Psychoanalytic dream interpretation and Waldhorn (1967) have downgraded Freud's classical view of dreams from extremely important to being on a level playing field with other psychological phenomena. Developments in REM research (Ellman and Antrobus, 1991) have also played a part in diminishing dreams importance in both clinical and theoretical psychoanalysis. For psychoanalysts dreams can present a challenge as their interpretation often can overwhelm other aspects of a patients problem and take up much of the time spent on the patient, and in many cases interpretations served the interpreter and not the patient. Dream discussion has taken a back seat to the discussion of
Jungian interpretation of religion of active imagination, or “dreaming the dream onward”, to form a satisfying psychospiritual community. Marie-Louise von Franz’ book analyzing the dreams of the dying concludes that “the unconscious ... prepares [us] not for a definite end but for a profound transformation and for a kind of continuation of the life process”. She joins with Edinger in suggesting that some dreams cannot be adequately interpreted as symbolic representations of subjective inner processes, but are “metaphysical”, hinting at a reality that is deeply mysterious. Jungian interpretation of religion The Jungian interpretation of religion, pioneered by Carl Jung and advanced by his followers,