Dreams: Water, fire and nature
Articles about water, fire and nature in the Dreams section: what sleep science observes and what popular tradition links to each theme.
Water, fire and nature (42)
Dreaming about a river: what this dream usually reflects
Water rushing over stones, the steady sound of the current, a far bank that seems too far away. Sometimes the river runs clear and invites a swim; other times it comes brown and swollen, dragging branches along. The scene changes a lot, and it usually says more about your present than about your future.
Dreaming about a rainbow: what this dream usually reflects
The rain has just stopped, the ground is still wet, and a band of color stretches across the sky. Sometimes there are two arcs; sometimes the colors show up at night, where they should not be. People who wake from a dream like this tend to remember the feeling more than the picture.
Dreaming about hail: what this dream usually reflects
The sound comes first: chunks of ice hammering the roof, the car, the window. Then the yard covered in little white pellets in the middle of summer. Dreaming about hail tends to leave the feeling that something arrived suddenly and out of season.
Dreaming about stars: what this dream usually reflects
You look up and the sky is packed with points of light, sharper than on any real night. One star streaks across the dark, another seems to drift slowly toward you. It is a dream that often leaves a sense of awe, and sometimes a question about where your life is heading.
Dreaming about wheat: what this dream usually reflects
A golden sea of grain bending in the wind, the dry rustle of ripe ears, late afternoon light over the field. In another version, the same wheat shows up dry, burned or lying on the ground. Wheat in dreams is rarely just scenery: it tends to carry ideas of effort, waiting and results.
Dreaming about the sky or clouds: what it usually reflects
Lying on the grass, you watch clouds drift slowly across endless blue. Another night, the same sky closes in, turns lead gray and seems to sink over the city. The sky in your dreams changes moods just like the real one, and it usually mirrors the weather inside.
Dreaming about sunflowers: what this dream usually reflects
Rows of yellow flowers as far as the eye can see, all turned the same way, and a low sun warming your face. Sometimes it is a single sunflower in a vase, or a bouquet someone hands you with a smile. Few dreams leave such a clear feeling of warmth and light.
Dreaming about a lotus flower: what this dream usually reflects
The water is still and dark, yet in the middle of it a pink flower slowly opens, spotless, as if nothing around it could touch it. Sometimes it is a whole pond covered in lotus blossoms; other times, a single bud that hasn't made up its mind to open. It is a dream that often leaves a strange calm behind.
Dreaming about soil or earth: what this dream usually reflects
Your hands sink into a warm mound of red earth while a line of ants marches past carrying bits of leaf. In another dream, the ground gives way underfoot or covers you up to your chest. Earth is one of the oldest elements in the human imagination, and in dreams it can speak of roots, care or weight.
Dreaming about crops or a garden: what it usually reflects
Rows of lettuce sprouting, hands covered in soil, the smell of rain over the beds. Or a dry field of yellowed leaves where nothing took root. Dreaming about crops or a garden tends to speak of care, of waiting and of what you have been growing.
Dreaming about the beach: what this dream usually reflects
Warm sand, the sound of the waves, an empty beach at sunset. Dreaming about the beach often feels like a break in the middle of the week, and the scene speaks of rest, of missing your holidays and sometimes of wanting to escape the routine.
Dreaming about trees: what this dream usually reflects
A huge tree giving shade, another falling in a storm, a dry tree in the middle of a field. Dreaming about trees tends to bring strong images, and the emotion of the scene speaks more of stability, growth and roots than of destiny.
Dreaming about flowers: what this dream usually reflects
A garden in bloom, a bouquet handed over by someone dear, wilted flowers in a forgotten vase. Dreaming about flowers is usually a gentle dream, and the scene speaks of affection, celebration and care, and sometimes of farewell.
Dreaming about snow: what this dream usually reflects
Flakes falling slowly, a silent all-white landscape, a car stuck in a blizzard. People dream about snow even if they have never seen it in real life, and the scene usually speaks of calm, of pausing or of a sense of isolation.
Dreaming about storms or lightning: what it usually reflects
The sky suddenly turns dark, lightning cuts across it and thunder shakes the house. Dreaming about a storm is intense, and the scene usually comes with times of tension, conflict or piled-up worries, not a disaster that is about to happen.
Dreaming about the sun: what this dream usually reflects
A bright, warm day, an orange sunset, a sun that suddenly goes dark. Dreaming about the sun is usually pleasant and bright, and the scene says more about your state of mind at the moment than about any prediction.
Dreaming about the moon: what this dream usually reflects
A huge full moon over the sea, a red moon, two moons in the sky at once. Dreaming about the moon is usually a beautiful, mysterious dream, and the scene speaks more of calm, change and wonder than of destiny.
Dreaming about earthquakes: what it usually reflects
The ground starts to shake, the house sways, cracks climb up the walls. Earthquake dreams are common even far from fault lines. What they usually reflect.
Dreaming about rain or floods: what it usually reflects
Soft rain on the window, a storm that will not stop, water rising through the house. Rain and flood dreams change mood a lot. What they usually reflect and why floods are so frightening.
Dreaming about the ocean and giant waves: what it usually reflects
A calm blue sea, a storm surge flooding the beach, a huge wave rising toward you. Ocean dreams change mood a lot. What they usually reflect and why the giant wave is so frightening.
Dreaming about fire: what is usually behind it
A house on fire, fire that does not burn, a controlled flame. See what research observes and when a recurring nightmare deserves treatment.
Dreaming about water: what is usually behind it
Clear water, floods, rough seas, drowning. See what dream research observes in these reports and what folklore associates with each scene.
Dreaming about a waterfall: what that dream says
Calm waterfall, strong one, falling into it or watching from afar. See what research observes about moving water in dreams and folk readings.
Dreaming about a candle flame or fireplace: what that dream says
A candle flame, a fireplace, a flame that grows or goes out: what research says and how a flame dream differs from a dream about a house fire.
Dreaming about a cave: what that dream reflects
Entering a cave, getting trapped, finding light or getting lost in the dark. See what research observes and what folklore associates.
Dreaming about a mountain: what that dream reflects
Climbing, watching from afar or falling from a mountain. See what research observes about landscapes in dreams and how folklore reads them.
Dreaming about lava: what that dream says
Lava flowing, an erupting volcano or running from it. See what research observes about threat dreams and how folklore reads lava.
Dreaming about a lake: what that dream reflects
Calm, murky or frozen lake, or falling into it. See what research observes about still water in dreams and how folklore reads it.
Dreaming about a fountain: what that dream says
Fountain with running water, dry or overflowing. See what research observes about water dreams and how folklore reads them.
Dreaming about roses: colors, thorns and what the dream shows
Dreaming about roses speaks of affection, care and thorns. See what sleep science observes, what Freud and Jung say and what tradition links to each color.
Dreaming about a garden: what this dream usually shows
Dreaming about a garden speaks of care, rest and what you cultivate. See what research observes, the most common scenes and what tradition links to it.
Dreaming about leaves: green, dry, falling and what they show
Dreaming about leaves speaks of phases, the passing of time and renewal. See what research observes, the most common scenes and what tradition says.
Dreaming about a desert: what that dream says
Walking in the desert, feeling thirst or seeing dunes in the distance. See what research observes about empty landscapes in dreams and folk readings.
Dreaming about smoke: meaning, variations and what science says
A gray thread slipping under the door, the living room taken over by a dark haze, a smell of burning that seems real. Or a light white smoke, rising slowly like incense. Dreams about smoke tend to come loaded with alarm and confusion and, sometimes, a strange calm.
Dreaming about ice: what it means and what it may reflect
Melting ice, slipping on ice, ice in your hand, ice in the freezer, ice from the sky: what sleep science observes and what Freud, Jung and traditions say.
What it means to dream about mud (and what it does not)
Getting stuck in mud, black mud, mud inside the house, dirty water on the street, shaping red clay: what sleep science, Freud, Jung and traditions say.
What it means to dream about fog (and what it does not)
Fog on the road, white fog on your street or fog so thick that everything disappears: what sleep science, symbols, the Bible and dream books say.
What it means to dream about orchids (and what it does not)
A white, purple or yellow orchid, or one blooming in its pot: what sleep science observes and what Freud, Jung and Chinese symbols say about this flower.
Dreaming about stones: meaning, variations and what science says
Shining gemstones, a huge rock in the road or the stone of a ring cracking: what sleep science observes and what Jung and traditions say about this dream.
What it means to dream about plants (and what science says)
Green plants in the yard, pots inside the house or dry, wilted leaves: what sleep science observes and what Freud, Jung and the traditions say.
Dreaming about a tornado or hurricane: meaning and what science says
A tornado approaching, a hurricane destroying houses or a funnel of fire: what sleep science observes and what Freud, Jung and faith traditions say.
What it means to dream about wind (and what it does not)
Strong wind inside the house, wind taking the roof or wind with dust and rain: what sleep science observes and what the Bible, the orixás and dream books say.