Otstavil - Put Aside

[emmanuelg]

10 June 2024 - Dream - Otstavil

 

I went to bed saying “I will dream a dream of the future.”

When I woke up this morning– Or rather, what woke me up this morning, was an image of a man standing in an upside-down quincunx (probability curve). He is facing left, and underneath this picture is a single word in Russian, “otstavil.” Here is the picture I drew after awaking;

 

I could not remember what the word meant. Google translate definition is “[He was/It was] put aside. It is masculine, past tense.

 

Я отставил is translated as “I put it aside” by Google Translate--

 

But when I ask Google Translate to translate “I put it aside” into Russian, I get:

 

Я отложил это в сторону which means something more like “I postponed it.”

 

“I left it there” is translated “Я оставил это там”– only one letter different.

 

I suspect Google translate has gotten this one slightly wrong–or my dream spelling is not great.

 

Отставил [infinitive Отставить] is related to the word ставить, meaning ‘to place upright.’

 

What does it mean?

 

Hmmm, I dunno. The upside-down probability curve may mean, “you think it’s improbable, but it’s not.” I have some minor concerns about losing my job. I think this is very unlikely, but perhaps I should take a closer look at these concerns.

 

On the other hand, why is the caption a Russian word that I don’t understand well, with a subtle meaning that eludes my dictionaries?

I feel it has something to do with the war in Ukraine.

In Ukranian, the word simply translates as ‘left,’ in the sense of something you discarded.

 

This is very mysterious. Probably will mean something to me someday, but just now I don’t have a clue.

Comments

[methylethyl]

Don't you love it when your dreams try to message you in a language you don't know?

I had one where someone I used to know (since deceased) was offering me a large book. I was reluctant to take it-- something felt wrong about it. So I demurred and walked away. The book had a Greek word inked onto the page-edges, the way we used to deface our school textbooks with ballpoint pens. The word was "Kakos".

I looked it up after I woke, because it felt so sinister.

κακός = vile, evil, bad...

Still trying to figure out why the dead would want to give me an evil book, but I'm glad I didn't take it!

[emmanuelg]

Yes, that is very strange. I think it sometimes happens this way if the foreign language expresses the message better than what could be said in English. Now, exactly WHAT message we are talking about is something I am continuing to ponder...