Dream Dictionary

Playing a game in a dream brings the idea of various aspects within you vying for competence. Just as you can dream of pursuing or being pursued by non-integrated or emerging aspects, the game shows a deeper movement toward integration. The type of game, players and your feelings surrounding the situation will provide additional clues as to how confident you are in bringing this new side forward. See Attack or Being Chased.

Combining the idea of a building (aspect of the self) and transportation (your drive to move forward) the condition and situation surrounding the garage will shed light on the side of you ‘that houses or protects your motivation.’

When you are dreaming of garbage, you are exploring what may have been ‘discarded,’ but is not really gone. The fact that you are dreaming of some type of symbolism associated with being garbage reveals how you are either still holding on to it or not appreciating its inherent value. Explore the symbol for further insight.

See Garden under Houses and Buildings.

The gender of the character who comes to prune away old growth can symbolize the side of your nature (female/sensitive or male/assertive) and how you are currently grooming its expression. The garden can symbolize what is growing within you and the Gardener is the side of you that is responsible for its growth. See Garden under Houses and Buildings.

Dreaming of gasoline can have two distinct meanings. On one hand, it is a combustible fluid, representing the danger of explosive emotions. At the same time gasoline is a fuel that propels the car forward, signifying the root of motivation.

The difference between a door and a gate is in how it protects you. Closing and locking a door presents the idea that you can open and shut some aspect of yourself at will. The gate often symbolizes more of a defensive structure. At the same time, the gate is a symbol of entering a new threshold or your movement into more profound and unknown level of awareness.

Genitals have associations that transcend the simple ideas of sex. Breasts often relate to how you are exploring self-nurturing ideas and behavior. For a woman, breasts can symbolize what she gives of value to society, from the sense of how breasts nourish life. Female genitalia for a woman will signify her essence or deeper connection to life. To a man, female body parts reflect issues related to sensitivity while he explores the 'undeveloped' traits associated with femininity. Male genitals for a man can represent his power and life force, while a woman dreaming of male genitals can represent being more empowered or aggressive. See Anatomy and Body Parts, Anima/Animus and Archetypes and Universal Characters.

See Bacteria.

When you dream of characters that are ‘not living,’ yet still have a presence, explore what they represent as a side of you that you have not processed and may therefore, be ‘haunting’ you. If the ghost frightens you or is hiding, that is all the more reason to self-integrate the power that this ghost holds ‘over you.’ If it is the ghost of someone who has passed, it can portray how you are processing the feelings associated with this passing or are 'adopting' their qualities. 
 

Since all characters in a dream represent you, dreaming of a giant or ‘larger than life’ entity can personify the added emphasis you are putting on a certain aspect of your persona. The symbolism and behavior associated with the giant can provide clues as to whether this is healthy or destructive.

To receive something as a ‘gift’ in a dream brings forward the idea that some side of you, particularly while dreaming, has the omniscient ability to provide insight, inspiration or intuition. Since the gift is often ‘packaged’ for special delivery, the symbolism associated with being a gift will portray how the unconscious is delivering this aspect to you. You open a gift with careful consideration for the giver, therefore the character presenting the gift should also be considered as to how their characteristics pertain to you.

The girl can portray the innocent application of the feminine or sensitive nature. A man dreaming of a girl may be exploring sensitivity learned as a child, while a woman may be exploring aspects of actual childhood. See The Unknown Child under Archetypes and Universal Characters.
 

When you give something, there is often the idea of sacrifice or an emphasis on trading something for balance. Who is doing the giving and what is being shared should be explored as the idea of integrating areas of life that are leading to imbalance. See Gift.

Like the Cup, a glass can be associated with the things you hold to be important. As a receptacle for liquid refreshments, it is associated with feelings or the intuitive flow of information. Dreaming of either can portray holding or trying to capture these things in an effort to gain insight about sustenance. A broken glass portrays a sense of pain or fear associated with feelings. Glass that acts as a barrier, such as a window, can symbolize the idea of blocking intimacy.
 

See Binoculars, Glasses and Microscopes.

The goal is an obvious symbol or where your actions are currently taking you. Since you are dreaming about it, chances are you are not aware of the root of your own motivation. See Games.

A goat symbolizes sexuality, impishness and playful curiosity. As a symbol associated with sacrifices, dreaming of a goat can be a message about sacrificing fun at the expense of duty. If the goat is associated with milk, it can be a symbol of maternal input as you explore a lighter to side to this influence. The Goat's association with the astrological sign Capricorn as an Archetype captures the idea of ambition, perseverance and/or you identity in the larger scope of society. See also Animals.

See Colors.

As a primate that resembles humans, this animal is very territorial and frightening. It is typical for a woman to dream of a gorilla or King Kong creature when she is approaching menstrual changes as a symbol of the immense power that her body holds over, appearing beyond her control. For a man, the gorilla can capture a sense of being overly-masculine at the expense of sensitivity. See Animals.

It is common to dream of grandparents during the later stages of a difficult transformation. Just as the Unknown Child in a dream can represent the birth of new sides of you, dreaming of the matriarch and patriarch of the family can portray the development of a more wise side of you that has been seasoned by the transformation. Often the grandparent can be viewed as the Wise One Archetype activated after a period of intense soul searching or difficulty, now awakened as an aspect of the Self. In some cases a grandparent can represent the objective exploration of dynamics associated with the parent that is related to them. In this case, you may not be acknowledging the positive characteristics inherited by this parent. See Family and Archetypes and Universal Characters.

The idea that you are forced to ‘grasp’ for something rather than just take it, brings a high level of focus to whatever the symbol represents. For example, drowning and grasping for something for survival brings forward the idea of being overwhelmed with fearful feelings. That thing you are grasping for (as a symbol for exploration) will provide clues to how you might integrate it to find wellness. The hand represents both taking and giving. Grasping something so that you do not lose it suggests desperation and perhaps, an unhealthy relationship to whatever it is.

The smell of cut grass and hearing the sound of lawnmowers usually coincides with the onset of summer. This can be a symbol of relaxation and a sense satisfaction. All things that are growing share the common symbolism of nurturing, however grass grows abundantly and multiplies quickly. It has the added feature of being somewhat ‘man-made’ and unnatural.
 

See Burial.

See Colors.

See Colors.

Like dreams of the Earth, the idea of protecting the things that you are growing can be portrayed by the greenhouse. See Garden under Houses and Buildings and Gardener.

See Earth and Landscape and Scenery.

See People and Crowd.

See Weapons and Utensils.

Interacting with a spiritual leader can have both positive and negative meanings. On one hand, this can represent a sense of enlightenment related to the other details of the character (man/achievement or woman/sensitivity.) When the ‘spirit’ awakens within, you have moved beyond a path of family dynamics. At the same time, this type of dream may be exploring the idea of following a spiritual pathway in a cult like fashion, perhaps denying more basic needs that have not been met. Remembering that all characters represent an aspect of you, explore the symbolism, behavior, and how this character left you feeling to understand its message. See Wise Man under Archetypes and Characters.