| Animals Animals in dreams can take on almost any conceivable character or symbolic role. From some of the earliest recorded human dreams, animals have revealed much about the meaning of a particular dream. This includes dreams of personal insight or circumstances, and also dreams of revelatory content. Animals can befriend us, talk with us, chase us, eat us, or just be there in the dream to either comfort or bother us.Animals often appear in dreams for very personal reasons, and have to do with your own experiences with them.How you experience an animal in both waking and sleeping is central to its meaning. This includes both how the animal actually behaves in your dream, and your waking stereotypical attitude about the animal. This is important because the two may be juxtaposed.Consider a dog. Dogs are often considered to be loyal and friendly. However, many people have a deeply rooted fear of dogs. Dogs also have stereotypes that are opposites (for example, man’s best friend versus call off the dogs). People with a deeply held fear of dogs may experience a dog dream that validates the fear one night and contradicts it another time.What the animal is doing is also central to how the dream is interpreted. Are you being chased by animals? Eaten by animals? Talking with animals?Farm animals are not too unusual in dreams. However, they seem to be less common than they were in more agricultural times. Grazing farm animals generally reflect a sense of being provided for adequately. In early dream history, grazing animals were taken as a sign that prosperity and calm were coming to, or prevalent in, a land.
Killing animals is a more unusual dream theme that divides into two general areas: killing by necessity, and killing arbitrarily. Killing out of necessity could be a hunter-provider archetype dream or a survival dream. These dreams often reflect a sense of responsibility for the other characters in the dream or of a need to prove oneself. Dreams of killing animals arbitrarily may reflect either wish-fulfillment, anger projection, or frustration with a social taboo. Wish-fulfillment and anger projection have much to do with how you perceive the animal you are killing. Does this animal have any representation for you among persons in general or do you characterize a specific person as an animal when speaking of them? The social taboo of arbitrarily wounding or killing animals has become a criterion for evaluating antisocial behavior in people. Consequently, it is not surprising that in dreams this would be a sign of taboo frustration. Again, what the animal represents may be of significance to you. Starving animals hold significance in agricultural societies and Native American spirituality. These animals often reflect a concern or foreboding about the adequacy of needs being met the future. In the past, starving animals were a reflection or anticipation of famine periods. Starving animals may also be metaphors for relationship transactions in which you participate. Common animals’ stereotypical perceptions that may appear in dreams as metaphors for yourself or others (listed as good-bad): Cat: quiet, independent-aloof, disengaged See bear, birds, cats, dogs, elephant, fish, fox, oxen, rats, wolf (Aquamarine) Mineral and precious stones have historic meanings based on their color, value, and rarity. Geology and various crystal structures have significance in the New Age movement, which has renewed interest in these materials. Beryl is a crystal that represents courage and tranquility. Dreams that include this stone may reflect material gain, or they may reflect self-esteem and inner calm given by another as a gift to you.
Bisexuality
Freud was a great advocate of the bisexuality of all persons. It was no surprise to him when he studied dreams in which romantic content existed that was contrary to the dreamer’s usual sexual preference. Many times, this romance is a form of mirroring.Mirroring is the desire to find affirmation of a particular aspect of yourself in a particular sort of relationship. The romance contrary to your usual preference should be set aside initially in order to discern what sort of affirmation you may be seeking from this liaison.
Another possible reason for a dream that involves bisexuality for a typically heterosexual person is that the anima/animus is flexing itself. Cats
Cats have several commonly observed meanings that translate pretty easily between waking and dreams. Traditionally, cats have symbolized intuitive or magical powers. The former may be a herald to trust intuition. The latter may be a fantasy on your part to acquire witch skills or to investigate occult matters.Of course, your own cat may simply appear in your dreams as a member of your daily life.
Cellphone
Neither Freud nor Jung had anything to say about cellular phones. However, as they become more prevalent they are obviously making their way into people’s dreams. Cell phones have changed from being a symbol of status to a symbol of security. We feel a sense of connection to our resources when the cell phone is nearby. If your dream includes a cell phone, you are probably seeing yourself as connected-or desiring connection with additional opportunities.There also may be a sense of wanting to change one’s social status to necessitate use of a cell phone. Try to discern who you are calling and under what circumstances, as the phone may have a lot of symbolic lifeline or security image to it as well.
Does it feel like a social crutch in your dream, or a helpful tool?
Is it tying you down … ringing incessantly and keeping you from experiencing a sense of peace in your sleep? Chased by Animals
This kind of dream is common among children. Often, it reflects a deeply held fear of the animal doing the chasing. However, it may reveal an anxiety about something completely separated from the animal kingdom. In cases like this, it is important to think about what is chasing you and what your experiences have been with that particular animal.For example, if a relative whom you did not particularly like had a German shepherd dog, you may dream about being chased by the dog. This may reveal either the desire of the relative to obtain your attention and affection, or it may validate your fears and anxieties about that person.
If you often use animal characterizations of people’s personalities, this may be particularly telling. (He’s a bear, she’s a momma bear, he works like a horse, etc.) Depending on who the others are, it may be useful to determine what common relationship exists among your persecutors. You may feel indebted to them or simply hated by them. The former may include people with whom you feel an emotional or financial indebtedness. The latter is a throwback to the old schoolyard scuffle. You may feel that particular co-workers are angry or jealous and are seeking your life or expulsion. If you are chased by strangers, this may have more global implications for how you see yourself in the world. During different seasons in life, many people experience a sense of not fitting in, or of being driven away. This feeling may come immediately prior to or immediately following a geographic move into a new region of the country. It may also occur around other times of transition such as marriage or a career change. This type of dream usually reflects acceptance anxiety. In dreams where you are being chased, the emotion of the dream is often as important as the objects and images of the dream. Did you feel your life was threatened? Did you feel that you could have turned and faced the chaser with relative success? These questions will help determine the interpretation of such dreams. |
Dogs
Dogs can be great friends or frightening adversaries. In dreams, the friendly dog may be a representation of a trustworthy relationship or intuitive affirmation of it. The wild dog may represent a nagging, ongoing struggle with a seemingly irresolvable conflict. (Of course, either case may just be a replay of a life situation starring a real dog that you know, either friend or foe.)Do you want someone who is unfairly persecuting you to call off the dogs?
Is there a relationship in your life where the loyalty is at question or is especially pronounced?
