I am holding a plant that is most comparable to an artichoke. As I pluck the splayed out fronds, they are matched to various pitches. The tune may have been Swan Lake.
To see or eat an artichoke in your dream, suggests that you need to get to the heart of some matter. It is also representative of your potential and creativity. Perhaps you are holding back in how you want to express yourself.
Literally "revealing mind". A class of plants and drugs that can produce florid altered states of consciousness.
Seeing plants in your dream indicates fertility, spiritual development, growth or the potential for growth. Alternatively, the appearance of plants in your dreams reflects your caring and loving nature. In particular, to see indoor plants in your dream, suggests that your growth is being hindered or slowed in some way. You are experiencing a lack of independence. Alternatively, the dream signify your desire to be closer to nature. If you are estranged from your children, then the plants can be seen as a representative for your your children.
A symbol of great complexity. The dedication of the swan to Apollo,
as the god of music, arose out of the mythic belief that it would sing sweetly when
on the point of death (8). The red swan is a symbol of the sun (2). But almost all
meanings are concerned with the white swan, sacred to Venus, which is why
Bachelard suggests that in poetry and literature it is an image of naked woman, of
chaste nudity and immaculate whiteness. But Bachelard finds an even deeper
significance: hermaphroditism, since in its movement and certainly in its long
phallic neck it is masculine yet in its rounded, silky body it is feminine. In sum,
then, the swan always points to the complete satisfaction of a desire, the swansong being a particular allusion to desire which brings about its own death (2).
This ambivalent significance of the swan was also well known to the alchemists,
who compared it with ‘philosophical Mercury’ (57), the mystic Centre and the
union of opposites, an interpretation entirely in accord with its archetypal implications (56). Now, in Schneider’s view, the swan, by virtue of its relationship
with the harp and the sacrificial serpent, also pertains to the funeral-pyre, because the essential symbols of the mystic journey to the other world (apart from
the death-ship) are the swan and the harp. This would afford another explanation
of the mysterious song of the dying swan. The swan also has a bearing upon the
peacock, although the situation is reversed. The swan/harp relationship, corresponding to the axis water/fire, denotes melancholy and passion, self-sacrifice,
and the way of tragic art and martyrdom. Conversely the peacock/lute relationship, linked with earth/air, is possibly a representation of logical thought (50). As
Jacques de Morgan has shown in L’Humanité préhistorique, if it was the horse
that pulled the Sun-god’s chariot by day, it was the swan that hauled his bark over
the waters by night. The relevance to this myth of the Lohengrin legend is selfevident.
To dream of seeing white swans floating upon placid waters, foretells prosperous outlooks and delightful experiences.
To see a black swan, denotes illicit pleasure, if near clear water.
A dead swan, foretells satiety and discontentment
To see them flying, pleasant anticipations will be realized soon.
To see a white swan in your dream, symbolizes grace, purity, beauty, dignity, wealth and prestige. Something or someone that may initially be unappealing can turn out to be quite attractive. It is important not to prejudge a situation or person based on the surface.
To see a black swan in your dream, signifies mystery and the unknown. It represents something that is alluring, yet forbidden.
Seeing a swan in a lake or pond, is a good omen, signaling a future of prestige and wealth. Swans are symbolic of grace, beauty, and dignity.
Swan Meaning and Swan Symbolism
Our first symbolic clues from the swan can be taken from observing them in nature. They are waterfowl, closely connected with water, even nesting near the water.
Water is symbolic of: Fluidity, Intuition, Dreaming, Emotions, Creativity.
In this respect, we can intuit the swan’s appearance in our lives as an arrow pointing to our dreamier depths and feelings. Furthermore, we get the sense of balance from swan meaning as it lives harmoniously amongst three of the four Aristotelian elements. Grounding herself on earth, lofting to great heights in the air, and winding through waters with magnificent elegance.
A quick keyword list of swan meaning:
Love
Grace
Union
Purity
Beauty
Dreams
Balance
Elegance
Partnership
Transformation
The swan may also bear messages of love and relationships. They pair for years, sometimes male-female unions are sustained for a lifetime. When the swan glides upon the waters of our awareness, it might be a symbol of love, and a reminder of the blessings found in our relationships.
The concept of partnership is further expressed on a divine level in Hinduism, wherein the swan graces vibrant traditions as the Hamsa bird. In the Saundarya Lahari (translated: “Waves of Beauty,” it’s a text filled with beautiful mantras from the Hindu perspective) two swans (Ham and Sa) pair together, swimming around in the divine mind “living on honey from the blooming lotus of knowledge.” Isn’t that a lovely concept?
In the Celtic mind, swans and geese were observed in the context of movement. Specifically, the keenly observant Celts noted their transitory nature and the swan’s pattern of migration. Consequently, the sign of the swan urged Celtic intuition to consider changes of mood (water) and heart (love).
Swan meaning is also linked to Celtic deities with solar associations, like Belanus and Lugh. As solar animals, the swan represents the rising glory of a new day as well as the farewell of an old day with the setting sun. Fittingly, the Celtic goddess Bridgid is also associated with the swan as her grace is expressed with equal elegance in the form of writing (poetry) and song.
Celtic myth also indicates when inhabitants of the Otherworld required passage to the physical land of life you and I experience every day, they would take the shape of the swan. Furthermore lore states they would travel out of the Otherworld in pairs, thus reinforcing the theme of union, bonds and partnership.
In Celtic art, gold and silver chains are often depicted around the swan's neck. I’ve read where this is symbolic of supernatural appearance of divine energy or the descent of gods to earth. I like to think the chains are symbolic of a harmony between cosmic forces; gold representing the sun, and silver symbolic of the moon. Perhaps the Celts recognized the essence of gods within the guise of the swan, and honored that power in the bird.
We see further themes of transformation and deific embodiment in Greek myth wherein Zeus (Jupiter in the Roman pantheon) transformed himself into a swan in an effort to slake his uncontrollable passion for Leda.
Symbolic swan meaning continues the theme of transformation in the tale of the Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Anderson. Mislabeled from birth, the little duckling lives his life with the heroic heart of a swan. Indeed, after growing strong under the nurturing of kind humans, the duckling is set free, and sees its image for the first time in a reflective pool of water to discover he had “transformed” into a lovely swan.
Who doesn’t love this little fairy tale? It reminds us of our inherent glory, power and beauty (as the duckling was always a graceful swan). At the same time, the tale encourages us to have faith and have a persistent heart while pursuing the gifts that are our birthright.
In dreams, the swan asks us to spread our wings and take flight into our waking dreams. She also encourages us to strengthen our relationships, as well as make new, long-lasting bonds with people whom we admire.
White swans in dreams are symbolic of cleansing and purifying ourselves and our lives. Black swans indicate deep mysteries within us that are longing to be set free to express themselves creatively – perhaps as Bridgid would have us do, in poetry or music.
The power of the swan lies in accepting the gift of change. As the swan submits to the higher plan of the Great Spirit, it evolves from the "ugly duckling" in its youth to a graceful adult swan. Since it is willing to accept this gift, it is allowed to see into dreams. People with its power can see into the future, because they are willing to let the plan of divine power materialize. The swan teaches to bring consciousness into balance with all levels of being and develop ones intuition. It is important to admit to the ability of knowing about the future.
The swan gives you the ability to handle change and transformation with grace and dignity.
Swans show true beauty of self, expression of the power of grace and how the inner beauty of others is reflected within you. He aids in awakening your inner power for spiritual progression and developing intuition. He shows how to move through emotions along with sensitivity and empathy towards others. Swan teaches awareness to move in spiritual and physical realms along with healing and transformation for you soul growth. Are you listening to your heightened intuition? Are you trusting your hunches and feelings? She teaches the mystery of song, poetry and communication with grace and style and illuminates the beauty within. It's time for you to know more about your beautiful self, your self-worth and the awareness of the love within your heart. It is time to express yourself with grace and style.
In the Egyptian system of hieroglyphs, the schematic figure of a lake
expresses the occult and the mysterious, probably by allusion to the underground
lake which the sun has to pass over during its ‘night-crossing’ (but also simply by
associating it with the symbolism of level, given that water always alludes to the
‘connexion between the superficial and the profound’; a lake becomes, then, a
fluid mass of transparency). In the temple of the god Amon, at Karnak, there was
an artificial lake symbolizing hyle—or the ‘lower waters’ of protomatter. And, at
certain times during the year, a procession of priests would cross the lake in
boats, in this way re-enacting the ‘night-crossing’ of the sun mentioned above
(19). The symbolism here is the same, broadly speaking, as that of the watery
deeps. The Irish and Breton belief that the Land of the Dead is at the bottom of
the ocean or of lakes may be derived from watching the sun setting over the water;
and the death of human beings, and therefore by analogy the setting of the sun,
was interpreted as passing over into the nether world. But, as we have suggested,
the structure of lake-symbolism may have arisen directly out of the symbolism of
level; for this latter symbolism, so deeply rooted in the psyche of man, equates all
that is on a low level spatially with what is low in a spiritual, negative, destructive, and hence fatal, sense. The fact that water-symbolism is closely connected
with the symbolism of the abyss serves to corroborate the fatal implications of
the lake-symbol, for the part played by the liquid Element is to provide the
transition between life and death, between the solid and the gaseous, the formal
and the informal. At the same time, the lake—or, rather, its surface alone—holds
the significance of a mirror, presenting an image of self-contemplation, consciousness and revelation.
To see a lake in your dream, signifies your emotional state of mind. You feel restricted and that you can't express your emotions freely. Alternatively, the lake may provide you with solace, security, and peace of mind. If the lake is clear and calm, then it symbolizes your inner peace. If the lake is disturbed, then you may be going through some emotional turmoil.
For a young woman to dream that she is alone on a turbulent and muddy lake, foretells many vicissitudes are approaching her, and she will regret former extravagances, and disregard of virtuous teaching.
If the water gets into the boat, but by intense struggling she reaches the boat-house safely, it denotes she will be under wrong persuasion, but will eventually overcome it, and rise to honor and distinction.
It may predict the illness of some one near her.
If she sees a young couple in the same position as herself, who succeed in rescuing themselves, she will find that some friend has committed indiscretions, but will succeed in reinstating himself in her favor.
To dream of sailing on a clear and smooth lake, with happy and congenial companions, you will have much happiness, and wealth will meet your demands.
A muddy lake, surrounded with bleak rocks and bare trees, denotes unhappy terminations to business and affection.
A muddy lake, surrounded by green trees, portends that the moral in your nature will fortify itself against passionate desires, and overcoming the same will direct your energy into a safe and remunerative channel. If the lake be clear and surrounded by barrenness, a profitable existence will be marred by immoral and passionate dissipation.
To see yourself reflected in a clear lake, denotes coming joys and many ardent friends.
To see foliaged trees reflected in the lake, you will enjoy to a satiety
Love's draught of passion and happiness.
To see slimy and uncanny inhabitants of the lake rise up and menace you, denotes failure and ill health from squandering time, energy and health on illicit pleasures. You will drain the utmost drop of happiness, and drink deeply of Remorse's bitter concoction.
Seeing a lake in your dream means your emotional state of mind. If the lake is clear and calm, then it symbolize your inner peace. If the lake is disturbed, then you may be going through some emotional turmoil.
All bodies of water generally represent our emotions and our unconscious. Old dream interpretation books say that lakes are associated with romantic feelings. If the lake is calm, your love life is probably in such good shape that you feel safe. Stormy water means to strap your self in and get ready for a bumpy ride. If you see a monster in the water, your unconscious may be suggesting that you have competition (or some unseen issue or problem).