Who is the Sibyl of Cumae?: Interpretation of dreams

Since I was a kid I was fascinated by and very curious about dreaming. I wondered how to make my mind remember my dreams in the morning and how I could experience lucid, conscious dreams. I was even happy to daydream. I am still a hopeless daydreamer! Freud in his book Interpretation of Dreams taught us that dreams are the fulfillment of repressed wishes and suggested that studying them can make us understand better our subconscious self. So like most of us, I have very dull dreams, but sometimes I experience amazing scenes like traveling on the same boat with Sibyl of Cumae, which I consider epic. I believe that our dreams carry a very personal meaning even though, sometimes, the symbols come from a universal source and are common to some of us or to everyone.

THE DREAM

“I am in a big waiting room among other women of different age groups. The room is vastly huge. Looks like it is of Roman or Greek architecture. Impressive columns support a dome and the floor is elaborated with mosaic art. 

We wait for the ships to take us to our destinations. The sea is dark and angry. I and another young woman are traveling to Κymi(the Greek town on the island of Euboea). She is wearing rags and her hair is in rasta style. 

By arriving we can see at the shore an ancient town. The sky above us is dark and heavy, but not like it is cloudy, but rather light is missing just like when you enter a cave or a tunnel. However, we are outside, still on board.

A big ventures market is taking place, that goes along the port of the town. It looks more like a fair or some kind of holiday festival. It is there where I lost my companion. I noticed that all the people on the market are ragged and have rasta hairstyles, exactly like she did. I think that they might be a tribe and I wonder if I belong here as well, or that I would like to belong here.

I wander around but I am not sure where I am going. I have a piece of paper in my hand with information like guidance but I am not sure what is written on it. I understand that there are two male names at the bottom of the page and a female one. Next to it there is a half-naked female drawing, turned at her back. The words Ἑλληνίς (Female Greek) and  Πηγή (water source) are written next to it.”

My grandmother taught me how to foretell the future with the use of the classic deck. It might worth displaying the method in another article as it is very easy and fun to do. I moved on from that to the use of other tarot cards and other fortune-telling techniques. The most popular in Greece, is coming from the East, is fortune-telling by reading the dregs of Turkish coffee. The night before I saw the dream, I suggested to my husband that I should read the cards to him to seek answers for a problem that he had at work. Because of that suggestion and my experience as a fortuneteller, I interpreted my very vivid dream as a message from the sibyls. The destination of Kymi and the words Ἑλληνίς and Πηγή led me to start looking into the Sibyl Of Cumae. So let’s have a brief reference on who the sibyls of the ancient world were and see why my dream might be associated with them.

In the ancient Greek and Roman world, people relied on the oracle’s prophecies. Sibyls were very powerful prophetesses who foretold the future sometimes even if nobody asked. There is a plethora of ancient historians who mentioned sibyls in their writings. Sibyls were elder women, very respectful in the society, who lived in caves near temples dedicated to ancient gods, usually near the temple of Apollo, and their role in society was so important that they could determine the destiny of a town, a city, or even an empire. There are twelve known sibyls. One of the most important ones is the Sibyl of Cumae as she played an important part in the future of Rome. Her cave was found near Apollo’s temple in the town of Cumae in Italy. It is worth mentioning here that Kymi, the greek town in Eubean, is full of caves that archeologists associate with sibyls. Cumaean Sibyl is also known as Herophile, Demo, Phemonë, Deiphobe, Demophile, and Amalthea. She is also associated with another very important sibyl named Erythraean who was from Ionia (modern Turkey) and lived close to a water source. It is said that she foretold the dawn of Troy. To the Erythrean Sibyl is also attributed the prophecy of the coming of the Messiah Jesus Christ. However, it is beyond doubt that this information is a product of forgery. Christian scholars usually tried to convince the ancient world about the authenticity of Jesus Christ by showing that important figures of their pagan religion talked about the one God.

My knowledge of the Sibyl of Cumae was very little before having that dream and still remains a mystery to me the reason why I had it. Maybe I was a sibyl in a past life? Did they want to give me an insight or an important message? How I might be connected to that intelligence?  These are questions that a year and a half later are still very intense in my head every time I think about it. And because I am in the search of my personal inner wisdom guide, I connected myself with them after that experience and I wanted to learn more about their culture.

The most important thing here though is that following my previous article, I would like to add that the pillow of dreams is the perfect practice for someone who seeks spiritual guidance. For those who have already met with your higher self, this technique can be a great tool to illuminate any issues or difficult situations you find themselves in. I am currently reading a book with the title A field of guide to Lucid dreaming and I would very much like to write a review about it in a future article as in my opinion is a very useful tool for conscious dreaming and teaches us how to cultivate our imagination and manifest the life we wish for ourselves through dreaming. 

Until then please send me your fascinating dreams or any comments that you might have about sibyls or dreams or anything that feels relevant. Any input or knowledge you might have about Sybils and the Sibyl of Cumae. All kind comments welcome! Let’s dream on!

We act as affiliates for trusted merchants and we may earn referral commissions resulting from purchases of products or services recommended on this website.