Chase Chased Chasing

Anything moving toward you in a dream usually signifies that you are becoming more aware of it, feeling it more intensely. So being chased in a dream usually denotes that you are feeling something you fear more intensely and are trying to avoid confronting it. This is not usually a good policy, as you can never get away from yourself.

If you are chasing something it shows what you are making an effort to gain in life, but the thing you are pursuing might be difficult to arrive at, possible because of your own feelings about attaining it.

Many dreams in which you are pursued illustrate how you are running away from certain feelings or fears. The way the action of the dream unfolds depicts how you deal with the things that you try to escape from.

The example below shows how we can be pursued by fears or emotions, and can either continue to avoid them or face them. We are, in a real sense, pursued by what we have created with our thoughts, emotions, action and inaction. What we are avoiding might be sexual feelings; responsibility; expressing what we really feel in public; our fear of death; sense of failure; guilt; emotional pain; childhood trauma; grief – but it might be our creativity; our love; our passionate response to living; our deepest wisdom and oneness with things; the ancient power of life in us. You can never escape from yourself however much you try, so such feelings may pursue you throughout your life unless you turn and meet them.

Example: ‘Three men with clubs were chasing me but never actually caught me as I woke in terror. I was determined to tell myself it was only a dream and the next night as they were chasing me I remembered it was only a dream and lost all fear – stopped running – turned to face them and said ‘This is only a dream, you can’t hurt me.’ As they came closer they faded into nothing and I never saw them again.’ Account of dreams when 6 years old. Mr C.

By animal: Your passions; anger; natural feelings. See What does the animal in my dream mean.

By THING or shadowy creature: Usually past experience or trauma such as a hurt from childhood. It is also sometimes our own wonderful potential we are avoiding through fears such as what it might lead to – success, love? See:  archetype of the shadow

Chased by opposite sex: Afraid of love or sex; haunted by a past relationship.

Chasing: Something you are pursuing in life; something or someone you want. In some dreams it is an expression of aggression. See: follow.

Useful Questions and Hints:

If you imagine turning and facing who or what is chasing you, what do you feel? For help doing this see Stand in role.

Am I aware of what I am avoiding in my waking life?

Do I avoid love, opportunity, expressing myself – what is it I am afraid of?

Please see Facing FearDreams are Like a Computer GameAvoid Being VictimsTechniques for Exploring your Dreams

Comments

-Jenny M. 2018-06-23 19:38:17

I keep having reoccurring dreams, I also bought the Dream Book which is very extensive, however I keep being chased by doctors. In “waking” life I am not afraid of much, but I am terrified of doctors, which I avoid completely. In waking life I have had an abscessed tooth infection for several years. I don’t know if it’s something to do with that, because shortly before I had the dreams, I had horrible headaches due probably to the abscess, it was so bad I was praying to God to get rid of the pain. So not sure what if anything that has to do with it. One of the doctors had a teal colored shirt on underneath his white coat, I was running up some stairs and stopped for a moment and saw he was chasing me. The other dream I was in an exam room and there was a doctor with his assistant, I got off the table because they were x-raying a dog a whole bunch of times, which I know are dangerous, I ducked into a very long closet to change into my clothes and get out of there- then I was in between two doors, an outer door and inner door (like a breezeway like they have in some malls), the doc had me by my shoulders and was smiling at me, had a condescending look on his face and he was ‘steering’ me towards the inside door.

-Ara Arga 2017-10-16 2:06:41

I was at my school(but the school was kinda creep and its was like an old theatre and we’re kinda using it for some reasons) and, we were preparing for some kind of recitation in English. I was with my boyfriend and his friend, and we’re about to draw the map of our country in a white cartolina, but we dont have a white cartolina. I voluntary to get and buy a cartolina in the mall, i get my money and run out. When i got inside the mall it feels strange, the mall was so old and huge. i saw some of my classmates went to the store, so i went too. Because of i desperately want to get a cartolina i search everywhere in the shelf, but it seems they only have some printed cartolina (where those printed cartolina are kinda creepy, the printed there was all kind of experimented and tortured children) and i saw a room beside the shelf where its a two door and has rectangular transparent glass like in the hospital, and it was dark inside but i can still see whats inside that room because of the light in the store. I open the door and there was some bed like in hospital and it looks like dirty. I get startled when my classmate told me that its not allowed to open that door. So i close and went out the store because there’s nothing i can find inside there. I went down in the stairs and i can feel this some kind of creeps around me, when i turned around i saw a black shadow(and its looks like a man and tall but his body and face were all black) i got confused for a second and then i get back to myself when i noticed that he was holding a sharp thing (i dont if its scythe or a knife) and he was trying to kill me and chase me so i run, all the people i saw lately when i went down in the stairs were all gone, and there’s no one i can get some help. I keep running until i get lost my self in the mall the shadow were gone and the people were back, but the only thing in my mind was i have to get a cartolina.After a while, I bought some food and i was supposed to went back to our school cuz i give up to buy a white cartolina. I heard to my ear and said “he was only approaching when you’re alone or your in the dark”. When i was about to go down in the stairs again, i forgot what i heard lately and just went down, until i realized that it was getting dark, and i slowly turned around and saw him back there following me. I hurriedly run and i was so glad that there’s a man walking by, i went to him and begging for help. But he just ignored me and instead he put his gun out and shot the fire out to any places, he almost got shot me but i dodge it. I thought that he maybe have some kind of trauma or possessed. When i turned back the shadow still standing in front of me and he was doing some kind of magic until i get unconscious in my dream. When i wake up i was already sitting on flying chair and i was just the only one in the darkness. Then until i dont realized that i was already performing and dancing in theatre (that theatre is my school where i started) it was all bright and full of light, but none of my classmates was there. (And the other world of our school in theatre, they cant see me and i cant see them too).
Would you please tell me.. and all of this happening means?

    -Tony Crisp 2017-10-18 10:17:11

    Hi – It would help you to understand your dreams, if you would read – http://dreamhawk.com/news/summing-up/ and also http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/features-found-on-site/ which has so much information in.

    Nothing can replace your own ability to understand your dream. With a little effort you can do this by practising what is described in – http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-on-your-dream/#BeingPerson or http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/getting-at-your-dreams-meaning/

    Tony

    Ara – You start in a learning situation which you are slightly scared of – creepy. Also you are in the process of observing what you are thinking and doing with your life – perhaps wondering about your future.

    In learning about where you want to do or be in life you are influenced in your thinking by your boyfriend. You want to draw a map of your life which will show you your opportunities and potential. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/potential/

    Example: We give ourselves all these names – like God – Christ – Allah – Buddha – Soul Mate. We find that wonder in ourselves and then project it externally. We cannot believe that what we see as God, or Allah and a great love is a glimpse of our own potential, is a vision of what we are. So we project it outwards and kneel before it.

    But your dream shows that you feel that you do not have what is needed – the cartolina – too be able to clearly see your future and your wishes for it. So, you search frantically for what you need, but always in the outer world, yet inside you, you have a massive potential. But when you get near to the door to that potential you avoid the black shadow figure because it reminds you of death. But the shadow in dream literature is called The Guardian of the Threshold. It is described as a great – subjective – figure we meet at a certain stage of growth. The Guardian holds in it all the negative and positive actions and deeds that have been repressed aspects of self committed or developed in the past, even in past lives, which must be met and transformed or allowed to grow more fully.

    As you dream tells you, this figure can only be met and transformed when you’re alone or you’re in the dark. That means when you close your eyes and shut out the light of outer activities and listen in quiet darkness to the voice of your inner ear. See http://dreamhawk.com/inner-life/using-your-intuition-1/

    I know the dark figure is scary, but it changes if you have the courage to face it without running away. The story of Beauty and the Beast is about a frightening monster, that when she faces it turns into love and wonderful potential.

    Obviously he is trying to kill you, because unless you let the past you die the new improved you will not be born. Remember that in dreams we cannot actually die, but we face our fears of death and become a full woman. For whenever we dream its images are not like real life, because a dream is nothing like outer life where things could hurt you, but is an image like on a cinema screen that even if a gun is pointed at you and fired it can do no damage – except if you run in fear. So all the things that scare you are simply your own fears projected onto the screen of your sleeping mind.

-Lara Kite 2016-08-27 23:30:14

Last week I had a dream that someone very close to me was hurt in someway. But, as I would get closer to him it seemed like he would fade further from me . then I would run as hard as I could and still couldn’t catch up to him. When I woke I was very puzzled. So i texted him to make sure he was ok. He did just move back to his home state about 5 months ago. Which is 500 miles from where I am.

-MM 2015-04-16 10:25:47

For the past week, I have been having dreams of being chased. It is always by a male. Each dream is in a different location. In each dream I am not alone and the chaser never does catch anyone. There are usually secret passage ways that we hide in and escape through. The last dream ended with us answering the door, where the chaser was dressed as a UPS guy in disguise, and we shut the door.
For some reason, I have noticed that it is actually the people around me that they are after. The first was children, the second were I guess business partners, the third they were after a neighbor who I was close to. They are never actually after me, but I am running and guiding the other people through the run, into secret passage ways, or telling them to catch the track now, or telling them to shut the door now and to call 911, or telling them to stay low around the building. Why is it indirectly me being chased? There have been small children in 2 of the 3 dreams that I remember from this week.

-Nazeeha 2015-01-03 13:49:44

I just dreamed of a Whiteman (body builder type) with shoulder length blonde hair how was eating Humans. I began warning people. He offered me and 2 other women a piece of A sub sandwich which looked like Tuna. I refused it but the others ate. I new it was a tricke. I took off running to warn people. It seemed that he was following me but not going for me but to everyone else. He was still hungry just ripping off people’s arms and killing them. What does this mean?

-Hannah Eiter 2014-10-28 23:26:44

I recently moved to a new area.
A bit before I moved, I had a strange dream that I hadn’t understood..
It would always start by every time I would try to go outside and leave to go to the new house, a shadow of a man would run really quick and chase me back inside. Once I moved… Until last night. The same exact dream occurred but I saw the man’s face and body this time. It was my REAL dad. I’ve never met him but I’ve seen all of one picture. I can’t understand what nor why he would want to keep me from leaving that house. Please help me understand. Thank you.

-Kamlle Manlusoc 2014-06-10 5:30:03

I had a dream where my friend and I was looking for good candy to buy. We tried different flavors, but we eventually found the tight one. We were gonna pay for it and saw a familiar face as the cashier and for some reason we went back and looked at other candies and the small convenience store became a huge grocery store. While we were hunting for the candy isle, we lost each other. Out of nowhere I was being chased by people pretending to be zombies, my old schoolmates from my former school to be specific. The shoes I was running in became high heels and then I realized that they were just people so I stopped and busted a few Muai Thai moves on this girl and said “I know muai thai, so don’t mess with me if you don’t want to get hurt” so she left me alone. The scene I remember after that is in a field and my companions – an unknown friend and my maid- and I was running towards the edge of it which led to the main road. Once we crossed the border of the field which consisted of shrubs, my body got cut in half. The bloody and gory-looking lower part of my body was left at the side of the border and my maid carried me to the tricycle queue to get a ride home. Once we got home, my lower half were replaced by my maid’s legs. It felt weird and new. This house was not mine, it looked really fancy and modern looking but with lots o tones of beige and marble everything. I went to the bathroom because I wanted to see why my teeth on the lower part of my mouth was all loose. I looked at myself in the mirror and realized that they were gonna come off with just a slight tug. I took them all out. The part where my tongue was supposed to be was also filled with removable teeth. I took them all out but some of them were these odd looking replacement teeth that I’ve (or probably anyone) has ever seen. It looked like a mechanical gadget with black plastic-rubber material on top so it won’t hurt my gums when they were once in my mouth. All these things including my teeth were approximately 3 to 4 inches in length and the width of a normal tooth. This dream I had was so peculiar and demands my conscious mind to be thought of. I can’t even fathom why I had this dream. searching its meanings left me to be more lost in thought. This is my first nightmare in my 17 year old life. I just wish to know what my dream means exactly and what can I do about it.

-Susan 2012-06-24 16:09:01

I always have dreams about somone chasing me or looking for me. im always running away from something in these dreams, which i have 4 or 5 nights out of the week. i tried wanting to stop and ask who they are and why they are persueing me but im usually so scared and my heart is beating so fast that i just continue to run. usually they are out to kill me because they either say it or show it carring a weapon while persueing me and i think i continue to run because im scared of dying. i always seem to get away but only because i wake up. i think if i dont wake up in time they would get me. These dreams have been happening to me since i was like 7 years old. And when i was seven i fell into a deepdream where i was being chased by a faceless someone who wanted to kill me. in my dream i was telling myself to wake up but i COULDN’T. i tried so hard to wake but i was stuck in my dream until i finally found a nice hiding space and i was safe thats when i woke up. my mom said she even tried waking me up while i was dreaming but i wouldn’t wake up. Usually in these dreams the persuer who is persueing me is a black shadow that i cannot see the face of, a regular man who i cannot see the face of or when i do see the face they are usually a person who i dont really interact with. once when i looked to see who was trying to kill me i saw my neighbor whom i dont really talk to in a military leader uniform.
Can you PLEASE help me find out why i continue to have these dreams and how to make them stop?
THANK YOU SOO MUCH!!!

-Marcy 2012-03-21 14:54:57

I was being chased by a woman, my dad gave me a gun and I killed her

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