Sunday, May 5, 2002		Dream Theme

Dreaming of bones
Vinaya Katoch Manhas

DREAMS of bones are generally full of blood and gore, as in such dreams one generally sees an accident or maybe a skeleton or a wound. But when the symbol of bones becomes predominant in dreams its interpretation changes. We generally associate hardness and coldness, etc. with bones. It is commonly associated with death, too.

As per Indian thought to see bones in your dreams indicates that penury and difficult times lie ahead. To see bits of flesh on bones is a good omen. It means that you shall gradually become financially independent and self-sufficient. But should these bones be those of a man then it means you shall gain money through the demise of a relative and not by working hard. To see your own skeleton is an indication of severe illness afflicting you in the near future. Should you see a ghostly dream of a skeleton following you then you are warned to beware of some disaster befalling you.

As per western thought, seeing your bones protruding from your flesh foretells that betrayal by someone you consider close will cause your downfall. To see a pile of bone foretells difficult times ahead. Seeing skeletons in your dreams portends illness, misunderstandings with others and injury at the hands of others, especially enemies. To see yourself as a skeleton in your dreams warns you that you have a worrying disposition. It advises you to bring about a change in your outlook. To see a skull is an omen of quarrels with family members and losses in business. To see your own skull denotes that you shall regret some of your actions.

Psychoanalytically speaking, seeing bones in dreams usually indicates that we need to think about the basic values that govern our lives. We need to go back to the basics. To see a dog eating a bone means that we need to think about our basic instincts. To dream of a full skeleton indicates that we need to reconsider the structure of our lives. To dream of finding bones means that we have not as yet considered some essential part of a situation. To see our bones being broken and pulled out can also suggest the need to restructure our lives and begin over. It can also indicate that we perceive some threat to ourselves.

A man of 25 often dreamt of meeting with an accident. He saw his limbs and bones scattered everywhere. His family, worried because of the recurrence of the dream, sought astrological help and was told to not let the man travel in any vehicle as it spelt a danger to his life. Even then the dreams continued. When they visited a counselor it was found in repeated sittings that the man was not satisfied with his present profession of a doctor, which he had entered due to family pressure. He had actually wanted to be a scientist. Thereafter the man stopped his practice and began to pursue a doctoral degree in the field that interested him. After this he stopped getting this dream. The scattered limbs was actually symbolic of his own self being torn apart by his desire and the demands of his profession.