Mircea Eliade (1907–1986) was a highly influential twentieth-century historian of religions (an academic discipline also known as comparative religion). His stature in religious studies is comparable to that of Carl Jung in psychology. He had a broad influence through his abundant writings and the many students he trained at the University of Chicago. Although many scholars have criticized Eliade, his work remains a standard point of reference in any theoretical discussion of religious phenomena.
According to Eliade, it is the natural tendency of the human mind to make a distinction between the sacred and the profane (the non-sacred or secular). This distinction is drawn both spatially and temporally, so that human societies set aside special sacred places (e.g., temples and churches) as well as sacred times (e.g., religious holidays). The sacred represents a power that is both attractive and repelling—humanity attempts to draw near and “tap” such power, but normally does not wish to be absorbed into the sacred. The sacred is the source of such powers as the power of transformation, rebirth, creativity, and healing. Religious activities such as religious rituals and ceremonies are ways of tapping sacred power.
Eliade mentions dreams in his studies of initiatory dreams and shamanism. A more creative treatment of dreams is contained in an essay in his Myths, Dreams, and Mysteries. In this work, Eliade discusses the religious meaning of ascension, which often symbolizes a breakthrough into another, sacred realm. Transferring this archaic symbolism into contemporary psychology, Eliade observes that dreams during sleep and “waking dreams” (by which he probably means what we today call creative visualization) in which one finds oneself ascending a stairway frequently indicate personal transformation: “In effect, the ascent of a stairway or a mountain in a dream or a waking dream signifies, at the deepest psychic level, an experience of regeneration (the solution of a crisis, psychic re-integration)” (p. 119—see Sources). Here as well as in other places in his extensive corpus of writings, Eliade goes beyond the task of describing religious symbols and speculates on their psychological significance. Few contemporary historians of religion have followed Eliade’s lead in this regard, largely abandoning the exploration of the territory where dreams and myths intersect to depth psychologists.