaysusedduringsleeparethe

sameusedduringourwakinghours.Dreamsarethemeans
bywhichmemoriesbecomeconsolidatedintothe
permanentrecord.1Thus,theycreateandstoreourpersonal
versionofthepast.Mightthesamethingbesaidabout
themakingofafuture?Thewholenotionoftimeasa
linearsequencehasbeenopentoquestionbeginningat
leastwithEinsteinformodernphysicsandcountless
centuriesbeforebymystics.ItwasEinsteinwhosaid,
Peoplelikeus,whobelieveinphysics,knowthatthe
distinctionbetweenpast,present,andfutureisonlya
stubbornlypersistentillusion.2
Theoriesofhyperspacesuggestthattimeaswegenerally
knowit,isapeculiarcharacteristicofthreedimensional
space.Thesetheoristsholdthattheremaybeasmanyas
tendimensions.Thisexpandedviewofnaturemayhave
beenwhatC.G.Jungmeantinhisclosingwordsofhisfinal
majorbook,MysteriumConiunctionus,Alchemy,
therefore,hasperformedformethegreatandinvaluable
serviceofprovidingmaterialinwhichmyexperiencecould
findsufficientroom,andhastherebymadeitpossiblefor
metodescribetheindividuationprocessatleastinits
essentialaspects.3Inotherwords,Jungturnedtoalchemy
inthesamewaycontemporaryscientistsenvisionalarger
conceptionofnatureinordertotranscendthelimitationsof
themechanisticmodelofaNewtonianworldview.But,
howdoestheeverydaypersondealwiththedemandsoflife
thatpushoutcreativity,imaginationandinessence,the
soul?Wheredowefindsufficientroomtoexplorethe

worldbeyondsurfaceappearances?
Dreamsmaywellbethelastgreatreservoirofinspiration;a
place(rsw),astheEgyptiansreferredtodreams,wherewe
goatnightthatisunboundedbyrulesofconventional
reality;afutileplacewithmoreroomforindividuating
consciousness.Mightdreamsbeoneoftheseten
dimensionalplacesthathyperspacetheoristsaredescribing
intheirmathematicalmodels?Ifso,thendreamsarethe
futureofthatpersistentillusionthattranscendstimeand
space.AstheoreticalphysicistFredAlanWolffpointsout
inhiswork,wecreaterealityindreams.4Totransformthis
scifinotionintosubstantialrealitydependsonhowwe
regarddreams.Weknowthatmatterisphysicallyaffected
byconsciousness.Thisobservereffectisrealonlytothe
extentthatapersontrulyacceptsthiswellestablished
findingasfactandusesit.Forthistohappen,mostpeople
mustacceptthatrealityischangedeverynight,whetheror
notwetakeourdreamsseriously.
InHinduphilosophy,dreamsarenotlimitedtothenight.
Mayaisthegoddesswhospinsoutawebofillusionthat
wetakeforreality.Whenweknockonapieceofwood,we
believethatitissolid.Particlephysicistsareshowingthat
thisisnotthecaseatall.Theenergycreatedbythespinof
particlesissogreatthatwheneversomeothermasscomes
intocontactwithit,itisrepelled.Thisenergeticcollision
givesustheillusionthatobjectsaresolid.Thisillusionis
generallyreferredtoasMaya.But,asCampbelltellsus,

thistrickofperceptionisonlyoneofMayasthree
powers.5Thesecondpowerparallelsthefindingscoming
outofphysics:creatingrealitythroughprojection.6This
hasimmediatepracticalimplications.Insteadofpassively
receivingdreams,wecanactivelyusethemtocreatea
worldthroughprojection.
Therewasatimewhentheworldfollowedsimple,
sequentialrules:pastprecedesfuture,responsefollows
stimulus,etc.Nolongeristheworldassimpleasweonce
thought.Asindreams,lifedoesntalwaysaccordtothis
neatsequenceofevents.Intheworldofquantumphysics,
twoentangledparticlescanbeatanydistancefromeach
otherandwhathappenstoonedirectlyaffectstheotherin
anidenticalway.Inthequantumworld,apotential
responsesomehowsendsawavethataffectsthestimulus.7
Ifthissoundslikespookyscienceitisbecausewehave
ingrainedhabitsabouthowrealityoughttobehave.Dreams
reminduseverynightthatthenaturalworlddoesntaccede
toourneedforclearcutcategoriesorlinearsequencesthat
makeforcommonsense.
Thatwecanprojectourmindintothefutureandinreturn
theobjectofourprojectionsimultaneouslyexertsaforce
thatinfluenceswhetherwewillactinparticularway
soundslikemagic.Dreams,whicharegenerally
unconsciousprojectionsofthoughtsandfeelings,alsohave
thispowertoinfluencelife.Afriendofminehadadream
inwhichhefoundhimselfcravingacherrycoke,his

favoritebeverage.Atoneoclockinthemorning,he
awakenedwiththiscravingthathecouldntignore.Despite
thehourhegotupanddrovetothenearestconvenience
store.Theydidnthavecherrycokeandhesettledforsome
icetea.Ashewasdrivinghome,heinexplicablylost
controlofhiscarandwasquicklypulledoverbythepolice.
Theythoughthewasdrunkuntilitbecameclearthathe
wasdying.Theyrushedhimtotheemergencyroomwhere,
afterbeingexamined,hewasdiagnosedwithkidney
failure.Laterwhenherecoveredandthedoctortooka
moreextensivehistory,thecauseofhisproblemwas
discovered.Twoweekspriortothiscrisishehadbeen
bittenbyaninfectedtic.Ifmyfrienddidnothavethis
dream,hemaywellhavestayedinbedanddiedthatnight.
Inthequantumworld,dreamshaveaneffectonthe
dreamer.Dreamsarisefromdifferentlevelsofthe
unconscious.Therearemanytypesofdreamsthatrelateto
situations,conditionsandcircumstances.InonebookI
countedfifteentypesofbigdreams.Forexample,thereare
lucid,pregnancy,collective,initiation,telepathic,
clairvoyantanddreamswithindreams.8Regardlessofthe
type,dreamshaveanautonomousquality.Inthehealing
dreamsitedabove,theunconsciousseemedtobelooking
aftermyfriend,protectinghimfromalifethreatening
situation.Itwasthisqualityofdreams,meditationsand
prayerthatthealchemistreliedoninworkingwiththe
unconscious.Modernphysicsisprovidingevidenceto
substantiatewhatalchemistsintuitivelyknewcenturiesago.

Manyexamplescanbegiventovalidatethisclaim.But,
oneofmyfavoritescomesfromtheCyranides9,aHermetic
compilationthatdescribesinexhaustivedetailthe
sympathies,antipathiesandotheroccultpropertiesofbirds,
fishes,plantsandstones.HarpocrationofAlexandria
wroteoneofthesourcesintheCyranidesinthesecond
century.Whenasked,Tellmeisthesoulimmortalor
mortal?Harpocrationrespondsbysaying,
Manyoftheinexperiencedhavefalseopinionsastothe
intellectualaspectoftheimmortalsoul.Butthesoulisits
ownmaster;forwhenthebodyisatrestonitsbed,thesoul
isreposinginitsownplace(intheair,thatistosay),
whencewereceivedit;anditcontemplateswhatis
happeninginotherregions.Andoften,feelingaffectionfor
thebodyinwhichitdwells,itforetellsgoodorillyears
beforeitcomestopassinwhatwecalladream.Thenit
returnstoitsownhabitationand,wakingit[thebody]up,
explainsthedream.Fromthisletitbecleartoyouthatthe
soulisimmortalandindestructible.(89)
Mayasthirdpowerisdiscoveringrealityasitreallyis,
whatisvariouslycalledindifferenttraditionstheVedaor
gnosis.Thisistheoppositeofprojection.Toseereality
withoutallthedesires,demandsanddistortionsofhowwe
twistittoourpurpose,thisiswhatBuddhameantwhenhe
said,Iamawake.
Thehomeopathicmaximthatemergedfromalchemy,like
cureslike,suggeststhatifwehopetoacquireMayas

thirdpowerwecanusedreamstowakeusupfromthe
illusionthatwakinglifeistheoneandonlytruereality.The
famousEmeraldTabletofHermesTrismegistusstates,As
above,sobelowforthemakingoftheOneThing.This
OneThingisacreationofmanyrealities,includingpsyche
andsoma,spiritandsoul,wakinganddreamingstates.The
realgoldofenlightenmentisawakeningtothefactthat
humansaresomeparthumanandsomepartdivine,the
balanceandtheintegrationofthesepartsiswhatwehope
toachievethroughthepsychologicalandspiritualworkof
individuation.Inmyownwork,IfindthatwhenIawaken
afteragoodnightssleep,thedreamcontinuestoflowinto
thedayandwithmyawarenessofwhatistakingplace,I
havethepowertocreateanewworldthatisricherand
morebeautifulthaneverIcouldhaveimaginedwithoutthe
giftsbestowedonmebyGod.
CopyrightbyThomF.Cavalli,Ph.D.Allrightsreserved.
ForpermissiontoquoteorreprintthisarticlecontactDr.
Cavalliat714.7313238.
ThomF.Cavalli,Ph.D.isapracticingpsychologist,
lecturerandauthorofAlchemicalPsychology,OldRecipes
forLivinginaNewWorld,publishedbyPutnam2001.
Notes

1Thetermusedbyneuroscientisttodescribethisphenomenonis
calledcorticalintegration.SeeTheDevelopingMindbyDaniel
Siegel,GuilfordPublications,NewYork,1999.

2cf.HyperspacebyMichioKaku,OxfordUniversityPress,New
York,1994,p.232.
3MysteriumConiunctionis,C.G.Jung,volume14ofthe
CollectedWorksofC.G.Jung,BollingenFoundation,NY,1963,
p.556.
4IparticularlyrecommendFredAlanWolfsbook,The
DreamingUniverse,Simon&Schuster,NewYork,1994.
5Campbelldescribesthesethreepowersinhisbook,Mythsof
Light,NewWorldLibrary,Novato,CA,2003,p.49
6Theuseofthewordprojectionisnotusedhereinits
psychoanalyticdefinition,i.e.anegodefensemechanism.
7Thetermusedbyphysiciststodescribethisphenomenonisthe
quantumwavefunction.
8IamreferringtothebookbyKrippner,Bogzaranandde
Carvalho,ExtraordinaryDreamsandHowtoWorkwithThem,
SUNYPress,Albany,NY2002.