Fire is one of the single most potent forces that most of us witness directly in our lives.
It can destroy but it can also create—warmth, passion, and strength.
So, when we see fire in our dreams, there are naturally many interpretations as to what it can mean.
Knowing how to interpret seeing fire in our dreams can often be difficult, so it’s often a case of looking inwards and trying to figure out what could be going on.
When I recently had a dream involving a big fire, I had a lot of questions myself.
So, I decided to do some research into what it could mean.
So, what does it mean when you have dreams about fire?
Dreams about fire can be about destruction, but more often than not, they are representations of inner strength and passion. It can be about love, or about almost any strong feelings you are experiencing. It can be a symbolic cleansing—a trial by fire.
So, the best way to put it is that dreams about fire are, in one way or another, about rebirth.
It is about shedding something old and emerging as something new, whether that’s painful or not.
Let’s look further into this.
What does it mean to dream about fire?
It is, ultimately, all about control.
Fire can represent many things, both spiritually and symbolically.
I’ll get into some of the key meanings that fire can have, but ultimately, the point is not that the fire is overtaking you and getting beyond your control.
Let’s first take the clearest meaning—destruction.
Fire can destroy like few other natural forces can, and this is the most common association that comes up when we think of fire.
In your dreams, this kind of destructive fire could be about something in your life that is being destroyed, whether for good or ill.
But fire is more than simply a destructive force.
We also use fire to represent our inner passion and strength, even using the word ‘fiery’ to describe people.
So, when you see fire in a dream, it could represent some kind of burning passion you have—whether it’s for a lover, a craft, or anything.
Finally, then, what we are left is one form or another of rebirth.
Whether something old is destroyed and you emerge newly made, or whether you witness the burning passion growing within you in your dreams.
But what does it mean spiritually?
What is the spiritual meaning of dreaming about fire?
When it comes to the spirit world, fire plays an absolutely fundamental, bedrock role.
Fire is one of the four elements which makes up the world and the astrological signs.
It is, spiritually speaking, the birthing crucible of all creation.
So, if you are looking for a spiritual interpretation of the dream, then there could be something extremely fundamental going on.
It could be even about your own birth and creation; it could be calling you back to something primal and elemental within you.
But the spiritual interpretations must also include the possibility of destruction, and again the notion of rebirth.
Let’s consider some equally common but more grounded versions of dreams about fire.
What does it mean to dream of escaping a fire?
One very common dream, or even nightmare you may call it, is to dream of escaping from a fire.
This can have a very different meaning to the interpretations we have discussed above, but in many ways, the basic elements are the same.
Any time you dream of escaping from something it could indicate that you feel trapped in your life somehow.
When fire plays a role, it could again indicate that something was trapping you, but from which you have now emerged reborn.
To dream of a burning building can have more grounded ramifications, though.
You could even be anxious about the literal, worldly destruction of something you hold dear.
Fire is one of the purest and most efficient means we can imagine taking away the things we love.
Dreaming of escaping a fire does certainly bring a lot more questions to the table.
Ultimately, though, you must remember that a fire in your dreams still represents something over which you ultimately have control.
Why do I keep having dreams about fire?
So, why might these dreams keep coming up for you, individually, then?
You’ll have to look inwards deeply if nothing obvious presents itself.
Typically, fire in one sense or another represents a transitional stage.
Something old is being replaced by something new.
You are about to be reborn.
But you may be yet to reach the rebirth stage.
You may be holding back, unwilling to let go of the past, and this is causing the fire dreams to recur.
If they are recurring, then something deep within you is trying to tell you something.
It may be a simple case of unwillingness to let go.
If you refuse to let go of that which is already ending, then you trap yourself in an endless cycle of destruction without rebirth.
Fire is a powerful natural force, but the thing to remember about it is that it can be tamed.
Whether it’s within you or external, you can take steps to control its spread.
Dreaming about fire comes down to this, then, in one way or another.
The fire may be destroying, it may be creating, it may only be representing—either way, it is in your hands to control it and make of it what you will.
More in dreams
- Dreams about alligators
- Dreams about babies
- Dreams about cheating
- Dreams about dogs
- Dreams about elephants
- Dreams about fire
- Dreams about ghosts
- Dreams about horses