Snake
The snake can represent many different things, but usually the energy that expresses as our life processes. If we think of a person’s life from conception to death, we see a flowing moving event, similar in many ways to the speeded-up films of a seed growing into a plant, flowering and dying. The snake depicts the force, purpose or energy behind that movement. It is the force of life, the latent energy or potential within us – that leads us both to growth and death, along with the passionate emotions and urges that drive us so powerfully.
The snake depicts this force, purpose or energy behind that power of growth and unfolding. It is the force of life, the latent energy or potential within us. It leads us both to growth and death, along with the passionate emotions and urges that drive us so powerfully. That energy, like electricity in a house, can be heat, power, sound or vision, and lies behind all our functions. So in some dreams the snake represents our sexuality; in others the rising of that energy up our body to express as digestion – the intestinal snake – or as the creative or poisonous energy of our emotions and thoughts, even disease. In the throat it becomes the destructive or constructive speech and language – expressed or repressed feelings and speech. In the head it becomes thinking, perception and higher cognition.
The ancient civilisation of the South Americas, saw the snake as a messenger of the gods. And it can be if we relate to it well, because it represents the force of Life in us – surely worth listening to!
In the destructive aspect the snake represents the poisonous thoughts and emotions that can destroy you. We tend to depict this facet of the snake as biting or attacking us, even though we have ourselves given rise to such poisonous emotions as hate and guilt. Because our thinking and emotions are an expression of our life energy, you are capable of directing the creative force of life toward self destruction. As an example of this, a dreamer exploring her snake dream saw that it represented her flight or fight instincts. This linked with her aggressive and protective feelings in connection with the way men had acted with her. The problem was that the snake was in a poisonous, strangling and killing mode. This, she realised, showed how she had withheld, strangled, her anger about what had happened, and that anger was turned inward, poisoning or strangling her flow of full life.
The opposite is also true. The power of life and death can be directed creatively. Then the snake is seen in its healing role in dreams, and in ancient times was shown in the form of the staff with two snakes coiling up it – caduceus – still used today as a symbol of the medical profession. See: energysex dreams.
It doesn’t matter that your dream snake bites you -after all it is an aspect of you, and the only poison you will meet is the poisonous emotions you have been injecting into yourself – and they need to be felt to clear them out.
The snake can shed its skin, and so symbolises self transcendence, rebirth.
The alchemists put a gold crown on its head, symbolising expanded or spiritual consciousness arising from the same energy as sexuality. Often a diadem, gem, or light is at its brow symbolising the possibility of expanded consciousness, or awareness of the eternal nature, and life in eternity. Christ is sometimes depicted as a crucified serpent, suggesting the mystery of Life nailed to physical awareness of the senses. See: Reptile.
| The Hebrew word for the serpent in the Garden of Eden is Nahash. And to be understood we have to understand that Hebrew is a sign language, one that each letter of the alphabet had a particular meaning. And there is no indication in the ancient Hebrew that this was a snake. It has been translated as snake because the original meaning was lost. It can be seen as a divine force that expressed in seven levels or ways – so much like the ancient symbol as it was understood by older cultures. For full explnation see Hebrew Translation. |  |
So the snake can represent many different things, but usually the energy that expresses as our life processes. If we think of a persons life from conception to death, we see a flowing moving event, similar in many ways to the speeded-up films of a seed growing into a plant, flowering and dying. The snake depicts the force or energy behind that movement and purposiveness – the force of life, the latent energy or potential within matter – that leads us both to growth and death, along with the passionate emotions and urges that drive us so powerfully. That energy – like electricity in a house, that can be heat, power, sound and vision – lies behind all our functions. So in some dreams the snake represents our sexuality; in others the rising of that energy up our body to express as digestion – the intestinal snake; or as the creative or poisonous energy of our emotions and thoughts; in the throat as destructive or constructive speech and language; in the head as thinking, perception and higher cognition.
In the destructive aspect the snake represents the poisonous thoughts and emotions that can destroy us. We tend to depict this snake biting or attacking us, even though we have ourselves given rise to such poisonous emotions as hate and guilt. Because our life energy flows into thinking and emotions, we are in this way directing the creative force of life. Directing it negatively has the power to bring illness and death, for we are dealing with the power of life and death itself.
The opposite is also true. The power of life and death can be directed creatively. Then the snake is seen in its healing role in dreams, and in ancient times was shown in the form of the staff with two snakes coiling up it – caduceus – still used today as a symbol of the medical profession. See: energy emotions mind.
A crowned or light encircled snake: When our blind impulses our instinctive or unconscious urges and functions are in some measure integrated with our conscious will and insight, this is seen as the crowned snake or even winged snake. It shows real self awareness and maturity.
In coils of snake: Feeling bound in the blind impulses or habitual drives and feeling responses. Instincts and habits can be redirected, as illustrated by Hercules labours.
Sitting on snake: Mastery of the instinctive nature and transformation and the making conscious of the wisdom and power resident in the unconscious.
Snake biting you: Unconscious worries about our health, frustrated sexual impulse, our emotions turned against ourselves as when internalised aggression poisons us causing very real illness, so may be shown as the biting snake. It may also suggest an influence in ones life – the venom – that takes away ones identity and perhaps opens one to a life beyond self, the spirit.
Snake biting others: Biting remarks; a poisonous tongue; emotional energy turned against oneself or someone else.
Snake coiling up tree, pole, cross: The blind instinctive forces of life emerging into conscious experience – in other words the essence of human experience with its involvement in pain, pleasure, time and eternity; the process of personal growth or evolution; healing because personal growth often moves us beyond old attitudes or situations that led to inner tension or even sickness.
Snake coiled around you crushing you: The way you are caught up and constricted in your own or other peoples emotions. Being crushed by emotions, fears; struggling with powerful emotions and urges.
Snake Colours – Green: Our internal life process directed – perhaps through satisfied feelings, love and creativity – into a healing process or one that leads to our personal growth and positive change. White: Eternal aspect of our life process, or becoming conscious of it. Blue: Religious feelings or coldness in relations.
Snake in connection with any hole: Sexual relatedness.
Snake in the grass: Sense or intuition of talk behind your back; danger; sneakiness.
Snake with tail in its mouth: Sense of the circle of life – birth, growth, reproduction, ageing, death, rebirth; the eternal.
Comments
I had a dream i was with my mom and my brother. And my brother kept saying i hear a snake hissing. Me and my mom comes to the room where my bro is and we see the snake on the couch. It comes after me and by me fearing snakes i run into my room but it comes in after me while i tried to shut the door. But it bites me on my left hand and then goes away. I awake then heart beating fast. Can someone help me understand this dream please.
Lynn – This dream suggests you have lost your confidence – if you are right handed. It might even be that the loss of good feelings about yourself are due to an attitude your brother has toward you and things he said.
Tony
Thanks for responding Tony, i have two brothers and we are very close. We never argue or never had a disagreement i have two sisters as well i can say we are a family that always stick together. But i thank you for your response.
Lynn – Thanks for telling me about your family closeness. Of course in your dreams it is not your brother, no more that if you thought about your brother you wouldn’t say that your thoughts were him.
But your brother told you about the snake hissing, so I thought there was a connection, and maybe there still is in you. But some poisonous emotions were injected into you and had hit your ability to support your external actions. So why not find out for yourself what the snake is and where it comes from? Do this by imagining you’re the snake. Literally get into its body and feel its aggression toward you. Remember everything in a dream is you – nobody else is with you as you dream, and it was not an external snake coming for you. So imagining yourself as the snake and then your brother – as he was in the dream; do not mix him up with your external brother. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-on-your-dream/ to help with this.
Tony
I just woke up and had a weird dream with a snake in it.
I took care of it, as my friend asked it. I has also my own pets at home and was afraid whether they can get along together – not sure if they were cats, but with the snake around they were the same species.
Eventually, the were fine together. I had the snake in my basket, on my bike and needed to go to the funeral (no idea who died, I think it could have been a friend of mine). Because I was wearning inappropriate clothes, I returned home with the snake. Later, I took it to the funeral. Afterwards, I gave it back to my friend and saw that the snake changed its skin. And left something huge (part of his stomach) on the floor.
It was the end of the dream. Any idea what could it be?Many thanks.
I had a dream last night about a house filled with a huge anaconda-type snake. It rose up out of the depths, filling the building which was a kind of tree house, I could see its coils flow past the windows and the enormous head emerge from an upper storey out onto an exterior staircase and down, towards me. I screamed for my eldest brother, whom I am estranged from in real life, to run. I screamed the snake will bite him and kill him, while another part of me kept trying to tell me this kind of snake doesn’t bite. In our panic, my whole family of origin and my two sons, ran into the street, plunging into a cauldron ocean scene. I screamed we would all drown and woke up just as I noticed my brother had gathered us all around in a circle in a collection of boats of different sizes which he had tied together. I remember thinking, this is much worse, we are together but we are doomed and we would have been better to have stayed and fought off the snake. Next month I am travelling to my home town soon to face painful memories of abuse, trauma and betrayal after 45 years. Can I expect more nightmares and how would you proceed if you were me. Jean
Jean – The trauma you mention is obviously deeply etched in you, but you can slowly change it but recognising some facts about dreaming. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/dream-yoga/ to use how to use them.
For instance the huge snake is only an image in your dream, and like a computer game or a film cannot hurt you; although you can react to it with fear. The snake is in fact your own animal or instinctive strength, but you react to it in a way that turns such a wonderful strength against you. The result is that you run in fear – and fear is the only enemy here. Your own emotions, that is all you are dealing with.
Okay, they are emotions of fear that were started at some time in your life and belong to the past. They are like Pavlov’s dogs that salivated every time a bell was rung – conditioned reflexes. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/conditioned-reflexes-or-responses/
I would also suggest that you practice slow breathing. This is a very powerful technique that slowly works on deeper levels of our mind and eases anxiety. http://dreamhawk.com/body-and-mind/the-arm-circling-meditation/
Obviously you will need to be careful around your family, for they can trigger conditioned reflexes. But do not ‘fight off the snake’. Invite it into your body – it is after all a part of your self – and it may feel strange at first, but after that you will feel the strength.
Tony
i had a dream about 2 brothers that i no, in my dream god blees them showed they had a very good relationship, everyone was looking at htem and were very happy to see them having a very strong bond, all of a sudden my mum comes in my dream looks at them and says y cant u be like that with ur siblings. im close with my siblings doe, can u tell me what this dream means plz
Mary – It seems like you are either indecisive about your feelings about the brothers and siblings, or else you have been influenced by your mothers view of things. I think it is the last one.
So stay strong in what you believe.
Tony
Tony – I hope it’s ok to contact you with my dream? I can only eally remember the last bit but I was coming back from somwhere with my husband and two children and for once the atmosphere between us was positive, I think we had had a couple of weeks away that had been quite positive. We came into the house and I went to check my youngest’s hamster(which he adores) – the light was dim and I suddenly saw to my horror that there was a snake curled up on the top shelf. I was sure that the hamster would have been eaten and I was filled with such fear for my child and ran to call my husband. I woke up feeling quite tearful.
What does this mean?? I’d love to hear your take on it. Thanks so much. Jo
Hi this is my second dream of snakes. This one I saw two small snakes coiling up a tree on opposite sides one clear one yellow. i wasnt scared, just kind of eww cause they were snakes but no scared feeling then out of no where a black one with defined skin almost gray on the edges of each…fin? but very black appears with no head, no eyes instead it looks like thin deli ham (i have no idea why) stuffed where all that should be with the black skin around it. Well it keeps jumping at me, violently and I finally grab it by the head but someone comes puts a leash on it and my nephew is with me on the sofa and I think my daughter and the lady leaves the snake and says it wont hurt us now but soon as she leaves it keeps jumping at us and I woke up breathing hard. I hate snake dreams! What does this mean. I see nothing on clear snakes. I mean it was like clear gel but not slimy if that makes since. HELP! and thank you so much!
Kellee – Listen dear woman, you do not have to do it in your sleep, because you can have a waking lucid dream. Try this and see if it works – http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/practical-techniques-for-exploring-your-dreams/#TalkingAs and follow through on the other things that follow if you feel like it. Also read http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/what-we-need-to-remember-about-dreaming/
The first image of the snakes coiling up a tree is a classic sign of healing – except that the snakes usually are coiling around a rod. It is a symbol of medical healing. The clear snake simply means it is pure. And in your dream it is a powerful sign of personal energy in you, and energy that can change your life for the better. They are the life energy in you, like electricity that can be used in any direction to do many things. So it can be healing or destructive, depending how you use it. To feel fear and disgust and hate are a way to make the snake energy into poisonous bites – for it is only you that creates it.
You realised it cannot do any harm, but it is an indication you can learn from.
Tony
Not to be greedy but if you have time this was my first dream of snakes lately 10.25.11 .I was walking thru like an alley or something with something like a park in someones back yard but not quite matter of fact I looked at a dirty pool, I remember looking down at it, full of trash then the snake was at the top of like a fence in some bushes. So frickin vivid. It was big and long but kinda not pretty but appealing I guess. I was with someone but the snake jumped down from the tree and bit ME on the arm. I have been holding my arm like OMG I cant believe that wasnt real. What is the signifigance of my ARM?? So, I screamed I kept screaming this- OMG- I -cant- believe- it kind of scream. Then I walked off infront of it, someone else came by it looked like it was going to bite them but it didn’t. Then all the sudden there is a crowd and everyone was saying or whispering not even talking but I got the notion of chatter about what happened to me and how it just bit me. So it flew from the tree again and made like a straight line in the air it was coming so fast. I actually jumped up in the air trying to get away and it flew up and bit me and held on and I struggled with its fangs out of my arm (while in the air) (now we are like in a parking lot cause its like a parking lot light on close to me cause thats how far in the air I tried to jump to dodge this evil thing), like a disgusting struggle to have to do something like that and next thing was I was at the airport trying to find a doctor. I was ok then but slightly shooken up about what just happened. But like it said I didn’t die. but why in the hell was I at the airport looking for a doctor? I do live close to the airport. Walking distance. HELP! What I am going to try to do now is have a lucid dream and ask the snake WHO are you and WHAT should I do, although I dont want to hear a snakes voice while Im sleep. I would likely die from the disgust. Ewww! This has been messing with me all day!!! HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!