Symbolically, death represents the end of an epoch, particularly when
it takes the form of sacrifice or the desire for self-destruction in the face of
unendurable tension (as with Romeo and Juliet, or Tristan and Isolde). The hero
dies young for this same reason: Siegfried, Achilles or Balder for example. The
public necessity for a sacrifice of this kind was what lay behind the ‘ritual
assassination of the king’ in which the possibility of his survival was sometimes
left open, should he prove victor in combat. As an example of this rite, Frazer
cites a festival called ‘The Great Sacrifice’ in which the king of Calicut was made
to hazard his crown and his life. It took place every twelve years, at the time the
planet Jupiter turns back towards the constellation of Cancer, since there was a
supposed relationship between the planet and the king’s destiny (21).

To dream about the death of a loved one, suggests that you are lacking a certain aspect or quality that the loved one embodies. Ask yourself what makes this person special or what you like about them. It is that very quality that you are lacking in your own relationship or circumstances. Alternatively, the dream indicates that whatever that person represents has no part in your own life anymore. In particular, to dream about the death of your parents, indicates that you are undergoing a significant change in your waking life. Your relationship with your parents has evolved into a new realm.

To dream that you are faking your own death, suggests that you are looking for a new start. You need some change in your life.

To dream that you die in your dream, symbolizes inner changes, transformation, self-discovery and positive development that is happening within you or your life. You are undergoing a transitional phase and are becoming more enlightened or spiritual. Although such a dream may bring about feelings of fear and anxiety, it is no cause for alarm as it is often considered a positive symbol. Dreams of experiencing your own death usually means that big changes are ahead for you. You are moving on to new beginnings and leaving the past behind. These changes does not necessarily imply a negative turn of events. Metaphorically, dying can be seen as an end or a termination to your old ways and habits. So, dying does not always mean a physical death, but an ending of something.

On a negative note, to dream that you die may represent involvement in deeply painful relationships or unhealthy, destructive behaviors. You may feeling depressed or feel strangled by a situation or person in your waking life. Perhaps your mind is preoccupied with someone who is terminally ill or dying. Alternatively, you may be trying to get out of some obligation, responsibility or other situation. You are desperately trying to escape from the demands of your daily life.

To see someone dying in your dream, signifies that your feelings for that person are dead or that a significant change/loss is occurring in your relationship with that person. Alternatively, you may want to repress that aspect of yourself that is represented by the dying person.

To dream of seeing any of your people dead, warns you of coming dissolution or sorrow. Disappointments always follow dreams of this nature.

To hear of any friend or relative being dead, you will soon have bad news from some of them.

Dreams relating to death or dying, unless they are due to spiritual causes, are misleading and very confusing to the novice in dream lore when he attempts to interpret them. A man who thinks intensely fills his aura with thought or subjective images active with the passions that gave them birth; by thinking and acting on other lines, he may supplant these images with others possessed of a different form and nature. In his dreams he may see these images dying, dead or their burial, and mistake them for friends or enemies. In this way he may, while asleep, see himself or a relative die, when in reality he has been warned that some good thought or deed is to be supplanted by an evil one. To illustrate: If it is a dear friend or relative whom he sees in the agony of death, he is warned against immoral or other improper thought and action, but if it is an enemy or some repulsive object dismantled in death, he may overcome his evil ways and thus give himself or friends cause for joy. Often the end or beginning of suspense or trials are foretold by dreams of this nature. They also frequently occur when the dreamer is controlled by imaginary states of evil or good. A man in that state is not himself, but is what the dominating influences make him. He may be warned of approaching conditions or his extrication from the same. In our dreams we are closer to our real self than in waking life. The hideous or pleasing incidents seen and heard about us in our dreams are all of our own making, they reflect the true state of our soul and body, and we cannot flee from them unless we drive them out of our being by the use of good thoughts and deeds, by the power of the spirit within us.

This indicates long life. But a sick person dreaming of death has the positive results.

Dreaming about the death of a loved one, suggests that you are lacking a certain aspect or quality that the loved one embodies. Ask yourself what makes this person special or what do you like about him. It is that very quality that you are lacking in your own relationship or circumstances. Alternatively, it indicates that whatever that person represents has no part in your own life.

Dreaming about death is very common and it can be interpreted in many different ways. Death is usually a symbol of some type of closure or end. It implies an end to one thing and a beginning of another. Death dreams usually have positive symbolism. If you are the dead person in your dream, it could imply that you would like to leave all of your worries and struggles behind and begin anew. Dreaming about someone that you care about may express your fear about losing them. Dreaming that one of your parents died may express fear of loss, but it also may be an unconscious valve through which you release anger and other negative feelings. In some cultures dreaming about death and dying is a very good omen that represents longevity and prosperity.

Astrological Sign: Scorpio.
Positive associations with this tarot card:
endings, transformation, clearance, sweeping change.
Negative associations with this tarot card:
stagnation, loss of opportunity, loss of friendship, fear of change.
Without a doubt it is this card that causes most fear in a reading and yet it rarely, if ever, symbolizes actual death, more a time of absolute endings and absolute beginnings.
Whilst The Death card can represent rather shocking or unexpected events or changes, they usually clear the way for a brand new start and a greater value for life itself.
Out with the old and in with the new, a time of transformation is another way of looking at this card.
Negatively there isn't much difference, other than you may have a greater sense of fear and dread. when this card appears it's time to show what you're made of.
Another negative aspect of The Death card is stagnation, resisiting change when change is essential which may lead to lost opportunities.

To see your own face in your dream, represents the persona you show to the world as oppose to the real you. It may refer to how you confront problems and deal with issues in your life.

To dream that your face is flawed or pimply, symbolizes erupting emotions. You may be suffering an attack on your persona or your reputation. According to folklore, if you dream that your face is swollen, then it means that you will see an improvement to your financial situation.

To dream that you or someone has two faces or that the faces changes quickly from one person to another, indicates untrustworthiness. You or someone in your life is acting "two-faced".

To dream that you are washing your face, suggests that you need to come clean about some matter.

This dream is favorable if you see happy and bright faces, but significant of trouble if they are disfigured, ugly, or frowning on you.

To a young person, an ugly face foretells lovers' quarrels; or for a lover to see the face of his sweetheart looking old, denotes separation and the breaking up of happy associations.

To see a strange and weird-looking face, denotes that enemies and misfortunes surround you.

To dream of seeing your own face, denotes unhappiness; and to the married, threats of divorce will be made.

To see your face in a mirror, denotes displeasure with yourself for not being able to carry out plans for self-advancement. You will also lose the esteem of friends.

Seeing your own face in your dream indicates the persona you choose to show to the world as oppose to the real you. It may refer to confrontations and your willingness to deal with problems and issues in your life. Dreaming that you face is flawed or pimply, represents erupting emotions. You may have suffered an attack on your persona or your reputation.

Man comes to see himself as a symbol in so far as he is conscious of his
being. Hallstatt art, in Austria, shows fine examples of animal-heads with human
figures appearing above them. In India, in New Guinea, in the West as well, the
bull’s or ox’s head with a human form drawn between the horns is a very common
motif. Since the bull is a symbol for the father-heaven, man comes to be seen as
both his and the earth’s son (22), also, as a third possibility, the son of the sun and
the moon (49). The implications of Origen’s remark: ‘Understand that you are
another world in miniature and that in you are the sun, the moon and also the
stars’, are to be found in all symbolic traditions. In Moslem esoteric thought, man
is the symbol of universal existence (29), an idea which has found its way into
contemporary philosophy in the definition of man as ‘the messenger of being’;
however, in symbolic theory, man is not defined by function alone (that of
appropriating the consciousness of the cosmos), but rather by analogy, whereby
he is seen as an image of the universe. This analogical relationship is sometimes
expressed explicitly, as in some of the more ancient sections of the Upanishads—
the Brihadaranyaka and the Chandogya for instance—where the analogy between the human organism and the macrocosmos is drawn step by step by means
of correspondences with the organs of the body and the senses (7). So, for
example, the components of the nervous system are derived from fiery substance, and blood from watery substance (26). These oriental concepts first
appear in the West during the Romanesque period: Honorius of Autun, in his Elucidarium (12th century) states that the flesh (and the bones) of man are
derived from the earth, blood from water, his breath from air, and body-heat from
fire. Each part of the body relates to a corresponding part of the universe: the
head corresponds to the heavens, the breath to air, the belly to the sea, the lower
extremities to earth. The five senses were given analogies in accordance with a
system which came to Europe, perhaps, from the Hebrews and the Greeks (14).
Thus, Hildegard of Bingen, living in the same period, states that man is disposed
according to the number five: he is of five equal parts in height and five in girth; he
has five senses, and five members, echoed in the hand as five fingers. Hence the
pentagram is a sign of the microcosmos. Agrippa of Nettesheim represented this graphically, after Valeriano, who drew the analogy between the five-pointed star
and the five wounds of Christ. There is a relationship, too, between the organic
laws of Man and the Cistercian temple (14). Fabre d’Olivet, following the Cabala,
maintains that another number closely associated with the human being is nine—
the triple ternary. He divides human potentialities into three planes: those of the
body, of the soul or life and of the spirit. Each of these planes is characterized by
three modes: the active, the passive and the neutral (43). In the Far East, also,
speculation about the symbolism of man began very early. The same kind of
triple ternary organization is to be seen in the ancient teachings of the Taoists
(13). It is also interesting to note that there is a relationship between the human
being and the essential or archetypal animals (the turtle, the phoenix, the dragon
and the unicorn) who appear to bear the same relation to man—who is central—
as the tetramorphs do to the Pantokrator. Now, between man as a concrete
individual and the universe there is a medial term—a mesocosmos. And this
mesocosmos is the ‘Universal Man’, the King (Wang) in Far Eastern tradition,
and the Adam Kadmon of the Cabala. He symbolizes the whole pattern of the
world of manifestation, that is, the complete range of possibilities open to mankind. In a way, the concept corresponds to Jung’s ‘collective unconscious’. According to Guénon, Leibniz—perhaps influenced by Raymond Lull—conceded
that every ‘individual substance’ must contain within itself an integral reproduction of the universe, even if only as an image, just as the seed contains the totality
of the being into which it will develop (25). In Indian symbolism, Vaishvânara, or
the ‘Universal Man’, is divided into seven principal sections: (1) The superior,
luminous spheres as a whole, or the supreme states of being; (2) the sun and the
moon—or rather, the principles to which they pertain—as expressed in the right
and the left eye respectively; (3) the fire-principle—the mouth; (4) the directions
of space—the ears; (5) the atmosphere—the lungs; (6) the intermediary zone
between earth and heaven—the stomach; (7) the earth—the natural functions or
the lower part of the body. The heart is not mentioned, because, being the ‘centre’
or dwelling-place of Brahma, it is regarded as being beyond the ‘wheel’ of things
(26). Now, this concept of the ‘Universal Man’ implies hermaphroditism, though
never specifically. For the concrete, existential human being, in so far as he is
either a man or a woman, represents the dissected ‘human’ whole, not only in the
physical sense but also spiritually. Thus, to quote the Upanishads: ‘He was, in
truth, as big as a man and a woman embracing. He divided this atman into two
parts; from them sprang husband and wife.’ In Western iconography one sometimes finds images which would seem to be echoes of this concept (32). A human
couple, by their very nature, must always symbolize the urge to unite what is in
fact discrete. Figures which are shown embracing one another, or joining hands, or growing out of roots which bind them together, and so on, symbolize ‘conjunction’, that is, coincidentia oppositorum. There is a Hindu image representing the
‘joining of the unjoinable’ (analogous to the marriage of fire and water) by the
interlinking of Man and Woman, which may be taken to symbolize the joining of
all opposites: good and bad, high and low, cold and hot, wet and dry, and so on
(32). In alchemy, Man and Woman symbolize sulphur and mercury (the metal).
In psychology, level-symbolism is often brought to bear upon the members of the
body, so that the right side corresponds to the conscious level and the left to the
unconscious. The shapes of the parts of the body, depending upon whether they
are positive or negative—whether they are protuberances or cavities—should be
seen not only as sex-symbols but also in the light of the symbolism of levels. The
head is almost universally regarded as a symbol of virility (56). The attitudes
which the body may take up are of great symbolic importance, because they are
both the instrument and the expression of the human tendency towards ascendence
and evolution. A position with the arms wide open pertains to the symbolism of
the cross. And a posture in the form of the letter ‘X’ refers to the union of the two
worlds, a symbol which is related to the hour-glass, the ‘X’ and all other symbols
of intersection (50). Another important posture is that of Buddha in the traditional iconography of the Orient, a posture characteristic also of some Celtic gods
such as the so-called ‘Bouray god’ or the famous Roquepertuse figure. This
squatting position expresses the renunciation of the ‘baser part’ and of ambulatory movement and symbolizes identification with the mystic centre.

To see a man in your dream, denotes the aspect of yourself that is assertive, rational, aggressive, and/or competitive. Perhaps you need to incorporate these aspects into your own character. If the man is known to you, then the dream may reflect you feelings and concerns you have about him.

If you are a woman and dream that you are in the arms of a man, then it suggests that you are accepting and welcoming your stronger assertive personality. It may also highlight your desires to be in a relationship and your image of the ideal man.

To see an old man in your dream, represents wisdom or forgiveness. The old man may be a archetypal figure who is offering guidance to some daily problem.

To dream of a man, if handsome, well formed and supple, denotes that you will enjoy life vastly and come into rich possessions. If he is misshapen and sour-visaged, you will meet disappointments and many perplexities will involve you.

For a woman to dream of a handsome man, she is likely to have distinction offered her. If he is ugly, she will experience trouble through some one whom she considers a friend.

Seeing a man in your dream indicates the masculine aspect of yourself - the side that is assertive, rational, aggressive, and/or competitive. If the man is known to you, then the dream may reflect you feelings and concerns you have about him. If you are a woman and dream that you are in the arms of a man, suggests that you are accepting and welcoming your stronger assertive personality . It may also highlight your desires to be in a relationship and your image of the ideal man. Seeing an old man in your dream, represents wisdom or forgiveness.

All different kinds of people clutter our dream landscape. The men in your dream may include family members or total strangers. You may dream about your father, son, husband, or friend and should interpret the dream according to its details. A man, particularly the father figure, may represent collective consciousness and the traditional human spirit. He is the Yang and his energy, when mobilised, creates the earthly realities. Depending on the details of the dream, the masculine figure could be interpreted as the Creator or Destroyer. At times, women dream about men that are strangers to them. These men may represent the women's unconscious psychic energy. At times, a strange and ominous man in men's dreams could represent their "shadow" or their negativity and darker sides of personality.

Dreaming that you die in your dream, symbolizes inner changes, transformation, self-discovery and positive development that is happening within you or in your life. Although such a dreams may bring about feelings of fear and anxiety, it is no cause for alarm and is often considered a positive symbol. Dreams of experiencing your own death usually means that big changes are ahead for you. You are moving on to new beginnings and leaving the past behind. These changes does not necessarily imply a negative turn of events. Metaphorically, dying can be seen as an end or a termination to your old ways and habits. So, dying does not always mean a physical death, but an ending of something.

To see land in your dream, represents your need to be more grounded or down to earth. You are looking for a strong foundation and some stability. Alternatively, the dream may be a metaphor for something that you have "landed" as in a job, a part in a play, etc.

To see rocky or barren land, denotes failure in your undertakings.

To dream of land, when it appears fertile, omens good; but if sterile and rocky, failure and dispondency is prognosticated.

To see land from the ocean, denotes that vast avenues of prosperity and happiness will disclose themselves to you.

Seeing land in your dream, represents nurturance and you need to be grounded. You are seeking for a strong foundation and some sort of stability. Seeing rocky or barren land indicates failure in your undertakings.

To see your neck in your dream, signifies the relationship between the mind/mental and the body/physical. It represents willpower, self-restriction and your need to control your feelings and keep them in check. Consider the familiar phrase, "don't stick your neck out" which serves as a warning against a situation.

To dream that your neck is injured or sore, indicates a separation between your heart and mind. There is a literal disconnect between how you feel and what you think. You are feeling conflicted. Alternatively, the dream represents something or someone, who is literally a pain in the neck.

If you dream that your neck is thick or swollen, then it represents your quick temperedness.

To dream that you see your own neck, foretells that vexatious family relations will interfere with your business.

To admire the neck of another, signifies your worldly mindedness will cause broken domestic ties.

For a woman to dream that her neck is thick, foretells that she will become querulous and something of a shrew if she fails to control her temper.

Necklace.

For a woman to dream of receiving a necklace, omens for her a loving husband and a beautiful home.

To lose a necklace, she will early feel the heavy hand of bereavement.

Seeing your neck in your dream means the relationship between the mind/mental and the body/physical. It represents willpower, self-restriction and your need to control your feelings and keep them in check. Consider the familiar phrase, "don't stick your neck out" which serves as a warning against a situation. Dreaming that your neck is injured indicates a separation between your heart and mind. Dreaming of a thick neck means that you are becoming very quarrelsome and quick-tempered.

To see a deer in your dream, symbolizes grace, compassion, gentleness, meekness and natural beauty. It has feminine qualities and may point to the feminine aspect within yourself. It also represents independence, alertness, and virility. Consider the symbol to be a pun for someone who is "dear" to you. Alternatively, the dream represents vulnerability and naivete. As a result, others may take advantage of you and your gullibility.

If the deer is black, then it means that you are not acknowledging or are rejecting the feminine qualities in you. You may not be in tune with your feminine side.

To dream that you kill a dear, suggests that you are trying to suppress those feminine qualities.

This is a favorable dream, denoting pure and deep friendships for the young and a quiet and even life for the married.

To kill a deer, denotes that you will be hounded by enemies. For farmers, or business people, to dream of hunting deer, denotes failure in their respective pursuits.

Seeing a deer in your dream, symbolizes grace, gentleness, and natural beauty. It has feminine qualities and may point to the feminine aspect within yourself. It also represents independence and virility. Consider the symbol to be a pun for someone who is "dear" to you. If the deer is black, then it means that you are not acknowledging or are rejected the feminine qualities in you. You may not be in tune with your feminine side. Dreaming that you kill a dear, suggests that you are trying to suppress those feminine qualities.

A deer in a dream can symbolize your vulnerable side. If you dream that you have killed a deer, the dream could be a warning you that you might be hurting someone unnecessarily. Chasing a deer in a dream can symbolize overcoming a fear.

A stag is a symbol of male sexual energy and strength. A stag can also represent a man that you admire.

Dreaming of a herd of deer can indicate that you are thinking about where you stand in relation to others.

Deer Symbolism

When we encounter the deer in the wild, our breath catches - we are transfixed by their graceful features and delicate movements. The tender beauty of these beasts has not gone unnoticed by our ancestors.

The deer is linked to the arts, specifically poetry and music in ancient Celtic animal lore due to its graceful form. The Celts also believed that deer were associated with the fairie realm, and would lead troops of fairies - hundreds of them trailing behind them as the stag cut a path through the forest.

Both Celts and Native Americans observed the deer to be savvy when it came to finding the best herbs. These earth-bound peoples would follow the deer to prime herb patches - many of which proved to be highly beneficial in their medicinal purposes.

A quick-list of animal symbolism of the deer include:

Love
Grace
Peace
Beauty
Fertility
Humility
Swiftness
Regrowth
Creativity
Spirituality
Abundance
Benevolence
Watchfulness

How does this translate into our own life experience?

Just as the deer has an uncanny sense of where to find the green freshness earth provides, we can ask the deer within ourselves to seek out our inner treasures. In meditation or day dream, go on a spiritual hike with the deer. See yourself walking in the woods with the deer leading you into amazing depths within your soul. Each step you and the deer take will lead you deeper into your spiritual knowing, and to limitless treasure within.

The deer (particularly the doe, females) has the capacity for infinite generosity. Their heart rhythms pulse in soft waves of kindness. Match that graciousness by offering your trust to her. She will reward you by leading you to the most powerful spiritual medicine you can fathom.

In China the deer is a symbol of happiness and good fortune. Indeed, its name in Chinese is a homonym for the word abundance.

The deer is associated with:

The Dawn
The Moon
The Easterly directions

Those wishing to invoke the symbolic meaning of the deer may have most success and profound experiences while incorporating these associations.

For example, we can honor the deer during a full moon to enhance or draw out some of the deer's qualities (listed above) within ourselves.

Likewise, honoring the deer with our attention pointed in an eastern direction at dawn will elicit responsive energy too. Nothing fancy (the deer really has no use for pomp and circumsance - her pleasure comes from quiet simplicities) just a solemn nod of your head and a simple "thank you" for deer's presence will do.

Gentleness is the key word here. The deer represents kindness and compassion.

Power of gentleness, love, alertness, camouflage, balance and alertness, attention to subtler outside influences, ability to listen, attention, shows how to walk gracefully and carefully, connections to children and people for best interests of all, vision, hearing, smell, helps discern what actions to be done. Teaches empathy for others, soft direction and leadership abilities. Are you awakening to your own innocence? Are you listening to your inner child? Deer walks softly and gracefully. Are you ready for new opportunities that will reflect this gentle love to others?

The Chinese attribute to the rock a symbolism denoting permanence,
solidity and integrity (5), and this may be taken as generally valid. Like the stone,
it is held in many traditions to be the dwelling-place of a god. As a Caucasian
tradition has it: ‘In the beginning, the world was covered with water. The great
creator-god then dwelt inside a rock’ (35). It seems, then, that man intuitively
regards stones (as in the myth of Deucalion) and rocks as the source of human life,
while the soil (inferior because more disintegrated) is the mother of vegetable and
animal life. A mystic significance is attributed to this mineral, arising from the
sound it makes when struck and because of its unity—that is, its solidity and
cohesion.

Seeing rocks in your dream means permanence and stability as expressed in the familiar phrase "as solid as a rock". It may also indicate that you are making a commitment to a relationship. Or you may be contemplating some changes in your life that will lay the groundwork for a more solid foundation. On the other hand rocks may also symbolize stubbornness, disharmony and unhappiness. Dreaming that you are climbing a steep rock means struggles, obstacles, and disappointments.

The connotation of this symbol as with all other dream symbols, depends on the details and the mood of the dream. The rock or rocks in your dream could represent a variety of different ideas, but it usually has something to do with matters of this physical world. Rocks generally do not represent emotional, psychological, or spiritual issues. Rather, they may represent earthiness, sturdiness, stability, and a solid foundation. On the other hand they could represent physical obstacles, or difficulties that the dreamer may need to overcome.

To notice your flesh in your dream, represents a heightened sense of feeling and vitality. It symbolizes your sexual urges and physical desires.

To dream of flesh being eaten, suggests that you are under tremendous stress and feel drained.

To see a safe in your dream, indicates that you are hiding your sense of self worth and self value. It also refers to your security and secrets. Alternatively, the dream may also be a pun on feeling "safe".

To see an empty safe, signifies loss or lack.

To dream of seeing a safe, denotes security from discouraging affairs of business and love.

To be trying to unlock a safe, you will be worried over the failure of your plans not reaching quick maturity.

To find a safe empty, denotes trouble.

Seeing a safe in your dream means that you are hiding your sense of self worth and self value. It may also symbolize security or a keeping of a secret. Seeing an empty safe means loss or lack.