The presence of spiders in a dream often alludes to lying in wait and trapping.
Some spiders also fill their prey full of poison to kill and eat them. The presence of a spider in a dream can also imply a virtual sickness or poisoning.
The meaning depends on the viewpoint of the dreamer. Are you the spider in the dream? Is your subconscious counseling you to wait patiently to let your trap take effect?
Or, on the other hand, are you the fly flittering around due to being snared by a web?
Is it a giant spider? You might be faced with an awesome, imposing web of some kind.
Is there more than one spider? It might mean you’re faced with multiple traps.
Is the spider missing from a spiderweb? Is the spider of an odd color? These are all part of the dream message and can be sussed out by one question, “What does this mean to me?”
Understanding the spiders in your dream depends on several different factors:
- the viewpoint of the dream
- the other objects and people in the dream
- your feelings about the spider and the other people and objects in the dream.
People have a shared symbolism related to spiders. Even without experience with spiders, people can have ideas about spiders they’ve inherited. This is known as Jung’s theory of the Collective Unconscious.
Personal experience means more than any meaning from the collective unconscious, Jung asserted.
If you’ve had an influential teacher who emphasized the role spiders play in insect control and how they are a valuable part of the ecosystem, you’re more inclined to have a favorable view of spiders. Someone who has never seen a spider outside will draw more of his ideas from the collective unconscious.
Someone else who got a spider bite and ended up losing an arm from cellulitis might fear them greatly. Experience shapes your feelings.
Other symbols in the dream
These could be anything from trees, walls, fences, bedrooms, or whatever. Try to remember them all, jogging your memory with the PACTREPS mnemonic. Their presence in your dream and what they mean to you can influence your understanding of what your dream about spiders means.
For further reading:
This is the best way to record your dreams in your dream journal.
James Cobb RN, MSN, is an emergency department nurse and the founder of the Dream Recovery System. He aims to provide his readers with simple, actionable ways to improve their health and maximize their quality of life.
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