Bird's Nest

To dream of finding a nest with eggs indicates profit; an empty nest augurs disappointment (Artemi-dorus); here the symbolism is that of nature itself.

Blackbirds

Both in dream lore and in symbolism these birds indicate slander, suspicion and trouble.

Black Cat

To dream of any black animal is unfortunate, for these are associated with evil spirits (Artemidorus); the Chinese attach especial misfortune to the symbol of the black cat. American Indians hold it as a symbol of good luck.

Blossoming Trees

An invariable dream of gladness and of prosperity (Artemidorus); doubtless the symbolism is taken from the gladness of spring, as associated with these blossoms.

Boar

Storms and tempests are augured by this dream, also trouble caused by evil-minded persons (Artemidorus).

"The wretched, bloody and usurping boar, That spoiled your summer fields and fruitful vines."

- Shakespeare.

A Christian symbol of impurity. A phallic symbol with the Freudians.

Boat, Canoe, Sailboat, Ship, etc

Seen in a clear stream, a dream of happiness; to see one sink indicates disappointment; to fall from one, great dangers; to sail on smooth water, happiness and prosperity; on muddy water, trouble (Raphael). Here the symbolism requires no explanation. Bayley, however, says that the original meaning of the word bateau, or boat, is derived from the word beatus, or happy.

Body

To dream that your body is robust denotes authority, that it is weak denotes failing or infirmity of the part in question (Artemidorus); here the ancients and moderns meet, undoubtedly the dream of any part of the body, whether of one's own or that of another, is resultant upon physical stimulus.

Bones

Human bones an omen of death in the family (Artemidorus); a Christian symbol of death, mortality

Books

A dream auguring the acquisition of knowledge, wisdom (Artemidorus). Christian symbol of hidden wisdom and of learning.

Boots

If new, renown, a happy future (Art); boots or shoes are symbols of luck.

Bottle

Joy, singing wassail; a broken bottle, disappointment (Artemidorus); symbolism obvious.

Bow

See Arrow.

Box

To dream of opening a box and of looking for something that you cannot find augurs disappointment in money matters (Gypsy); the interpretation here is obviously derived from a knowledge of the subconscious desire to search for and to find money, an anxiety dream.

Box

A plant; the dream denotes long life, prosperity and a happy family (Artemidorus); the symbol of long life, perpetual hope.

Bracelet

A wealthy marriage; an Egyptian amulet for happiness and success.

Brain

Sickness, loss of reputation, etc. (Gypsy); a dream due to physical causes, for which the ancient students made obvious allowance.

Brambles or Briars

A dream of desire in love, a wish for the unattainable (Artemidorus); Freud and modern symbolism alike corroborate this interpretation.

Branches

Covered with leaves and buds symbolize happiness and joy; here symbol and dream are one: "And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem and vase, and a branch shall grow out of his roots." - Isaiah xi.

Break

Any dream of breakage implies misfortune; to break a limb denotes sickness; furniture, loss of money; a looking glass, death; a broken window, danger of fire (Gypsy); the logic of these interpretations is plain, the breaking of a limb is a forewarning of pain, possibly not yet noted by the waking consciousness, fear of financial loss readily expressed in the destruction of property; by the same token the warning of fire, subconsciously read and noted while the consciousness was unaware might readily be construed as a broken window, symbolizing a means of escape. The superstition of a broken mirror as auguring death antedates written history.

Bride or Bridegroom, Bridesmaids, Ushers, etc

Erotic dreams, all of them, announce the moderns. Dreams denoting grief and disappointment, declares Raphael, who invariably places an unfortunate construction upon all dreams of an erotic nature.

Bridge

To see one, successful undertakings, probably a change; to cross one, work and anxiety in store; a broken bridge, fear and trouble and a warning to take no steps on an unknown road; to fall from a bridge denotes brain trouble (Artemidorus). These interpretations are distinctly traceable to the subconsciousness. The symbolism of a bridge spanning water is obviously the subconscious hope of success. "Do not cross a bridge," etc., is the proverb justifying the anticipation of work in store for the dreamer who crosses a bridge in his sleep. The broken bridge bears its own significance, based upon the subconsciousness that warns the dreamer, while the fall from a bridge is a physical dream stimulated by dizziness, vertigo, etc

Brood

For a mother to dream of seeing a brood of chickens under a hen warns her that despite her care some of her offspring will stray (Artemidorus). Obviously this dream is traceable to maternal anxiety.

Brooks

Clear and near the house, an honorable office in which the dreamer will practice benevolence; muddy brooks indicate loss; dried up brooks augur ruin to their owners (Artemidorus); the Bible justifies in a measure the promise of the dream of the brook: "And lo, my brook became a river, and my river a sea." - Eccles. xxv, I. "A little fountain became a river, and there was light and the sun and much water. This river is Esther, and the two dragons are I and Hamon." - From the Greek version of the book of Esther, quoted by Bayley.

Bugle

To hear a bugle unexpected good news (Artemidorus); the bugle was the horn of salvation of the Old Testament (Bayley).

Bull

Violent enemies and slander are forecast by this dream (Artemidorus); an erotic dream (Freud and Jung); the Assyrian symbol of royal authority and of the sun, sacred also to the Egyptians and the Romans; its modern symbolism is strength, yet throughout the whole of the gypsy dream interpretation it bears an evil meaning, due either to the legend of the golden calf, or to the apparently evil construction of all erotic and phallic symbols.

Bulldog

Faithful, loyal friends (Gypsy); the symbol of pertinacity and fidelity (Brewer).

Bullock

To be attacked by one is an ominous dream (Gypsy); an erotic dream (Freud).

Buoy

A warning of danger ahead (Gypsy); symbolism apparent.

Butcher

To dream that he cuts up meat denotes trouble and sickness (Gypsy); probably a dream of physical stimuli originating in the organ that the butcher seems to be cutting.

Butterfly

Lack of fixed purpose, restlessness, inconstancy (Gypsy). It was the Greek symbol for the psyche or soul, and the Christians also employed it as a symbol of the resurrection; the significance of its bursting from its chrysalis into glory, was, however, lost during the middle ages, when men ceased to observe nature, and the shallow symbolism became established and continues to the present day; modern symbolism, sportiveness, living in pleasure.