(1) For Freud a box, like anything else that is hollow, represents the womb or the vagina and is therefore a feminine and principally sexual symbol.
(2) A box may also represent yourself, your own psyche. Opening the box would signify a resolve to get to know yourself.
If the box contains something precious, it probably represents your true or essential or deep self, a rich store of energies and powers and wisdom and love.
(3) If the box in the dream fills you with fear - like Pandora’s box, from which all kinds of pestilential things came - there are at least three possibilities:
(a) It may symbolize your unconscious. The powers, instinctual drives and buried emotions that are kept out of sight in the unconscious layers of the psyche are things that have at some time in the past - possibly in
childhood - frightened you or been associated with frightening experiences. The wav forw ard is to cultivate their acquaintance and give them their proper place in your conscious life.
(b) If you are a man, the box may represent the negative aspect of woman (or the feminine) as the feared femme fatale luring you to destruction, or the possessive and devouring mother depriving you of your independence. In that case, you need to become acquainted w ith the feminine side of your own nature (anima) and / or come to terms with and deal with your (buried) feelings towards your mother (for anima).
See Also: Woman. (For man, woman is an ambivalent reality, desired and feared. In mythology Pandora exemplifies this ambivalence - as do most goddesses. ‘Pandora’ means ‘all-giving’ or ‘all gifts’ and w’as probably originally a name given to the Earth Goddess, giver of all life. It w’as only later - at a stage of development w here male deities were the supreme gods and female deities had been demoted to subservient roles - that Pandora was seen as a symbol of woman as the source of evil.)
(c) It may represent any source of disaster. Is there anvthing w ithin you or in vour home or working environment that is threatening you or making you anxious?
[1]When a box is opened, previously hidden items are unveiled. So, this dream can be a symbol of intellectual exploration because you are discovering the contents of your psyche.
If what you find in the box displeases you it may refer to your fears or aspects of yourself that you want to hide. In case of a safe, what you keep in there will be your most precious intimacy, possibly, your best qualities. In the Greek myth of Pandora’s box, the malignant part of the woman who wants to have everything is represented. The oneiric- psychological analysis of this story establishes it represents man’s fear for the dark and feminine side of his nature. It can also refer to the way the unconscious projects the complex and negative attitudes in real life.
If you force a safe in order to open it, the omens say you will not marry the person you currently love.
If it is empty, you will get married soon; and if it is full, late.
[2]A box is believed to be a feminine symbol that represents the unconscious, the mysterious and the maternal.
The famous Pandora’s Box held all the forces of good and evil in it. Pandora opened the box and unleashed its wrath into the world. She was able to close the box and in it hope. Thus, it is said that hope remains.
(Pandora’s Box was not really a box at all, but a jar!) The interpretation of the box in your dream depends on the details of the dream and on the content of the box. Just remember that the box is symbolic of mystery, secrecy and of something precious.
The box in your dream might represent potential that needs to be realized and that will slowly come to your conscious awareness.
Dreaming of a box suggests that risk taking may be necessary and that you may discover power and wealth that currently may be in the unconscious.
[3](See Also: Closet, Wrapping Paper)
Unexpected surprises, good or bad.
For example, birthday gifts are usually pleasant, whereas what awaited inside Pandora’s box was not.
Gifts, talents, and abilities that exist within you, but have thus far remained “wrapped up.”
Freudian: An alternative vaginal emblem.
A sense of uncertainty, source of reservation, or seed of doubt. We don’t know what boxes contain until they’re opened, and by that time it’s too late to leave the proverbial wrappings on.
Being contained in a box is an alternative type of cage dream.
[4]A box is about containing something or compartmentalizing elements of your life. When this image is featured in a dream, look to where in your life you may be keeping certain things separate and potentially hidden. This may be a benefit if chaos or challenges require you to maintain structure and organization in order to get through some significant shift. However, it can also reveal a deeper pattern indicating that things currently hidden may need to be revealed or elements of your life that you are keeping separate might be better if integrated.
[5]Boxes have a complex range of meanings, so deciphering the meaning of a box that appears in a dream is often difficult. For Freud, boxes represented the womb or the vagina. Much depends on one’s circumstances and on the particular disposition of the box in a dream. During a move, boxes in a dream might simply reflect the moving experience. Certain common metaphors, such as “feeling boxed in,” can be expressed by boxes in dreams. Boxes may contain danger (as in “Pandora’s box”) or gifts (a “gift box”).
[6]1- To feel boxed in in a dream is to be prevented from expanding in an appropriate way.
To dream of packing things in a box indicates that we are trying to get rid of feelings or thoughts with which we cannot cope.
2- Various types of boxes perceived in a dream may represent different aspects of the feminine personality.
3- The feminine containing principle.
[7]Opening a goods box in your dream, signifies untold wealth and that delightful journeys to distant places may be made with happy results.
If the box is empty disappointment in works of all kinds will follow.
To see full money boxes, augurs cessation from business cares and a pleasant retirement.
[8]An empty box in your dream means that your plans may go awry. However, if there’s something in the box, then you’ll be able to overcome the obstacles.
If you open a box in your dream, you’ll soon be going on a long trip.
If the box you open is full, someone is about to propose to you.
[9]Psychological / emotional perspective: Various types of boxes perceived in a dream may represent different aspects of the feminine personality. Thus a decorated box can represent a flamboyant personality, whereas a plain cardboard box might suggest ordinary everyday concerns.
[10]Dreams of a box represent a belief system or a surprise gift. This box might represent also repressed emotions, feelings, and/or cherished memories.
An open box represents a paradigm shift or out of the box thinking. Consider the feeling tone.
See Also: Drawer or Treasure Chest.
[11]To dream of opening a box and of looking for something that you cannot find augurs disappointment in money matters (Gypsy); the interpretation here is obviously derived from a knowledge of the subconscious desire to search for and to find money, an anxiety dream.
[12]To open an empty box in a dream foretells frustration over some minor problem.
A box filled with earth, plans for traveling may ensue.
If filled with money or jewels, a bountiful future is promised.
The box is also considered a sex symbol pertaining to a woman.
[13]1. Long journey (to open a box).
2. Containing emotions or aspects of personality (as in “keep a lid on it,” “boxed in” or “pandora’s box”).
3. Death (as in coffin).
4. Womb.
[14](Trunk) In a dream, a box represents a wife, a beautiful woman, one’s house, or it could mean one’s shop. In a dream, a box also represents marriage for an unwed person and prosperity for a poor person.
[15]See Also: Container. Love affair and relationships, but also your own burden. What is inside the box? Also female genitalia.
According to Freud, a symbol of the female body, as with all musical instruments and Church.
[16]To dream of a box or boxes full of items indicates that you will be taking a journey To dream of empty boxes means you will lose something which, although you seldom used it, was important to you.
[17]You can expect an upset in your plans if your dream featured an empty box, but if there was something in the box, you can overcome your obstacles.
See Also: under nature of the contents.
[18]Any enclosed space tends to signify the feminine containing principle.
A box also represents the material world.
A box also implies a degree of rigidity in our thinking.
[19]This dream also depends upon the circumstances.
If you open a Box and find something inside, it is fortunate, but if the Box is empty, then your plans will be upset.
[20]Dreaming about a sealed box means you are careful about giving your affection. Ornate boxes in dreams mean the dreamer has been trying to control strong feelings.
[21]The games you set up, little realities you create, limits you impose upon yourself. One endeavors continuously to break out of boxes and expand vision.
[22]A plant; the dream denotes long life, prosperity and a happy family (Artemidorus); the symbol of long life, perpetual hope.
[23]1. Container;
2. Religious Tradition (as in “you can’t keep God in a box”); legalistic doctrine. ) Ps. 106:38; Phil. 3:13
[24]It is splendid fortune to open a box in a dream. Wealth, with all it can bring in comforts and freedom from worry will be yours.
[25]Feelings of being “boxed in” under another’s control; no freedom of expression
[26](See Also: Punch)
[27]lucky numbers: 02-19-21-24-25-41
admiring a: leave your youth to memories.
being given a, with an intricate design: this relationship is worth working for.
burying stolen property in a: wil be blamed for circumstances you did not control.
cardboard, a: a limited protection against risk.
church charity: wil have misery and disil usionment at work.
closed, a: another’s secrets wil harm you.
with the key: are too eager to find other’s secrets and less your own.
crate, a: your desire to fil it up with positive emotions drives you.
empty, an: have difficulty earning what you consider a decent living.
enclosed in a, being: don’t select one action, do both.
full, a: a marriage proposal game has been established.
having a: business wil fail without mature policies.
empty, an: plans wil be upset with crossed purposes.
open, an: someone wants to steal from you.
opening a: wil take a long delightful journey.
Pandora’s: evil wil be unleashed upon the world.
strong, a: wil be cheated by being denied the truth.
robbing: wil lose entire fortune by greed of wanting another’s share, too.
tying a: putting your life in order.
[28]