What Does Seeing a Phoenix in a Dream Mean?
Dreams are a way for the subconscious to communicate with the conscious. They connect what you are aware of with what resides unknown and deep within you, making them highly subjective. The symbols and elements that appear in dreams hold correlations and connections between your waking life, your emotional states, your past, your fears and desires with what the subconscious has to say about them.
Dreams focusing on or hazy except for a particular object or creature, indicate the significance of that object. But what that significance entails exactly is to be understood only through the comparison of your daily life, experiences, past, and knowledge of the object in question.
In this article, we go into detail regarding the significance and interpretations of dreams involving Phoenixes—the immortal mythical creatures who burn once every 500 years and are reborn through their ashes.
The Origin and Myth of The Phoenix: A Quick Background
The Phoenix has its origins in Greek mythology and features in Persian, Egyptian, and Roman mythologies too. According to legend, the Phoenix was a bird like any other, but it possessed beautiful fiery wings that glinted and reflected rays of the sunlight. One day, the Sun God—Ra—happened to look at Earth and catch sight of this scarlet creature soaring through the sky. Awestruck, Ra granted the bird immortality.
The bird, overjoyed, decided to display gratitude by spending its immortality singing sweet melodies for the Sun God. As time passed, the bird grew miserable. Its songs turned from ones in praise to ones requesting release and the return of its youth. Even though the bird was immortal, it was not free from the constant progression of age. Nor was it free from the struggles of life made worse by the constant development of humans and the suppression and turmoil caused thereby.
To seek relief, it migrated to the eastern desert and while returning, saw fragrant cinnamon trees and brought their barks with it. On a mountain, upon a palm tree, it sat in its nest made of cinnamon tree bark, flanking its fire wings. This time, its song of plea was heard, and as soon as the Sun God looked over at the beauty of this Phoenix again, flames engulfed it.
From the ashes emerged a baby Phoenix, young and delicate. As the tale goes, these mythical creatures are engulfed in fire every 500 years or so and are born anew.
Interestingly, cinnamon is a highly flammable substance.
The metaphoric and literal connotations of this tale portray the dullness of immortality. It tells us to cherish the cycle of life—birth and rebirth—as it gives us life and youth again and again.
The main themes of the Phoenix legend are birth, rebirth, resurrection, immortality, youth, and change.
Phoenix Dream Interpretations
A Simple Mind Branding
When you dream of a Phoenix, the first thing to consider is whether you have been thinking, watching, or hearing about one recently.
If you’ve been binge-watching or reading the Harry Potter books a lot, then you know why the Phoenix appeared in your dream, and it may very well hold no other significance than that your mind was fascinated or terrified of the bird (depending on the details of the dream). It branded itself into your mind, and then your mind played with the idea of it in a dream. But this doesn’t necessarily mean it has no significance. We watch and read many things daily, but not each of those end up featuring in our dreams. So, there was clearly some impact that the Phoenix or what it means to you made on your mind.
If the dream had details rather absurd or unfamiliar to those of which you were acquainted in your waking hours, then try to find out whether there is a correlation that can be drawn between your life and the dream elements. Keep reading to see how.
A Sign of Spiritual Growth
Phoenixes hold spiritual significance in almost all myths of the world. Each ancient civilization has referred to these creatures, and all associate them with spiritual growth and positive change.
Dreaming of a Phoenix can mean you are embarking on a new spiritual journey. It can signify a positive change in mental or emotional state. Maybe you have now evolved to another wavelength and are more aware of yourself. Any sort of spiritual growth could be on the way if you find yourself dreaming of a Phoenix.
A Sign of Personal Growth
Phoenixes signify growth, and it does not necessarily need to be spiritual. Depending on your life circumstances, you can make out which type of growth it signifies for you.
It can signify a sense of change within you, and though Phoenixes generally are a positive feature in your dream, if they appear in a negative light, they can also signify how you feel about the imminent change.
For example, running away from a Phoenix can signify resistance to the current change. A blue or a black Phoenix appearing in a dream can signify non-acceptance of either a sad thing that occurred or a near one’s death.
A Transformative Sign
The Phoenix lives a whole half century, and then ends up burning alive. Gruesome as it sounds, through its ashes, a younger Phoenix emerges.
This signifies a complete positive transformation as much as it does growth and change. A phoenix dream can be an indication of the major changes inside you. As we grow mentally and emotionally, we transform. We change and adopt a newer perspective on life.
Your subconscious might be letting you know that a new life awaits you as you go through this internal, external, or mixed change. Depending on the details and specifics of the dream, it might indicate to you either how to deal with it or how you are presently taking this change. The running away example was a case of the subconscious displaying what the dreamer is feeling about the change.
A Sign to Cherish and Live Life
One of the lesser-talked-about interpretations of the Phoenix legend is that it tells us that immortality, if we were to have it, would not be as glorious and happening as we imagine it to be. It would be rather tedious and tiring.
Phoenix dreams may very well indicate the dull life you have been leading so far and may be a nudging you to be livelier and cherish the life that you have.
Color Specific Signs
The original color of a Phoenix is bright red or orange. A phoenix featuring this color indicates all sorts of positive changes and transformations on the way.
A phoenix of an entirely different color, however, may be indicative of something else. As has already been said above, all of it is the making of your subconscious, so it depends entirely on cultural, sentimental, or other personal factors.
For example, in general, we consider yellow a happy color, indicative of joy and brightness. However, a person with Coulrophobia (fear of clowns) may associate that color with threat or disgust.
Final reflection
Dreams are fascinating and captivating but can also be confusing and frustrating. They keep bugging us because they seem to us a visual of importance. We feel like they could be a sign from God Almighty or from our very own selves.
The truth is, we get that feeling because dreams are a sign, and they do hold significance. It would be untrue to say they are a direct message from God because that cannot as yet be proven, but we have indeed found that they are created by our own brains, and the part of our brain that is related to emotions and thoughts is indeed active during certain parts of our slumber.
And because these signs and messages are concocted by our heads, we ourselves are the best candidates to decipher them. Whether it is a Phoenix or something else, know that your dreams are your subconscious’ only way of speaking to you. Do not let them go unanswered.
Happy Dreaming!
FAQ
What does it mean to dream of a Phoenix?
Phoenixes are mythical creatures originating from Greek mythology. They are known to burn after 500 years and then take birth anew from their own ashes. Dreaming of a Phoenix can mean many things, all of them positive, including a sense of change, transformation, growth, or a desire to grow.
What does it mean to dream of a blue Phoenix?
First of all, are you sure it was a Phoenix?
If it indeed was, this can indicate many things depending on what you associate blue with. If you hold no special meaning for blue, then it could indicate a sense of gloom, fear, or pride.
What does running away from a Phoenix indicate?
Phoenixes are known to signify change and prosperity. If you dream of running away from them, it could mean you are not very comfortable with a major change in your life. It could also mean that you are not ready to leave your comfort zone behind yet.
If such is the case, this dream may be an indication to become bolder and to be ready to face this magnificent transformation.
