I Dreamt Mother Mary was Stuck in a Mountain

Dream Q. I see an image, resembling much like Mother Mary with a child on one arm. The face of Mary was on a mountain; it looks like it was carved in part of a mountain. The mountain was almost black/blue in color. And I was standing in front of the mountain asking Mary what I should do, to guide me and choose a path for me. Then Mary said she can't do anything for me because she is stuck in the mountain and she can't move, like it was up to me to decide.

Then I get another dream on the same night. I am in a small room, the same room that my mom used to pray in and where all the Buddha statues are. There were 3 small Buddhist idols on the altar and I ask them again for guidance and if it was really up to me to decide. And one of the statues just smiled at me. -Mary

Patti's Answer: Dreams often begin by showing us the setting, just the same as any good story or movie. In your dream, we can almost imagine the “camera shots” of your “inner movie” that opens with a close-up of Mary and as the camera moves back we see that she is carved in a dark “black/blue” mountain. Mountains are interesting symbols in dreams. They can indicate anything from something you are facing, obstacles, road blocks or the setting for spiritual experiences along with many other possibilities. So the dreamer’s associations are important in interpreting this mountain experience, as it is key in all dreamwork.

In your letter to me you shared a bit of what’s going on in your life and it seems clear that you are looking to the carved-in-a-mountain-Mary for advice and help. There is a belief in dreamwork circles, that dreams give us new information about ourselves, something we aren’t aware of consciously so you might ask, what am I supposed to learn from this dream that I don’t already know? (The exceptions are that the dream may be showing you something that you intellectually know but have yet to take action on).

In your case, the message of the first dream is repeated in the second dream to be sure you really get the message, namely that you have to take your life and decisions into your own hands. You cannot look to anyone else to fix the problems in your life; not other people, gods, nor any statues of gods. In the family situation in which you find yourself, you have to take a stand and you have been conflicted and reluctant to communicate your true feelings about this situation.

You shared with me that fact that you are a Buddhist so you can look at your associations to “Mother Mary”, one of which you mentioned was her compassionate nature as seen in the tears she sheds. As a Buddhist who went to a Catholic school, you will have your own associations with Mary that are personal and particular to you. And even though you were raised Buddhist, you mentioned that the Laughing Buddha in your dream was not one of the statues you were raised with, not one of the statues in your own home. It would be important for you to see what your associations with the Laughing Buddha are. Is it his associations with contentment and abundance or with the good luck that is thought to come from rubbing his belly? Or perhaps his laughing nature is a message, that you shouldn’t take your problems so seriously, and let some joy into your life. If we notice the setting of the second dream it connects you with the room that your mother used to pray in (in waking life), and therefore to your mother who you described as sometimes harsh or critical nature, though she often gives you another perspective on things. So the dream may be telling you,

1. Don’t look outside yourself for the answers. You have to communicate your feelings on the situation you are facing. Draw some healthy boundaries between you, your family and your husband’s family. Don’t be “stuck in the mountain” like Mary. It is only you who can free yourself.
2. Offer yourself and the situation in which you find yourself, the compassion of Mother Mary and the laughing wisdom of the Buddha to bring joy or lightness into a difficult situation. The harsh nature of your mother isn’t your way. Let go of the approach that uses criticism and move into the approach of the Laughing Buddha, using laughter and joy to enlighten a dark (remember the dark mountain setting) situation.

Your dream gives you the road map but you have to be willing to travel the path it sets out for you.

Good luck and sweet dreams.