The Dream Dictionary from A to Z [Revised edition]: The Ultimate A–Z to Interpret the Secrets of Your Dreams

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Partridge

A sign of independence and your leadership skills. On the other hand, it can also suggest some kind of deception is occurring.

Peacock

To see a peacock in your dream is a sign of pride and vanity. In some traditions, however, it is a sign of the soul and because the peacock can shed its feathers and grow new beautiful ones, for Christians it is a symbol of resurrection or new life. As a male bird displaying its feathers, the peacock is a symbol of male sexuality and may be a warning against arrogance over your success. It also indicates a surge of new understanding from the plain and unadorned bird to the beauty of the fully-plumed bird.

Pelican

To see a pelican in your dream represents devotion, sacrifice and compassion for others.

Penguin

Penguins are symbols of adaptability, but they can also represent stupidity or coldness in a relationship. They could be a sign that your problems are not as serious as you may think and that you need to keep your cool and remain level-headed.

Pheasant

Depending on the circumstances of the dream and the condition of the pheasant, a symbol of prosperity and good fortune in your waking life.

Phoenix

The phoenix is a universal symbol of rebirth, new life and immortality; of the power in oneself to transform from the depths of darkness or depression into new awareness. In dreams the phoenix is typically a symbol of fresh starts and exciting opportunities. This bird of mythology lived alone for hundreds of years and then sang its final song on a nest made of precious spices, an aromatic funeral pyre that ignited by the sun’s rays. A bird emerged from the glowing embers of the fire and this was the embryo of the reborn phoenix. In symbolism the phoenix is also associated with alchemy and resurrection and a new start, emotionally and spiritually. In dreams it may express your yearning to put the past behind you and to be reborn as a new person.

Pigeon

To see a pigeon in your dream represents gossip or news. You may also be expressing a desire to return home.

Quail

To see a quail in your dream is a symbol of courage and good fortune. On the other hand, it can also represent deviousness. To see a live quail is a sign of good luck. To see a dead quail symbolizes bad luck, especially in gambling. To shoot a quail in your dream suggests disagreements with your best friend. To eat quail in your dream warms against extravagant spending.

Raven

To see a raven in your dream can be suggestive of betrayal, disharmony, misfortune, and dishonesty, but if the raven is talking, it can indicate insight. The meaning is complex, as it can symbolize both evil and wisdom.

Roadrunner

To see a roadrunner in your dream represents intellectual prowess, but might suggest that you are running from idea to idea. Do you feel the need to stop and consider your next plan of action?

Robin

Symbol of new beginnings and growth. It may also be a pun on someone whose name is Robin.

Rooster

Are you, or someone you know, being arrogant and over-confident with little regard for the feelings of others? If you hear a rooster in your dream, this suggests bragging. If roosters are fighting in your dream, this indicates rivalry and disagreements.

Seagull

Symbol of freedom and ambition.

Sparrow

Symbol of hard work, business, and discipline.

Stork

Symbol of birth and babyhood, or new life and new beginnings.

Swallow

Symbol of hope and new beginnings.

Swan

The swan is often regarded as a divine bird. In a dream it suggests grace, beauty, and dignity, especially if the swan appears swimming in a pond. In mythology it represents the soul and its connection with the side of your nature that may be hidden. It may also be linked with endings or death (‘swan song’) as well as purity and innocence. On the other hand, do you sometimes wish you could ‘swan around’ in your waking world?

Turkey

Have you been foolish or irresponsible in some way? Or have you not been thinking clearly? Alternatively, the turkey is associated with Thanksgiving, and therefore suggests family and a time of togetherness. If you are hunting turkeys in your dream, this suggests that you are trying to succeed through dishonest means. If the turkey is flying, you may soon rise from obscurity into a position of prominence. If you see sick or dead turkeys, your pride may have been injured in some way.

Vulture

The vulture is a scavenger and feeds on the spoils of others. Are people around you taking advantage of you or are you concerned about the well-being of dependents? Alternatively, a vulture in your dreams can suggest that past experiences can give valuable insights into a current situation or problem. Do you need to ‘pick off the bones’ of a failed relationship or project, so that you can learn from your disappointment and move forward with your life?

Woodpecker

The woodpecker symbolizes industry and diligence, and so to dream of one may suggest that there is something in your waking life that you have overlooked and need reminding about. In mythology, the woodpecker is the guardian of both kings and trees, and it is thought to have magical powers; therefore in dreams they may indicate that you have hidden powers and potential that need to be developed.

Yellowbird

A symbol of good fortune when it concerns work or money, but not such a good sign for affairs of the heart.

BIRTH While pregnant women often dream about giving birth in anticipation of the upcoming event, dreams of giving birth typically have very little connection with the biological process of reproduction and more to do with a sense of being reborn, of fresh beginnings, of ideas coming to fruition or a period of personal growth. This sense is mirrored in everyday language: ‘giving birth to a new idea’, which refers to a project, not a baby.

For Jung, dreams about giving birth were important because he believed they represented a stage in the process of what he called ‘individuation’, the growth of the human psyche to maturation and wholeness. Birth therefore represents the start of an important new stage in your life and psychological development. We tend to dream of birth at the beginning of a new life stage, way of life, attitude, ability, or project. We also have such dreams when we need to let go of the past and come to terms with the new. Birth is symbolic of new beginnings: going off to college, starting or ending a relationship, launching a new career, and moving house are all associated with birth themes in dreams. Although women from their teen years onwards tend to have birth dreams more than men, it can happen to anyone at any time. There may often be something strange or unusual about the birth of the child. These details are important as they can symbolize what part of your life is changing and how others will receive this new development.

Jung also claimed that the symbol of the child, as with the symbol of birth, represents new beginnings and possibilities, and paves the way for future changes in your personality. A common theme in mythology is the ‘divine child’ or mystical hero or savior; for instance, the baby Jesus who saves the world from damnation. The divine child is the symbol of the true self, both vulnerable and pure, but also capable of great transforming power. In your dream, it may represent your true self urging you to explore new possibilities and reach your full potential. Therefore, dreaming of a baby or child, who could be yourself, one of your own children, a child you know, or an unknown child, gives access to your own inner child. We all have parts of ourselves which are childlike, curious, and vulnerable, and when we are able to get in touch with these parts we are reminded of our true potential for wholeness.

If you are a woman and you dream of giving birth, the first question to ask yourself is do you actually want to get pregnant? If you do, your dream may be an example of wish-fulfillment. The purpose of your unconscious was probably to fulfill your fervent desire for all to go well. There have also been recorded instances of women and men dreaming about the birth of a baby before they even knew they were expecting; somehow the dream was a response to the presence of an actual fetus, not yet detected by doctors and pregnancy tests. If you are pregnant and you dream that labor and delivery were difficult, it probably reflects anxieties about the impending birth. The same applies to dreams about giving birth to an animal; they are simply mirroring your concerns and anxieties. If you are a prospective father, your dream may also be depicting your hopes and fears for the welfare of your unborn child.

If you are not pregnant, birth dreams can indicate a desire for children but are more likely to represent something else in waking life. The birth of a child signals a new beginning and the emergence of new life; in dreams the meaning is much the same: a new way of life, a new attitude, a new discovery, a new project, and so on. If you hear about a birth, or watch or witness a birth in your dream, this also suggests the beginning of a new and fruitful cycle in your life. Birth dreams therefore are an expression of big changes that have been occurring for a long period of time. Did the dream delivery go well or was it difficult? Again, the answer may indicate the likely ease of turning your hopes into reality. If this doesn’t apply, then dream births may symbolize your brain child, perhaps an idea or a project you are longing to complete successfully.

Alternatively, did your dream focus on one aspect of birth – the umbilical cord, for example? If the cord was wrapped around the baby’s neck, this may indicate that your ideas are being strangled or in danger of being strangled. If the cord was neatly severed, this can indicate that your ideas have been cut free and are now independent of you. If there were problems cutting the cord, this could be a symbol of a grown-up family that is beginning to leave home. Or it may be that you yourself are finding it hard to fly the family nest and branch out on your own. If you are not able to see your baby after a difficult labor, this can indicate that you are laboring in vain in waking life and aren’t being rewarded by the sight of your mental offspring.

Birth Dreams during Pregnancy

Pregnancy is one of the most life-changing and physically and emotionally demanding challenges a woman can face in her lifetime. Research shows that the dreams of pregnant women can comment on the physical, psychological, and emotional issues she has to deal with. The most common dream themes at this time concern animals and water. In the early stages of the pregnancy these dreams may be gentle and calming, but toward the end of the pregnancy they can be traumatic or even become nightmares. Such alarming dreams are considered a normal reaction to the anxiety every woman unconsciously feels about her unborn baby and about giving birth. It is also very common for pregnant women to dream about having the baby and these dreams are again often bizarre and disturbing – for example, dreaming about a baby that is born dead, malformed, or with a monster’s head. It has been suggested that such anxiety dreams serve a purpose: they release a lot of unconscious tension and fear, allowing the mother to be more relaxed at birth.

BIRTH CONTROL

See CONTRACEPTIVES (#litres_trial_promo).

BIRTHDAY

See CELEBRATIONS (#litres_trial_promo).

BITE Being bitten or biting someone is a symbol of aggression or hostility, either toward you or toward someone else.

BLACK

See COLORS (#litres_trial_promo).

BLACK-AND-WHITE DREAMS To dream in black and white suggests that you need to be more objective in formulating your decisions. You may be a little too unyielding in your thought processes, and thus need to find some sort of balance between two opposing views. Consider the views and opinions of others. Alternatively, black-and-white dreams may be a sign of depression or sadness. You may feel that there is not enough excitement in your life.

It is a quite commonly held belief that we dream only in black and white, but many people are able to identify tones of color in their dreams. If this is the case, why is it believed that we dream only in black and white? It may be because dreams that appear to be black and white only appear so because the color is not relevant. This doesn’t necessarily mean, however, that such dreams are in black and white. Black and white is a function of television when the color information is removed, but the same is not true of the mind. For example, grass might not be green in a dream, but it’s not gray as it is in a black-and-white movie; the color simply is not relevant and your unconscious isn’t highlighting it. This non-relevance fools the conscious mind on waking up into concluding that, by implication, the dream must have been in black and white.

BLACKBIRD

See BIRDS (#ulink_61beafc3-0c1a-524a-9970-a783868e23dd).

BLACKBOARD The blackboard sets information out in black and white, so in dreams it can represent unambiguous insights or the need to make your mark on the world.

See also CHALK.

BLACKMAIL If you are blackmailing someone or they are trying to blackmail you in your dream this indicates emotional blackmail that you may be using to try and force someone to do as you want, or emotional blackmail used on you by someone else to get what they want.

BLANKET This image in a dream suggests a deep need for emotional or physical comfort and security. It can also suggest being wrapped up in someone or something or withdrawal and vulnerability.

BLEMISH Feelings of dissatisfaction for someone or about something.

See also BODY.

BLIND One of the things most of us fear is losing control of our faculties. Dreams in which you are blind or you see blind people may represent your refusal to see the truth or face reality. Perhaps you are unable to see any other point of view but your own, and it is time to open your eyes. The blindness may relate to an object you seek but are unable to find because of your blindness; this object is generally your hopes and goals in life, and becoming blind indicates that you have lost sight of your ambitions and are unclear about how to regain your focus. For Freud, loss of sight indicated a man’s fears of being castrated. In the Greek myth that inspired Freud’s theory of the Oedipus complex, Oedipus unwittingly killed his father to marry his mother. Once aware of what he had done, he blinded himself, an act Freud saw as a symbol of self-castration. Another interpretation suggests that blindness is a mystical dream symbol that represents inner vision, wisdom, and self-knowledge. To imagine that you are deaf or dumb in a dream, or unable to make contact with people, may symbolize irresponsibility, laziness, or an inability to get your point across.

BLISTER If you dream you have a blister, consider what irritant in your real life may have caused it. If you burned yourself, have you got too close to the flames emotionally? Dreams in which you are burned alive or someone else is torched suggest the need for some kind of drastic change in your life. Rashes, sores, and eczema are all unpleasant ailments that are not serious but uncomfortable as well as embarrassing. So if these conditions appear in a dream, what are you feeling ‘sore’, uncomfortable, or embarrassed about? Although it may seem a big deal to you, your dream is telling you that you have no need to feel anxious as the situation is not as serious as you might think. The skin is a symbol of how you present yourself in public, so blisters, rashes, burns, and other skin blemishes are recognized as one of the most clearly psychosomatic disorders. In dreams, therefore, a skin rash can express lack of confidence in your ability to face the world. A dream bruise may reflect some emotional hurt or emerging health problem, while scars can carry their figurative sense of hurtful memories and suggest an awareness that emotional healing takes time.

For Jewish or Christian dreamers, boils may express feelings of guilt for how they have behaved toward someone in their waking life; this is because in the Bible, boils were the sixth of the ten plagues visited by God on the Egyptians to force Pharaoh to free the Israelites. Rough skin suggests a rough exterior, while burnt skin might indicate hurt in a relationship with the outside world or people. If you are shedding skin like a snake, you are changing your way of life and leaving old attitudes behind. Pimples and blemishes represent your sense of not being good enough in some way, and a feeling that other people see you as unattractive or see failings in you; they can also indicate shyness and the difficulties you experience being in the company of others.

BLOOD/BLEEDING

See BODY, WOUND (#ulink_9f2f12e2-5295-5e49-8f1c-8f5fce75fbc2).

BLUE

See COLORS (#litres_trial_promo).

BLUEBIRD

See BIRDS (#ulink_61beafc3-0c1a-524a-9970-a783868e23dd).

BOAR

See ANIMALS (#ulink_a775d833-9744-502e-abbc-300fad53f87e).

BOARD GAMES Games in dreams symbolize the manner in which the dreamer is approaching life. Individual games such as solitaire will indicate your tendency for self-absorption, where excelling or enjoyment is a significant motive. Interactive games such as chess indicate that competition is a significant motive for you. In either case, the dream will be highlighting your thought processes, mental skills, and dexterity. In general, dream board and card games indicate how you are rising to a particular challenge in your waking life, or how successfully you are playing the hand that fate has dealt you.

Little physical effort is required when playing board and card games, so games of this nature tend to focus on your intellectual performance or ability to think and react quickly. Pay attention to the tactics you use while playing and to your overall strategy. Were you calm and controlled with a set of tactics, or were you out of control? Was your game defensive or offensive? What is the dream telling you about your ability to respond to external stimuli in the directing of directing of your life? Are you self-motivated, continually striving to better your skill, or do you rely on competition for motivation? Your answer to questions such as these will tell you much about your current approach to waking life.

Consider too the colors of the pieces or cards you were using and what they might signify. For example, if you were playing with white chess pieces, do you associate yourself with kindness and your opponent with malevolence? If you are accused of cheating in your dream, are you deceiving anyone in waking life? Games in which pieces are moved around a board at the throw of a dice are often designed to mirror life’s challenges, and this is often what they represent in dreams, suggesting fears or concerns about factors you can’t control. The game board reveals the moves you make in life, and a game room stands for a meeting place in which plans and strategies are devised. A TV game show cautions against a desire to consider yourself intellectually superior.

Specific dreams may have their own symbolism: for example a game of backgammon may point to your desire to resolve the secrets of your unconscious (the inner table) before time or the other player stops you. Games that are played with dominos speak of the repercussions of your actions. Pool, billiards, or snooker suggest clever scheming, combined with the skill to accomplish a goal. The condition of the poolroom will give you a clue as to whether this refers to healthy competition or dirty dealings, while the pool table refers to the issue or subject of your plans.

See also CARD GAMES, CHESS, DICE.

BOAT If you dream of a boat, pay close attention to the condition of the boat and to the conditions of travel as they will reveal much about your waking situation. Is there a storm brewing? Is the boat secure or is it in need of repair? If the boat is drifting aimlessly, you may feel you are lacking direction, while if the boat capsizes, this suggests imminent danger or obstacles ahead. If you are enjoying a tranquil boat ride that is slowly but surely heading in the right direction, this could imply a sense of anticipated success with a particular project in real life.

See also TRAVEL.

BODY Typically, dreams about the body, or parts of the body, occur for four reasons.

The first is that in waking life, your body and/or body image has taken center stage. For example, if you had a manicure yesterday or cut yourself shaving, your unconscious may simply be recalling that. The second reason is that dreams about your body, or body parts, can signal ailments before you consciously recognize what is wrong with you; sometimes even before there are any physical signs. This isn’t to say every nightmare suggests serious illness, but if you do have a dream about any part of the body that is injured or painful, especially if it is a reoccurring one, it might be worth making an appointment for a check-up.

The third reason is that some dreams about the human body are simple reflections of the dreamer’s feeling about their own body or appearance. These dreams can be significant markers of the dreamer’s self-esteem regarding their physical appearance. If in the dream the body appears beautiful and healthy, then the dreamer may be feeling good about themselves. However, an unattractive or unhealthy body could point to signs of insecurity, or body image problems.

The fourth reason is that in dreams, the body often represents the ego, the self, or the lifestyle of the dreamer. That is why broken bones or injuries can symbolize emotional pain, or losing parts of yourself. When you lose or give up parts of yourself in order to fit in with or please others, psychologists call this ‘fragmentation’. We all do this to a certain extent in our lives, but when we do it too much or for the wrong reasons, the unconscious may send out warning signals. The dreaming mind may then express its concern in body image dreams, not only about your health and happiness, but about your ability to cope when your true nature is profoundly censored.

For instance, if you dream of missing a hand or foot, or having an organ or other body part removed, this can be a sign that a portion of your potential is being lost as a result of a path you have chosen in waking life. A common dream is one where you lose teeth; this is a great example of your dreaming mind issuing you with a warning. It is asking you just how far you are willing to compromise, and reminding you that what you are losing may be irreplaceable.

If body images appear in your dreams, it can help to think of body-related expressions you may use to describe feelings; for example, ‘I lost my head’, ‘feels like I’m losing my right arm’, ‘I don’t have a leg to stand on’, or ‘can you stomach it?’ When we say these things, we are not being literal. We haven’t lost a leg or an arm, we are expressing an emotional response and our unconscious uses images to express the emotions these phrases convey; typically, a sense of loss of direction, helplessness, or confusion. Such dreams often begin to make sense when you view the body images as parts of yourself, and connect their meanings to your emotional responses.

See also HEALTH.

Body Image Scenarios

Anesthetized, Cold, or Dead Body

The image of an anesthetized body can represent a deadening of feeling, or a loss of passion and creativity in waking life. The same meaning applies to coldness of the body, with the implication of emotional coldness, lack of enthusiasm or distancing oneself from others. If the coldness is in the lower part of the body, this suggests sexual coldness and again, lack of passion. Coldness in the chest (heart) suggests lack of feelings or feeling cold toward someone. Cold feet indicate a fear of doing something or indecision. The image of a dead body in a dream depicts feelings and potential to which we have not given expression in daily life.

Appearance

How your body appears in a dream can offer vital clues when it comes to interpretation. In many cases, the interpretation is fairly obvious: if you are smiling you feel confident, if you are frowning you feel annoyed. Are you confident and organized in your dream, or are you tired and unhappy? All these factors represent the state of your mind, and perhaps your health, at the time of the dream. If your body disappears in a dream and you become invisible or you aren’t aware of your body, this clearly suggests that you are feeling ignored, isolated, and perhaps lonely. If you leave your body in a dream, this indicates a need to get away from cares and responsibilities. If you grow tall in your dream, your unconscious may be mirroring waking feelings of satisfaction with yourself; but if you were horrified to shrink small, it may be that you feel insignificant and looked down upon, or that you long to shrink away from a problematic situation. To dream that you are becoming fat is to recognize that you need to widen the scope of your activities in some way. It can also indicate fear of taking on too much responsibility.

Diseased, Dismembered, Injured, and Deformed Body

If the body is diseased in a dream, this suggests a sickness of attitude or it could simply indicate extreme emotional and physical fatigue. A dismembered body indicates emotional and mental distress; perhaps you are tearing yourself apart over something or someone, or your life is falling apart. Half a body dream images suggest a lack of balance in your life between your outer and inner life. If the top half of your body is missing, this indicates lack of reasoning and emotional intelligence. If the bottom half is missing, this relates to loss, or denial of instincts and sexuality. If the body is injured or you see injuries, this suggests emotional scars or hurts, or repressed anger. If the body is cut open, this indicates a vital change within yourself or the release of emotional tension. In times past, such dreams were interpreted as the release of ‘evil spirits’, hence the association of a sometimes painful release of tension.

Loss of limbs in a body usually indicates a sense of inadequacy, sometimes connected with the limb that is lost. For example, loss of legs could suggest an inability to stand up for yourself or someone dependent on you. Loss of an arm could indicate an inability to influence other people, or to give and receive. If your body is burnt in the dream, this suggests an emotional scar, and if the burn is painful, this suggests that you are relating to this hurt in an unhelpful, self-destructive way. If, however, the burning isn’t painful, it has a more positive interpretation: feelings of potential and new beginnings.