Magical Dreams in the Soul and the Stars
In contrast to the ancient world, where it was believed that magical dreams were either sent from the gods or were the wanderings of the soul outside the body while asleep, in the esoteric tradition dreams are predominately discussed as a power within the soul to perceive spiritual realities. According to Neoplatonist Synesius of Cyrene in De insomniis , oneiromancy “comes from ourselves and from within, and is peculiar to each individual’s soul,” while Agrippa states that in dreams “our soul receiveth true oracles, and abundantly yieldeth prophecies to us.” The soul is described as being akin to a sense organ, as mystic Emanuel Swedenborg states in the Arcana Cœlestia : “it is his spirit that sees, not his eye… The same thing may be seen from dreams, in which a man sometimes sees as in the day… from a still more internal sight, which is that of the internal man.” Likewise, occultist Eliphas Lévi writes that “The soul can perceive objects on its own, without the intercession of the cor...
