Chen Shi Yuan tells that in the city of Liangzhou there was an official named Zhang Tian Xi, who dreamed of a long, green dog that came from the south and wanted to bite him. In an effort to avoid the dog, Zhang ran into his house and hid in his bedroom.

Not long after this dream, an army from the south attacked and destroyed Liangzhou. It was led by a general wearing a long green robe, by the name of Gou Chang, whose name has the same pronunciation as the words for dog (gou) and long (chang).

EDITOR'S NOTE

So far I've been unable to get an English translation of Meng Zhan Lei Kao in hopes of further details. But even so, it's a great example of the pancultural phenomenon of dream puns, both verbal and visual--"long" and "dog" pun on the invader's name, but the green transfers from his robe to his... doghair.

And while Zhang Tian Xi seems not to have acted on this warning of danger to his city from the south, his dream also exemplifies that equally pancultural phenomenon, a psychic warning dream. Pancultural, that is, except for one aberrant tribe--the oneirophobic, ESP-skeptical, sleep-deprived people of the modern world.

--Chris Wayan

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