2014 is the 800th
anniversary of the founding of Dieulacres Abbey near Leek. How the Abbey was
established in Leek is a fascinating story. It is a story of how a dream caused
a medieval baron to build a monastery beside the Churnet. Ranulph the Earl of
Chester dreamt that his grandfather Ranulph de Gernon visited him one night. He
told his grandson to found an Abbey on the site of a former chapel to the
Virgin Mary which the Earl did. He was a generous benefactor providing the
monks with ample funds. The spirit told the Earl to transfer monks from a
settlement in Cheshire on the Welsh border. The monastery at Poulton had
suffered from Welsh raids, although only established about 50 years earlier. The
monks welcomed the invitation of Ranulph to move to Staffordshire. How the Leek
monastery got its name is equally an interesting story. When Ranulph told his
wife about his vision and the proposed foundation she exclaimed in French:
'Deux encres'— 'May God grant it increase'. Ranulph then fixed the name of the
place as 'Dieulacres' and gave it this name when he laid the foundation stone
of the abbey in 1214. Dieulacres was a central part of the local community for
the next three hundred years.
To the medieval mind a
dream could either be interpreted as a message from God leading the recipient
on a spiritual path or more darkly an attempt by a night demon to invade sleep.
The Anglo Saxon word “mare” in nightmare means “demon”.
Dreams continued to interest commentators into
modern times although we had to wait for
Freud to attempt a systematic analysis. I was drawn to a recent article in New Scientist on the ability to
manipulate dreams. In the 1950s a researcher at Chicago noticed Rapid Eye
Movements during sleep signifying a time of intense brain activity when
dreaming occurs. When people were awakened during this time they were able to
tell researchers of their dreams. Taking this a step forward a psychologist as
devised an app on a smart phone that could control dreams. The subject sets an
alarm and a soundscape, such as walk beside the sea and then falls asleep. The
app detects when the person is in deep sleep from breathing and movement patterns
and plays the chosen soundscape. Once awake the individual recounts the dream
and there is usually a strong correlation between the soundscape and the dream.
Further analysis has
revealed that most dreams involve a playing out of some anxiety. They are the
result of the mind attempting to deal with everyday worries by reinterpreting incidents.
Scientists have found an interesting insight into the dreams of those diagnosed
with depressive illness. These dreams are frequently negative and on waking the
individual feels sad and dispirited, but those depressives who could alter the
direction of their dreams to result in a more positive outcome recovered and
eventually recovered their wellness.
Drawing together
Ranulph’s experience of a dream that led him on a path of spiritual fulfilment
and the modern hope that dreams can be influenced to improve well being it
seems that they can play a role in determining our sense of completeness.
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