Sunday, May 26, 2002		Dream Theme

Dreaming of fingers
Vinaya Katoch Manhas

APART from the significance of seeing hands in dreams, seeing a raised finger or a crooked one, or maybe fingers linked together can form independent symbols in dreams. Some people do tend to see fingers in dreams, although such dreams are not very common. Where a raised finger portrays the desire for dominance, it can also signify fear of dominance. Spread out fingers can be a sign of helplessness, but also of weakness of character, or a person without authority. Interlocked fingers symbolise a busy mind.

As per Indian thought, to cut your own fingers and see blood flowing from them is a bad omen. It predicts that you shall be the cause of your own downfall. Should you see someone else cut them, you are warned to beware of enemies plotting your downfall. Seeing beautiful hands is a good omen. If a woman sees manicured hands decorated with mehandi and bangles, predicts that she shall receive a good proposal if she is unmarried, or shall have good times with her husband if she is married.

As per western thought, seeing your hands dirty, scratched and bleeding, foretells that troubles and sufferings lie ahead. If you see beautiful hands, it means you shall be lucky in love. To see your fingers cut off from the hand means that you shall suffer financial losses.

Seeing your fingernails soiled and dirty foretells disgrace resulting from the misdeeds of the younger members of the family. Well-kept fingernails indicate literary achievements and also point to a habit of being thrifty.

Psychoanalytically speaking, the finger is generally taken as a part of the hand itself. To see your fingers amputated implies repression, an inability to accept some aspect of you own personality. Our hands symbolise protection, strength and authority. Fingers, too, are characterised by the same qualities. In certain cases, the finger is also a phallic symbol. Abnormally sized fingers that evoke fear can signify the fear of authority that someone has over you.

A man of 43 often dreamt that while the fingers of one hand were beautiful, those of the other were knotty and crooked. He could not understand why this dream recurred, as he did not suffer from any disorder in either of his hands. Actually the dream represents the conflicts between the individual's beliefs and his actions.

Although the man belonged to an orthodox family, he was in a job where he had to, at times, entertain people and do things that his conscience did not permit. These actions were symbolised through the crooked fingers of one hand whereas the beautiful hand symbolises his inherited morals.