Prof. Haritha and Prof. Santosh Nayak at Synapsoirée 2.0 by Parul University!
About the speakers
Prof. Haritha Nayak and Prof. Santosh Nayak are associated with the UCM Teaching and Research Center and have worked across more than forty-five countries on the study of consciousness and dreams. They led a session at Parul University’s Synapsoirée 2.0.
Small conscious mind and large unconscious mind.
The Nayaks began by suggesting that the conscious mind is responsible for less than 10% of mental life, and the rest is in the unconscious mind, with dreams as one of the most transparent windows into the unconscious. They saw dreaming not as noise but as the mind’s way of operating, as a way of working with experience, emotion, and memory in a process of image and symbolization rather than words, and this view is embedded in the history of psychology.
Reading the symbols, together!
They described the ways in which the symbols of recurring dreams could be interpreted and warned against literal dictionaries, which would make it seem as though the dreamer were unaware of the meanings of these symbols. To make it experiential, they conducted an activity about a common dream, for instance, being in an examination hall, asking students to take note of the meanings of the same dream for different people. They ended their message with the fact that “dreaming is an excellent way to gain self-understanding, as long as it is done with curiosity and humility and not superstition—and that the study of consciousness is one of the richest open frontiers of psychology. Take the next step towards a career in psychology with Parul University. Explore the BA in Psychology and master’s programs in Clinical Psychology to expand your knowledge and professional opportunities.
