Dreams can be like charades in which we act out words rather than

When Jane Roberts wrote, “Dreams can be like charades in which we act out words rather than see or speak them,” she was unveiling a mystery as ancient as consciousness itself — the hidden language of the soul. Dreams, she suggests, are not mere illusions of sleep, but sacred performances in which the spirit speaks through symbol and motion, not sound. They are the theatre of the unseen, where the self reveals truths too profound for words. To the wise, this quote is not about sleep at all — it is about the deeper dialogue between the mind, the heart, and the eternal.

In her time, Jane Roberts became known for her exploration of metaphysics and the nature of reality, particularly through her “Seth” writings. She believed that dreams were messages from higher aspects of ourselves, encoded not in the logic of speech, but in the symbolic language of experience. When she compares them to charades, she captures this beautifully — for in a charade, one must interpret gestures and movements to uncover a hidden meaning. So too in dreams, the soul does not tell, it shows. We are both actor and audience, moving through a script written by our own deeper wisdom.

Think of the dreams that come to you in moments of transition — a crumbling house, a flight through the clouds, a familiar face turned strange. These are not random phantoms, but living metaphors. The crumbling house is your old self breaking down to make space for the new; the flight is your yearning for freedom; the unfamiliar face is the part of you yet to be understood. In the world of dreams, the soul speaks in actions because words would be too small, too limited, to hold its meaning. As Roberts teaches, we must learn to read these gestures as one reads the signs of the stars or the flight of birds.

The ancients, too, understood this truth. The Egyptians called dreams the “speech of the gods,” and their priests devoted themselves to interpreting them. The Greeks built temples to Asclepius where people would sleep and hope for divine visions of healing. And even the prophets of old found revelation in their sleep — Joseph, who interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams of fat and lean cattle, saved nations from famine by understanding the symbols that others dismissed. These dreamers understood what Roberts reminds us: that truth often comes disguised as play, that the divine hides within the language of metaphor.

Yet, there is another layer of wisdom within this quote — one that touches upon the way we live our waking lives. For in truth, our entire existence can be like a dream-charade, where our actions speak the words our hearts cannot utter. We may never say “I am afraid,” yet our avoidance speaks it for us. We may never say “I love you,” yet our care, our silence, our sacrifices shout it aloud. Life itself becomes a mirror of the soul, acting out the inner stories we have not yet learned to put into words. To live consciously, then, is to read these silent gestures — to see what our lives are trying to tell us.

Jane Roberts’s message is not only mystical; it is profoundly practical. She urges us to listen to our inner theatre, to become interpreters of our own symbolism. When you dream, do not dismiss it as nonsense. Ask instead: “What is my soul trying to tell me?” When you act, observe whether your deeds align with your truest desires. The charade of the self is ongoing — each gesture, each decision, each emotion is a clue to who you truly are beneath the noise of the waking world.

The lesson, then, is one of awareness and translation. The universe speaks to us in gestures, symbols, synchronicities, and dreams — but it is up to us to learn the language. Be attentive to what recurs in your sleep and in your days. Write down your dreams, reflect on your actions, and you will begin to see the hidden script of your own becoming. For the soul does not shout — it whispers through imagery, through rhythm, through movement. And when you learn to listen, you will discover that life itself is a divine charade, performed by your spirit to remind you of who you were always meant to be.