Common Dream Symbols

Ever had an odd dream that made no sense, yet made you wonder if it had a meaning? More likely than not, the dreams you've had, and have everyday, have symbolic meanings which need to be interpreted. The reason you dream is that while your body rests during sleep, your mind continues to work. It may start thinking about some major issue in your life, or about some suggestion that may have been unknowingly planted into it. For example, a friend of yours may have worn a very unusual pirate-style shirt earlier in the day, resulting in you having a dream about ships and pirates on the high seas.

You can figure out the meaning of your own dreams without needing to go blow money on a psychiatrist to do it for you. A very simple technique is employed here: interpretations of symbols. Your dreams contain symbols which can be mapped to a meaning. While the exact meaning of the symbol may vary from individual to individual, and dream to dream, a generalized meaning can be given to each, and it is up to you to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Below is a list of some common dream symbols. The list is not an exhaustive one, else it would contain almost every word in the dictionary! But using these can provide a clue as to the meaning of the dreams you've had.

Kisses

Kisses represent acceptance and release. A passionate lip lock that lasts for a long time indicates that you are letting go of old problems. A passionate frontal kiss also signifies new beginnings.

A dream of “unseen kisses”, when you can feel a phantom lover kissing your body, is your subconscious alerting you to trust your intuition as concerns day-to-day situations, or in other words, telling you to go with your gut instincts.

Money

Money in your dreams indicates that good luck is coming your way. Your subconscious is alerting you to have a more positive attitude so that all types of fortune can more easily find you. The amount of money and how it comes to you are the most significant factors.

Dreaming of finding money indicates that you will soon benefit from a friendship.
A dream that includes picking up a penny off the ground could indicate that friends or family are about to disappoint you.
Big bills, winning the lottery and large amounts of gold coins are all indicators of good luck in the near future.
A small amount of money in most situations usually means that you are being given less than you deserve by someone close to you.

Water

Water can symbolize many things in dreams. A pool of water can represent your emotional nature. Still water represents a calm state of mind. Deep water represents emotional maturity. Moving through water represents an acceptance of changes in your emotional attitude.

If you panic in your dream, because you are swimming but not getting anywhere, this may represent the consequences of your internal stubbornness. The desire to get to the edge of a pool is the mind’s need for the security of logic over emotion.

Associated with the symbol of water, may be an ocean or a sea. The meaning of an ocean in a dream varies according to its details and action. The ocean, as such, is a good omen if calm, a sign of mixed fortune if choppy; but if very rough or stormy, it is a warning that real courage will be needed to overcome your obstacles, and the following interpretations must also be modified by the foregoing weather conditions. An ocean voyage predicts a lucky escape from an irritating problem; to swim in the ocean signifies that you will soon be enlarging your sphere of influence and/or activity.

Teeth

Dreams about teeth and losing teeth are common. Often the dream is troubling, although it does not contain the same fear or anxiety as a nightmare. In the dream, the teeth often are a concern only to the dreamer. Other characters in the dream either do not notice, or do not care, about the loose teeth.

Dreams of losing teeth are often dreams of embarrassment or potentially embarrassing situations. The parallel waking experience could be summed up in the phrase "losing face" publicly.

Other possible teeth-loss dreams may come from physical sensations such as grinding your teeth or having particularly sensitive teeth.

Nudity

Nudity in dreams represents vulnerability. Without the barrier of clothes your inner self and true feelings are exposed to those whom you would prefer didn’t know the real you.

When someone else is naked in your dreams, it represents your psyche undergoing changes. If it is an older man or authority figure, your decision-making ability is under severe assault. If a child or other vulnerable person is disrobed, indicates that a crossroads is approaching and you may be forced to speak up and demand that your rights and feelings be considered.

Snake

In its psychological interpretation a snake in your dream is a phallic symbol, and to dream of one, especially if it was coiled around you, or otherwise on your body, is a warning that you may be a slave to either your sexual passions or repression. However, according to the oracles, snakes in a dream are warnings of various troubles, obstacles, or treachery. Of course the colors and other details must be carefully considered, but as a general rule: to dream that you were bitten by one portends a period of struggle against unfortunate circumstances, and if it was a cobra, it carries a special warning to guard against accidents in the following few weeks. If your dream featured a snake wound around you which you could not throw off, you are being warned to expect treachery where you least suspect it. To dream of being surrounded and unable to kill more than one or two indicates that you are in danger of being seriously cheated by someone you trust, but if you managed to kill (or get rid of) them all, it is a sign that you will succeed in spite of any hostile opposition; to walk over snakes without trying to kill them suggests that you will, in the end, actually turn the tables on those who are trying to block your way. To dream of playfully handling snakes suggests that you are in danger of being led astray by unprincipled friends or associates; and if your dream featured a professional snake charmer at work, it indicates that you will have to defend your reputation against malicious gossip.

Love and Friendship

Dreams of sincere love are a forecast of happiness and contentment through a healthy and intelligent adjustment to the conditions of life, or are an indication that you are satisfied with your conditions, and the way things are going. A dream of illicit love, cheating, or sheer lust has a portent of disappointment or failure due to your own greed. To dream of observing the lovemaking of others predicts success in your current undertakings.

When it comes to friends, any demonstration of true friendship in a dream is a straightforward indication or prediction of happy social times with good companions. Dreaming of distant friends is generally a forerunner of unexpected news, good or sad depending on whether or not they were in trouble in your dream.

To dream about an ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend, would indicate dissatisfaction with your current relationship.

Loss of a valuable object

Lost or misplaced items indicate frustration with a current situation that won’t change without drastic action. The actual lost item explains your frustration.

Something that holds sentimental value may indicate frustration in a family or love relationship.
Lost money indicates frustration with financial issues or frustration with a friendship dominated by the other person.
A missing person means you’re losing touch with part of yourself.
A common object represents the everyday world.
Not being able to find it an object illustrates increasing frustration about the situation.

Colors

Colors have very deep meaning in dreams. They represent the immediate future and their significance increases based on the amount of a color in a particular dream. For example, receiving a green box may mean that you will be going on a short trip. Walking into a green room means a much longer vacation is headed your way.

Blue indicates that a new friend will come into your life.
Black means solitude or loneliness is ahead.
Brown symbolizes safety and security.
White represents authority and absolutes.
Red means your devotion to someone is about to be challenged.
Green represents travel.
Yellow is the color of illness, alerting you to take better care of yourself.
Purple represents aloofness or one-on-one time with your mate.
Orange indicates sexual tension; a reminder to remember your sexual needs.

Flying

Flying is extremely common in dreams and usually represents frustration or unhappiness. It typically represents a lack of control over your life or indicates that your own inflated ego is causing unhappiness. It is a strong message to take control of your life. Flying can also signify exhibitionistic wishes, sexual pleasure, and the desire to recapture childhood.

Running

Running in dreams illustrates that your goals are out of reach if you stay on your current path. Usually, running means drastic change in your life is required.

If you dream of running from someone, it indicates a relationship from the past has some loose ends that need tying up. If you are running to meet someone in a dream, you should reconsider your current relationship. If you are running in a marathon or parade, you might consider changes in your employment situation.

Sex

Though a sexual dream may be about pleasure, it doesn’t signal physical intimacy with the person in your dream. Sex in a dream is not a prediction of things to come. But it could be about power, success, sexual potency, manipulation or even your subconscious rewarding you for a job well done.

Your sex partner in a dream represents a side of your personality that is developing. Dreaming of sex with a friend means you are becoming a better friend to all of your friends. A dream of sex with a relative can be a stressful thought, but actually means you are on better terms with your family. Sex with someone from your school indicates that you are becoming a better student.

Death

Dreaming of death can be traumatic but it is actually an indicator of life events. Witnessing a death in your dream usually coincides with major changes in life, like starting a new year of school or moving to a new apartment. Death can illustrate endings as well as beginnings. What can seem unbearably sad as a dream may actually signal positive change.

FROGS

Dreaming about Frogs is a very good thing. Irregardless of whether you ate them, saw them, heard them, or had a passionate encounter with them. Frogs signify personal contentment, success within your sphere of activity, and sincere friends. It signifies that if you are an attractive rich single female, you should contact me as soon as possible.

Recurring Dreams

Your mind uses recurring dreams to solve problems. They are an indicator that you are nearing a major breakthrough and your mind is rehearsing for the changes on the horizon.

Why we dream

There are two reasons (among several) that you have dreams: The first reason, and the most obvious, is that the brain must continue working, else you would die. Can you imagine if your heart decided to sleep for 8 hours?

The second reason is the eyes. When you dream, your eyes are in motion, "seeing" in the dream. This is called Rapid Eye Movement (REM), and helps the eyes to stay clean, so it is more of an evolutionary/physiological purpose. This is why the results of the subconscious at work are manifested in the form of visual signals for you.