The Forms of Waking Consciousness

Indications that a Northern New Mexico petroglyph was inspired by traumatic nightmare.

“…There are, however, inconsistencies noted for this theory as applied to rock art and cave painting. These are complex, often beautiful images rather than quickly produced entopic daubs or lines, that required significant time, effort, and skill in their creation (Pagel, 2014). An empiric argument can be made that the ecstatic component of some rock art images and paintings was, at least in part, derived from dreams (Table 1).…”

“…Today, the representational and/or intrinsic aspects of dream imagery have shared characteristics with what Jung described as archetypes (Pagel, 2014). Dream-based images can also be approached through the concept of contextual imagery—a powerful central image in a dream that provides an image-based context for the dominant emotion of the dreamer (Hartmann, 2010).…”

“…Dream-based images can also be approached through the concept of contextual imagery—a powerful central image in a dream that provides an image-based context for the dominant emotion of the dreamer (Hartmann, 2010). Current dream content studies indicate that the typical characteristics of dream imagery include continuity with experience, individual uniqueness, bizarreness, metaphorical content requiring interpretation, emotion (predominately negative), associative memories, representational imagery and symbolism, as well as the characteristics of salience and transcendence (Pagel, 2014). Petroglyph images can be analyzed as to the presence or absence of such dream-associated phenomenological characteristics, in an attempt to potentially discover which images are most likely to have been derived from dream.…”

“…This neuropsychological perspective has been applied primarily to the likely possibility that some petroglyphs were created during shamanistic drug-induced states (Whitley, 2000). There is considerable evidence, as well, for shamanistic use of dreaming as an alternative state of consciousness that has a characteristic, primarily image-based, phenomenology (Pagel, 2014). For the modern artist, dreaming is often a significant part of the creative process.…”

“…It is the rare visual artist who does not at least occasionally use dreams in their work (Pagel, Kwiatkowski, & Broyles, 1999). The imagery reported from the experience of dreaming can have a characteristic phenomenology (Pagel, 2014). It is a supposition of this presentation that dream inspired art is likely to reflect the characteristics of experienced dream images.…”