Machine, Tool

A machine is a construction of the human mind that operates in a predictable way (cause and effect) to produce a certain result. In dreams, a machine can symbolize a (mechanical) method that should yield expected results.

On the other hand, a machine in dreams can refer to something autonomous within us, either physically or psychologically, such as sexuality, depending on the context of the dream image. Some kind of apparatus or tool can also illustrate our will. A machine can function regardless of our involvement (just like bodily functions). A broken machine may possibly be repaired—or one might be helpless. A machine can also suggest something within us that operates like an engine, a driving force.

A more mystical aspect is provided by Jung when he comments on machines that collect electricity, where the Self, according to him, is symbolized by an apparatus. "A 'machine' is always something someone has thought of," Jung writes, "deliberately put together with a specific purpose. Who invented this machine?" he rhetorically concludes. (Selected Letters of C.G. Jung, p. 51.)

Tool

A tool, like a machine, is something created by humans for practical use. It is therefore related to consciousness and carries a masculine quality. We need tools to "fix" something. Dreaming that one does not have access to tools may suggest that one lacks the ability to solve a problem with one's conscious mind.

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