Tiger Tigress
Power, anger, sexual power, inner anxiety or terrifying urges. Fear of another person’s anger or forcefulness. Sometimes the power of a mother’s protectiveness. A woman’s anger or sexual craving.
Although similar in many ways to the lion, the tiger has a more feminine quality. It can therefore represent an angry woman; ones mother/a woman as a protector or destroyer; anger; spitefulness; the power and authority of ones animal strength; anxiety or fear, flight or fight. Often children have recurring dreams of being chased by a tiger (or lion), and this is about anger that they have been told is bad to express. So this is why they are running from it when they should have made it their friend. This is probably also why most people are still running or hiding from tigers in their dreams. Instead they should have been taught to direct their anger – a natural part of our defense system – effectively.
Do not to be afraid of the animals you meet in your dreams. They are only symbols of your own inner nature, your animal self. See Your Mammal Brain
The tiger represents your own power, the power that can protect your family and any children. Feel the power of that by imaging yourself as the tiger. Yes, actually imagine yourself in its body.
Also big cats, like domestic cats and dogs are very ‘mouthey’ – in other words they do everything with their mouth. They love with their mouth and love to hold you with their mouth. It is their way of giving a hug and wanting to be near. But of course tigers can bite for real too, but your dream tiger is a part of you. Even if it did bite you in your dream it is only like holographic image and can do you no harm. To be frightened of your dream tiger is to run away, avoid or deny your own wonderful natural strength and self protection. See Mouthey Animals
Example: Just last night I dreamt I was walking and a tiger came at me. I was scared, but I thought I would try to be strong and not show my fear. It did not work and the tiger ran at me. I climbed a tree and onto a roof of a tin shed. The tiger followed me up and I ran across a series of tin sheds. I finally realized I could not escape and I turned and faced the tiger. I screamed at the tiger and ran straight at it. The tiger got scared and turned and ran away, and then I woke up. These dreams have been on my mind, and I would love some insight into them. Thank you so much.
From that you can see that an image – in a dream – cannot hurt you, though it can cause you to feel fear. So chasing it was a way of changing your feeling, and that of course changes your dream. So, there is nothing in any dream that can hurt you, unless you run away from something. Running away is leaving yourself open to being a victim of whatever frightens you.
When we call someone a tiger we either mean they are fierce, capable of defending themselves, or very successful at what they do. But we also say a woman can protect her children or loved partner like a tiger. So it is also about strength and passion to protect and care. This aspect of the tiger depicts the primeval and passionate power of motherhood and the love and care of nature itself emanating from the unconscious. Tigers are individual creatures and are not, like lions, part of a group less it is a mother with her cubs.
Like any other animal, the tiger can also represent aspects of sexuality, depending upon how it is presented in the dream. As a symbol of sex it would most likely include elements of uncertainty – will I be attacked or overwhelmed – power and instinctive responses. It has to be remembered also that the tiger is a top of the food chain predator, and so can represent the predatory facets of human nature. See animal for an explanation of the role dream animals play in our life:
But it has to be remembered that every image in our dreams is an aspect of ourselves, and being an animal the tiger represents the wonderful strength we have as our heritage – if we claim it. Many people are frightened of their own strength and so run from their dream tiger, but as the following dream shows it can be your strength.
Example: An adult tiger was at my bed with one of my old high school buddy holding him on a leash. When I saw him I was furious what the fuck is such dangerous animal doing on my bed. Went to load my AK (the imaginary one, don’t actually own one), but when I pointed the gun at him he ignored me with calm and assertive look. I dropped the gun and in my admiration for him just felt his strong and firm energy. Since then I started to really think of Tigers as the ultimate alpha animal!!
Example: I was in a hallway behind a door, pulling it against me to shield myself against a tiger. The tiger was large with bloodstained paws. Some people stopped outside the door to look at the tiger. I told them to move along, as it had a very uncertain temper, and could easily attack. In fact it began to grow restless and growl. They went. I saw the deep colours of the tiger, and the blood. I was terrified that at any moment it would pull the door away from me. At that moment the tiger attacked me when I came from behind the door, and swallowed me. Now instead of feeling separate I was the tiger, and delighted in his movements and anger.
If you are born in the year of the Tiger in Chinese astrology, dreaming of a tiger might be a comment on your strength and weaknesses. It could be wise to consider your basic characteristics in the light of the dream. See Chinese Zodiac Tiger
The tiger can represent many things however, and below is another important aspect of a tiger.
Example: While in a basement a person approached me holding quite a large animal. As they handed it to me I saw it was a tiger cub, large and very well built, with a thick neck. I was surprised, but even more surprised and disturbed when a huge tigress came through a doorway above us at ground level and came down the stairs to us. I thought she was going to attack us, but she took the baby cub and placed it down. She then came with something in her mouth, probably money, and placed it near me. She gave off a powerful feeling of not wanting the cub, and with the money handing it over to me or us for our care. There was an atmosphere of irritability about her. Peter G.
In this example the tiger has an obvious connection with the mother. The dreamer had often been threatened by his mother that she was going to give him away, or put him in a home. So the dream probably dealt with his need to confront these feelings of abandonment which, like the tiger, were threatening. Interestingly, almost exactly five years later, in the same month, Peter dreamt the following.
I am in a house. There is a feeling I am sharing it with a number of people, as if there is a connection with a friend Mike. Suddenly I notice there is a tiger cub running around the room. It is a large room and empty except for myself and the cub. I realise this must mean there is a mother tiger about and worry that it will be angry or aggressive because of its cub. I go to walk through a doorway, but the mother tiger walks through. I stand still, not daring to move. But she brushes against me in a friendly way and strolls over to look at her cub. Peter G.
Interestingly the dreamer sees himself as a young tiger in his dreams.
Example: There is alarm that a wild tiger is about. I am concerned to find a place out of sight, behind a desk, in case the tiger sees me. It comes in, and, although there are many other people, it comes directly to me. As it comes towards me, I see it is small, and young, and un-coordinated in its random, flailing movements (rather like Tigger in Winnie-the-Pooh). Its body is like a pipe-cleaner twisted into a tiger shape. As it comes to me, I see it is full of energy but also shaking uncontrollably with fear, drenched in sweat. It is furiously wagging its tail, which may have a white bow tied to it (or is it the shape of the tail? – the latter I think), as if it is desperate to please. So from within my fear I say to it “Good tiger, there’s a good tiger,” to calm it down. I think, or say: “This tiger is terrified, because it is quite out of its element, in a classroom with humans.” I look up and see there is no one else in the room – just me and the tiger. JH.
JH says of his dream: “This seems to me to be a very revelatory dream. Clearly I am the tiger, and so I am frightened of my own fear in trying to hide from it. But the clarity of the dream is in the basic fear of existence the tiger exhibits.” Here the tiger is clearly about the fight and flight instinct in us all, and the struggle JH has in dealing with this in his life as a teacher.
Idioms: Fight like a tiger; paper tiger.
Useful questions:
Am I dealing with anxiety or anger in this dream?
What relationship do I have with the tiger, and what does this say about the way I deal with the ‘tiger’ aspects of my life such as fear, anger, aggression and dominant strength?
Does my dream tiger show any signs of motherhood in this dream, and if so how does that reflect on my mother or motherhood?
Comments
I came across your page while trying to interpret a dream last night involving a tiger. I believe I was at work and saw an older slender man in the lobby impatiently holding a baby. He reminded me of my father. He needed to do something, and I offered to watch the baby. He left, and I tried to coddle the baby. The baby could not be comforted. So I put it on the ground on it’s back to play. The baby crawled away and curled up in a circle by the tiger. As I approached the baby, the tiger hissed at me. Though, it was more of a warning and didn’t feel threatened. Then the tiger went out the lobby, and I believe the baby went as well. I followed them outside and as I approached the tiger, it disappeared and all that was left was a big red brick with a whole in the center. This is when I woke up.
Emmanuelle – I does seem to revolve around you not feeling our father was there for you. So you took over the business of caring for your own baby self. This may sound strange, but everything you see as outside you in a dream is coming from you, your emotions, your fears, your beliefs, your joys and explorations are all you, clothed in the dream images and drama. So when you dream of someone you should not feel you are dreaming about that actual person. As with most dreams, the person in the dream is not the person themselves, but is a collection of associations and feeling about him or her.
The tiger is often used as a protective though sometimes scary mother figure. I wonder why the tiger went out of the lobby. Was there some difficult with your mother. But at the end you are left with a symbol of a woman – the brick with a hole in the centre. And a brick can mean a helpful or supportive person. (She was a real brick).
Overall it is a very supportive dream with a positive end.
Tony
I walked with an unfamiliar lady towards a small house, reminded me a gypsy caravan. Inside was a beautiful white tiger with black stripes laying inside the cage depressed. The lady said she was going to let this tiger out free. I told her it might be a bad idea due to the fact that this tiger might run wild start hurting people; I was afraid the tiger might attack me and bite me. The lady then laid right by the cage pressing her face against the bars inserting her arms and hands inside waiting for the tiger to come to her. When the tiger came towards her and immersed himself to her hug as she caresses him gently. At that moment, my anxiety and fear all went away. It seems to me that the lady and the tiger had already established a relationship before I came along.
Muse – Thank you for sending such a beautiful dream, especially as it shows the transition from fear to acceptance of what is a really important part of you.
In your dream you were probably frightened that your animal strength could hurt others. Of course it could, but only if you have not learn to love that part of you. And the strange woman was the part of you that you have been unfamiliar with that has the wisdom to set you free. Please look at http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/animal/ as it says so much that could not be said in the entry on tiger.
Tony
adult tiger at my bed with one of my old high school buddy holding him at a leash, when I saw him I was furious wtf is such dangerous animal doing on my bed..went to load my AK (the imaginary one, don’t actually own one), but when I pointed the gun at him he ignored me with calm and assertive look. I dropped the gun and in my admiration to him just felt his strong and firm energy. Since then I started to really think of Tigers as the ultimate apha animal!! Thanks.
Kiki – Although I have been telling people for ages not to run from their animals – animals in dreams are our own natural instincts and are not to be frightened of, reading your dream and integrating it into my dream dictionary taught me so much. It was like a little piece of a jigsaw that I needed to complete the picture; so thank you.
Here is the piece I added.
Often children have recurring dreams of being chased by a tiger (or lion), and this is about anger that they have been told is bad to express. So this is why they are running from it when they should have made it their friend. This is probably also why most people are still running or hiding from tigers in their dreams. Instead they should have been taught to direct their anger – a natural part of our defence system – effectively.
So it has to be remembered that every image in our dreams is an aspect of ourselves, and being an animal the tiger represents the wonderful strength we have as our heritage – if we claim it. Many people are frightened of their own strength and so run from their dream tiger, but as the following dream shows it can be your strength. (Your Dream).
You are exactly right – “I started to really think of Tigers as the ultimate alpha animal!”
Tony
I had a dream that I am a cop and I am investigating a person. This investigation takes me to what looks like small a run down Chinese restaurant. I go into the kitchen and see an old man cooking and I greet him in Chinese and inquire about the man in question. He tells me that he has seen the man and he is moving around with a tigeress and her cub. He then proceeds to open up the air vent in the ceiling and I see the small cub. We then go looking around for the mother. I finally track the mother tigress down to another room. In the room with me there are about 4 other people, from nowhere the tigress comes only towards me leaps on to me and attaches her self onto my back. I am not scared the position feels comforting to me but people are making me fearful by saying that the tigress may soon start to maul me any time. Hearing that I try to remove the tigress of my back. I tear some skin from her face. I try to harm it. But it still remains stuck but doesn’t attack me as such. I then wake up.
Hi Tony,
I had a dream last night in which I was in a cage with a tiger. The cage was not locked. It only had bars from three directions. The forth one, which was behind me, was open. It was a pretty big tiger, but it was lying peacefully on the floor while I was brushing it’s fur with a dog brush.
What can this mean…?
Thanks.
I had my first dream of a tiger on Saturday. I somehow knew that it would be arriving and hurried to straighten up the bedroom I was in [which looks nothing like mine]. It was just a twin size bed and no other furnishings that I can recall. The bed was very near a door; it almost felt like a hotel room. I layed down as if to go to sleep, but simply closed my eyes and tried to remain as still as possible so as not to startle the animal. In walks a shadow of a figure, led by a large tiger on a heavy chain. The tiger walks around and over the bed, simply sniffing and nuzzling me. I could feel its breath on me, feel its weight on the bed but nothing crushing me. That’s as far as the dream went.
I can only wonder if it is somehow related to a gentleman I met Friday night. We danced a couple of slow dances as he sang to me, nothing more. Given our random meeting we probably will not run into each other again.
Jennifer – Well your dream certainly is about your powerful urges to be with a man. From your dream you appear to want to create an atmosphere to attract a man. But the man in your dream is a shadowy character, and it is the tiger that makes real contact.
You have a great feeling of an animal presence, and I wonder if that is the way you will attract a male, through your understanding of how we are all animals.
Tony
Hi Tony 🙂
Another tiger dream last night….this time, a baby tiger found me and he/she was adorable. Very affectionate, about the size of a housecat. I was advised to return to the tiger to the wild, and I tried to take him/her to the woods and release the little guy/gal, but the tiger just kept coming back to me! He/she was pretty attached to me, loyal and such. I loved him/her!
Thanks Tony for this amazing website!
Cheers,
Tiff
I dreamed I was riding a tiger to save someone. but as I was riding it, it almost felt like I was doing all the work, as if I was the tiger. it obeyed me… I havent been able to find any interpretation..
dreamt the tiger was in a pit, like a ravine water pouring in, it was stalking around in circles and there where other people with it tha tit was pouncing on, not sure if it was playful, it looked fierce and i threw a stone at it, as it came my way a person threw one back at me and my daughter who was with me.
Al – We have not long emerged from being a fully fledged animal, with all the instinctive reaction such as fear, anger, sex, flight or fight. Our personality is like a human face on a long line of wonderful animals, and it is quite new.
So in your dream you are meeting, in the symbol of the tiger, your fear, anger and desire to escape. The tiger is your own instinct trapped in some way, and you do not like it – you threw a stone at it. In fact we are all taught to control or be afraid of our instincts such as anger. So it would be quite a good idea to be friends with it, because if not it will be like Trying to do all the ‘right’ things may lead us to the point friends with our inner tiger, other wise we might not be able to say no to a glass of water without a pang of guilt.
Tony
i had a dream only last night that i was with class mates in a classroom, and they were taunting a tiger. i grabbed saved it, and took it with me, everwhere i went – to protect it, and it didnt once hurt me. there came a time also, where there felt to be a sexual tension of some sort, and where others kept pushing me away from the tiger – but i relentlessly, even in tears i myself, would not part from the animal and i could really feel the warmth and softness of the tiger’s coat. i coould also sense the tiger was a male.
there’s definitely ways what you have written may correlate to reality, but is there anything else?
Alexandria – I see the tiger as something very lovely that you are protecting from the views of others around you. Strangely enough you could lash out at such people and knock them flat if you let yourself go. But instead you keep it inside you and express it as tears.
The softness of the tigers coat is a clue to what you keep inside you. It is a tenderness of love that is at odds with what you find around you I other people’s views. It links with the energy that people call sex, but it is love expressed as sex.
Perhaps if you recognise that you have a tiger in you, that in fact you can be anything and it is okay. It will not overpower you because we all have a choice about what we express at any given moment.
Tony
Hi, I hope you still respond to comments.
I’ve recently had a dream about a tiger too that bothers me. This is only a section of my dream but a bus driver dropped me off at my childihood house that I keep repeatly having dreams about. My husband was there with two children of ours that don’t exist yet and a newborn. When I was on the porch of the house, we had a lot of junk pile up to the steps outside. Under that junk was three baby tigers. I picked them up to move them out the way so the bus driver and the people that was with him could leave. The mother tigress woke up when she heard her cub crying and started sniffing them. She let the first and second cub that she sniffed go, but started eating the third one gruesomely. I was screaming and crying to my husband in the house saying it was my fault that she ate the cub cause I touched it. He seemed like he didn’t know what I was talking about until another tiger or possibly the same tiger started coming out of the basement. I was telling my husband the tiger was in the house and coming but he didn’t believe me at first until he seen it turn the corner from the kitchen. The basement entrance is in the kitchen. So he jumped off the couch and started running up the stairs with me to the master bedroom. My thought in the dream were our sons and daughter was in their rooms. One boy, one girl and a newborn with the boy I think. I was saying to my husband after we locked the door and put the bed in front of it. I need to get our kids, I need them in here with us. So I looked out of the window to make sure no tigers where on the roof. I started to climb out on the lower part of the roof. As I was trying to figure out a way to climb to the other part of the roof, I heard the neighbor say “It’s that girl fault that the sabor tiger is after everyone”. Something like that, then as I looked up it was a ledge or a ceiling blocking me from getting on the roof to get my kids. I started paniciking even more, crying, and screaming and remember feeling the terror of my kids opening their door and getting killed by that tiger. ThenI woke up relieved that my husband was next to me fine and my 8 month old still sleeping in his crib. Spooky
Brittany – The childhood house that your dream starts with is you meeting all the influences joys and pains of being there in that house. And the junk piled outside is the rubbish that you have collected within you from that experience – your childhood.
The baby tigers are a promise of three children in the future and the mother tiger is you. Remember that in the world of dreams our most intimate fears and longings are given an exterior life of their own in the form of the people, animals and places of our dream. And you are certainly a tiger in caring for your children in the way you reacted in the dream.
A basement is a sign of what is unconscious in you, and in your dream it comes out of what is hidden in you. If you are uncertain of this use http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-in-your-dream/ and imagine yourself as the tiger and describe yourself as it, and say what you feel – “I am a tigress and I am protecting my cubs, but if anyone touches them I will …..” Say not what you think but what you feel as the tiger.
The cub that was eaten suggests you might lose a child – that still leaves you with three as you have one already. The suggestion is that the one that might be lost is caused by your nervous reaction. And the dream is not a prophecy that is certain, but only a suggestion. So learn to meditate or to pray for all your children. So learn to calm the you that is crying and screaming in the dream. That is the tigress.
Tony
I had a strange dream. I was with a teacher in a crocodile pit. We has a broom and had to tap it twice on the ground near the crocodile to make it snap. After a couple of times I didn’t want to tease it any more so I let it out. The next scene was a tiger got to it and attacked the crocodile. Then out of no where a huge something had torn the tiger to bits. I then saw a Lion trying to protect the dying tiger which was gushing with blood. And It was a huge polar bear that was doing the attacking. My dream ended there but I couldn’t sleep very well after that. I have no idea what this means because I was watching it all. Can you help??
Pauline – I am not too sure about your dream – except the first part.
You are teaching but you didn’t say who you were teaching. But you were dealing with a big animal that could have swallowed you – not that it would have done you any harm in the dream world. But then you choose not to tease it – when have you been teased and wanted to snap back?
The rest of the dream I think is you still learning something about anger and ferociousness. Because the dream doesn’t make sense; no animal in its natural surroundings would attack a crocodile. And what follows is a scene that to me says – if you let something loose that is anger, it will produce even greater anger and repercussions. So it happens in your dream. So think carefully about anger and hitting back.
Tony
I had a dream last night where at the end of the dream I was leaving from my home which appeared to be in the wild. My son was behind me when I spotted a tigress with her cub. I called for my son to come to me and as he ran towards me the cub growled and charged for my son. Right as it leaped for him I stuck my arm out to protect my son. The cub hung from my arm by its teeth and the Tigress began to charge for me. I flung the cub off…grabbed my son and jumped in the river near by. But I couldn’t swim and the tigers were pacing back and forth waiting. I woke up….. What does this mean??/
Kristina – Wow, this is about tigress protecting its cub – but you are the fierce tigress and you need to admit to how fierce you can be to protect your son.
The thing about dreams is they are usually a magic mirror that shows you to yourself. But of course they usually do this by creating a drama that shows what you are like underneath all the civilised front.
Every dream image is an aspect or yourself, so do not think of the tiger as a real living creature that is attacking you. So the tigress going for you suggest that your anger is not expressed outwardly but is turned back on yourself. Not a good thing to do because it can cause a lot of frustration and ineffectiveness in expressing yourself forcefully. The cub – your cub/child hanging on your arm may mean – and I am guessing – that sometimes you feel as if you want more freedom. You can check this out by imagining yourself in the dream while awake and feel the cub hanging on your arm – then wait and watch what feelings arise.
The plunge into the river is a good sign as you are now in the flow of life, but are not used to dealing with such powerful energy as has been released by the dream – actually by you as you are growing.
I would suggest you play with your imagination. It is a great and wonderful tool to help you overcome problems and practice dealing with things such as your dream. So first imagine that you allow the tigress to charge and get you – remember that a dream is just images and nothing can hurt you. But of course in doing this you will meet feelings. But if you do it several times you will see the feelings change into real insights as to what your dream is about. And then practice swimming; either in real life or in imagination. Imagination is an excellent way. Do it until you know you can swim in your dreams. In doing so you will be learning to meet and go along with the powerful currents and waves of life.
Tony
it felt like I had walked from one world into another and as I entered the new location I was confronted by a sitting tiger. The tiger looked friendly, but I got quite a fright and I was scared. I then started to walk away from the tiger and i was afraid I would be attacked, in fact in my mind I was thinking “I hope the tiger doesn’t follow me”. However the tiger did follow me but it gave me a sense of protecting me and making sure I made it to me next destination. The interaction was brief.
Ilaria – Walking into a new world suggests you are about to enter a new way of living,=. Usually these things come gradually although your sounded very sudden.
Entering the new often faces you with anxiety or fear, and in fact you faced in meeting the tiger. But you had enough courage to meet the test and walk on. In doing so you learn a valuable lesson; your instinctive feelings shown by the tiger are not to make you a victim, but are supports and can guide you. In fact you should trust your gut feelings or intuition a lot more in the world of experience you are entering into.
Tony
Ever since I’ve remembered my dreams, I’ve always had dreams that involve a white tiger and a black panther. No matter if the dream is good or bad, they’re always at my side. I’m not scared of them and they make me feel safe in my dreams.
Emerald – You must have a deep seated wisdom to attract such good protectors and guides. Wise in the ways of Life.
Also I am guessing that you have a love of animals and nature. Such love opens doors for you to your inner world – a world that many people believe doesn’t exist.
Tony