“Anne” dreamt about a specific small animal. At first, she tried to capture it, but then it grew so big it tried to attack her. See how this was interpreted, what was discovered, and what actions “Anne” took in her waking life.
Anne’s Dream:
… there was a small black pig. I was talking with people about cooking him. We were all in agreement to cook him. I continued talking with friends about going out that night. We were going to get wine to bring back to share with everyone. I went to change my jacket because we were going to chase the pig and catch him. I didn’t want to dirty my new winter jacket. A friend said she knew a good way to catch him. So, when I came back from changing my jacket I was atop a high wooden tower next to someone’s home – like it was in the backyard or something- approx 20 ft high. Below me was a black, wild boar with large tusks circling the tower – ramming the tower. I called for help as the tower was wavering. There was a window next to the tower. I tried reaching for the window handle as the tower was wavering back and forth. I couldn’t catch it. The boar started climbing up the stairs of the tower. There was a friend who was mad at me, distrusted me, but came to help me anyway. When they finally got to me, I was already indoors and safe. I think I had crawled through that second story window. I went to look for the pig (boar) and it was lurking outside the window that I had just crawled in from. I was scared and went to close the window, but the snout/head of the boar kept pushing its way in – there was no screen. I couldn’t close the window. THE END
INTERPRETATION:
The animal is a pig – commonly thought of as a dirty animal. The color is black – associated with the subconscious or in this case, subconscious desires/behaviors. A black pig represents that which is not “morally accepted” by society. It is a part of yourself that you fear others will judge or perhaps you yourself judge as being “dirty”. This could be a desire for revenge, or a dislike of someone/something others see as good, or an unconventional sexual desire, etc. But it is small and still manageable. You take a consensus from the group (or society) and choose to transform this “dirty” part of you into something more acceptable – hence the cooking. You want to change the group’s state of mind with the wine – make everyone happy by changing yourself. Changing one’s jacket in a dream represents changing how people see you / your role. In this case, it’s sort of the opposite where you have an “acceptable/attractive” outer appearance, but don’t want to sully it as you deal with your “sullied” thoughts/desires.
The problem here is the denial of your true feelings/beliefs. They cannot be denied no matter how much you try to “rise above” the situation or defend yourself from feeling a certain way or insulate yourself from the crowd. The small black pig has now grown into a wild boar with tusks and it is relentless. Your attempts to tame it have created an opposite effect. And your attempt to separate yourself from it is an old, dead habit. (Wood is dead thing that used to be alive.) Your true desires will not let you get away with this any longer. It is only when you “go within” do you finally feel safe. Going through a window in dreams represents self-examination. That “unfriendly friend” is your own self-judgment, and it now surrenders to forgiveness in order to help you.
Clearly this is not the end, Even after you are safe inside, the problem still haunts you. This is on-going and needs your attention.
THE END?
CONCLUSION
After an in-depth phone conversation, I decided to look beyond the symbol of the pig and explain the more general meaning of “animal”. It often refers to that earthly part of ourselves – sex, the body, the earth beneath us. Then it all became clear for Anne. She had been upset and in denial about her recent weight gain. After she gained ten pounds, she pushed herself to do more exercise, but ended up gaining 12 more pounds! I asked if she considered checking her hormone balance, but she knew it was something else. She hadn’t changed her eating habits (this could be the “dead” habit symbolized by the wooden tower), and in fact they had become worse. So on the outside, to the rest of the world, she looked liked a proactive, health conscious person, when at home in private she was eating mindlessly. This was what was “morally unacceptable” to her. That very day – once faced with the simple truth – she made up her mind to eat healthy and give up late-night eating. This was a no-brainer for Anne, and it took a “weird” dream for her to take action.