Hi there,
I want to give everybody an update on why the ASR Martins Dream Symbols Dictionary is updated only once a year or even less.
I also want to explain why most Dream Symbols Dictionaries are full of errors and not worth consulting, even Dictionaries compiled by Christians.
To this date, I have come across only 2 dictionaries that Christians can rely upon. All the rest was just plain false and full of errors. Of course, I mostly checked free and online dictionaries. I also cannot check all dictionaries. The internet is literally flooded with thousands of Dream Symbols Dictionaries.
Our Dream Interpretation Course students know that Dream and Vision interpretation is nothing but “translating” to people what somebody said in a language that they do not understand. This is exactly like any other language that needs to be translated for people. Dream and Vision Interpreters are “translators” in every sense, just like any other translators. The only difference is that Biblical Symbolism is a peculiar language. It does not consist of letters or words but symbols, yet, it is still just a language.
Because it is a language, it has rules and principles that govern the language just like any other language.
To cut to the chase, other than our students, most dream interpreters do not understand these rules and principles. Most of them don’t even know that Biblical symbolism is a proper language.
One of the most important facts is that God created this language. He is also the only person that can communicate through or use this language. It belongs to Him. He will never allow anybody to ever use this language. This is why no human being, angel or fallen angel, or the devil can create dreams or visions. Only God uses this language and anybody else can merely translate what God said. Another principle is that people can not decide what specific symbols mean. We all have to “find” the meanings that God gave to all the symbols.
How do we “find” the correct meanings of symbols? First of all, many of them are found in the Bible. It is for this reason that we accept and understand that the Bible is the first Dream and Visions Symbols Dictionary ever printed. It points out (identifies) the symbols and it declares or states what these symbols mean.
Secondly, some, not all, meanings can be identified by identifying the most obvious natural characteristics of such symbols.
And then lastly, symbols are identified and the meanings are found based on the personal circumstances and events that occurred in different people’s lives. This is done through the method of comparison. When many people dream of the same symbols when they are experiencing the same events or incidents or circumstances, then we can identify the meanings of particular symbols.
By the way, the Dictionaries that I found to be consistently correct are the following:
Conner, Kevin J. Interpreting the Symbols and Types, NE Fremont, Oregon, City Christian Publishing, 1992.
Van Niekerk, Hennie. Interpreting Dreams and Visions, Louis Trichardt, SA: Emmanuel Lighthouse Distributors, 1999.
No need to consult these dictionaries though because all the symbols in these dictionaries are included in the ASR Martins’ Dream and Visions Symbols Dictionary.
The dictionary written and compiled by Kevin J. Conner only consists of Biblical Symbols. These Symbols were identified and the meanings were explained by the Scriptures. Kevin knows this field and he succeeded in identifying the symbols that the Bible explains to us accurately.
The dictionary written and compiled by Hennie van Niekerk consists of Biblical Symbols and symbols that are not in the Bible.
Many may ask, what made Hennie Van Niekerk’s Dictionary authentic? Hennie was a prophet of God and a very competent Dream and Visions Interpreter. He had a whole team of prophets who could all interpret dreams and visions. He and his team got together frequently for many years to compare dreams and visions, the symbols, and the incidents and events that accompanied those symbols and dreams or visions. They successfully followed the method of comparison. This process involved systematically checking and rechecking the meanings of symbols and the events and incidents that accompanied them. They checked and tested those meanings over and over again until they were certain that they have identified the meanings correctly.
This is the only way that dream interpreters can follow when they deal with new symbols. It is a very slow process and this is why authentic dream symbols dictionaries have only a few symbols and why it is expanded very slowly.
Most interpreters do not follow this method and most dictionaries are full of errors because of this. Interpreters and dictionary compilers usually “decide” on their own what the meanings of symbols are. Nothing is tested and nothing is checked. It is basically a trial-and-error method that they follow and they usually never even know that they are wrong. Because of this, they interpret dreams and visions incorrectly for years and years and they don’t even know it. They do not even know what the rules and regulations or the principles that govern the language of symbols entail.
The ASR Martins Dream Interpretation Course students have learned the rules and regulations and the principles of the language of symbols. When they consult a new dictionary they almost immediately see that it is full of errors because the fundamental principles and rules and regulations had been ignored.
For instance, food (any type of food from meat and bread and fruit and vegetables and cake and sweets and many more types of food) is all about “words”, “truth”, “doctrines”, “teachings”, “lies”, and when they see a meaning that has nothing to do with “words”, they are immediately wary and careful. They know the principles but they also know the exceptions and deviations. This is why a properly trained interpreter is not easily deceived when it comes to new symbols and new dictionaries or old erroneous dictionaries. This is why they are in a better position to identify the meanings of new symbols more successfully than most interpreters.
As I mentioned, this is the reason why the updating of the ASR Martins Dream Symbols Dictionary is so slow and so infrequent.
I hope this post shed a bit more light on the identification of symbols and the way that our dictionary is updated.
