PUNISHMENT

You may have had a dream in which you committed a crime and found yourself being punished for your actions. You may have woken from such a dream feeling extremely relieved that you have not committed a crime or been punished, but lingering feelings of anxiety may stay with you. Try to identify your feelings about such a dream as they will help with the interpretation. Did you feel guilty or angry that an injustice had been done to you? If you can discover how you feel about the punishment, this may hold the key to the interpretation.

If you felt guilty, perhaps there is something in your waking life that you feel is wrong or is destroying your peace of mind.

If you are actually caught in the act in your dream and find yourself awaiting or being sentenced to punishment of some kind, this is a clear message of disapproval from your dreaming mind and a warning that if you don’t change your ways, you will be in danger of being found out in waking life. Try to identify who punished you in your dream.

If it was someone you know, you may be feeling remorseful towards them in waking life, but if it was someone you do not know, you may be feeling guilty about breaking a law or rule in waking life or showing disrespect for authority.

If a lynch mob attacked you, have you committed a crime against society in general by not paying your taxes or dropping litter? If you dreamed of being accused of a crime you did not commit and nobody believed your protestations of innocence, do you feel you are being treated unfairly in your waking life? When the punishment was pronounced in your dream, did you feel that is was out of proportion to the wrongdoing.

If you felt the punishment was far too severe, this suggests that you are feeling extremely guilty about someone thing you have done in waking life.

If you were whipped in your dream, do you feel as if life has dealt you some harsh blows?

If you were arrested in your dream, this suggests the need for some kind of restraint in your waking life, or a fear of authority in general.

If a crime scene or forensic team appears in your dream, your dreaming mind is encouraging you to understand your motives.

If you were chained, imprisoned or sentenced to death in your dream, see NEGATIVE EMOTIONS.

If your dream features the ultimate crime of murder, see NIGHTMARES.

1- When a child recognises that he or she is not conforming to what is expected, the threat of punishment is often present. In later life, when there is fear of retribution from an external source, we will often dream of being punished.

Self-punishment occurs when we have not achieved the standards we expcct of ourselves.

2- When there is conflict in our lives, if we cannot resolve il we will often dream of being punished. This may be the only way out of our particular dilemma. We would rather suffer pain than resolve the difficulty.

3- The concept of Divine Retribution that is, being punished by a force greater than ourselves suggests a judgmental God. Spiritual punishment is much more, however, the idea of self-flagellation for not having achieved what is required of us.

Often, this dream is provoked by feelings of guilt for something that has happened or something you have done. No matter if it is you who is punished or the one who punishes, it always reveals a sense of guilt, defeat, or resentment. You may also be punishing yourself. An individual that had traumatic experiences in childhood may constantly blame herself for her actions. In that case, the dreamer must liberate herself from the social or parental pressure that subjugates her.

Gypsy people believe that dreaming that you are punished reveals the guilt you feel for having neglected your personal relationships.