Deja Reve and Love at Second Sight

Dreams of destiny across cultures and history

• Explores visions and dreams that foretell love encounters, highlighting the way these experiences draw people together

Deja reve, meaning "already dreamed," is a widespread phenomenon related though distinct from the more popularly known deja vu. More than just a familiar sense, moments of deja reve are tied directly to specific dreams, often inspiring major life changes.

Daniel Bourke presents accounts of deja reve from ancient folktales, historical letters, modern internet reports, and offhand mentions in the memoirs of authors, politicians, and ballet dancers. Highlighting in particular the experience of dreams that foretell love encounters, Bourke explores the way these dreams draw people together, illustrating just how extensive and deeply human this phenomenon is. He delves into folk practices and spells for how to dream of a lover, such as placing cards or herbs under a pillow, looking into a candlelit mirror, or praying to the moon. Dreamers can learn the exact name of their future lover or spouse, however they may not encounter them until years after the dream. Showing how deja reve spurs people to real world action, Bourke also features stories of saints, shamans, religious figures such as the Buddha, and other visionary mystics. These dreams themselves can be astonishingly literal or deeply veiled in symbolism, but are commonly specific and highly memorable-one of the hallmarks of the deja reve experience.

Bourke compiles the most comprehensive record of this mysterious phenomenon to date and shows how these profound moments of deja reve hold deep and often life-changing significance for the dreamer.