Not too long ago I received my copy of The Duke of Zhou’s Interpretation of Dreams, one of the most recent books published by Purple Cloud Press. Over the last few years I’ve been rather impressed by books from this small publishing company. In my opinion their books are significant assets to the profession of East Asian medicine and related fields such as Daoist studies. This book is somewhat different as it is not specifically an East Asian medicine text, nor a book on Daoist arts. Instead it is a translation of an important dream interpretation manual. Yet, even though not a clinical manual, this book deserves a reading by all of us who practice East Asian medicine.
The subject of dreams is something that I suspect interests many East Asian medicine practitioners. Yet, the topic is barely explored in medical classics. The most notable examples I can think of are the discussions in the Mai Yao Jing Wei Lun (Treatise on the Essentials of the Pulse and the Subtleties of the Essence; Su Wen 17) and in the Fang Sheng Shuai Lun (Treatise on Comparing Abundance and Depletion; Su Wen 80). However, the discussions of dreams in these chapters are relatively short, based mostly on simplistic Five Phase or Yin-Yang breakdowns, with some other material added. As such, those clinicians interested in dream analysis supplement these discussions (when they’re even aware that there is some material in the Su Wen, albeit minimal), with dream interpretation based on modern western models. While this in and of itself may not be horrible, I think as practitioners of East Asian medicine it is by far preferable to understand the tradition as it was originally practiced, and the culture that was the soil in which the medicine grew. Once we understand how doctors in East Asia saw dreams, then we can better create a newer model to analyze dreams in our own times and cultures.
The Duke of Zhou’s Interpretation of Dreams (周公解夢) steps in to help fill those gaps. The book starts off with a very useful foreword that helps situate dream interpretation in history and culture. It turns out that dream interpretation and divination was an important topic in pre-modern China, and in the later imperial period dream interpretation books were popular and widely read. Following the foreword, Purple Cloud Press’ editor Johan Hausen gives readers a detailed presentation of who exactly was this character, the Duke of Zhou. Just like the Huang Di, the eponymous Duke of Zhou is a cultural hero in China and his association with this text is something important to consider. Hausen’s introduction continues by investigating the association between the Duke of Zhou and dream analysis. Throughout all of these sections there are copious endnotes that cite scholarly sources both in Chinese and European languages, and do things such as analyze individual Chinese characters to better elucidate topics being presented. Overall, I estimate that the introductory materials before the actual translation is about a quarter of the entire printed book. In my opinion, this material alone is worth the purchase of the book. There was quite a bit of information on the place of dreams in Chinese culture and history that I had never before read, even with my 30 plus years of involvement with East Asian Studies and Chinese medicine.
After the introductory material we get the actual translations – in this case two versions of the original text, one of which was found in the Dunhuang Caves. Each book is separated into thematic chapters that provide analyses of those dreams. Such chapters include, for example, “Heaven and Earth, Sun, Moon and Stellar Constellations,” “Spouses, Childbirth, Pregnancies and Sex,” Food and Drink,” and “Dragons and Snakes.” What I also particularly appreciate about the book is that it is bilingual, containing the original Chinese text with Nikita Bushin’s excellent translations. As time goes by more East Asian medicine professionals are embarking on the study of Chinese, and bilingual editions allow individual readers the ability to see the original text, and interact with the translation in a way that an English only edition does not allow.
Another feature I found very interesting is the presence of some chapters in the original texts on interpreting dreams based on the Twelve Earthy Branches, and dreams appearing during the Twelve Watches (i.e., the double-hours). The theories of Ten Stems and Twelve Branches are essential to the practice of East Asian medicine, yet scarcely covered in our entry-level degrees. There is also a chapter on the use of talismans to treat nightmares. Talismans (符) are an esoteric approach to medicine that I find particularly interesting, and also something completely absent from western discussions of East Asian medicine.
When I first got this book I decided to simply read it from cover to cover, however I quickly realized this was not the best way to approach it (as the introduction actually tells us). Instead, I decided to use what the Duke of Zhou gave us in its intended manner. Over the last month each night when I could remember my dreams, I would try to find something similar in the text. Reading the interpretation was then a meditation for me that day. Given the fact that much of the text describes a society quite different from the modern day, sometimes I could not find something directly on point. But what I did find was that I was starting to remember my dreams more often. The act of interacting with them on a more regular basis with as illustrious a guide as the Duke of Zhou himself opened up a new window on my dreams that I can say is both fascinating and useful. I will keep the content and interpretation of my own dreams to myself, but it seems clear that this is the very intended and original use of the book: opening up a window on our dreams and encouraging us to analyze their meanings to help us with our daily waking life.
Overall the only complaint or suggestion I have is that an index would be very useful since the book is designed to be a reference that is consulted over and over again. Since however the chapters are relatively short and arranged by topic, this is not a huge problem. But, if there is a second edition, an index would be a great addition. Aside from that this is an excellent book of Chinese culture and folklore that can give East Asian medicine practitioners deeper insight into the time, place and people that created our medicine. Happy dreaming!