The current understanding in research is that most of our dreams do indeed include material from our daily lives -- officially known as 'day residue'. Theorists of the psychodynamic school do believe that dreams 'meant' something. Freud had a strict set of definitions for what symbols meant -- but it could really just be narrowed down to phallic, or vaginal images. Jung took a more personalized approach. He also felt that only a few of our dreams are important, or what he called 'big dreams'. They can be recurring dreams or particularly vivid dreams. With a little questioning, the meaning of them often becomes clear to the dreamer. Often they revolve around some important conflict or event in the dreamer's life. Even though this is interesting, nobody takes them seriously enough any more to allow them to control therapy.

Not really, however... It really amazes me the images and places I get to "see" in my dreams (what I can remember anyway, I am sure there is a looooot more). I wonder how our brain have the capability to build stuff we have never seen !! The only explanation I can come up with is that dreams are built with information previously processed and blended into pieces that get put together randomly, there for the sensation that we remember things we have never seen.... interesting how the process works. As far as what do they mean, no I don't care much about that part

I used to keep a dream diary and sometimes think I know what dreams mean, I'm also interested in symbology, but don't have my books anymore. Most of my dreams are just working through my life's hopes, fears and tasks

This group - [agnostic.com] - may be right for you!

Yes and no. I think dreams are extracts from our day, sometimes tied up in other issues that may be older than that, and to that end, looking at them will probably give us an idea what's going on in our psyche. For instance, there's a friend of mine whom I love very much, but for several months every time I saw her in my dreams I was screaming at her... about nothing... about stupid stuff... so I started looking into what might be going on, and I noticed that it felt often as if she was dismissive of my hopes and goals, and that made me angry though I didn't know it.

So yes, it can give us insight into what's going on in our own minds, and even open up a little of our blind spots. But I don't think there's any mystical value to it.

Jungian dream dictionaries seem like a fairly decent codification of dream imagery and symbolism. They have some value to some people sometimes because the subconscious deals in symbols and metaphors, and one can gain insight into what one is processing mentally and emotionally, particularly if you're out of touch with yourself to begin with.

Personally I haven't received particularly revelatory or actionable data from assessing my dreams, but I also haven't mounted a concerted effort in that direction. It's mostly the rare dream that has stood out in my memory that I've looked up.

I think it's a mistake to assume dreams are some woo-ish message from some imagined "higher self". This usually comes from people who don't understand that conscious thought is only the tip of the iceberg and are surprised at how much goes on beneath the surface of the human mind.

I do good to just remember any of them.