This web page shows you how a dream dictionary is made. It uses a bank of dreams which are believed to be correctly analysed. Only dreams with good background information are used to build up various dream dictionary definitions. The dream dictionary attempts to build up a bank of key words and phrases which help you to make associations with real life thoughts and feelings. This page studies snake dreams which are quite a common symbol. Snakes are usually very negative symbols so just try to see what a snake could be a symbol for key quotes within the dreamers present state of mind. The best way to understand how this process works is through practical dream analysis so read through the following real dreams and see how the analysis fits with real life.

THE DREAM My 3 year old had a dream that a blue snake was chasing him and then he tripped and fell, and the snake bite him in the neck.

The dreamer woke up screaming and crying. It was quite scary. In the previous week his parents had to tell him that his best friend was moving away. Since then he had had several dreams of snakes. So what could we translate this into in terms of practical and more usable language. We could suggest the words "bad news". We could also suggest other key words and phrases such as "why did this happen".

So we now have a list of keywords which translate into triggers of snake dreams - "bad news" and "why did this happen". This is a bit more helpful than simply saying "what is snake like in your life right now". So if you build up a list of keywords and phrases then they may help you see what has triggered your snake dream. If you having been thinking about "bad news" then it could be "bad news" which you have just found out. But try to think in a fluid way and think about "bad news" which you simply fear is about to happen. Just make associations with the quotes. So lets see if we can look at another dream and see if we can add to the list of keywords and phrases .

THE DREAM Me and my wife were standing somewhere, not sure where and talking. Then I looked down and a bunch of snakes where around us. I went to pick up something and a copperhead made a strike and bit me on the hand in which I woke up.

The dreamer and his wife were going through a nasty divorce - one which the dreamer did not want. The way she was treating him led to him growing to hate her. So first of all we could look at the key words and phrases and see if they are relevant to this snake dream. Certainly "bad news" is relevant but it does not seem to fit perfectly. The phrase "a nasty divorce" seems to fit perfectly. Perhaps a "going through a nasty breakup" would be better as this is more general and deals with a relationship breakup in a wider sense. So we now have three key phrases which will help us make an association with snake dreams - "why did this happen", "bad news" and "going through a nasty breakup". It is best to pick quotes which are more general. For instance, the phrase "going through a nasty breakup" could link simply to a related thought such as "I want to break up with my girlfriend but it would be a nasty breakup". These quotes we pick to help you make associations should simply deal with general themes such as a breakup in general. We could add the phrase "a problem relationship" as a snake dream is an excellent symbol. It is merely saying that the dreamers relationship involves "snake" type emotions. A snake type dream has the same emotional themes such as "whatever I do it constantly ends up in conflict". Which could easily be added to our list of quotes which help us to spot obvious snake like emotions.

For a more detailed analysis of this dream click here

THE DREAM I was dreaming about a snake approaching to me. It was the biggest snake I have seen. It had bright colours and was really huge. I heard my best friend telling me "stay still. Turn your back slowly and just stay calm and it wont hurt you." And I did just as she said. The snake was about to come around me but I was still calm, although scared.

The dreamer had just had a sexual experience with a man she met whilst on holiday. She had found it difficult to achieve an orgasm. Her partner realised this and explained to her that it was because they did not have enough time and had slightly rushed this. The existing keywords and phrases do not seem particularly relevant to this situation so we need to pick a new key phrase which helps us pinpoint snake like emotions. The dream seems to capture this exact thought "I had sex with him for the first time. I did not enjoy it but I should not feel too negative about it as things should get better". That is a good key phrase but it is too specific to be able to help people make associations. Perhaps we could shorten this to "I did not enjoy this" as that is more general. Dreams can portray very complex thoughts and notice in this dream that the dreamer remains calm so this does not link to a totally negative thought. The dream simply portrays a thought like "things did not go well but he realised this and so things should be better next time." So the dream deals with something "snake" like but it pulls back from being totally negative.

In this case the snake is the minds way of saying the word "problem". In many cases the dream is merely saying that the problems were too much for the dreamer. That was the case with the earlier dream which was triggered by the dreamers relationship with his wife turning "nasty". However, if the snake is merely the dream minds way of saying the word "problem" then think of the ways in which we use the word problem such as "there were problems but I think we can overcome them". So a dream about snakes merely deals with the theme of problems. Just think how you are relating to the word "problem" and think of how many ways in which you use the word problem. This is why this site likes to turn a dream analysis into a quote which captures key thoughts and feelings.

We can now list the keywords and phrases which we can use to make associations with triggers of any dream. The list now stands at "why did this happen", "bad news", "going through a nasty breakup", "there were problems but I think we can overcome them", "I cannot deal with all these problems".


THE DREAM - I was with some friends I couldn't recognise. we were in some place that looks like a farm. We were surrounded by snakes like cobras and vipers. All my friends were scared to kill them but I took up courage and attacked killing like five of them. I hit them on their heads with my belt head.

In real life the dreamer was wanting to start a business. Yet several of his friends had been trying to discourage him. The dreamer was really wanting to move forward despite these warnings.

Many people point out that dreams link to our deepest feelings. If that is so then try writing down some of these. Many dreams do in fact link to new thoughts and feelings. They capture key emotions or insights. In real life this dreamer mentioned how he was wanting to start up a new business. He was being discouraged by some friends. Yet he did not care and wanted to go ahead with his new venture. In fact if you study this dream it exactly portrays this very thought. So if you look at this dream and think about the phrases that we have used in our dream dictionary of associated words and phrases then you will see that this dream linked to exactly the same key phrase as in the previous dream e.g. ""there were problems but I think we can overcome them". The only difference is that you would change the phrase to "people keep telling me about all the problems with my business but I am sure I can overcome them". The dream deals with the similar theme so we do not need to add to our list of phrases which help us understand what has triggered our dream. We could perhaps add one which deals with the word "courage". So on second thoughts we could add the phrase "I know I am going to have a lot of problems with this but people underestimate my courage and determination". So the snake dream does not dwell on the negativity but rather the courage and determination that the dreamer is showing. For purposes we could shorten this to a more general "I will not be discouraged. I will overcome all the problems". So a snake again links symbolically with the word "problem".

For a more detailed analysis of this dream click here

THE DREAM - I was with my room mate (my close friend since I was a child) and we were on this little boat in the middle of some water. It was a very beautiful and sunny day and all of a sudden I looked towards the beach and saw a huge snake come out of the tree line and saw it slither into the water to come after us. I got really scared and yelled to my friend, "did you see that huge anaconda?!" So, I said we had to get out of the water and so we started paddling but the paddle looked like a newspaper, which I also thought was odd, but that was all we had and so we started paddling as hard as we could. We get by the snake, which was under water and finally reached the beach and we got out of the boat and started running towards the jungle. After we passed the tree line, my friend disappeared and all of a sudden I came upon a shack made of old wood in the middle of the jungle and was with my ex girlfriend (recently broken up within the past few days), her mother (who I never met), and her brother (who I also never met, but is someone who my ex girlfriend highly regards - as he is studying philosophy)- Anyway, The shack was very run down and made very poorly. Everything around suddenly became dark and it seemed like there was a huge storm coming in. We looked around and there were some other huts and people seemed to be running to this underground shelter, but the people said there was no room for us. So, we went in the poorly made shack and before I knew it, I was crying in my ex girlfriend's arms…I was apologising for my dishonesty and deceit. I felt horribly for what I did and how much I hurt her. Anyway, I was very paranoid because of the snake and thought that it was going to come after us. So, I was constantly running around the shack and trying to make sure the poorly made door was shut…but it didn't shut very well and there were a lot of gaps in the wood so you could see through. So, in dreadful fear, I took a look outside, and noticed that the surroundings changed again. The shack we were in was now on a stilt supported by a raft on the water…so it was as if we were suspended in the air on top of the water. I was still so paranoid that the snake was going to come and attack us and in terror. I suddenly awoke…

In real life the dreamer had just two days previously broken up with his girlfriend. He had started to realise that he had behaved badly and regretted his shabby treatment of his ex. It is easy to see how the dream links to this exact quote - "I realise now how badly I treated my ex during our break up". But how can we translate the dream symbol "snake" into a keyword or key phrase. Perhaps, the key phrase "I now realise how badly I treated her" which is just the dream minds way of saying "I was a real snake to her". So in this case the dreamer is the snake. So the dream analysis is about the dreamers nasty and negative behaviour. Notice how some of our keywords already in our dream dictionary appear again in this dream analysis such as "breakup" and "problems". That is because the keywords and phrases deal with similar themes. On a deeper level the dream, also deals with associated themes such as "revenge" and "bad reputation". So if you behave badly you may seem to get away with it, but word spreads and so you will face the consequences.

So now we can take a look at another dream and see if we can use phrases already in our dream dictionary of associated phrases or alternatively we may have to add some more phrases.

THE DREAM I pulled up to the woman's house who had just done some energy work on me the night before the dream. In my dream, she lived in the mountains with lots of plants and animals. It was sunny and warm out. There was a stream with fish in it near the parking area by her house. It was so beautiful! When I parked, I noticed this bright orange snake. I got out of my car to see that part of the snake was under my car. I thought I had run it over! :( But I just missed him. He was so full (from belly to throat) from all the fish he had just ate. He was too full to even move out of my way. When I got inside of my friend's house, there was a party inside!

The night before the dreamer had come home from a pretty intense energy session that sent her into euphoria for hours until she fell asleep. She felt that this snake was symbolic of her kundalini being satisfied and flowing full of energy. Dreams are very much linked to our emotional state of mind. The dreamer was right to see her energy session being connected to her dream. But what does the snake stand for? In this dream the snake does not seem like a particularly negative symbol. The dreamer even seems to be sorry that she has maybe run over the snake. Maybe the snake stands for problems in her life which the energy session seems to have helped her sort out. It is probably best to leave this dream as it is difficult to link it to some symbolic meaning. It could be that this dreamer has a very personal symbolic meaning to snakes so it is probably of little use to someone else's dream.

So now for another dream.

THE DREAM - The night I was informed of my mothers death I had a dream. This time there was a large ugly venomous snake, like the ones in my recurring dreams, frozen deep within the ice of the lake I live on. In my dream it was the middle of the winter and frigid. Interestingly the place were I found the snake was located in a spot on the lake near where we ceremonially cast my brother's ashes when we memorialised his death (suicide). I was frightened of the frozen snake yet I chipped away at the ice he to dig the snake out. When I cleared the ice away from the snake I saw that its head had been severed. There was no chance that they snake could bite.

The dreamer had a strong sense of revulsion towards his mother as far back as he could remember. He felt no sense of sorrow at her death just relief. He had been sexually and emotionally abused. If something big happens the day before the dream then it is highly likely that the dream has been triggered by this event. In this case something really big has happened the day before so it is almost unimaginable that the dream is not about his mothers death. It is just a matter of working out what the snake means symbolically. The most obvious answer is "sexual and emotional abuse". This could be shortened to something like "badly abused" which is better quote to help people make associations. After all we do not want a list of quotes to be too long as people will get sick of reading through too many keywords and phrases.


THE DREAM I have had this dream twice. In the dream I am fighting a huge snake like the Basalisc in Harry Potter but then I'm standing tall and strong on another bigger snakes head and that's all I can remember what could it mean?

In real life the dreamers father kept yelling at her and she couldn't stop the tears. This was causing the dreamer, who was still a child, to be very depressed. If a difficult relationship has caused the dreamer to be depressed then it will almost certainly trigger a dream. So what thoughts and feelings could have been linked to the snake's symbolism? The obvious quote is "difficult relationship". The emotions we express at any time which we connect to a dream are the ones which link to the symbolic meanings. Other key quotes could apply as well such as "he keeps shouting at me". In fact both of these quotes "difficult relationship" and "he keeps shouting at me" could both be added to our list of quotes which can help us make associations with the dream.

THE DREAM I was handling a snake. It was acting very unexpectedly. I was holding it by the neck so it couldn't bite me and it slid backwards making my hand vulnerable. Then it wrapped itself around me. My friend Dave was there at some point.

The day before the dreamer overheard a conversation. Two women were whispering about him at work. He was sure that they were talking about him. They were very close to him at the time which was especially annoying. There was some very nasty comments. The dreamer was not very good with people and tended to wind people up so often he felt even more tense around people. This dream then seems linked to the day before which is a major cause of dreams. It is obvious that recent events and emotions will trigger dreams as the mind focuses in on things which are fresh in our minds. So as we know the cause of the dream it is simply a matter of linking it to some symbolic meaning. The obvious symbolic meaning of snake in this case is something which would pinpoint the dreamers feelings. Notice that the dreamer seems quite active in the dream. So it seems more likely that the symbolic meaning refers more to the dreamers reaction to the nasty comments that he thinks he overheard. So maybe the dream links to the dreamers reaction. So the dream seems linked to the dreamers "fear of confrontation". The dreamer wishes to confront the friends who were saying negative things about him but backs down.

THE DREAM I went to a resort with my office colleagues where the top management was been given good resort and rooms and middle level management were given a kind of OK resort and rooms. Finally we all went to have dinner or lunch not sure, I could see 2 snakes passing through. Then coming inside to have buffet there are lot of snakes passing through and they all are trying to kill those snakes. I am not sure whether they died or not, but I told those guys to kill by stepping on snakes or hitting. To my surprise I can see very small snakes are getting crushed below the shoes of people. For some reason I was on Sofa with others too, I remembered I thought of getting down and killing.

In real life the evening before the dreamer voiced some concerns over her managers behaviour with one of his peers. So the dream links to the previous day which is a major cause of dreams. Now all that has to be done is to understand the symbolism and try to translate the dream into a key quote which captures the symbolic meaning. Notice that the dream seems linked to office hierarchy so that hints that the symbolism is about the "abuse of power". So we can add that to our list of quotes which help us make associations. So if we get another snake dream we can look at these quotes and see what it makes us think of in terms of recent thoughts and feelings. It could be a quote about the emotions or events from the day before. It could be about health problems and changes in our life. Just look through your recent thoughts and see which feature these key quotes. If you spot one then its highly likely that your dream is about that. Once you have spotted a thought you can look through the other symbols in the dream and see if you can make more links from the dream into real life.

THE DREAM I was with some man. I knew him in the dream, but in waking life I do not know him. We had to go through a series of obstacles and at the end there was something we would get or we could have been looking for something. But there was something at the end for us if we got through all the obstacles thrown our way. The first was a large hole in the floor that we had to swing from a rope in a circle to get to the bottom. Each completed circle we were closer to the bottom. Next we went through a screen door and into the back yard, which had a large cage in front of us. We thought we could go through it because all it had in it was cats. As we got close to it we saw that it was not cats. It was some animal with a pig face and a possum body and tail, so we did not go through it. For some reason we knew we could not go to our right and we had no choice, but to go to our left. The man was ahead of me and for some reason he stopped and came back to go back in through the screen door. When we tried there were 2 rattle snakes there and we could not get by them. So we turned around and there was my bed in the yard. I laid down on the bed and I have no idea where the man went, but these 2 snakes came toward the bed. They crawled onto the bed with me, but when they got to me they had turned into cartoon snakes and they were blue. They were real at the screen door. So I started hitting at them with a yellow broom. It did not work, so I grabbed one with my left hand and started to choke it. I kept hitting at the one on the right with the broom, which did not work, so I grabbed it and started choking it too. The last I remember is seeing these 2 snakes gasping for air as I choked them. I was never afraid in my dream. I was confident and I felt secure that I was going to win.

In real life the dreamer broke up with her boyfriend three months before the dream. But recently she had been contacted by him and he was showing concern and interest in her. Her ex boyfriend claims that he did not start seeing his new girlfriend until after he had broken up with the dreamer. But the dreamer does not believe this and does not trust his new girlfriend. Dreams can often be about relationships, in this case this could be about a relationship that has broken up. We have already seen how snake dreams can be about key emotions that we are feeling at the time of the dream. Here the words "lack of trust" seem a good fit for the key feelings. So we can add this to our list of key phrases. We could also add the phrase "he is very deceptive" which covers the same ground as a lack of trust but this an excellent symbol for snake dreams.Dreams often translate into quotes so we can say that the meaning of this dream captures this feeling "my ex boyfriend seems to be showing interest in me but I do not trust him. I think he was cheating on me before we broke up". The dream does not feature the dreamers ex boyfriend but having someone in your dream who you do not know is a symbol for a feeling such as "I do not know if I can trust him. He is like a stranger to me",hence the dream features a stranger. Try to spot identical themes which feature in your dream and real life. Try not to dwell on the people who are in the dream.


THE DREAM - I was standing in the front of my house (I suppose) talking with my sister when she pointed out that there was a big rattlesnake lying there in the grass. It was like 12 ft long, more like an anaconda. She said it was dead, that's when I realised it was moving. The snake chased us throughout the rest of the dream, into the house and throughout. The house was very large (upstairs and down) and I was running through it closing doors trying to keep us all safe. I never saw anyone else in my dream except my sister but I was trying to protect my family (my children). I don't remember how the dream ended except I do know I did not kill the snake!

The previous day the dreamer had seen her fiance checking another girl. Whenever, she has tried to confront him it has started a huge fight. The dreamers previous boyfriend has cheated and she tends to have huge trust issues. She felt like everyone was trying to deceive her in some way. After he had checked this girl out he kept telling the dreamer how much he loved her and how much she was the one. Notice that this snake dream seems to link to the word "deceive" which we have just added to our list of key quotes which capture key feelings that are associated with the dream. The dreamer also mentioned problems with a relationship, which has been a key feature of snake dreams. This dream did not feature her fiance - but that does not mean that it is not about him and his cheating like behaviour.

So we can see how well this way of analysing dreams is working. On two consecutive dreams which the dreamer has mentioned the words "deceptive" and "trust". So even if the dream does not feature the specific people in the dreamers mind it does not matter. Dreams need not feature people we could associate with our key feelings at present, which are known to trigger dreams.

THE DREAM I was in a house with several people, I don't remember who. A small snake came around and we were trying to dodge it, then it went away. Suddenly there was a large black snake that was threatening me and I was very scared. I grabbed a box of some kind that I was able to trap his body in. In the top of the box it was open and I could see the snakes head. I then grabbed a spike nearby and stabbed the snake on top of his head. He was wriggling around still, so I moved the spike around to make the hole bigger. Then I woke up very disturbed and kept envisioning stabbing the snake over and over.

The day before the dreamer found out about her fathers death. Her father had been abusive and she had fallen out of contact with him. She also found her sister to be manipulative and wanted to stay away from other family problems such as a brother who was into drugs and surrounded by bad people. The dreamer phoned her sister about this and ended up agreeing to keep in touch by email. Later she had second thoughts.

Dreams are very much in the here and now. If this dreamer had found out about her father dying then any dream she had that night would almost certainly be about that huge event. We just have to work out what the symbolism is. The dream is more likely to have been about the dreamer not wanting to get involved with her sister. So any key phrase we might link to the dreams meaning would involve emotions connected with the death of her father and wish not to get involved with her sister. Perhaps the phrase "I do not trust my sister and do not want to get involved with her". That phrase is perhaps too long to add to our list of key words and phrases linking to snake dreams. We could shorten this to "an inability to trust someone". The key word "manipulative" is also important as this is what the dreamer said was a key emotion at the time of the dream. A lack of trust has already been mentioned in earlier dreams on this page so that is an obvious symbolic meaning of snakes. These keywords will help us to see what snakes mean in dreams. They will help us make associations to real life.

THE DREAM I was surprised by a giant black anaconda, then I found a machete and chopped her all up. Afterwards in my backyard, there were lots of people and then dozens more giant black anacondas came coming out. I kept trying to chop them up while people were running and screaming.

In real life the dreamer was having a big problem with her son's former girlfriend. She was trying to ruin her life,business and reputation. She had been making false accusations. Dreams are linked to the here and now. The meaning of a dream may link to a thought or feeling that is obvious to the dreamer. It is the type of key feeling that the dreamer may write down in a diary or the type of emotion that the dreamer might tell a friend. That is why this website tries to link a dreams meaning to a quote which captures the symbolic meaning of a dream. A quote that might capture this dreams meaning could be "I am sick of her making false accusations about me". The background information given in this dream comes up with many common themes that have already been mentioned before such as "bitter relationships","confrontation" and "nasty comments". So in this case it is easy to spot the trigger of this dream as it concentrates on negative feelings and difficult relationships. So this dream is easy to analyse even though it does not feature the dreamer's ex girlfriend at all. With dreams you have to spot identical emotions which appear in the dream and in real life. In this case the snake is an obvious symbol for emotional feelings which the dreamer felt at the time.

THE DREAM I blew my nose and two small circular objects came out. One I cannot remember or was not able in my dream to figure out what it was. The other, when I looked closer, was a tiny snake encased in a clear ball. Almost like what a tadpole looks like in it's clear casing form. I put the objects in my purse and wanted to "open" the little snake to get a better look at it, but waited. I wanted to ask Trisha what it meant. I was not afraid of it. In my dream I could see but not get to Trisha and wanted to know what it meant that a snake came out of my nose. So even in my dream I was searching for the symbolism and could not reach her. I have never discussed dreams with her- but problems in life. In my dream I did not think I was dreaming- yet wanted to know what it meant that a tiny snake came out of my nose.

The night before the dream the dreamers husband was laid off. The dreamer was worried that she could not pay all of the bills herself. She had just accepted a job where she no longer has the option of overtime. She had also seeing an energy worker called Trisha. She wanted to see her but was not sure if she was still accepting clients. This dream probably links to both the pieces of background information given. The dreams husband was laid off which is a big cause of a dream. It seems likely that the snakes in the dream are the minds way of talking about the current problems. The word "problem" has come up a lot in earlier snake dreams in this web page. Since the dreamer mentions what snakes mean it is probable that the snake means "problems in your life" and the dream means "I want to talk to my energy worker and see what she thinks about problems in my life.

THE DREAM There's a toy like object on the floor. A woman picks it up and turns it over. A snake crawls out and bites her in her palm. No-one wants to help her. She begins to shake all over and turns white in the face. At last someone helps her.

During the previous days the dreamer had engaged in a deep debate on an intellectual level. She felt vulnerable at certain points. Finally she came across a response that she felt was going to win her the argument. She was going to establish control again. She felt confidence in her own opinions and beliefs. Dreams are in the here and now and recent emotions will feature often. You can translate a dreams meaning into a quote - in this dream it fits perfectly this quote "I felt very alone, it has been a very heated debate."

So now lets look at the detailed list of key words and phrases which appear on this site for snakes.

full list of keywords linked to snake dreams
in practice snakes have several symbolic meanings. here is the full list.
- "liar" (snakes can be symbolic of any devious behaviour. do you suspect someone is telling a lie?)
- "bitter relationship" (any volatile relationship which is on your mind could trigger a snake dream)
- "nasty comments" (a snake strikes ruthlessly - did someone's comments strike you down yesterday? did someone complain or make a direct criticism at you? did you feel the need to make a nasty comments towards someone?)
- "negative feelings" (snakes can be symbolic of any type of negative feelings. it maybe even your minds way of expressing the word "problem". the dream could have a simple meaning as you are thinking about all the problems which seem to keep arising at work or in a relationship)
- "inability to trust" (you cannot trust a snake - you will always fear that it turns on you.)
- "bitchy behaviour" (snakes represent all sorts of negative emotions and could be the minds way of saying "that was very bitchy behaviour" or "i used to be a complete bitch". try to think how the word bitch appears in your thoughts right now. if you can think of something then this maybe what your snake dream symbolises)
- "blame/criticism" (being bitten by a snake may be symbolic of someone blaming you for something. were you blamed for something yesterday? has something happened and are people looking for the cause of it? where you very personally criticised yesterday?)
- "a man's hands moving over a woman's body" (in popular dream dictionaries snakes have long been linked to sex. a snake moves and slithers and its movement is very similar to a man's hands moving over a woman's body)
- "bad news striking at any time" (just like the snake strikes unexpectedly so does bad news)
- "manipulated" (snakes can represent any kind of devious and evil behaviour. did you try to manipulate a situation yesterday but did it fail? has someone been trying to manipulate you?)
- "false accusations" (has their been some back biting and bitchy behaviour at work? has someone sneakily tried to shift the blame to you? have you been struck by some outrageous comments which just have no basis in reality?)
- "devious and deceptive" (was someone snake like yesterday? did they try to hide their true intentions?)
- "showing courage and determination" (Did you confront the snake? Have you been feeling courage and determination in overcoming a difficult situation?)
- "heated debate" (snakes can strike at any time. if you are engaged in a debate then a snake may symbolise a comment which strikes home. did someone get the better of the argument yesterday?)
- "confrontation" (encountering a snake is highly confrontational. try to think of any connection with this theme. did someone confront you yesterday? did you used to be very confrontational but are now trying to work on it? do you fear some situation coming up will be very confrontational? who is very confrontational right now? try to think of anything with this theme of confrontation. if you can think of something then it may link to that issue. next try to look for other links to reality)
- "fear of bankruptcy" (do you fear bad news will strike at any moment? Is a loved one seriously ill and could die? )
- "suspicious activity" (you cannot trust a snake so it maybe symbolic of any suspicious activity)
- "betrayal" (you can never trust a snake so its an excellent symbol for a betrayal. have you been thinking about a betrayal yesterday?)
- "severe phobias" (phobic people have all sorts of imagined fears which can be symbolised by dangerous animals of all kinds. the snake is a favourite symbol of the dream mind to express dangers that lurk in your mind. have you been thinking about your phobias? have you been especially phobic recently?)
- "subtly control" (snakes can symbolise your own bad behaviour. have you been sneaky towards someone? have you tried to manipulate a situation? has someone been deeply devious trying to hide their own intentions?)
- "a tricky situation" (an encounter with a snake is a classic tricky situation. what tricky situation occurred yesterday? what situation do you fear could be very tricky?)
- "singled out" (do you feel picked on? has someone bullied you or shown prejudice towards you? have you been thinking over your own singling out of someone yesterday?)
- "hate" (snakes can link to any deeply negative emotions? have you been thinking about someone's deep hate?)
- "continual abuse" (do you feel abused?)
- "everyone hating you" (snakes can link to your state of mind. do you feel everything is against you?)
- "unable to cope" (have you just started a new job but feel its too difficult for you?)
- "a fear of death" (is someone close to you very ill? do you fear their death might strike at any moment? were you suddenly struck by the reality of death yesterday? have you started to worry about your own health problems)
- "poisoned atmosphere" (is the atmosphere full of tension at work right now? are you trying to stay away from somewhere because its so fraught with tension.)
- "feeling trapped"

- "cheating" (Dreams use symbols as metaphors to describe particular thoughts and emotions. The dream mind is drawing a similarity between the way a man cheats on his girlfriend and a snake that sneaks around ready to land on its prey)


snakes can have a sexual meaning. a snake snakes up and wraps itself around its prey. this is an excellent metaphor for a man who is not keeping his hands to himself its a fallacy that dreams capture unconscious thoughts - dreams represent thoughts that we are all too aware of. a typical dream would translate into the types of thoughts that we might write down in a diary or tell a best friend. dreams represent your key thoughts which pinpoint the problems right now. try to write down some quotes which capture your feelings right now and try to include the words and phrases above.

one dreamer had been thinking about his subtle attempts to annoy someone who he deeply disliked. these attempts went drastically wrong and he ended up winding himself up. he had a dream about trying to control a snake. this attempt fails and the snake lurches towards him. obviously some of the keywords and phrases for the symbolism of snakes are very relevant such as "bitter relationship", "negative feelings", "bitchy behaviour", "manipulated","devious and deceptive" ,"confrontation", "subtly control" and "a tricky situation". the symbolism of snakes is obviously relevant here. its a classic situation for snake symbolism. the dream seems to mirror reality in that the dreamer is over confident and feels he can control the situation. the dream exactly pinpoints this exact feeling - "i thought I could subtly control the situation and annoy her. but it backfired on me". by carefully analysing the dreamers situation and thinking about key thoughts on his mind we can guess the exact symbolic meaning. here other meanings are relevant but the one that fits best is the "subtle control" meaning.

dreams can represent very sophisticated thoughts. take the following dream - "i dreamed about a primary school teacher. she had a rapport with her children. she managed to make them eat up all their food so as to make them healthy and strong. then in the school I was playing some sort of game. the game involved handling a snake. I knew that this snake was not too dangerous as you could tell by looking at it. at the back of my mind I felt it could be dangerous but still I was holding it". in real life the dreamer suffered from extreme phobias and was being treated by a therapist who she had seen the day before. this session encouraged the dreamer to try to overcome some of her phobias. the dream seems to exactly mirror this situation. the teacher was symbolic of the therapist who was inspiring her and teaching her to overcome her phobias. the snake represents her phobias. the differing feelings towards this snake show how she is relating to this problem. the snake is dangerous but not too dangerous. this mirrors the feeling - "i know these phobias scare me but its not that bad. I can handle these situations".


If you have a dream with some good background information to add to our huge bank of dreams then email me at colincoupland5@gmail.com