The Dictionary of Symbols
In the symbolism pertaining to the body, the most elementary association is the one between the organ or member and its function. It is, then, selfevident that, in Egyptian hieroglyphs, the mouth should stand for the power of
speech and hence for the creative word. In this sense it stands for the pristine
emanation of creative power. Very closely connected with this hieroglyph is
another showing a mouth with a solar disk inside. This disk, primarily standing
for the sun, is connected, but not identical, with the eye. (In hieroglyphs which
are coloured, the eye is wholly blue, while the sign under discussion consists of a
blue mouth with a little red circle inside) (19). Guénon supports this interpretation of the sign (29), pointing to the example of the Mândûkya Upanishad where,
apropos the state of deep sleep, the mouth is said to represent integral consciousness (26). In the Old Testament, the concepts of mouth and fire are frequently
associated; epithets such as ‘devouring’ or ‘consuming’, frequently applied to the
latter, are descriptive of the functions of the former. Hence the fire-breathing
animals of legend. Jung explains these associations by synaesthesia and suggests
that they are connected with Apollo, the sun-god who is depicted with a lyre as
his characteristic attribute. The common link between the symbolisms of sounding, speaking, shining and burning finds a physiological parallel in the phenomenon known as ‘coloured hearing’ whereby some individuals experience sounds
as colours. Furthermore, it is hardly a coincidence that the two main characteristics that set Man apart from all other beings are the power of speech and the use
of fire. Both are, in fact, the product of mana (psychic energy) (31). In consequence, mouth-symbolism, like fire-symbolism, has two aspects: creative (as in
speech) and destructive (devouring). And, of course, the mouth is the point of
convergence between the external and the inner worlds. This explains the frequent
symbol of the ‘monster’s mouth’, with sets of upper and lower teeth that are
expressive of the ‘interlocking’ of the two worlds: heaven and earth or, more
often, hell and earth (50). There are, in mediaeval iconography, abundant examples of the mouths of dragons or large fishes affording access to the inner world
or to the underworld.
Dream Moods
To see a mouth in your dream, signifies your need to express yourself or talk about an issue that's bothering you. Alternatively, the dream suggests that you have said too much and you need to keep your mouth shut.
