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 dreamt that I was with about 4 tigers, and I think there was 1 lion. A couple of them were walking around a bit. They were all anxiously awaiting what I was going to do. I thought to myself that they are not here on earth to hurt us, but to be a help for us (from reading Anastasia, Book 1, Ringing Cedar Series), so I calmly (as much as I could since there was still a bit of worry about them on my mind) stood there, and they finally calmed down. My dream then ended.
I had the most vivid dream with a tiger. The tiger was beautiful…black and white stripes…gorgeous thick and shining coat. When I saw it in my dream I was standing on a secluded beach. The tiger was laying on the sand and started to roll around… the sun was glistening on it…and it was happy/ content. I kept saying how beautiful the animal was to myself. I was not afraid…and the tiger was not bothered by me. I watched the waves crash…and felt serene. I followed the tiger a little ways. I only remember the tiger getting food from the ocean…fish to be exact. Other than that…that’s all I recall. But…the little bit I remember made me wonder…did this have any meaning?
i had a dream last night that i was in a tiger enclosure trying to hide from the tiger in a hut so i didnt get eaten. the night before i was in a guys room and found a whip in a box hidden in his room. the night before that i was selling a car to an old woman and she got me to take the money from a box of loose money and i think i took more than i should have. i feel these are somwhow linked as they are so vivid and seem to happen every night now. any ideas?
I had a dream where I was in the backyard with my Grandmother. There was a tiger, and it was walking towards me, and it growled at me, looking like it was about to eat me, but somehow my Grandmother managed to be able to communicate with by hand motions. I stood behind her, watching her, it looked like she was telling it to back off and not to eat me.
I’m in my house with my boyfriend and there is a tiger in the bathroom trying to get out. I try to hold the door closed but the tiger gets out and chases us out of the house trying to attack us. Now that we are out of the house, I’m trying to hold the front door closed but again the tiger makes his way through. My boyfriend now decides its now or never and attempts to shoot the tiger in his face but his gun is not working. The tiger stands there anticipating the shot after every click he hears but the gun never fires. The tiger now tries to wrestle my boyfriend who now has a knife. The tiger sees the knife and calmly backs off.
I saw a small striped cat and ppl around me were scared to approach it, I advanced and walked through a narrow passage that suddenly got wider….I was about to touch the cat when it sped away. I saw that it ran to its mother ( to my surprise was a large black tiger/jaguar), which was sitting across from me. I thought Ok, I’m a dead guy, but I smiled and reached my arm towards it. It approached me and laid down next to me….and smiled as I started playing with its fur and caressing and petting her.
Gary – You obviously do not suffer from nerves, and it is good to see that despite your thought that you were a ‘dead guy’ you still reached out to her.
Your dream shows you opening up your own inner strength and aggression. But aggression does not mean you have to fight anyone. It can work wonders if you roar now and again and no harm is done. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/what-we-need-to-remember-about-dreaming/
Tony
Hi there Tony,
I have written to you previously about dreams, and am hoping you can help me with one I had last night. I feel it is symbollic of the need to address specific aspects of myself that I have been avoiding for a very long time, I want to face them and move forward, but I feel overwhelmed with where to begin.
The part of this dream I clearly remember… I was in a house, it was very lived in, felt cosy but in some way chaotic. I felt there were lots of people around but didn’t specifically notice anyone. I was speaking with one friend who was leaving a dog and tiger for me to look after. It seemed to be prearranged. Somehow I was in bed, this dog and tiger were both prowling around and showing signs of aggression. I kept trying to subltly escape them but could not. The dog was in the bed then and I had to get out. The dog was dark and had a thick set head and attacked the blanket. The tiger was also a darker colour. I tried hard not to make eye contact and felt fearful and not capable of looking after them.
Neither of them attacked me, though scratched at my skin.
In hindsight I wish I had been able to tame them, but I was too overcome by a childlike fear to even consider this within the dream.
Any insight would be most appreciated 🙂 Thankyou!
Amy – It is good to see you here again.
From the dream I have the impression of you confronting your own strength, but it is in conflict. There is a part of your nature that is well socialised and another part that is felt by you to be wild – the dog and the tiger. They show signs of aggression because you are avoiding meeting responsibility for them. They are not really aggressive, just unruly, and because you will not face the – make eye contact.
I feel the easiest way is not to do it in your dreams. That will happen as you do it in waking. For instance what are you not facing up to in your daily life? Perhaps something that has been asked of you or given to you – by the dream friend.
I would also imagine yourself in the dream and while awake start being more in control of the situation. You will need to experiment to see what will work. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-on-your-dream/
Tony
Last night I had the strangest dream I was in a room and I was nurturing a young adult female tiger. As time progress we started to play flight, she was testing her strength to she what she could get away with as well as for fun. I was a little afraid however kept in composure. This continued and as it did sexual tension grow between us. Lastly we had a real test of strength fight and the tiger tried to crush me with its body weight in a bear like hug, as she did I lifted my arms and grabbed her mouth and held it closed so she could not bite on breath. The entire time this happen I was not afraid but it appeared to be more of a test of courage and strength, and as it did the sexual tension between us grow and turned into powerful sexual love. She released me and I let go of her mouth and a strong powerful sexual love remained. We both had a deep respect for each other.
Luke – A very powerful dream. I have only had anything similar with a cat, a puma and an alien.
I wonder whether you preventing her from breathing stopped it from expressing as aggression and pushed it higher into sexual love.
Anyway it is a good thing to gain such power from such a beautiful creature. I hope you learn to use it. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-on-your-dream/
Tony
i had a dream i had returned from some where about to park my car under our house. under the house i saw a tiger. it was looking or staring at me. when i saw it, i knew i was supposed to be afraid but i wan’t but instead i was surprised. i stared and wondered when i got myself a tiger, it was as if i was wondering whether it could be mine. when i realised in the dream that the animal was mine, i felt some kid of power and thought of myself as a rich man because of having a tiger as pet. i was astonished by it’s beauty. it looked fearful. before i could get down of my car the tiger had entered the car with it’s head and rubbed it’s head on me just like how a dog does when it sees it’s owner. i was wondering why it didn’t attack me and how a tiger could play with me. i realised that it had a head of a lion. it wa as if the tiger had turned to a lion. i wanted to know how tamed it was so i decided to put my arm in the mouth to see whether it will bite it or try to chew it but it didn’t. it only playedwith my arm like a dog playing with a bone. i loved. i felt great and very important to own a lion or tiger.
reply
Mathew – To recognise that you have a tiger/lion that loves you is a great thing. It doesn’t make a you a great man, but it does give you a power you could use if you recognised it. It could give you confidence in situations where you are threatened. You could avoid being bowed down by troubles, because you are a lion/tiger. For in the dream world we carry the qualities of everything we dream of. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/what-we-need-to-remember-about-dreaming/
Tony
315am awoke from this dream
…..
Husband and i bought a tiger and brought it to house. It’s too large and feared keeping it in the house, and tried keeping it in garage. Susie (our black cat) tried walking in the garage and twice I pulled her back by her tail.
(We apparently had a tiger before, I said lets get another, husband agreed.)
It was escaping from the garage on top some cushions stacked high. (it looked like a lion that time)
Husband was on phone Saturday morning trying to get animal control to come get it.
I took the tiger to the backyard to keep it occupied so it would not focus on us.
Tied the blue leash on back fence post and it jumped to the outside of the fence and laid down.
On the phone they say would cost 700 plus extras to come get it . Man on phone say call person who we bought it from, they would take it back. Called but no answer.
People were stopping their cars to take pictures of tiger laying calmly, and I tell husband now this Is going to get on YouTube.
Tiger sees a scooter or motorbike person and targets it. Tiger breaks the leash and goes chasing after.
I run and tell him what happened and if tiger gets biker , we would have a murder. I get into jeep without drivers permit to go get the tiger before he gets the motorbike.
Speeding on road, I think we reached the tiger, unsure of the rest…..woke up.
Usually I don’t wake in the middle of my sleep, but this time I did, and felt the urge to see what this dream meant.
Hubby and I are not on good terms for the past 6 days, infact went to sleep with tears, and I got news that my mom has cancer a couple of days ago, and I always feel that I want to go back home away from him.
I fell asleep after two and a half hours after reading stuff on this site. Then another dream.
I dreamt that I was in another dream, and I was having intense sexual encounters with either myself or something invisible above me, and I was struggling to wake up from that dream within a dream.
Was it just anger showing up or something else?
Jayne – I think the second dream shows what was behind the first one. It is about powerful sexual energy that can be dangerous if let loose. Yet the tiger is actually calm except when it sees something apparently running away. You are the one worrying about the tiger that you are. You are ready to break the usual social rules to deal with what you feel – the jeep.
I do not see any danger unless someone triggers the instinctive reaction of chasing someone who appears like a victim. So why wait for a bad scene to make the break? You do not need an excuse to leap on your husband in a fury to give you the courage out leave.
Try imagining yourself back in the dream and seeing what other ending you could give it in regard to the tiger chasing the person. Remember that the tiger in the dream is your own emotional energy and can be as furious or calm as you choose.
Tony
I dreamt that my sister in law and I were kidnapped and taken to a room. We were asked to strip naked and I ran away leaving my sister in law behind. Two nights later I dreamt that my husband and I had a caged tiger. It go lose and started attacking my husband and I just ran away and again saved myself.
I what does this mean? Im very troubled about this dream.
Hi , today i had a dream in which i was sitting in the portico of my house. Suddenly a huge tigress came into my house.It came near to me. And suddenly we became very close buddies. I was rubbing its belly. She was very close to me. Then i went outside my house and saw 2 tiger cubs playing around. I played with them and then after some time they turned into human babies. When i returned home , there was no tigree either. Can anybody let me know what this means ?
Bob – I would have liked to know whether you have a partner or children to properly comment on your dream.
A tigress with cubs can sometimes indicate a mother who then leaves her cubs/children.
As I say, it would take more information to give more. Of course it could mean that you will meet a tigress/woman.
Tony
I had a dream in which i come across tiger or tigress on a mountain, and then i run and try to escape. I get a para suit from somewhere and i jump with it, but i find it difficult to open it. Somehow i manage and land on the ground near my old house where in the garden i figure out a lot of cubs and a tigress i run inside the house and start closing all the windows and doors. After closing all the outside doors and windows i figure out a tigress is sleeping inside my living room i get terribly scared, i lock the living room and run inside. i dont remember exactly but in between also i saw a lot of tigers from which i am running. My head was spinning for an hour after i got up from this dream and i felt i have no energy left with my head and hands numb.
I had a dream I owned two tigers both orange and black. They attacked anyone in my way in a big hotel where I was staying. When I realized how bad they attacked them I got scared and brought them back to the room. While in the room I saw a Bowie knife on the bed. I took it just incase someone tries to take them away…but I woke up.
i had a dream that tiger run from the zoo and been wondering around my city.Everybody was in panic and run to their houses.I was terrified.Went out from the house to look where my brother was (he went out from the house before he heard about the tiger).Then I saw it,and suddnely the second one approching me,too.One of them bite me,and somehow I run.I had a bite mark on my arm..Thats all I can remember of..After that I woke up!