When considering the idea of dreams, one finds, that although it is something which is known to everybody, this subject leads to the deeper side of life. Because it is from dreams that one begins to realize two things; one is that something is active when the body is asleep. And to the deep thinker this gives faith in the life hereafter. For this gives the proof that when the body is not active, even then the person is active, and he seems to be no less so than in the physical body.

And if he finds a difference, it is a difference of time. For here he may pass from one country to another in two hours, instead of doing it in a month. In no way is he hindered; the hindrance on the physical plane is far greater. From England to America he jumps in one moment. He flies there. The facility of that plane is much greater. There is no difficulty of changing the condition from illness to health, from failure to success, in one moment.

People say: "Yes, but it is imagination, a working of the mind." But what is mind? Mind is that in which the world is reflected; Heaven and earth are accommodated in it. Is that a small thing? What is the physical body compared to the mind? It is a world in itself. The physical body is like a drop in the ocean.

It is for no other reason than ignorance that man does not know that there is a kingdom in himself. If only he were conscious of it. Why is he not? Because he wishes to hold; only then something exists for him. He does not wish to admit the existence of sentiment, for he says: "It is of no account, it is nothing." So about thought, they say: "It is only imagination, it is nothing."

But science and art come from imagination, from the mind, - not from a rock, not from the physical body. The source of all knowledge is the mind, not an object. Mind means "I." It is the mind which identifies, the body is an illusion. When the mind is depressed, we say: "I am sad." Not the body, but the mind was depressed. So the real identification is the mind, not the body.

If in a dream man is able to see himself, what does that show? That after what is called death, man is not formless, that nothing is lost, that only the freedom is gained which was lost. The absence of this knowledge makes man afraid for this physical body, makes him have a horror of death. But what is death? Nothing but a sleep. A sleep of the body, which was a cloak. One can take it away and yet be living. Man will realize after all the talk about death, that he is alive, that he has not lost but gained. Man is in the physical world to learn.

Besides this the dream teaches that law is working, that all that seemed surprising, accidental, a sudden happening, was not sudden, no accident. It seemed accidental because it was not connected with the conditions. There happens nothing which does not go through the mind. Man has turned his back on it, he is open only to the manifestation. It was no surprise, it was only preparing. Did they not say in all the countries when the war came: "We did not know." Yes, it was so to those who slept, but the awakened had seen the preparation. In all things we see this.

Every accident, pleasant or unpleasant has a long preparation before it; first it exists in the mind, then on the physical plane. A dream shows the depth of life, through a dream we see things.

One may ask: "What is the meaning, has every dream a meaning?" Every dream has a meaning. Only the thing is this, there are those in a country who do not know its language. So it is with minds. Some minds are not yet capable of expressing themselves; so the dreams are upside down, a chaos. They see a goat with the ears of an elephant. The mind wanted to express itself, but was not able to. There is a meaning in what the child says, but it has not yet learned, it has no words; it can only cry or make a sound, yet this has a meaning. So it is with dreams which are not expressed correctly.

But you may say: "How can the mind learn to express itself?" It has to become itself. Often the mind is disturbed, inharmonious, restless. When a person is drunk, he wants to say, 'Yes', and he says 'No.' So is the expression of the mind in a dream.

It is a marvelous thing to study the science of dreams. How wonderful that the dream of the poet is poetical, of the musician harmonious. Why is this? Because their mind is trained. Their mind expresses itself in the realm of art. Sometimes one marvels at the dreams one hears of, experienced by poetic souls. You will see the sequence from the first act till the last. You will see that every little action has a certain meaning.

More interesting still is the symbolical dream, to see the meaning behind it. It is a wonderful thing that to the simple person comes a simple dream; when the person is confused then the dream is confused. So you see a person in the dream with fear, with joy, with grief; or the dream shows sadness. But this is not a small thing, this is not a pastime, it was not a dream, it is as real as life on the physical plane.

Is this life not a dream? Are the eyes not closed? The king has forgotten his palace. Man says: "Oh, it is a dream, it is nothing." But this dream can be the whole life of the past, this dream can be tomorrow. It is only on the physical plane that it was a dream. The condition into which the mind has passed makes it only a dream. But man says: "Yes, but when we awake we find a house, therefore this is reality. If we dream of a palace we find no palace." This is true and not true. The palaces which are built in that world are as much our own, are much more our own. As soon as the body dies, this is left; that is always there. If it is a dream of pleasure, the pleasure will come. If it is a dream of light, of love, then all is there. It is a treasure you can depend upon; death cannot take it away.

It is a glimpse of that idea where it says in the Bible: 'Where your treasure is there is your heart.'

We can find glimpses of that by comparing dreams with the wakeful state. Whatever we hold, the longer we have held it, the more firmly it is established. And it can be more firmly established than what we hold in our hand. Than we create a world for us to live in. This is the secret of the whole life. How can words explain it?

God bless you.