9 Spiritual Meanings of Dreams About Dead Relatives
Dreaming of dead relatives may give you an insight, warning, or guidance. It may also reveal your innermost desire to emulate the dead person you’re dreaming about.
The meaning behind dreaming of dead relatives can vary depending on your personal relationship with the relative, your honest opinions about them, and the context and details surrounding your dream. According to dream interpreters, dreaming of dead relatives generally augurs an upcoming change coming into your life.
In psychology, dreaming about dead relatives might signify that you’re still grieving their death. Dreaming of a deceased relative might be your subconscious’ way of helping you to process your feelings and deal with the sorrow, guilt, or resentment you may have with the object of your dream.
Dreaming of Dead Relatives- General Interpretations
1. You Need Guidance
To dream of a dead relative may be an indication that you’re seeking guidance from this person. Perhaps you use to consult them for advice all the time and your mind is trying to recreate this scenario in your dreams.
Maybe you have to make a tough decision or currently confronted with a challenging situation in your waking life and you’ve been thinking of this dead relative. You’re wondering what advice they may have or how would they navigate your current predicament.
If you’re desperately in need of guidance, your brain might try to use your memories to simulate an interaction with your dead relative in your dreams. Pay attention to their message as it may provide critical information on how to best approach your problem.
2. You’re Seeking Closure
Dreaming of a deceased loved one could also be a reflection of your personal feelings of guilt, remorse, or sorrow. If your relative died an untimely death, seeing them in your dreams could be an indication that their soul is seeking for closure. It could also mean that you who want to say goodbye to them.
Perhaps you’re having a hard time coming to terms with the permanence of your separation. Their eternal departure from your life forces you to acknowledge the bond you have with them. If you dream of your dead relative during the REM stage of your sleep, it’s highly likely that you’re missing them and you want to tell them all the things you’ve always wanted to say to them.
If, in your dream, you find yourself recreating the circumstances that lead to their death, it’s possible that you’ve been wondering what you could have done to prevent their death. Or maybe you want to apologize to them for all the wrongs you did.
3. You’re in the Midst of Processing Your Grief
Another reason why you might be dreaming of your dead relative is because you’re still processing their death. Perhaps you’re very close to this person and you’re still grieving their loss. According to Sigmund Freud, dreams are kind of a wish-fulfillment factory for the subconscious. Perhaps you’ve been thinking a lot about this person and you want to see them.
It’s never easy to accept the fact that you won’t be able to see and make memories with this person anymore. No matter how many condolences you get, no matter how hard your friends try to console you, no matter how many books you read about death, you’re still not immune to the pain. That’s okay. Allow the feelings to flow through you.
When the storm passes, grief will also give you a new set of eyes, propel you to live your life to the fullest, and cherish the moments you have with your loved ones while you can.
4. You’re Avoiding Something
Dreaming of dead relatives also signifies that you may be avoiding something. Perhaps you have an important decision to make and you’ve been postponing it. Or maybe you have tons of work to do but you’ve been procrastinating. Your dead relative might infiltrate your dreams to kick you up your ass and force you to get your shit together.
To dream of a dead relative means that you need to confront whatever it is that you’re neglecting. This dream prompts you to take action as your postponement is only fertilizing your anxiety. Once you’ve made a decision and start taking action, all your fears will fall away and the universe will have your back in whatever path you choose.
5. You’re Having Relationship Problems
Dreaming of a dead relative could also be an indication that you’re indecisive about the future trajectory of your relationship. Perhaps your deceased relative has always been the person you turn to for advice. They might pop in your dream to provide guidance on the matter.
Moreover, because dreams about death is heavily associated with an ending of something or a major transition. Having dreams about a dead loved ones could portend the termination of your relationship or you might undergo major changes that may affect your relationship.
6. Your Dead Relative Has Some Unfinished Business
When a dead relative visit you in your dreams, it could be an indication that they have some unfinished business and they need your help to execute it. If your relative died an untimely death, it’s highly likely that they have a lot of loose ends that they want to tie up. If they’re murdered, they might give you hints on who their killer is or ask you to revenge their death.
7. You’re Unhappy with Your Life
Dreaming of dead relatives may also suggest that you’re dissatisfied with your life. Perhaps you’re upset over something or you haven’t been feeling a sense of fulfillment with anything you engage in. Perhaps this deceased loved one has always been the one to cheer you up during your low days, and now that they’re gone, you’re finding it hard to face life without them.
8. A Warning Sign
When a dead relative pops up in your dream, this might be a warning sign that some challenges are coming your way. Your deceased loved one prompts you to brace yourself and wants to let you know that even though they can’t be with you physically, they will always have your back.
These challenges might be grueling but your deceased loved ones want you to know that you’re not alone in this. They want you to take comfort in the fact that no matter what difficulties life throws at you, they will be there to support and guide you.
9. You Need to Cultivate Balance in Your Life
Dreams of dead relatives could also take place when you’re struggling to create balance in your life. Perhaps you’ve been spending too much of your time on work that you tend to neglect your loved ones. This dream encourages you to spend more quality time with your friends and family.
By appearing in your dream, your dead relatives are reminding you of the ephemeral nature of life and how important social connections are for your health and happiness. When your dead relatives visit you in your dreams, they are prompting you to figure out what’s truly important to you and invest your time on those things accordingly.
Common Dead Relative Dream Scenarios
Dreaming of Talking to Dead Relative
Dreaming that you are talking to a dead relative suggests that you may be caught up in a hitch and you want to seek their counsel. Perhaps you’ve tried everything but nothing seems to work and you have absolutely no idea how to resolve your problems. So, your mind wanders off to this deceased relative you’ve always looked up to and you wonder how might they handle this situation.
It’s possible that you’ve also been feeling alone and you have no support system that you can actually trust. Pay attention to what your deceased relative is telling you as it might prove valuable in solving your problems. It’s important to note that these advice from your dead relatives are simply coming from your higher self. Tap into your inner wisdom to decode their message.
Dreaming of Attending the Burial of a Dead Relative
Despite its macabre scenery, this type of dream holds a positive message. If you find yourself attending the burial of your relative and weather is nice and warm, this is a sign of abundance in all aspects of your life. If you’re single, it’s possible that you’re going to meet someone special soon. To dream about dead relatives also portends good health, financial prosperity, and flourishing relationships.
However, if it’s raining during the procession, this might be a bad omen that signals sickness, business collapse, break-up, or mental breakdown.
Dreaming of Eating with a Dead Relative
If you find yourself eating with your dead relative in your dream, this is a positive sign that you will live a long and prosperous life. If you’re currently struggling with a sickness, this dream foretells that you’re going to recuperate soon. Dreaming of eating with a dead relative also suggests that you’re going to receive good news with regards to your business.
Dream of Traveling with a Dead Relative
Dreaming that you are traveling with your dead relative means that you will be forced to face your problems alone. You wish that you had someone who has your back through it all but you might be afraid to ask for help or there’s nobody in your waking life whom you trust or understand what you’re going through.
Dreaming of a Smiling Dead Relative
Dreaming about a smiling dead relative has a double entendre. Seeing a smiling dead relative in your dreams can give you a sense of comfort or it can be unsettling depending on the way they smile at you and the context of the dream.
If your dead relative has a bright and beaming smile in your dreams, it means that they’re proud of you and the life you’re creating for yourself. It’s possible that you might also be missing this person and the energy they bring into your life.
However, if the deceased relative is smiling at you in a creepy and maniacal manner, you might be feeling guilty of something. To decrypt the meaning of this dream, you have to take into account your personal relationship with this person and your feelings towards them.
Dreaming of a Dead Relative Chasing You
Dreams in which you see yourself being chased by your dead relative symbolizes your fear of commitment, vulnerability, and intimacy. You might have expressed a desire to get into a relationship but you just can’t seem to get past your abandonment and trust issues. Remember that you have the power to reconfigure your brain and unlearn the narrative that’s keeping you stuck and unhappy.
Dreaming of Hugging a Dead Relative
To have dreams of hugging a dead relative suggest that you miss them immensely and you want to feel their warmth. This dream also denotes that you’re going to experience a stress free-life in the days ahead.
However, this dream might also be an indication that you’re ready to embrace death and step into the unknown. Perhaps you’re having trouble living in a world without this deceased person and you’d rather be with them than to deal with the absurdities of the world.
Dream of Dead Relative Luring You to Go Somewhere
If you dream about your dead relative enticing you to go with them and you’ve accepted their invitation, this might be a bad sign that you’re going to be in grave danger. It could be an indication that you’re going to experience some serious health issues and even die from it.
If in the dream, someone stopped you from following your deceased relative, it’s plausible that this person will help and support you if you’ve ever had the aforementioned illness or if something terrible happens to you.
Dreaming of a Dead Relative Giving You Money
To dream of your dead relative giving you money has several possible interpretations. Some dream interpreters assert that this dream is an indication that you will soon receive something good in your life. If your dead relative gave you a huge amount of money in your dream, it’s possible that you’re going to acquire the things you’ve always desired.
However, other interpreters claims that this dream portends that some unfortunate event is about to hit you. It’s vital to pay attention to the details of your dream and how you might be feeling at the moment you’re having this dream.
Dreaming of a Dead Relative Giving You Food
If your dead relative gave you food in your dream, this might be a positive sign that abundance, nourishment, and love is about to flow in your life. Because food in dreams represents energy, it’s possible that you will also undergo spiritual growth and develop emotional mastery.
Final Thoughts
According to the father of psychoanalysis Dr. Sigmund Freud, dreams are a portal to our subconscious. On the other hand, Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Jung contends that dreams are the gateway that connects the subconscious to the conscious mind.
If you’ve recently lost a relative, having dreams about them could be your subconscious mind’s way of processing your grief. The meaning of dreaming about dead relatives could also vary depending on the context of your dream, the nature of your relationship, your current circumstances, and your personal feelings about this person.
