ON-LINE BOOK : Hundreds of real dreams
A BASIC INTRO to what dreams are about
BASIC TECHNIQUES to interpret dreams
DREAM DICTIONARY A to Z of symbols complete with essays on symbols in everyday real uses
BASIC SYMBOLISM - DREAM SYMBOLS : Basements - Your boss - Best friend - Babies/pregnant - Brothers - Cafes - Cars - Castles - Children - Creative dreams - Clothes - Churches and cathedrals - Deaths - Demons,witches and goblins - Dogs - Drink and drugs - Farms, gardens and plants - Factories - Fathers - Faucets/taps/pipes - Food - Earthquakes and volcanos - Foreign Countries - Grandparents - Guards - Guns and knives - Horses and animals - Hauntings - Hospitals - Hotels + huge buildings - Houses - Locks - Men(unknown) - Military - Money - Mothers - Monster - Mountains - Movies - Music - People - Police - Phone - Politics - Planes and flying - Prison - Rivers - Rapists and intruders - Railways - Roads - Schools - Sea - Sex - Shops - Sisters - Skies in dreams - Skyscrapers and tall buildings - Snakes and spiders - Space - Sports - Street - Teeth - Tidal waves - Time - Toilets in dreams - Towns and streets - Trees - Water - Weddings and engagements - Windows - Work
OTHER SUBJECTS: external causes of dreams : Music in dreams : Premonitions : Telepathy : Specific dreams : Synonyms in dreams : Children's dreams and dreams about your child : Recurring dreams CASE STUDIES : 1 2 3 4 5
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MILITARY : Being a member of the military can symbolise many things. But a lot of strong emotions are associated with the army. The army has to follow strict rules and you have to have a very disciplined outlook. So look to situations where you want people to show discipline or feel a need to buckle down. Military plans are very precise and need to be followed exactly or things can go wrong. So look for some situation where things can go very wrong very quickly if you do not follow the rules. The military involves a strong loyalty to the group and the need to act as a team. What teams do you enjoy being a part of and does that team spirit have a relevant meaning in your life right now.

KEY WORDS(Pick a quote which captures your feelings right now. Think especially of the day before the dream) :
- "being very disciplined"
- "there are strict rules that need to be followed"
- "showing discipline and effort"
- "a sense of teamwork and effort"
- "enduring hardship together"
- "the schedule"
- "it was a really rough day"

HOW TO USE THESE SYMBOLS : CLICK HERE
FULL DREAM DICTIONARY : CLICK HERE

ESSAYS
Military in dreams : A detailed essay on the symbolism of the military using real dream interpretations
POLICE : Police in real dream symbolism
PRESIDENTS : Presidents in dreams
Dream Dictionary : An A to Z of symbolic meanings with every meaning for each symbol
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DREAM STUDIES : A QUICK SUMMARY OF REAL DREAMS about the military
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THE DREAM - I am at some family gathering. It seems to be very dark indeed but its Christmas. Then there is suddenly some action. We have some task to do... and then I am stood over this swimming pool. The military have taken over. We are in some army task. I have to put some package together and put it into the water. It is stuffed full of money. But there is a plug there - I have to jump in and put the plug in place so the water doesn't run out.

THE REALITY The dreamer had been committing himself in too many ways and in many ways was overstretched. The dream represented an agreement to get involved back in a voluntary activity and the problems associated with it

DREAM MEANING The dream captures the following feeling within the dreamer - "I value my charity work. But I am also very tired often. It really does drain me. I want to show some discipline and start helping out again."

THE INTERPRETATION Christmas often represents a coming together and can even represent how people come together to settle differences. This symbolised how the dream had finally started talking with people he had been avoiding because he knew they wanted him to get back involved with some voluntary tasks for a local community centre.

Money is a symbol of effort - and the dreamer had to sacrifice some of his money in some task symbolising how he knew such voluntary involvement's would involve time and energy.

A plug stops water from running away - it stops it draining away. Often water represents energies and efforts. In this case the reference to draining is relevant. It signifies how the dreamer fears that such involvement's will drain him.

The military had specific emotions in this dream - it was connected with a harsh environment. People making sacrifices. The dreamer also associated a sense of a team with the military. It symnbolised how he felt he had to work together with other people for some greater good.

Symbolic Meanings
ARMY : "unite behind a cause - start helping with the charity again"
CHRISTMAS : "people come together - coming to a compromise or talking things out"
MONEY : "the charity work is very valuable - he knows how important and good for him it is"
PLUG : "a way of stopping your interest and energy from draining away"
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DREAM TIP : Think of a soldier in a dream as representing a word such as 'tough'. Then think of the rich and varied ways in which that word can be used in the English language such as "I have got to toughen up", "Maybe I have been too tough on my friend" and "It was a tough challenge yesterday". Dream symbols are used in equally rich and varied ways by dreams. Do not make the simple mistake of saying that dreams about soldiers have simplistic meanings such as "you are becoming much tougher". Look for ways in which the theme of toughness is applying in your life right now.
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THE DREAM - I was on a beach, near the rocks at the sheltered end of a big bay - with my two children. There were about 500 other people scattered along the beach.

A boat pulled in to shore near us, crewed by 3 young men. None of the sailors were wearing uniforms, and the boat was a luxury launch. Something like you would imagine to be parked at a billionaire's dock in an exclusive marina - Only everything on it was painted grey. I knew that it belonged to the military, and that the young men were navy sailors. They were offering joy rides to anyone from the beach, 6-8 people at a time. My kids wanted to go, and had already climbed onto the boat. I was speaking to the skipper (who was conveniently very attractive looking), requesting that he not go too fast with my kids as there was nothing much for them to hang on to for safety. He asked if I would like to see something else instead – I agreed with no hesitation. He pointed to a rocky island about 5kms out to sea (There were lots of islands, mostly steep rocky sided and dark – not very inviting) and said that’s where we would go. He was smiling at me. He seemed pleased with himself, and confident that I would enjoy the journey. Next I was in the boat helping to steady my kids and we were tearing over the water. Next thing we were steering DOWN towards the ocean floor. I could see the sheer walls of dark rock which were the base of the island off to one side, before we docked on a sandy patch of seabed. We all had no trouble breathing, and could move as we do on land – perhaps a little more slowly. The 2 other men busied themselves carrying out some maintenance on the boat. The gorgeous skipper told us to have a look around, and sat down on a patch of sand to watch us. My kids scampered off chasing fish and trying to catch an octopus, while I made my way down the broad stepped terrace of rock which led down to a large flat area of seabed. (This whole area was huge – as big as 5 football fields) I began to notice the presence of other people here. There were a few women in pink nurses uniforms, interspersed around the area, sitting on plastic stackable chairs. There were also about 20-30 men and women wearing white pyjama-type outfits. They were most often wandering around the area separately, although a few seemed to be involved in some type of activity which had been set up on a trestle table not far from me. I must have started to talk to one of these people, as the skipper was suddenly at my elbow, warning me in a low voice not to interact with any of the people in white. He explained that they were all mentally disturbed, and should not be interrupted. We observed them for a while, before rounding up my kids and heading back to the boat.

THE REALITY This dream occurred the night after the dreamer had rearranged the furniture in her children's room. This might not sound like much of an activity, but she had in fact put a lot of energy into it. They have a small room, large & heavy furniture, and lots of toys. I had put a lot of effort into planning the layout so it would allow a balance of; space, light, order, and comfort, while still allowing them easy access to their playthings, and a private space for each if they require it. Also, a fair amount of physical effort was involved, as some of the furniture is very heavy. Part of the process was also to sort through all of the toys with her kids' help. The broken or incomplete items were binned, and the good stuff which they have either outgrown, or don't play with, was sent on to the victims of the SE Asian Tsunami.

DREAM MEANING The dream captures the following feeling within the dreamer - "I had a good day with my children yesterday. We rearranged their rooms. I felt it was a good exercise to focus their minds and improve their discipline."

THE INTERPRETATION Quite often a dream can replay some incident within your mind and it will work through the good things and bad things. In this case this was a highly positive experience. Often sunny conditions symbolise how an experience was perceived by the dreamer as being good. However, the dream combined the sunny conditions with a tough and difficult trip. That probably shows that the nature of the experience was meant to be tough and challenging. We build character through struggle. This maybe shows how the dreamer believes that the challenging experience was a good thing.

Boats in trips symbolise an emotional experience - often with other people. We go on a journey through our emotions. This was a special kind of boat though. It was a military boat yet it also resembled a luxury yacht. This all helps to build up a special and detailed picture and perfectly matches the experience. It was high value experience which highly engrossed everyone - it built up a sense of involvement. The military owned the boat. That was maybe a symbol for showing how good the whole experience was in building up character. The children were given specific tasks and were constantly challenged and directed. It was a military operation in all but name. The whole experience had a subliminal message. The children acted in a team like way.

The skipper gives a smile as they embark on the tough and tricky journey. That too shows that this whole experience was meant not to be a lazy and relaxing summer day - it was an exercise in character building but in a friendly and relaxed environment.

The boat then heads downwards along the ocean floor. That possibly symbolises some of the specific incidents encountered along the way. Two of the men are carrying out maintenance on the boat - symbolic of the need to maintain the same level of involvement of the children. They needed to be involved in the tasks. During this whole experience the mother also had to stop the children being distracted - symbolised by the way that they play with the octopus in the dream.

Dreams like this are ways of monitoring how you perform in meeting your tasks. This dreamer was trying to engross her kids in a challenging task. She was trying to keep their mind of the job and also maintain her command over the situation. She was trying to maintain the sense of journey and not let the kids get distracted.

The mental patients at the bottom of the sea maybe show one other aspect of the experience. This portion could symbolise one of two things. Either it symbolises the dreamer strategy for dealing with unruly children who suddenly start to get into a temper. Maybe she would not interact with such signs. That she would try to ignore them and try to distract the children. The mental patients maybe also symbolise the dreamers own sense of frustration during this whole situation. Trying to keep children engrossed can often be very difficult and annoying and may lead you to lose your temper. So maybe those mental patients were ignored because the dreamer was trying to ignore moments of personal stress and keep the situation moving.

Overall the dream perfectly captures all the parts of the real life situation. A tough challenging but at the same time relaxing experience. Keeping kids engrossed and involved is very difficult as they are easily distracted. It is a great skill and this dream probably symbolises the need to monitor your own performance. Mothers have to constantly monitor their techniques for bringing up children - to see if strategies are working. Such dreams capture our gut feelings on our performances.

Symbolic Meanings
BOAT : "getting really involved and excited - the rearranging of the rooms is an excellent "
ISLAND : "forget the world by becoming highly engrossed in some issue"
MILITARY : "discipline and uniting behind a cause - the dreamer gets her children to really show some discipline and set about the task with great enthusiasm"
ROCK : "obstacles and problems"
SKIPPER : "a need to stay in charge and direct matters"
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DREAM TIP : The dream mind is a conceptual mind. So whatever ideas come into its head are usually complex and well thought out. Each symbol represents components which weave into an idea. It could represent any conceptual thought or emotion such as "I want to let my young son go to school on his own as it will help him be more independent". Dreams represent changes in our judgments.
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THE DREAM - I am directing a war. Soldiers are all around me. Everything is under control through even though it is a war.

THE REALITY This dream was a premonition of a very bad day ahead. It was a real struggle just like the dream. Things went wrong that day but during all that the dreamer managed to maintain composure. It was a real struggle but he managed to get through due to resolve.

DREAM MEANING The dream captures the following feeling within the dreamer - "I think this dream was a premonition of the day ahead. It was a constant struggle all day long. But all day long I remained calm and able to cope."

INTERPRETATION Soldiers can often symbolise resilience. They have to endure harsh circumstances and a tough environment. War is a test of someone's resolve. The dream was in many ways a classic dream which captured a moment. This was a premonition but of the emotions from the day ahead. They matched entirely.

Symbolic Meanings
SOLDIER : "tough and resilient - able to manage everything thrown at you"
WAR : "a tough situation with many challenges"
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DREAM TIP : Always take note of what you think of when you wake up. Sometimes an immediate thought will pop into your head. Thats probably not random and may link to the subject of the dream.
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THE DREAM - I am on Burniston road. Suddenly all the houses are moving. They move in a regimented fashion. They swing round and I have to make a move to avoid them. I am then in some workplace. There is a very precise way of doing things. People are allowed some alcohol with there dinner but its all done very precisely.

THE REALITY The dreamer was off work due to sickness but could not give his boss a time for coming back. The dreamer had been repeatedly told of the need to keep his employer informed.

DREAM MEANING The dream captures the following feeling within the dreamer - "I really should get in touch with work and give a definite time for when I am due back. I know I have been told so often that its OK to take time off and I just need to let them know so they can make some arrangements. But I am not sure yet"

THE INTERPRETATION The street in question was built on a former army barracks. The houses moved in a precise military type way. The dream repeatedly reinforced the correct way of doing things and the need for preciseness. The military moves with precision based on plans. Those plans are followed exactly. In this case the military nature of his workplace and the need to adhere to timetables was emphasised. It was a reminder that his workplace has to carry on despite his absence - and that he needed to keep them informed.

Symbolic Meanings
ALCOHOL : "the dreamers workplace take a relaxed attitude to time off sick but its necessary to tell them"
PEOPLE : "thoughts about what is appropriate behavior"
REGIMENT : "highly ordered and organized - precise ways of doing things - the dreamers workplace worked to a very strict timetable and so needed to be informed if time was to be taken off"

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THE DREAM The point from which I can remember is when I am trying to barricade myself in a hotel room, with someone trying to barge in. I manage to close the door, and lock it. I then went to the window, opened it, and climbed out of it. I use various ledges to climb down a fairly high wall, then I run for it. (This hotel in in a remote rural area. I then skipped to running from a different place, all I can remember is that I killed someone, and that the police were on their way. I hide in various hedges and ditches, see the police come, and run a little further. I eventually find that I have looped around, and ended up in the same place. I now see that the police are searching the area. They are not normal police. They seem important, as if they were MI5 or special branch.

At this point I was dressed in sports trousers or shorts, and a T-shirt. It was very cold. I know that many people know about the murder now, and have a vague description. I also know at this point that I had no choice but to commit the murder, or that I did not do it. In some manner it was justified, or unavoidable.

I'm on the run, and bump into some farmers, who know the person killed, and have a description of me, and my name. I go up to them, pretending to be part of the search party, and one of the workers there help me 'look' for him. Had I not done this, they would have seen me run. We go up a large hill, then I seem to lose him. I am free for now.

I end up with my aunt (who is basically my mother), and my ex-girlfriend, who's now my best friend. We go to this weird house, which belongs to a distant relative of mine. My ex has a shower, and I have a ice down. (The house is really strange, and there is water everywhere. Much of the furniture if floating)

My relative does not know what has happened, but my aunt and ex do. The police come to the door, and I know he (my relative), will not be mentally quick enough to catch on, and when the police asks if he's seen me, he will say that I am there, then ask why. So before he answers the door to the police, I frantically look for an exit in a house with no windows. I see a wooden door that's out of place, look inside, and its empty, then I notice a strange part of the wall, push it, and it opens to the back. I close it, and escape.

I am now dressed in a combat jacket, combat trousers, and boots, although still look like a civilian. I run alone, and suddenly I'm on some kind of firing range, at the target area, with man-made dunes. There is some firing, but somehow I feel safe from that. Then 3 lads, dressed as I am, 2 of them in jeans, come up to me, and I just join them somehow. I now know that this is not a military firing range. Just one of those lads' weekend type places. I am temporarily alone again, and I just look from the distance at the house, to see what is going on.

I see maybe 300 - 400 soldiers setting up some sort of command center. They are after me! The 3 chaps I meet have military type automatic rifles. I somehow acquire one. We walk away, then some high ranking officer stops us, and asks us if we have seen a person matching my description. Almost as if they knew, the 3 chaps said that all 4 of us had been there all day.

The army escorts us away, seemingly to lockdown the area, as I am around somewhere. I cannot believe that they are just escorting me away, not knowing that its me. We're going along this path, still under escort, and fighter jets start bombing some crops and vegetation around us, with perfect precision. The missiles seem super advanced. They burn up a controlled area instantly. The fire is black, not yellow. They are burning all the crops and vegetation in the area in an attempt to kill me,scare me, or lure me out.

We, 4 chaps, are alone. We are heading back to their place. They live in a hidden trailer/caravan. There are about 15 boys our age living there, alone. I hold back to speak to one of the three boys, who seems to be their leader. I tell him everything, but one of the boys overhears. Before I tell him to stop, he tells everyone in the trailer/caravan. They all gang around me, as if I am some kind of hero. I'm going to stay there, but only one or two nights. Then its too risky.

That night I am presented with two weird balls. I know they are meant to represent testicles, but they're just something harmless. I'm not sure what they are. They're soft, but certainly not testicles. I'll say beans. They present to me, each in turn, two small beans, as if I have achieved some kind of lifetime award from these boys. The beans are meant to represent courage and honor. Kind of like 'he has balls' ceremony.

That night I spend outside contemplating all that I have lost. The person I killed must be very important. Even more important than the prime minister, or US president. The army were deployed so fast. As if I killed someone who was a leader of a very dark and powerful organisation. I knew that I had to get out of the UK. If they wanted me this badly, every corner of the media would know me, thus every person in the UK. Only problem was that its an island. All ports will be policed, and looking out for me. The best option was a cargo ship to Ireland I thought. Then I could lay low, then take an Irish cargo ship to the US or something. That's a big enough place not to be know, not even the UK's number 1 most wanted. Most Americans could not even spot Bin Laden. Not by appearance.

I knew that my ambitions of becoming a neurosurgeon, which I will be, had diminished. I could not get any sort of career. I would be stuck as a laborer, or shop assistant in a small town in America. Maybe a librarian, if I could fake a history, and qualifications well enough. I would need a new identity. That is something I know how to do.

THE REALITY The dreamer woke up feeling heartbroken as if all ambitions had been shattered. Then he realised it was a just a dream. The dreamer has had 'special ops' type training and had he not had this then he would not have stayed alive in the dream.

The dreamer is quite religious. He had been very lazy recently and that night he promised God that he would wake up at 9:30am. Yet when his alarm went off he reset it to get another 30 minutes sleep. He woke from this dream at 12:45 PM and felt he had been punished for breaking his promise.

DREAM MEANING The dream captures the following feeling within the dreamer - "I have trying to address my own laziness. I have been trying to get up earlier. But yesterday I just slept in. I know I have got to get out of these bad habits if I am to progress in life"

THE INTERPRETATION Long dreams are very difficult to analyze. But in this case we had some good clues. If you wake up and feel some very strong emotions and thoughts it is likely that those thoughts are linked entirely to the dream. The dreamer had gone back to sleep and immediately broken his promise that he had made the night before.

So how can we seek to prove a connection between the thoughts he woke up with and the dream itself? How do the symbols prove that the dream was linked? Well firstly what would we expect to find in the dream? The dreamer woke up with strong feelings which linked to his own broken promises and failure to keep to a routine and show more discipline. The dream should deal with those themes.

The one main theme in the dream is military. He has military training. The military is the main symbol in dreams for the need to show greater discipline. The soldier shows great discipline in following orders and following a strict schedule. The military is linked to building character and self control. Here it is an excellent symbol to express the main theme of his promise to God that he made the night before - the need to show greater discipline.

That is the one main symbol that links to real life. That is an excellent link. There are other symbols too. The dream shows him wearing different clothes at different points. Clothes often symbolise his own wish to show to the world how he wants to be seen. Clothes link to his own image. In this case they link more to his own self image. He wants to prove to himself his self discipline. When he wears a T-shirt it is symbolic of his own casual attitude previously. Later he is wearing combat gear. This probably represents his own wish to be seen as more serious and involved in his own attitude to life.

The dream also features the police. The police could symbolise two things here. Its difficult to tell exactly. They could either symbolise his own feeling that he has broken some 'rule' that he has set himself. They could also symbolise the chaos in his mind when he awoke. He woke up and plans had gone wrong. Police often link to moments when our mind is in chaos. They represent the need for order within our minds.

Farmers and crops can link to feelings that we are trying to encourage in ourselves. We plant seeds which will grow. In real dreams crops can link to systematic attempts to improve ourselves generally. So burnt crops link to the feelings in the dreamer. He had tried to encourage and nurture his own self improvement. He had tried to develop himself. The burnt crops show this had failed.

The dream also deals with different jobs. The dreamer probably uses this as a symbol of his need to show greater discipline and effort in order to achieve his goals in life. The different jobs tend to link to his feelings on waking up. He had broken his promises and shown ill discipline. He therefor was showing an aptitude which would lead him into a less demanding job.

Symbolic Meanings
COMBAT GEAR : "the dreamer with a more disciplined attitude "
CROPS : "the dreamer is trying to encourage a certain way of thinking in himself "
MILITARY : "The dreamer wishes to show discipline and self control"
POLICE : "an need for order - the dreamer wakes with chaos in his mind"
T-SHIRT : "The dreamers own bad self image - his lazy casual attitude"
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DREAM TIP : Dreams are about new feelings and changes in our feelings. So look for changes in our thoughts. For instance think of moments when you make the following type of U-turn - "I do not really like my friend any more. She seems obsessed with boys and talks endlessly about trivial nonsense. At first I found this endearing but now its starting to drive me insane."
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THE DREAM - I was a soldier and a bunch of the other soldiers were going off to some war and he was pulled aside by the Colonel who said I wouldn't be going to war but he had to go to the Queen's place and watch her baby. He ends up being late (I am never ever late in real life) and the Queen meets him outside and hands him the baby and tells him she trusts him to keep it safe.

THE REALITY The dreamer was very obsessed about being on time. Yet his own thoughts were coming into conflict with his Fiancé's.

DREAM MEANING The dream captures the following feeling within the dreamer - "I hate being late. It drives me mad when my girlfriend keeps trying on new outfits five minutes before we have to leave. But my Fiancé has different ideas. I guess I just have to put up with it."

THE INTERPRETATION Relationships often draw us into situations and feelings that we are not happy with. Two very different people may have totally different ideas on what is the right way to think and behave. The dreamers fiancé described him as being "anal" about being late. She recognised how he hated it if she was fussing over different outfits.

The dream features a queen which maybe gives a hint to the dreams meaning. She of course represents the dreamers fiancé. A queen is someone who must be obeyed and tends to get her own way. So this maybe suggests that he is having to overcome his own wish not to be late and give in to his girlfriend.

Soldiers are strong symbols and can be linked to themes involving lateness. A soldier links to his own wish to be disciplined and to follow a set schedule. The army is very much about rules and regulations. They capture his ideas and wish to be on time.

Babies are highly precious creatures which we take great care with. We lavish them with attention and take every effort to make sure things are right. In this case this represents the dreamers fiancé who was taking every effort and care over getting ready.

Symbolic Meanings
BABY : "taking every care with something that is very special and important"
LATE : "the dreamer is obsessed about not being late"
QUEEN : "the dreamers fiancé - a very special person who you do anything for "
SOLDIER : "highly ordered and organized - a need to be punctual and disciplined"
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CONTACT : E-mail me at hairybobby2000@yahoo.co.uk - If you went to sleep thinking of something that had dominated your entire day then I would be highly interested in any dreams you had that night.