Eagles are traditionally regarded as a symbol of power and freedom and often appear in dreams as an embodiment of spirituality. Eagles often represent achievements, ‘noble’ goals, a sense of power, and limitless potential in dreams. Eagles have a striking profile that’s instantly recognizable, with their sharp eyes and proud heads, not to mention the huge wingspan. They’ve been admired and revered in a wide range of cultures, and have been the subjects of art, mythology, and religion for countless years. If you see an eagle flying in your dream, you shape your life according to your long-held dreams and live freely, and believe others should be able to do the same.
The appearance of the eagle, what it was doing, and what species it was all contributes to your dream meaning, which we’ll explore further on. As eagles are regarded as very spiritual animals and one of the most powerful symbols which appear in dreams, we’ll look at the spiritual meaning behind these elegant creatures first.
The Spiritual Meaning Behind Your Eagle Dream
Eagles are traditionally connected to the air element, because of the mastery in the elegance in which they can travel through the air, and the long distances they can cover over short periods. They spend one-third of their lives in the air, and can see just as clearly from twenty feet away like we can make out things five feet away, or, to put it simpler, they can spot a rabbit three miles away. Air is the element of vitality, of faith, and our need to grow in life. Combined, these have interesting connotations for your dream. Eagles (see also Bird Of Prey Dream Symbolism) are associated with a spiritual journey, or the result of one, where you become wiser, calmer, and freer at the end of it. The element of air suggests you may need more faith going forward, and as eagles can cover hundreds of miles while hunting, you may need to prepare for a long spiritual or metaphorical journey. You may encounter something that will take a long time to solve and you’ll have to involve others, especially when you really don’t want to. It will be a long road, but you’ll come out of it better off.
Dreams involving eagles can suggest you need to embody some of the traits we associate with an eagle, primarily, the ability to see further. This is in the sense that you need to be more observant when it comes to other people. You may not be focusing on the right thing right now, perhaps you’ve become caught up in your worries, or you’re looking too far ahead and not what or who is beside you.
If you dream of watching an eagle, and you feel content, or happy, this suggests that you’ll be making good decisions in the near future. If the eagle has trouble flying – whether it’s injured, battered by bad weather, or anything else – this eagle represents someone in your life who has some form of power or responsibility, and they’ll falter, for one reason or another.
Eagles have been considered holy in quite a few cultures. Both in Ancient Greek and Hebrew texts, eagles are associated with vitality, and have links to the divine, because of their proximity to the sky and the Gods. The Romans used a silver eagle as the emblem of the Roman Legion and the power it possessed. It became the bird of Jupiter, and the messenger of the gods. Sometimes the Ancient Egyptian god Horus is mistaken for an eagle, but his symbol is a falcon. A double-headed eagle also features in the iconography of the Freemasons. In Islam, the eagle embodies nobility, and dominion. In Christianity, the eagle is a symbol of hope and salvation, as it soars above at heights other birds cannot reach.
Eagles have featured in medieval bestiaries and much older texts, where the admiration we’ve held for the eagle has always been clear. They also embody what’s regarded as ‘ideal’ qualities that leaders should have; a far seeing gaze which looks like it may be able to predict the future, endurance, speed, and the ability to attack and defend. A seemingly untouchable predator. While they spend a lot of their lives in the air, they are also an animal of earth, and may reflect how you need to stay grounded while trying to achieve your dreams.
The eagle’s proud profile and razor-sharp beak suggests you need to be careful when it comes to the words you choose and how strongly you express yourself, to avoid needless situations where you might come across as too opinionated, and hurt someone else. They also bide their time while in the air, gliding in the wind to conserve energy, while using their powerful eyes to search for prey. This may suggest you need to keep a watchful eye to spot opportunities which will carry you toward your goals.
Dreaming of a bald eagle is a sign of concern, or someone who wears power well and uses it for good. Dreams of an eagle flying overhead is a sign you’ll experience a wealth of positivity soon, which will help you complete a goal which was previously out of reach.
An eagle sat in a tree in your dream suggests that your stubborn nature will let you down somewhere in the future, where you’ll be determined that you made the right decision and time will prove you wrong. The eagle can also represent someone you know who seems disconnected, or someone who refuses to change their ideas or behavior.
Killing an eagle in your dream can suggest that people crave your company right now – you have more than a few ideas which intrigue them, and you don’t take things at face value. It can also suggest that you’ll lose a sense of power or something will test your strength, and you might question how much you have left.
Native Americans have always considered the eagle to be the most sacred bird, where it embodies wisdom and strength. Like the Romans, they also believed that the eagle was a messenger of the gods. In some tribes, they also symbolize leadership. Eagle feathers and bones have always been employed in special rites, and in some tribes, hunting or killing eagles are taboo.
What does Dreaming of a Bald Eagle Mean?
In any dream, it can be difficult to tell what species of animal you were dreaming of, if you even were. Sometimes your subconscious picks the first thought of what the animal looks like as an idea, which can be an entirely different thing, and may not resemble a real creature. Bald eagles are brown, with white heads, and they have large, round yellow beaks. They don’t develop their adult colors until they’re about five years old, and an adult eagle can travel between 400-500 miles a day when migrating. The symbol of the United States, the bald eagle embodies freedom, and the strength that society creates, and appears everywhere. If you live in the States, this may be why you’re having this dream, as you see it everyday. Bald eagles are also very strongly protected in America. They represent action, victory, or manifestation, and can be a sign to keep going, whatever you’re currently going through.
Several of the eagle’s characteristics can translate into your dream’s meaning. For example, the distance a bald eagle can cover can speak of your resilience and your determination. They can live from 30 – 50 years old, the former if they live in the wild, and their lifespan can represent the long journey you need to go on, in order to shape your life into what you want. Seeing the eyes (see also eyes dreams symbols and interpretation) of a bald eagle suggests you’ll gain clarity in a situation that’s so far proved murky, or it can be a testament to your knowledge to recognize signs as they appear.
Eagles have appeared in our dreams for as long as they’ve appeared in our religions and mythologies, and they can suggest that now’s the time to pursue what you’ve always wanted. You may have always been working toward your goals, but it’s now that you’ll make considerable progress. You may also need to give yourself time in order to focus on what’s really going on in your life, with the day-to-day worries clouding your vision of longer-term goals.
Eagles can resemble both the prosperity of society, the more ‘noble’ aspect, as well as the problems that are inherent within, where human nature can be more predatory. This dream may suggest that you’re not being brave enough, somewhere. You need to take more risks, but you’ve been proven wrong before. It’s striking a balance between achieving contentment, peace, and taking enough risks that your life does not stagnate, and that people don’t forget you. You may feel like you want to be at the forefront, but you don’t want the potential drama that may come with it.
Multiple eagles can suggest that you may have been too wrapped up in other people’s lives lately, but now you want to concentrate on yourself. Dead eagles in your dream indicates you need to stay true to yourself, no matter what, and you’ll achieve your goals.
What does a Golden Eagle in a Dream Mean?
Golden eagles are beautiful creatures, and are found in many countries. You can recognize these birds of prey by their dark brown bodies with golden-brown feathers on their napes, and like bald eagles, they have a piercing gaze, a sharp beak, and razor-sharp claws. They don’t have white feathers crowning their heads like bald eagles do, so it should be easier to recognize which bird was in your dream.
In dreams, golden eagles are associated with independence, fulfilling life’s bigger goals and the happiness that comes with it. Like any bird of prey, golden eagles have symbolic links to freedom, and power (see also What Does An Owl Mean In Dreams?). Their appearance in your dreams can suggest you’re in for a rocky journey, but coming through the other side will be worth all the trouble it took, as you’ll be stronger for it. The golden eagle is also symbolic of your spiritual self, and the connection between you and your surroundings, and suggests you’re in tune with your instincts, and know exactly what you want. Like the bald eagle, the golden eagle can soar to great heights and dive to swoop on unsuspecting prey, which may link to how you seize life’s opportunities when you recognize them for what they are.
The Meaning Behind Your Eagle Dream
Eagles are good signs in dreams. Birds of prey are usually indications of positive times ahead when they appear in your dreams, that you’ll also gain a sense of power or new-found responsibility, as long as the eagle was free in your dream.
If the eagle appeared to struggle, or it was caged, this may reflect your waking life and the anxieties currently affecting you. You may have gotten too comfortable in your routine, and change looks too daunting right now. It may also speak of the state of your social life, perhaps you’ve become too reliant on the same people, and you need to widen your horizons with new opportunities and a new circle of people, maybe it’s time to take up that new hobby you’ve always been meaning to try. A struggling eagle in your dream could be a sign of money worries, so if an opportunity has come up to invest in something, you may want to reconsider, at least, for now. The way the eagle flies when it’s heights above can also be significant. They surf the air currents and glide through the updrafts, and perhaps you need to embody this behavior, going ‘with’ the wind and where life might take you, instead of fighting change or looking toward things you haven’t got.
Eagles are also considered symbols of life’s renewal, as they are associated with the sky, and how quickly it can change. The eagle can be a sign you need to look ahead – perhaps you’ve been too focused on the past and what it has taken from you instead of what the present and the future can offer.
Eagles can also represent someone who holds power or responsibility – which may be yourself or someone else – and people can be naturally drawn to this. It may suggest the weight of the responsibility of others looking toward you for guidance, and the importance in making the right decisions, and not to become impatient at other people’s progress, as while things come naturally to the ‘eagle’, it may not be the same for others.
The eagle may suggest that you need to shed some familiar routines which are currently comforting, and reach further. They may not be challenging you enough to progress to where you should be. While the unknown is a daunting prospect for many, it’s also the chance of things being better than they are right now. Perhaps you feel you need to move forward, and you’re not sure how to begin. In which case, you need to watch for the right opportunities which will make themselves known sooner rather than later.
The Dream Psychology Interpretation of an Eagle Dream
One thing science agrees on when it comes to dreams: we have to have seen the thing before it enters our dreams. It doesn’t have to be that you’ve seen a real eagle (lucky you if you have!), you might have seen one anywhere, on TV, in advertisements, or on branded products. Your subconscious can take the context of how you felt when you saw the image of the eagle, and that can translate into your dream. While we forget about 90% of our dreams upon waking, depending on where you were in your sleep cycle, even remembering a very visual image in your dream can be significant.
Sigmund Freud theorized that dreams involving eagles were connected to how you react to your ‘superego’, which is the part of your personality that collects and tries to act on the morals you’ve been taught from your parents, and from society’s expectations of you. It suggests that you have found that balance between going after what you want, and behaving in a moral manner.
Carl Jung considered the eagle to be an archetype of a spiritual undertaking, and connects to how we express our imagination, and what we manifest in it. The eagle can even mirror our innermost thoughts or ideals, and a collective unconscious mind, or the hopes and beliefs that our ancestors held themselves.
What does a Dream of Killing an Eagle Mean?
Dreaming of killing an eagle is usually your subconscious finding an outlet for the anxiety you’re currently suffering from. How did you feel during this dream? Anxious to kill the eagle, or more anxious once it was dead? Dreaming of being anxious when the eagle was dead suggests that while you’ve overcome a problem, you’re still dealing with the worry it created. Dreaming of being anxious to kill the eagle suggests that you’re in a state of stress and just want everything to be resolved, as quickly as possible. Perhaps you hadn’t realized you were so worried.
If you dreamed you turned into an eagle and then died, this suggests you’re either not expressing something important to you, or you’re hiding from something which you could do with confronting. Your subconscious has given you this scenario to show you how much this fear or stubborn behavior is holding you back – you have the strength and the power to overcome, only if you’re brave enough to try.
What does a Dead Eagle Mean in a Dream?
Dreaming of a dead eagle suggests you have a deep-seated fear of failure, or you’re currently feeling trapped. Perhaps a situation hasn’t turned out the way you wanted, or you’re basing your self-worth on something you shouldn’t measure yourself against. If you feel like these feelings are created by someone else and their actions, maybe it’s time to break free of them.
A dead eagle in your dream can also suggest your sense of freedom is being threatened. Perhaps someone’s pushing you into something you don’t want, and your subconscious is drawing your attention to the weight your own choices have – you don’t have to go through with it. Don’t give your power away.
What does Dreaming of being Attacked by an Eagle Mean?
Dreaming of being attacked by an eagle suggests that you’ll need all your courage soon for a task ahead. It may also suggest that you’re feeling attacked in waking life, perhaps there’s someone making your life difficult, in a professional or personal capacity, and you need to adjust to find breathing room. Don’t try to over analyse why the eagle attacked you in the dream – it’s more significant that it did. It may suggest that you feel you’re not measuring up to your own expectations or goals right now, but not every minute can be spent trying to achieve them. Sometimes, in order to get further, you need to take a step back and rethink why you want something, you may find a better reason than the one that originally drove you.
What does Shooting an Eagle Mean in a Dream?
Dreaming of shooting an eagle suggests you may have forgotten or lost touch with your ‘spiritual’ side. You may have got too caught up in materialistic or professional goals, and lost sight of what serves you and makes you feel connected to your surroundings. This does not suggest you’re a bad person, it just means you need to readjust your focus. It can also convey how badly you want to succeed, but you may be overthinking this goal and what it will mean for you afterward, so you neglect other parts of your life to get there.
What does an Eagle Flying Above You Mean in a Dream?
An eagle flying high above you in a dream indicates that you need to listen to your instincts. You might have been ignoring them to focus on how you want a situation to turn out, rather than how it might actually end. It may suggest you need to push past your fear of something. Have you been putting something off lately, something that really shouldn’t wait? Often, once you’ve confronted something, everything else becomes easier to deal with. This dream may also suggest you’ve been working too hard for the wrong reasons – you may be basing your sense of success on what other people think of you or of the feedback you receive, rather than proving something to yourself or seeing the progress that you want to see.
What does it Signify to Dream of an Eagle Holding Prey?
An eagle clutching prey in your dream, such as a fish, a snake, or a mouse, suggests you may be in a crossroads when it comes to your professional life. It denotes that you’ll make the right decision, and you’ll succeed in spite of those who wish to see you fall. Remember, everything, everything, becomes easier when you approach it with a positive attitude. You may have to force it, but before you know it, it will be second nature.
What does Dreaming of a Chained or Caged Eagle Mean?
A dream of a chained, caged, or otherwise trapped eagle is a direct reflection of how you feel. Presently, you may feel like you’re not getting anywhere, or you doubt your ability to adapt or persevere, and this may stem from a situation that’s left you reeling, or a choice that didn’t feel right, but you had to make it anyway. You may feel like, for one reason or another, you cannot currently work toward your goals, but the only person really telling you that is yourself. That’s who you’re listening to, and who you can tell differently. Whatever your current situation, you can always move forward, even if it’s just in the planning stage of your dreams.
What does it Mean to Dream of Nesting Eaglets?
This dream suggests that you’ll soon step away from your everyday worries to focus on what you want from the future. Eaglets can be quite demanding, and if there’s sibling competition, they can be quite aggressive as they see it as a threat to their survival. Perhaps you’ll encounter some sibling rivalry yourself, or be jealous of a close friend. Seeing baby eagles in your dream is a testament to your determination, and how you know you’ll gain a lot of strength at the end of something, where you’ll feel as though you can solve anything in your path.
An eaglet in a nest in your dream can also suggest you may need to be more patient. It may suggest that you’re at the start of a journey, and you want it to be the end already, where you can feel like you’ve accomplished your goals and live more freely. You may be looking too far ahead, and neglecting the present and the current problems facing you. It can be a means of escape, for a while, but you’ll need to come back to the present eventually. A spiritual journey isn’t completed in a day, and while it may take a long time, it will be worth it. At the end of it, you’ll become a better version of yourself, and may even meet someone who will help enrich your life.
What does it Mean to Dream of an Eagle Missing its Prey?
Seeing an eagle miss the prey in a dream, or seeing the prey escape from the eagle, suggests that you may be about to make a mistake that will be costly. You may make a mistake in your professional life which will cost you progress, and it might take a long time to come back from it. You may offend a friend or someone close to you, or make a wrong decision that will impact them greatly in the long run, no matter your intentions. Not everyone will give you the chance to explain. If you see an eagle landing on the ground, or its claws scrape the earth while the prey escapes, this suggests that the decision you make will be less than noble. You may only be considering your own skin, and it will hurt someone else. Be wary of careless or even reckless behavior, as it rarely pays off.
What’s the Biblical Symbolism of an Eagle?
The bible has often connected the eagle to prophets. They both seem to be separate from earth and its troubles, instead reaching the heights above, closer to a divine point of view, and able to see both forward and backward. In the bible, prophets are considered to be able to see much further, where other people’s vision is clouded by their life in its current state.
In Christianity, the eagle has been connected to youth and its hopeful outlook, “who satisfies your desires with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” (Psalm 103:5). In Psalm 91:4, God is compared with an eagle, who will “cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge,” linking the eagle to both the divine as well as a symbol of protection and faith.
How do You Tell the Difference Between a Bald Eagle, a Golden Eagle, and Other Eagles?
Most likely, you’ll have seen a bald eagle or a golden eagle in your dream, as those are the most well-known. Both are similar in size and weight, but the adult bald eagle’s white head makes it easy to distinguish the difference. If you had a chance to see their beaks in your dream, you’ll notice that bald eagles have larger bills, as they eat fish. The golden eagle tends to eat small mammals, such as mice or squirrels, or even small birds.
What does a White Eagle Mean in a Dream?
A dream of a white eagle has interesting connotations. White as a ‘color’ (or, more accurately, a shade) is traditionally associated with happiness, innocence, and new beginnings. If, in your dream, you see a white eagle diving towards prey, it suggests that someone will seek you out for your opinion. It may reflect how your life is in a good place right now, there’s a wealth of positivity and you don’t have to try hard to overcome problems. Dreaming of being a white eagle suggests that you’re on a brand new path, one which will lead you to become more experienced.
Feelings You May Have Experienced During Your Eagle Dream
Focused. Powerful. A sense of inner peace or freedom, the kind that no one else can disrupt. Excited about the future. Content about what life might throw at you. Worried about the tasks you have to complete. Feeling like you’re looking too far ahead. Unable to see past a problem.
In Your Dream, You May Have
- Been an eagle
- Saw an eagle
- Been surrounded by eagles
- Seen an eagle hunt
- Seen a dead eagle
- Transformed into an eagle
Positive Changes Are Coming If
- The eagle looked healthy and free
- The eagle caught its prey
- You didn’t feel threatened by the eagle
- The eagle didn’t attack you
- Brown Dog Dream Meaning And Interpretation - January 3, 2023
- What Does A Beating Mean In Your Dream? - January 3, 2023
- What Does It Mean To Dream Of White Shoes? - January 3, 2023
