Ancient Egypt and Dream Analysis

By: Libby Pelham BA - Updated: 8 Oct 2023 | *Discuss

 

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Like many ancient cultures, the Egyptians put quite a bit of emphasis on dreams. They felt that the messages delivered in their dreams could cure an illness and help them make important decisions, to the point of deciding where to build a new temple or when to wage a war.

Because these dreams were so important, the Egyptians often sought out dream interpretation to find the true, underlying meaning of the dream.

The Importance of Dreams

There were dream temples built specifically for this reason. The temples were open to everyone who believed in the god the temple was dedicated to, as long as they were considered pure. To achieve this, the person often went through a ritual of cleansing that included fasting and abstinence for several days prior to entering the temple to assure their purity.

The name of the god the person hoped to contact at the temple was written on a piece of linen and that linen cloth was burned in a lamp while at the temple. To help call the god, the dreamer would often recite a special prayer to him or her. Once they visited the ancient Egypt dream temple, the person would often go to a priest or dream interpreter for dream analysis.

The Dream Book

It is believed that the ancient Egypt Dream Book kept in The British Museum in London had many owners as it was passed down for more than a century. All in all, the Dream Book included 108 different dreams, which included such activities as weaving, stirring, seeing, eating, and drinking.

The dreams were categorised into good dreams and bad dreams, with the bad dreams being written in red, a colour of bad omens. In this book, there are hieratic signs that state such interpretations, as that it is good when a man dreams he sees himself looking out a window. Even a man seeing himself dead was seen as a good sign, meaning that he would live a long life.

However, if a man dreamed he saw his own face in a mirror it was a bad omen. Also, dreaming of putting your own face to the ground was seen as a bad omen. It was believed that that particular dream meant that the dead wanted something.

Most Prevalent Dreams

Many often dreamed of drowning in the Nile or climbing to the top of the mast of a ship. However, some other common dreams seem to defy explanation. Dreaming that your face turned into a leopard was a common dream in ancient Egypt.

Dreams as a Portal

In ancient Egypt, dreams were held in high regards. Ancient Egyptians used their dreams as a way to receive messages from the gods and they used these messages from their dreams to guide their lives. To help them further understand the dream analysis, they wrote them down or often consulted a higher authority. A respected individual, such as a priest, could be consulted to help them fully understand the dream interpretation.

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