Symbolic representation of a ghost dream, the unconscious and spirit world

Dream Meaning:Ghost

The ghost in a dream is a symbol for the unconscious, for what is dead but not gone. It connects the world of the living with the world of the dead. Freud interpreted it as a projection of repressed desires, Jung as an archetype of the shadow, spiritual traditions as a message from beyond the grave.

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Dream Interpretation by Freud

Freud interpreted the ghost as a projection of repressed desires and unprocessed grief (Freud, 1900). The ghost is what the person could not let go.

A ghost shows, according to Freud, the return of the repressed. The dream is the space where the repressed delivers its message.

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Freud, S. (1900). The Interpretation of Dreams. Franz Deuticke, Vienna.

Dream Interpretation by Jung

Jung understood the ghost as an archetype of the shadow, as the part of the personality that was denied (Jung, 1964). The ghost is the messenger from the unconscious.

Whoever sees a ghost receives a message from the unconscious. Jung saw the invitation to integrate the shadow and accept the repressed.

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Jung, C. G. (1964). Man and His Symbols. Doubleday, New York.

Spiritual Interpretation

In spiritual traditions, the ghost is considered a message from beyond the grave, the soul that travels between worlds. It is the messenger of the invisible.

Dreams with ghosts are read as an invitation to seek the connection to the spirit world and receive the message of the invisible.

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Bulkeley, K. (2016). Big Dreams. Oxford University Press. Fromm, E. (1951). The Forgotten Language. Rinehart & Company, New York.

Cognitive Continuity

According to Domhoff, the ghost in dreams reflects grief and unresolved relationships (Domhoff, 2003). It appears when the dreamer goes through a processing period.

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Domhoff, G.W. (2003). The Scientific Study of Dreams. APA. Domhoff, G.W. (2018). The Emergence of Dreaming. Oxford University Press.

Neurobiology & Emotion

According to Walker, REM sleep activates emotional memories and grief processing (Walker, 2017). Ghost dreams arise when the brain links grief with visual hallucinations.

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Walker, M. (2017). Why We Sleep. Scribner. Walker, M.P. & van der Helm, E. (2009). Overnight therapy? The role of sleep in emotional brain processing. Psychological Bulletin, 135(5), 731-748.