General Description of the Process
“It is quite possible that we look at the world from the wrong side and that we might find the right answers by changing our point of view and looking at it from the other side, i.e., not from the outside, but from inside.” —C. G. Jung (1960 letter)
Deep dreaming holds a place in our community which church used to hold, a place where we can join together in a deep, liminal space to receive, through the dreaming, messages from beyond: messages of the ecstatic and messages of the ordinary. When we dream together, we open ourselves to be touched by the Divine. That’s why I call it “church.” —C.M.
Deep Dreaming is an innovative group dream-sharing process that allows individual dreams to be heard not for their personal meaning but for their implications for the collective. This process is open to the public, and may be on a selected topic. We can offer it to organizations for consultative, informational, and revitalization purposes. Deep Dreaming is somewhat akin to the Social Dreaming Matrix developed at the Tavistock Institute by Gordon Lawrence and described in his anthologies, Social Dreaming at Work and Experiences in Social Dreaming.
Deep Dreaming begins with a light trance in which dreams are invited to come forth; this reverses the more common ego-dominant position that privileges conscious choice. The dreams are later read back as a single co-created narrative, which is explored for its themes. The third part is dream re-entry, in which participants select a scene from the narrative to explore further. The process is akin to a group spiritual practice and is suitable for those with some background in meditation, hypnosis, guided imagery, or shamanic journeying who have felt a call to serve healing on a transpersonal scale.
Meredith Sabini, PhD, is director of The Dream Institute and a licensed psychologist specializing in dream training and consultation.
Richard Russo, MA, is past president of International Association for the Study of Dreams, editor of Dreams Are Wiser Than Men, and Associate Director at The Dream Institute.
“Deep in the rainforests of the Amazon, the Achuar and Huaorani Indians assemble for their daily ritual. Members of the tribes awaken before dawn and, once gathered, share their dreams…the dream is not owned by the dreamer but collectively by the group; the individual dreamer is simply the vessel the dreaming decided to borrow to have a conversation with the whole tribe. The tribes view the dream as a map for their waking hours…a forecaster of what is to come…(a way to) connect with their ancestors…” —Lynne McTaggart, The Field, 1125.
Here is an article written by Richard Russo from Dreams: Understanding Biology, Psychology, and Culture (Greenwood, 2019):
Russo_Deep Dreaming
Presentations on Deep Dreaming/
Culture Dreaming
by Meredith Sabini and Richard Russo
DINC = Dream Institute of Northern California
IASD = International Association for the Study of Dreams
IFPE = International Forum for Psychoanalytic Education
2004 “Social Dreaming Matrix.” Weekend CE workshop with G. Lawrence. DINC.
2005 “Culture Healing, Culture Dreaming.” CE program, DINC.
2005 “Culture Dreaming.” IASD conference, Berkeley, CA.
2005 “Social Dreaming Matrix.” Pacifica Graduate Institute.
2006 “Social Dreaming Matrix: A Deep Cultural Therapy?” Presentation with demonstration. IFPE conference, Pasadena, CA.
2006 “Cultural Dimensions of Dreaming.” IASD conference, Bridgewater, MA.
2007 “An Experiment in Cultural Healing.” Lecture and demonstration. IASD conference, Berkeley, CA.
2007 “Culture Dreaming: A Living Experience of Interconnection.” Weekend CE workshop. Los Angeles Jung Institute.
2008 “Dreaming and Truancy.” PhD. Dissertation by Salvador Trevino, Pacifica Graduate Institute.
2008 “Dreaming in Company.” Weekend CE workshop for contemporary psychoanalysts. Sunland Seminars, Los Angeles.
2008 “Culture Dreaming: A Living Experience of Interconnection.” Private seminar/workshop, by invitation. Los Angeles.
2009 “The Citizen in the Psyche.” Weekend CE presentation. DINC.
2009 “The Cultural Meaning of Dreams.” Analytical Psychology Club, SF.
2009 “Dreaming of Barack Obama: Using Dream Theater to Explore the Cultural Meaning of Dreams.” IASD conference, Chicago, IL.
2009 “Culture Dreaming.” Invited presentation, Society for the Study of Shamanism. San Rafael, CA.
2010 “Culture Dreaming.” Lecture and demonstration, Center for the Healing Arts, Sonoma, CA.
2011 “Culture Dreaming: For Organizational Development and Community Building.” 3-part CE workshop. DINC.
2011 “Dreaming for the Culture.” Presentation, Society for the Study of Shamanism. San Rafael, CA.
2012 “Dreams of the Great Turning.” IASD conference, Berkeley, CA.
2012 “Deep Dreaming.” Society for the Study of Shamanism. San Rafael.
2012 “Cultural Dimensions of Dreaming.” 2-part radio interview, Voice America.
2014 “Dreams for the Culture.” IASD conference, Berkeley, CA.
Dream Plays
The following theme-based performance pieces, drawn directly from transcripts of Culture Dreaming sessions, have been given at The Dream Institute and other venues. Actors were often the dreamers themselves. To create a script, dreams were shortened and then arranged in a meaningful sequence, with no other material added.
2005 “Dreaming with Eyes Open”
2006 “Winter Solstice Dream Play”
2008 “Dreaming of Barack”
2007–2010 “The Earth Is Humming” Performed annually for Earth Day.
2011 “Like Diamonds of Light” Winter Solstice
2012–2013 “Dreams of the Great Turning”
2014 “Visionary Dreams of the Future”