Baby: A baby is a new idea, relationship, event, direction, project, etc. The essential meaning of a baby as a symbol connects to the new life it represents. Babies grow up to become adult human beings, but in their infancy, they embody all the potential that has yet to be expressed. In this way, a baby in a dream is likely to be expressing some new chapter in your life that is just beginning and has yet to unfold into full manifestation. The age of the baby may give clues as to when the consciousness that it represents was born. A one-year-old baby may indicate a new shift in your life that began a year before you had the dream.

Backpack: Anything that allows you to pack certain items for transport is symbolic of having access to various tools for living. A backpack puts such helpful items easily at your disposal, with the implication of a journey on foot. Such a journey is symbolic of a trek into deeper places of your consciousness, and therefore the backpack is symbolic of the assistance you may need along the way.

Badger: The badger is a creature of the earth, so its power connects primarily to its ability to maneuver below the surface of consciousness. Badgers are tenacious burrowers, so part of their medicine is the ability to get to the bottom of things and keep going till a desired end is achieved. When a badger appears in a dream, it is time to get busy.

Bag: The interpretation of the image of a bag is directly connected to what is held by it. At the heart of it, a bag represents your ability to carry some object or objects with you. If you know what is inside the bag in your dream, use that to form your interpretation; in this case, the bag represents your access to the function of those objects and their potential use to you. If you do not know what is inside the bag, consider that any bag can hold the mysterious and perfect thing you may need at just the right moment. The structure of the bag may offer information about how strong your ability is to have resources nearby. A paper bag will not last as long as one made of leather. (See Luggage.)

Ball: The sphere is the purest shape that is easily understandable by the human mind. Anything round calls into consciousness this fundamental geometry that mirrors the globe of the Earth we call home and therefore symbolizes a sense of wholeness and integration. In the case of a ball, your dream may be connecting to a more playful part of your nature. A ball that implies a game ought to be played may be calling you to action, to participate more actively in the game of life. Balls can also relate to the testicles and symbolize masculine power and are more likely in a dream to be pointing to the masculine principle of doing things and taking action.

Ballerina: Dancing can be a metaphor for how we navigate life’s complexities, and a ballerina is an example of supreme skill at this endeavor. The ballerina as a character aspect implies that a great deal of discipline has already been exerted, though the dream may be telling you to get hard at work at the skills needed to exhibit more grace in complicated scenarios in your current life experiences.

Banana: Any food is connected to self-care and nurturance, and a banana’s nutritional value makes it almost a perfect food. Dreaming of eating a banana may point to a need or desire to increase your energy and strength. However, a banana has an additional meaning. The phallic shape of the banana brings an element of sexuality into the mix.

Bank: Thoughts around money, power, and financial security are coming up for you. A bank is a construct of modern society created around the concept of protecting the abundance of the average individual. When examined more closely under the scrutiny of symbolic meaning, a bank connects more to fears around money and the desire to hoard abundance to maintain a sense of security about future needs. You may be concerned with keeping your sense of prosperity safe and guarded.

Bar: You may be expressing a desire to escape your current stressful experiences if you have a dream that takes place in a bar. The primary focus of a bar is to consume alcohol, and thereby this symbol connects primarily to escapism. Because a bar is a public place and is rooted in the spirit of socializing, there is a second layer of meaning that connects with how we are interacting in our social environments in a spirited and uninhibited way. Your own personal relationship to bars and alcohol in your waking life will play a prominent role in how you would interpret a dream that took place in one.

Barefoot: You need to be more grounded in your life and experience a level of vulnerability around immediate choices in life. Feet connect to how grounded you feel. They can also indicate issues around how you are maneuvering through your current life choices. There is a direct connection between where you put your feet and where you go. If your feet are exposed to the elements, it leaves them vulnerable to injury, but can also help connect you more organically to the ground beneath your feet. This image also connotes feeling more down-to-earth and implies being laid-back and relaxed.

Barn: A barn is a building and in its essence is connected to some construct of your consciousness. Since a barn is found on a farm, there is an organic sensibility to its meaning. In waking life, a barn can have many functions, but it is generally used for the storage and housing of crops and livestock, both of which are deeply associated with sustenance, nurturance, and self-care. A barn in a dream is calling you to pay attention to grounded and down-to-earth matters, getting back to basics. The resources you need right now are natural and organic.

Bartender: As a person, a bartender is a character aspect of your own personality. As the keeper of the liquor, this is the part of you that has access to the desire to medicate against difficult feelings or stress. Your relationship to this person in your dream is asking you to examine your relationship to escapism.

Baseball: Life is a game, and a dream that features baseball is asking you to recognize this. Hitting a home run in baseball has entered the zeitgeist as a standard expression to represent a successful endeavor, such that baseball in a dream may connect to such a desired outcome in a future event in your waking life. There are a number of sexual connotations connected to baseball, including the phallic shape of the baseball bat. Also, getting around the bases has long been analogous to various elements of foreplay. “Playing the field” is a phrase connected to being sexually active with a variety of partners. Consider your dream’s context in order to understand how to interpret a dream with baseball in it.

Basement: A dream about the basement is connecting you to deep secrets, hidden or unconscious thoughts. A house represents the self, and therefore the basement would be the self below the self. As such, any dream of a basement connects with unconscious material and anything that lurks below the surface of your psyche. Since many basements are dark and gloomy, they can have an aura of menace about them. This notion is exploited in the media—such as scary basements in films where no one escapes unharmed—making the symbolic meaning of this image connect to the shadow and those things we are afraid of in life.

Basket: A basket is a container, and the purpose it exhibits is the essence of the symbolic meaning. When you put things in a basket, you are more able to take them with you. In this way, a basket is a symbol of organization and efficacy around keeping with you what you desire. In a dream, a basket is asking you to consider how well you are able to contain all that you need. There is also an implication with this image that something will be or has been transported.

Bass: This musical instrument is responsible for keeping rhythm by expressing the lowest notes of the audible sound waves. Any musical instrument is ultimately a symbol related to the desire to be creative and expressive. However, the distinctions of the bass connect it to the grounded rhythms of life. When a bass is featured in your dream, you are being called to express yourself, but to honor the organic rhythm and not move too fast or too slow. Listen to your heart beat.

Bat: You are exploring the darker, more hidden side of your nature. The bat is capable of navigating through the night and without the benefit of sighted vision; as such, the bat represents your consciousness of what can be found when you trust the darker side of your nature. In dreams, the shadow (as represented by nighttime) is the most valuable area for truly understanding who you are, so the presence of a bat in your dreams indicates that this exploration is getting assistance from the unknown.

Bathing Suit: At the heart of it, the bathing suit is about modesty. The very act of swimming, immersing oneself in water for sheer pleasure, brings with it a likelihood of nakedness. Culturally, however, we are compelled to cover up. In this way, a bathing suit is a symbol of that modesty and the desire to keep a certain amount of protection. There is also an implication associated with this symbol of a connection to water that may not be present in the dream itself. If you are wearing a bathing suit, then you have in the past or may in the future connect yourself to water, the ultimate symbol of emotional expression.

Bathroom: A bathroom represents the consciousness of individuation and privacy. It is the room where we get to shut the door and be with ourselves in total intimacy. It is also a symbol of freeing ourselves of waste and toxins. Many dreams that feature a bathroom find us searching for one. Such a dream is about searching for the freedom to be our authentic self, often with the caveat of reaching that authenticity by releasing that which no longer serves us or is detrimental if we continue to hold on, such as resentment or other poisonous thoughts. A bathroom inside a home connects with personal issues, whereas one that is more public is revealing information about your outside interactions. A toilet is located in a bathroom. As such, it can relate to relieving yourself of the “shit” in your life that you no longer need.

Bathtub: The bathtub is used for relaxation as much as for cleansing the body. In this way, it can symbolically connect to either, depending on your personal associations with it. From a structural standpoint, because a bathtub contains a small amount of water, it is also an emotional symbol and should be considered from the perspective of containing small amounts of emotional expression that can either relax you or overwhelm you, depending on the dream context.

Battery: The primary purpose of a battery lies in its capacity to store energy for use at a later time and in a way that is portable. In this way, if a battery appears in a dream, it may connect to a need or desire to conserve your energy for use at a different time. A battery is also symbolic of the ability to bring energy to places that might otherwise be lacking it.

Battle: There is a distinction between war and battle. War implies an ongoing state of flux, whereas battle is the actual shift taking place in a small increment of upheaval and change as part of an ongoing period of transformation. If you dream of being in a battle, look to where in life your defenses might be running on high. Also consider where changes in boundaries are imminent, both in your outside world as well as within, as many battles are with yourself.

Beach: Land represents your conscious mind, and the ocean connects to your unconscious mind. Where these two forces meet is the ever-shifting shoreline. A dream that takes place on a beach indicates the meeting up of these two vastly different elements of the human experience. You can also think of the land as your rational, thinking mind and the ocean as the irrational, creative mind. The changing tides are your emotional moods and fluctuating cycles of expression, so a beach dream can connect to extremes of emotional change in your life. The sandy edges are the parts of your conscious awareness that are constantly changing shape as you learn more about who you are. The things that wash up on a beach are the repositories for that which was previously unknown to you but can appear suddenly from the depths of your hidden self. Anything that happens in a dream on a beach is to be considered even more significant because of the symbolic nature of the beach as the mysterious place where that which is conscious and that which is unconscious come together. Of course the beach is a primary destination for people to relax and let go of daily stressors. A dream that takes place at a beach may be connected to this desire.

Beams of Light: You are focusing your thoughts to create more penetrating energy in your life. Light is energy in motion. We generally think of it in terms of that which illuminates and makes things visible. However, light is actually a wave of energy, only a small fraction of which is visible to the human eye. In this way, the light we can see represents thoughts we are conscious of. Various forms of light can represent different levels and intensities of thought. A beam is a focus of light that has the ability to illuminate a particular area or object and is therefore symbolic of concentrated thought.

Bear: You need to be patient and conserve your strength for now; the time to act will come after a period of hibernation. Bear medicine is about the long stillness that is necessary in order for true strength to be wielded appropriately. When the time to act comes, the power of the bear in you will give you incredible resources. A dream with a bear in it is asking you to consider whether it is time for aggression or time to retreat and wait for the right season.

Beard: A beard is generally worn by older men and is a symbol of age and intelligence. In this way, a beard in a dream can be a symbolic expression of maturity and wisdom. A beard also blocks much of the face and in this way can connect to a desire to hide your true feelings.

Beast: The generic beast of the dream world is expressing the more animalistic aspect of the human condition. Since a specific Earth-dwelling animal will carry with it the meaning associated with its very nature, the beast as an archetype connects with the shadow side of this—the irrational, aggressive, and instinctive elements of who we are that we disown or prefer weren’t so. Remember the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, as these two opposing archetypes must be integrated in order to find balance and true happiness. It is very important to honor the beast within you in order to find your own true humanity.

Beast/Human: When the qualities of an animal are mixed with a human being, you are expressing the integration of primitive traits into your consciousness. Mythology is filled with creatures that combine physical attributes of various animals and the human body. These magical man-beasts appear in many cultural histories, and even the most bizarre dream-related combination may actually have a predecessor in the mythology of an ancient civilization. The interpretation of this symbol should start with the energy associated with the animal that appeared in the dream. Examining historical references that match your dream image can yield a treasure trove of information that your unconscious mind is attempting to convey to you.

Beaver: The beaver is industrious and skilled in a way that relates to working with earthly structures to create a watery home. This puts it in a symbolic relationship with the management of emotions. Many animals that relate to water also connect to our dream states, especially when a land animal interacts well with a watery environment. Thus, the beaver is present to bring you wisdom from the dream state. The beaver also assists us when we need to make sense of our emotional life and shift how we are feeling about some situation.

Bed: This object is the home of both sleep and intimacy. It is a powerful symbol of the sacred acts of rest and sexual expression. Many dreams take place in the bed in which you are sleeping. When that is the case, there is immediacy to the experience of interpretation; you are dreaming of your current state of consciousness and the actual idea of exploring that state in a significant way. The bed is a symbol of personal security since you are so vulnerable when sleeping, and in this way your own bed in a dream represents this safety. Conversely, a strange bed can be symbolic of a fundamental lack of safety. The state of a bed in a dream may be a comment on matters of security, sexuality, and restfulness in your waking life.

Bedroom: A home represents the consciousness of your sense of self and the bedroom relates to privacy and intimacy, as it’s usually the most private room in one’s home, where intimate acts occur. Because of its association with nakedness, sex, and the vulnerability that comes with being asleep, the bedroom represents the parts of ourselves that we are aware of but generally keep hidden and separate from our social and public life. On a primal level, the bedroom is the one room in a home where an individual’s scent is most prevalent. We humans are the only animals that compulsively remove our own scent. This deepens the personal nature of this symbol.

Bee: One of the most communal of all animals, the bee is a master at communication and community organization. Through a complex societal structure, bees produce one of nature’s most exquisite creations: honey. The medicine that bees offer as a totem connects to this precise, organized structure that they create combined with the effort they expend in creating something so profoundly sweet. When the bee appears in your dream, you are being asked to deepen your willingness to work in a structured manner in order to create enormous levels of abundance and prosperity.

Beehive: The bee is an animal that is associated with organization, communication, and the power to create great abundance and sweetness. Their home, or hive, is the central locus of this ability. The beehive in your dream is the home for your thoughts about the sweetness of life, but approaching it with too cavalier an attitude can have consequences.

Beer: Ultimately a symbol of escapism, beer can also be thought of as representing the desire to celebrate, kick back, and relax. Beer is the original fermented beverage and connects to processes that happen behind the scenes and slowly change and transform into something surprising and delightful. Good things take time, and this hidden meaning may be expressed in a dream about beer, especially if the dream includes the process of making this beverage.

Being Chased: Something in your life is creating a fear-based response to a threat. That threat may be real or imagined. When a person feels exposed at a very primal level, the built-in survival mechanism of the fight-or-flight response occurs. You may be running in terror without knowing that the secret enemy you are running from is yourself. If you do not know your assailant, it may simply be you trying to catch up to you with something important that, if embraced, would allow you to feel more complete. If you know who is chasing you, the person may have more to offer you if you let him or her catch you. Even if being caught ends in being killed, that death could be a symbolic transformation of such significance as to be the very thing needed to bring your greatest heart’s desires into reality. That is, of course, if you have the courage to stop running and turn around. Sometimes it is part of human nature to be afraid of success, and a dream of being chased is alerting you to stop running from your own magnificence.

Belly: Your instincts and emotions are being expressed by this dream. It is in our belly that we experience our feelings and our gut instincts about what is happening inside us and in our environment. When this is working well, the relationship you have with your belly is your great ally in navigating the world and knowing if you are safe in any given moment. When the belly is compromised, such as being layered in fat, it is your instincts that are being blocked. If you are sick in the belly, there are consequences for past inauthenticity or holding back anger, rage, or sadness.

Bellybutton: The bellybutton is proof of your humanity, the constant connection to multi-generational continuity. It is through the bellybutton that we are forever connected to our mothers and therefore back into time and to infinity. This is the part of the body that remains as proof that we once lived in a state of grace where every need was met at the instant of the thought of desire; the womb is the closest we will ever come to the Garden of Eden. Consider the context in which you are dreaming of this part of the body for a more detailed interpretation of your dream. Your own bellybutton relates to your own personal sense of connectedness and continuity. If the bellybutton in your dream is on another person, consider the character aspects of that individual as your focal point for the connectedness you are searching for.

Belt: A belt is designed to hold up the pair of pants that it is wound through. In this functional way, a belt is a symbol of support. However, belts can also be used to adorn and express, which adds a creative flair to the symbolic meaning they possess. If a belt is too tight, the constriction that results is also a symbol for limitation and feelings of restriction.

Bible: The Bible is a fundamental symbol of the word of the Divine made manifest here on Earth. Your relationship to this as a symbol must be rooted in your personal associations with it. This can be complicated, because for some the Bible is uplifting and powerful, while for others it is a powerful tool used to inflict hatred and separation. As a book, the Bible relates to thoughts that are made permanent and a part of the foundations of your beliefs. Add to this your personal associations and you may arrive at a satisfying interpretation.

Bicycle: Any mode of transportation is about how you are moving through your life. In the case of a bicycle, the speed is fairly close to being on foot, but certainly faster. There is an element of joy to a bicycle as well as the requirement of balance in order to get around effectively. Such a dream may be a throwback to a childhood sensibility unless you are an avid cyclist, in which case the dream may be about the desire to enjoy what that pastime brings you. A dream of a bicycle is about moving a little faster, but still in an organic way.

Bills: You are considering the cost of the freedoms that you enjoy. There is a price to pay for every choice we make, and bills connect to the sense of responsibility that comes with that freedom. If you are overwhelmed with your own finances in your waking life, you may dream about your bills as a result of that stress. If you are paying your bills, you are dreaming of taking responsibility for your choices. If you are avoiding paying your bills, your dream may be expressing your avoidance. If the bill you are shown in your dream does not belong to you, you may be feeling responsible for something that is not of your own making.