Image Source: toothpastefordinner.com
This evening I attended my English club meeting (an English club of all Koreans and myself, the ‘foreigner’) and the topic of the meeting was about dreams. We had an interesting discussion about what we dream about, how our sleep patterns affect our daily lives, and then we started discussing the meaning of our dreams. I shared with the group the meaning of a woman who dreams about fish. It is said that when a woman dreams about fish, either she or someone who is close to her is pregnant. After I shared the fish symbolism with them, they proceeded to tell me about Korean dreams.. and it went something like this:
Korean 1: Dreams in Korea also have meaning. If you dream of poop, or that you are swimming in poop, it means you will get a lot of money, and you should play the lotto.
Me: Uh…. (confused look)… swimming in poop?
Korean 1: Yes, swimming in poop.
Me: Like Ddong? (Points to butt) … Poop?
Korean 1: Yes, ddong poop… also, dreaming of a pig and dreaming that someone is dying in your family is a good sign.
Me: So…. if someone is dying in your dream, then it is a good sign?
Korean 1: Well it can only be a family member. If a family member dies in your dream, then it means they will have a long life.
Korean 2: I dreamed that my mother died the other day. I felt very sad when I woke up and I saw tears on my pillow.
Korean 1: Don’t worry, it means your mom will live a long time.
Me: Huh (confused look)… that is interesting.
Korean 1: If you dream about blood or a toothache, it is a very bad dream.
Me: I see. I will have to research this when I get home.
This whole conversation was very interesting to me, and I admit, I laughed when they mentioned poop. I asked if it was an urban legend like Korean Fan Death [video post about that to come in the near future]. Some of the members laughed when I mentioned that and said it was not real, but Korean 1 insisted that it was real. I proceeded to tell her that I slept with the fan on last night and all of my windows closed and I was alive to talk to her. She refused to accept my challenge of doing the same thing tonight.
Upon further research of the ‘poop dreams’ and other dreams associated with wealth and life longevity, I found the following information:
POOP DREAM: ‘Mr. Kim was quoted to say, “When Yuna left for Vancouver, that night I had a ‘poop’ dream. The poop was overflowing in my room, so much that I could not keep pace with cleaning it up.”… in Korean culture, poop dreams symbolize “good business, wealth, money, good luck, and presents… Windfall profits, profitable contracts, successful bids, and other such achievements often occur” after one has had a poop dreams.’ - Translation of Star News Report by Eun Lee, a graduate of Northwestern University. Article can be found here.
PIG DREAM: “It is a Korean tradition to relate dreams to everyday lives. Dreaming of ancestors, dragons, or pigs is to bring fortunes. On the other hand, dreaming of a dog is considered negative. ” - News article by Intern Reporter Kang Yoon-Seung for the Korea Herald. Article can be found here.
DYING DREAM: “Dying means luck. So if you dream that somebody in your family dies, it means good luck not only to your family members, but to you as well.” – Interpretation of Dreams from Daum Q&A. Article can be found here.
BLOOD DREAM: <unable to locate information>
TOOTHACHE DREAM: <unable to locate information>
Have any interesting dreams to share from your culture? Feel free so submit them below or send them to cocoinkorea@gmail.com.
Happy Dreaming!