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flying, you may soon rise from obscurity into a position of prominence. If you see sick or dead turkeys, your pride may have been injured in some way.

       Vulture

      The vulture is a scavenger and feeds on the spoils of others. Are people around you taking advantage of you or are you concerned about the well-being of dependents? Alternatively, a vulture in your dreams can suggest that past experiences can give valuable insights into a current situation or problem. Do you need to ‘pick off the bones’ of a failed relationship or project, so that you can learn from your disappointment and move forward with your life?

       Woodpecker

      The woodpecker symbolizes industry and diligence, and so to dream of one may suggest that there is something in your waking life that you have overlooked and need reminding about. In mythology, the woodpecker is the guardian of both kings and trees, and it is thought to have magical powers; therefore in dreams they may indicate that you have hidden powers and potential that need to be developed.

       Yellowbird

      A symbol of good fortune when it concerns work or money, but not such a good sign for affairs of the heart.

      BIRTH While pregnant women often dream about giving birth in anticipation of the upcoming event, dreams of giving birth typically have very little connection with the biological process of reproduction and more to do with a sense of being reborn, of fresh beginnings, of ideas coming to fruition or a period of personal growth. This sense is mirrored in everyday language: ‘giving birth to a new idea’, which refers to a project, not a baby.

      For Jung, dreams about giving birth were important because he believed they represented a stage in the process of what he called ‘individuation’, the growth of the human psyche to maturation and wholeness. Birth therefore represents the start of an important new stage in your life and psychological development. We tend to dream of birth at the beginning of a new life stage, way of life, attitude, ability, or project. We also have such dreams when we need to let go of the past and come to terms with the new. Birth is symbolic of new beginnings: going off to college, starting or ending a relationship, launching a new career, and moving house are all associated with birth themes in dreams. Although women from their teen years onwards tend to have birth dreams more than men, it can happen to anyone at any time. There may often be something strange or unusual about the birth of the child. These details are important as they can symbolize what part of your life is changing and how others will receive this new development.

      Jung also claimed that the symbol of the child, as with the symbol of birth, represents new beginnings and possibilities, and paves the way for future changes in your personality. A common theme in mythology is the ‘divine child’ or mystical hero or savior; for instance, the baby Jesus who saves the world from damnation. The divine child is the symbol of the true self, both vulnerable and pure, but also capable of great transforming power. In your dream, it may represent your true self urging you to explore new possibilities and reach your full potential. Therefore, dreaming of a baby or child, who could be yourself, one of your own children, a child you know, or an unknown child, gives access to your own inner child. We all have parts of ourselves which are childlike, curious, and vulnerable, and when we are able to get in touch with these parts we are reminded of our true potential for wholeness.

      If you are a woman and you dream of giving birth, the first question to ask yourself is do you actually want to get pregnant? If you do, your dream may be an example of wish-fulfillment. The purpose of your unconscious was probably to fulfill your fervent desire for all to go well. There have also been recorded instances of women and men dreaming about the birth of a baby before they even knew they were expecting; somehow the dream was a response to the presence of an actual fetus, not yet detected by doctors and pregnancy tests. If you are pregnant and you dream that labor and delivery were difficult, it probably reflects anxieties about the impending birth. The same applies to dreams about giving birth to an animal; they are simply mirroring your concerns and anxieties. If you are a prospective father, your dream may also be depicting your hopes and fears for the welfare of your unborn child.

      If you are not pregnant, birth dreams can indicate a desire for children but are more likely to represent something else in waking life. The birth of a child signals a new beginning and the emergence of new life; in dreams the meaning is much the same: a new way of life, a new attitude, a new discovery, a new project, and so on. If you hear about a birth, or watch or witness a birth in your dream, this also suggests the beginning of a new and fruitful cycle in your life. Birth dreams therefore are an expression of big changes that have been occurring for a long period of time. Did the dream delivery go well or was it difficult? Again, the answer may indicate the likely ease of turning your hopes into reality. If this doesn’t apply, then dream births may symbolize your brain child, perhaps an idea or a project you are longing to complete successfully.

      Alternatively, did your dream focus on one aspect of birth – the umbilical cord, for example? If the cord was wrapped around the baby’s neck, this may indicate that your ideas are being strangled or in danger of being strangled. If the cord was neatly severed, this can indicate that your ideas have been cut free and are now independent of you. If there were problems cutting the cord, this could be a symbol of a grown-up family that is beginning to leave home. Or it may be that you yourself are finding it hard to fly the family nest and branch out on your own. If you are not able to see your baby after a difficult labor, this can indicate that you are laboring in vain in waking life and aren’t being rewarded by the sight of your mental offspring.

       Birth Dreams during Pregnancy

      Pregnancy is one of the most life-changing and physically and emotionally demanding challenges a woman can face in her lifetime. Research shows that the dreams of pregnant women can comment on the physical, psychological, and emotional issues she has to deal with. The most common dream themes at this time concern animals and water. In the early stages of the pregnancy these dreams may be gentle and calming, but toward the end of the pregnancy they can be traumatic or even become nightmares. Such alarming dreams are considered a normal reaction to the anxiety every woman unconsciously feels about her unborn baby and about giving birth. It is also very common for pregnant women to dream about having the baby and these dreams are again often bizarre and disturbing – for example, dreaming about a baby that is born dead, malformed, or with a monster’s head. It has been suggested that such anxiety dreams serve a purpose: they release a lot of unconscious tension and fear, allowing the mother to be more relaxed at birth.

       BIRTH CONTROL

      See CONTRACEPTIVES.

       BIRTHDAY

      See CELEBRATIONS.

      BITE Being bitten or biting someone is a symbol of aggression or hostility, either toward you or toward someone else.

       BLACK

      See COLORS.

      BLACK-AND-WHITE DREAMS To dream in black and white suggests that you need to be more objective in formulating your decisions. You may be a little too unyielding in your thought processes, and thus need to find some sort of balance between two opposing views. Consider the views and opinions of others. Alternatively, black-and-white dreams may be a sign of depression or sadness. You may feel that there is not enough excitement in your life.

      It is a quite commonly held belief that we dream only in black and white, but many people are able to identify tones of color in their dreams. If this is the case, why is it believed that we dream only in black and white? It may be because dreams that appear to be black and white only appear so because the color is not relevant. This doesn’t necessarily mean, however, that such dreams are in black and white. Black and white is a function of television when the color information is removed, but the same is not true of the mind. For example, grass might not be green in a dream, but it’s not

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