What do Dreams of Snakes Mean?
The following is a book excerpt from Chapter 2 from
Spiritual Dreaming: A Cross-Cultural and Historical Journey.
Animals of various kinds appear in spiritually meaningful dreams. Birds, dogs, bears, wolves, fish, and even insects have come in people’s dreams to deliver important messages from the divine. But the animal that makes perhaps the most powerful spiritual impact in dreams is the snake. People from cultures all over the world report dreams in which they have intensely vivid encounters with snakes. Content analysis studies performed by Robert Van de Castle indicate that even in the dreams of modern Americans, who presumably have little direct contact with snakes, these animals appear with surprising frequency. [i] Many reports of snake dreams emphasize their strange, uncanny quality; the dreamer feels both attracted to and yet repelled by the serpent. As the following examples suggest, many people through history have regarded snake dreams as deeply spiritual experiences–for these dreams reveal the ambivalent nature of the sacred, its capacity to be a force of joyful creativity and violent destructiveness in human life.
1) A fifty year-old woman named Rosie Plummer, of the Paviotso people living on the Walker river reservation in Nevada, told anthropologist Willard Park of her shaman father. Rattlesnakes frequently came to him in his dreams and told him how to cure snake bites and other illnesses. Eighteen years after his death, Rosie started to dream about her father. “She dreamed that he came to her and told her to be a shaman. Then a rattlesnake came to her in dreams and told her to get eagle feathers, white paint, wild tobacco. The snake gave her the songs that she sings when she is curing. The snake appeared three or four times before she be lieved that she would be a shaman. Now she dreams about the rattlesnake quite frequently and she learns new songs and is told how to cure sick people in this way. [ii]
2) Lilias Trotter, a Christian missionary who worked in Algeria in the early part of the twentieth century, had these two dreams reported to her by Muslims who were converting to Christianity. A) Trotter says that an Algerian she knew named Boualem had been involved in an angry conflict with a neighbor. She wanted to help Boualem, but didn’t know how; then she says, “now God has dealt with the matter. Boualem told us that a dream had come. ‘I dreamed that a great snake was coiling round my foot and leg, and you [Trot ter] were there, and in horror I called to you. You said to the snake: “In the name of Jesus, let go.” It uncoiled and fell like a rope, and I woke almost dead with joy.’ And the shining of his face told that his soul had got free.” B) Trotter says, “Blind Houriya came this morning with ‘I want to tell you something that has frightened me very much. I dreamt it Saturday night, but I was too frightened to tell you yesterday. To-day my husband told me, “You must tell them.” I dreamed that a great snake was twisting round my throat and strangling me. I called to you [Trotter] but you said: “I cannot save you, for you are not following our road.” I went on calling for help, and one came up to me and loosened the snake from off my neck. I said: “And who is it that is saving me, and what is this snake?” A voice said: “I am Jesus and this snake is Ramadan [the Muslim ritual fasting period].”‘” [iii]
3) Henry Shipes was the son of an English father and a mother from the Maidu Indians of the Sierra Nevada mountains of Califor nia. He grew up at the end of the nineteenth century, during the gold rush era, when the indigenous Maidu culture was coming into conflict with white culture. Henry told anthropologist Arden King of various dreams in which he fought against native shamans who were jealous of his power. In one of these dreams, Henry “had a dream contest with a shaman who was also the headman at Quincy [a Sierra Nevada town]. In this dream Henry and the shaman were contesting with each other to see who had the most power. This was a fight to the death. The shaman acted first. He loosed a snake which pursued Henry Shipes, but was unable to catch him. Henry then tried his white power. This was stated by him to be specifically white. By ruse he caused the shaman to attempt the lifting of a bucket. The bucket exploded and the dream ended.” [iv]
4) The Egyptian Pharaoh Tanutamon is reported to have had the following dream experience in the first year of his reign, as presented by philologist A. Leo Oppenheim in his work on dreams in the ancient Near East: “His majesty saw a dream in the night: two serpents, one on his right, the other on his left. His majesty awoke, but he did not find them. His majesty said: ‘Why has this happened to me?’” His interpreters told him that the dream means that both Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt now belong to him. “Then his majesty said: “True indeed is the dream; it is beneficial to him who places his heart in it but evil for him who does not know it.” [v]
5) In Carthage in 203 A.D. Vibia Perpetua, a newly married woman of twenty-two years, and mother to an infant son, was imprisoned and sentenced to death for refusing to renounce her Christian faith. As she waited in prison for the day when she and other Christians would be cast into the arena and killed by wild beasts, her brother came and told her to ask God for a vision to reveal her fate. Perpetua agrees, and says she’ll tell him what she learns tomorrow. “And I asked for a vision, and this was shown to me: I saw a bronze ladder, marvellously long, reaching as far as heaven, and narrow too: people could climb it only one at a time. And on the sides of the ladder every kind of iron implement was fixed: there were swords, lances, hooks, cutlasses, javelins, so that if anyone went up carelessly or not looking upwards, he would be torn and his flesh caught on the sharp iron. And beneath the ladder lurked a serpent of wondrous size, who laid am bushes for those mounting, making them terrified of the ascent. But Saturs [a fellow martyr] climbed up first… And he reached the top of the ladder, and turned and said to me: ‘Perpetua, I’m waiting for you–but watch out that the serpent doesn’t bite you!’ And I said: ‘He won’t hurt me, in Christ’s name!’ And under that ladder, almost, it seemed, afraid of me, the serpent slowly thrust out its head–and, as if I were treading on the first rung, I trod on it, and I climbed. And I saw an immense space of garden, and in the middle of it a white-haired man sitting in shepherd’s garb, vast, milk ing sheep, with many thousands of people dressed in shining white standing all round. And he raised his head, looked at me, and said: ‘You are welcome, child.’ And he called me, and gave me, it seemed, a mouthful of the cheese he was milking; and I accepted it in both my hands together, and ate it, and all those standing around said: ‘Amen.’ At the sound of that word I awoke, still chewing some thing indefinable and sweet.” Perpetua tells her dream to her brother, and they both understand that she is to die for her faith. [vi]
If you rarely dream about snakes does it still mean anything? if so, what does it mean if it bites you….on your ear??!
I had a dream about a Snake. I was sitting in the front seat of the car next to the driver and a snake was on my left hand side on the road almost standing… as the car turned, it jumped over the car and went the other side.
Next day as I was driving my car, I took a turn, I saw a brown snake, on the left of the road almost standing position, ready to jump. This was real….
I cant understand that what I saw in the dream, actually alomst happened the same way.
Such an experience might be considered a synchronicity, Jung’s term for strange but meaningful coincidences.
just last night, i had a dream that i was over a friends house who had tons of pets, a snake being one of them..and my sister happened to be there sitting on the couch. i walk into the room where she was sitting and saw the snake slither right by her on the couch hitting her chin with its tail as it slid by, but then all of a sudden it came back and started coiling around her neck so i immediately jump up and try to dig my nails into the snake so i can pull it free. well i finally got it off and threw it outside…but then the same thing happened again and the look on my sisters face as the snake was tightening around her neck was horrid. her eyes wide open with fear looking at me with desperation, as i am now paralyzed and im trying to reach her but something wont let me and i have to watch her be strangled…but finally the paralysis lifted and i go to save her once again. is this supposed to mean something?
My aunt had several dreams about snake people. They were humanoid with a snake face and upper body. They carried big curved swords like a rapier in one hand and a strange sword with three or more snakes where the blade should be in the other. They surrounded her house and lit the outside on fire. The fire couldn’t be extinguished but for some reason never entered the house. She had this dream 20 or so times the month before she was in a fatal car wreck. She was dead for 4 minutes and brought back. She also had several other premonitions about her wreck.
My question, ever heard of any ’snake people’ as I described them here?
Last night I dreamt that I was in a place with a clear shallow water stream, plain rock brown bottom, there were a couple of big rocks and trees around. To my right, I saw a green, gray and black snake curled up on a tree. I was staring at it until I noticed it was a snake and became cautious. I had a newborn baby wrapped in white cloth and Im moving away from the snake walking backwards on the clear water shallow stream. I faced forward and to my right I noticed another snake curled up by itself on the ground looking at me, this one was black. Then I see two of my best friends passing on the stream like going down on a slide (they seemed happy), and I tell them there are snakes. I have the presence of a men to my right helping me cross the stream, while carrying the baby, to my left there was another green snake bigger than the other two. I jumped right next to it with cautiously but no fear. The place where I jumped to was a regular paved street I walked a couple of steps into a building with a feeling of relief, waiting for an elevator. ?!? I broked up with my boyfriend, of three years, a month ago. In two weeks, I will see my best girlfriends who have been giving me pep talk during these times. Its my bday celebration and they want to party like crazies although I dont feel like it. Maybe that is what the dream is about no? What is your interpretation of the dream?
Hello,
For several months 3-4 times a week, I have had dreams of snakes. Usually I see them in my house, or as im visiting friends, or even walking through a small low lit restraunt or pub. Its usually dark and sometimes I see the snakes as I’m walking through someones’ yard. Usually more than one and usually large coiled up in a corner watching or sometimes baby snakes racing across the floor in hopes to either scare me away or hide. I am very outdoorsey, love to hike in northeast TN, camp, garden. Im not scared of much of anything EXCEPT snakes. I am threatened by their sneakiness and the way they can be so agressive, fast moving and camoflauge.
Any help on this fear would help greatly!
Thank you, Terri
Also if there is any correlation to snakes and seeing demolished cars on the road that have been in terrible crashes and emergency personell trying to free the drivers please let me know. I have this re occuring dream but not as often as the snakes. I see EMT’s prying cars to rescue people, and I see blood and head impact prints and body impact marks, but not the actual people in the crash. Just morbid looking cars with blood and sometimes carseats. Knowing the ppl that had been in the cars didnt make the wrecks.
Ok, well any advice in my screwed up head would help.
Thanks,
Terri
I had a dream last night that I was on a rollercoast and I passed a huge big snake all coiled and looked like it just ate with a big bulge at the bottom of it’s tail. It was just staring at me as I passed. It did not strike at me or do anything. Then I was with 2 young children and 2 small snakes came out of nowhere and started slithering near the kids. They did not strike the children nor did they go away. I couldn’t reach them but they were just there slithering around the kids. I woke up before the rollercoaster ride ended or got to my destination. I was never hurt. What does this mean?
Snakes are ambiguous creatures, dangerous yet associated with healing and wisdom.
A rollercoaster ride can be a vivid metaphor of what life feels like sometimes!
The danger to the children could refer to actual children, and/or to a metaphorically “young” part of yourself.
The connection perhaps is a sense of uncanny creepiness in both types of recurring dream. The awful fascination with horror and danger–a snake’s lidless gaze, the aftermath of a bloody car accident.
Last night I had a dream that I opened the back door to my house and there were snakes everywhere. When I tried to close the door a snake stuck his head in and I could not close the door. I pulled and pulled and the snake turned into a komoto dragon and forced his way in. It began flying towards everyone. I wanted to to swat at it but it was so big I thought it would bite me, but then I realized it wasn’t trying to hurt me, but it was flying back and forth like a fly or a gnat. Then I woke up. What in the world could this mean???
That’s interesting how the snake changes into a larger, more fantastic reptile once it gets inside. If a snake were to force its way into my private space, then turn into a dragon, that would make me think there’s something about “snake energy” (something primitive? wise and ancient? masculine? alien? healing?) that I don’t want so close to me but I can’t hold back any longer. Then comes the realization it’s benign, harmless–that seems significant, like once it gets inside, the sense of threat and danger diminishes, and the energy becomes more manageable.
Last night I had a dream the a few friends and I (I don’t know who they were now, but in my dream I knew them) were on a walk through a forest with dead trees and dry brush all around, until my boyfriend said that we had to get to some play on time, we would have to go through the almost rain forest like area. I get up to that section of forest, and there were 3 snakes guarding it, besides the fact two were on the ground and one was in the tree, also everyone I was with had already passes them. The one snake in the tree looked huge almost like a boa constrictor, and the two on the ground, one was like the green snake above on this page, and the other had a red head and back and white striped body. By the time i was about to pass them I took one step and the red headed snake attacked me, for some reason I had my purse with me and I tried dropping it on the snake, that didn’t work and the snake bit me on my butt cheek. Everyone who was watching was worried, I didn’t feel it so I laughed and tried to keep playing with it. After that my dream went onto my boyfriend getting in his car I got in mine. He thought it would be fun to race me so he was in the lead, and I was trying to catch up with him, he fly’s across rail road tracks and skims by, and my car swerves and ends up parallel to the tracks, a half second later the train is screaming by my car and shaking it uncontrollably. After the train passes everyone in town saw another train coming, so i got out of my car because it was stuck, everyone gets to safe grounds, and all you hear is explosions and screaming. Next thing you know my car and half the town in up in flames.
Can someone tell my why I got bite by a snake and my car went up in flames in the same dream?
I had this dream the other night about snakes. I was in the grass jumping over the snake; almost floating. But there were more than one snake. I was jumping to someone. I believe it was my boyfriend.?.
Last night I dreamt that I picked up a rattlesnake and as I picked it up , it turned black. It was trying very hard to bite me but couldn’t as I held it right behind the head. All of a sudden it streatched out and it bit me on the hand, as I looked at my hand thae snake died and slowly turned to gold and fleked away to nothing, I was waiting to die but instead woke up.
i am with a friend and her children and we are collecting snakes for a collection i have. I am a teacher and have her children sometimes and she thought this was strange. Like a boa constictor and then i said we had to go back and get more and more cause i wanted a collection!
2 nights ago i had a dream that i was looking in the mirror and i saw something black globbing out of my ear and when almost was out it appeared to be asmall snake or worn that was black so i started screaming and trying to pull it out of my ear but it begin to bite me on the face so i woke up with my hand gripped to my left ear in fear what does this mean
ive had 2 snake dreams over a 3 day period.
in the first dream were somewhere where there’s a lot of rocks and suddenlt theres a normal snake (not very big or very long).someone tries to kill it with a big rock but misses so we run away. when i turn aroud its coming out of some guys mouth attacking me and i wake up
in the second dream theres this absolutly HUGE snake which is accompanying me and a friend at night ( we’re in the country) and its protecting us. i feel like i like it and i dont have bad feelings about it. and then something bad happens to the snake and i feel liek i want to help it.
does anyone have any explaination? cuz the second dream is very strange and i cant find any interpretation about it
i m seein snakes and scorpios in my dreams and even seeing them around me
i m even feeling very depressed . evrything is gong on well still i dont feel gooed.
i dont knw wats happening with me. can anyone help me in intreprting this pleaseeeeeeeeeeeeee
Just had this dream. I was walking into a building. I was talking with a white man about something(I’m african american) he’s walking slightly ahead of me like we’re on the sidewalk of a building. I look behind me sensing a presence and there was a huge bright green snake a ways back that scattered off when our eyes met. As we near the end of the sidewalk a bright green smaller snake bites me and I’m like oh shi*! I knock the snake off me and the guy was like are you alright. I’m like yeah that snake bit me. The guy then says yeah, just because you see em doesn’t mean they won’t bite you. We kept walking and my dream went on. Weird.