14    Dreams and Omens

A fairly detailed analysis of dreams and Omens is provided in Agni Purana. Dreams are good when they involve mountains, palaces, snakes, riding horses or bulls, white flowers, trees, possession of arms and many heads, triumphs in wars, wearing garlands or clothes, witnessing eclipses, Stars, Sun or Moon, eating rice pudding, drinking wine or blood, eating meat,milking cows, buffalos, blessings from Devas, Brahmanas, coronation, one’s own death or cutting off head, one’s own house burning, playing musical instruments, climbing trees, clear skies, wet clothes and so on. Bad dreams are a shaven head of one’s own, wearing shabby clothes, drinking oil, house collapse, angry Gods or Brahmanas, falling from above, killing snakes or animals, playing with monkeys, weddings, singing and so on.  Prayers to Vishnu, or Shiva or Ganesha or Surya would appease bad dreams, while good dreams should enable the dreamer to make them true if the person discontinues sleeping.


Good Omens: Good omens while leaving house are facing white flowers, full vessels, meat, distant sounds, goat, cow, horse, elephant, fire, gold, silver, sword, umbrella, fruits, butter or curd, sugarcane, sound of thunder, lightning, dead body without anybody crying, donkey’s braying; buffallo crossing from left to right; horse, cats, donkeys, from right to left; crows near door or with mud, or a dog with meat in mouth and so on. Bad omens are facing cotton, dry grass, cowdung, coal, leather, hair, a lunatic, chandala, widow, ashes, bones, sound of musical instruments, break down of vehicle, fall of umbrella on head, recall back before journey and so on.’


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