The Secrets Your Dreams Reveal
There’s a story about an ancient scholar who had three dreams on the eve of an important exam. In the first, he saw himself planting cabbage on top of a high wall; in the second, he was walking in the rain wearing a bamboo hat and carrying an umbrella; in the third, he was lying back-to-back with his beloved cousin. The next morning, the scholar went to a fortune teller to have his dreams interpreted. After hearing them, the fortune teller shook his head and said, “You might as well go home. Think about it: planting cabbage on a wall is pointless, wearing a hat and carrying an umbrella in the rain is redundant, and lying back-to-back with your cousin means there’s no hope for you.” Disheartened, the scholar returned to the inn to pack up and head home.
The innkeeper found this odd and asked, “Aren’t you taking the exam tomorrow? Why leave today?” The scholar explained. The innkeeper chuckled and said, “It’d be a shame for you to go. Planting on the wall means you’ll place high; wearing a hat and carrying an umbrella shows you’re well-prepared; lying back-to-back with your cousin suggests you’re about to turn things around!” The scholar found this convincing. With a positive mindset, he sat for the exam and, to his surprise, placed third.
Coincidentally, a king once dreamed that mountains had collapsed, rivers had dried up, and flowers had withered. He asked the queen to interpret it. The queen said, “This is a bad omen. Collapsed mountains signal the fall of the kingdom; dried-up rivers show the people’s discontent—like a boat that cannot sail without water; withered flowers mean good times are coming to an end.” The king broke out in a cold sweat and fell ill, his condition worsening. A minister came to see him and, after hearing the dream, laughed and said, “This is auspicious! Collapsed mountains mean peace will come to the realm; dried-up rivers mean the true dragon will appear—Your Majesty, you are that true dragon! Withered flowers wither to bear fruit!” The king felt reassured and soon recovered.
As for our everyday dreams, they can sometimes serve as omens. That said, I personally dislike it when people live by their dreams, growing overly suspicious because of what they dreamed the night before.
Generally speaking, which dreams have clear prophetic significance? First, they must be vivid, not hazy recollections. Second, they should be unrelated to daily concerns—dreams that simply echo everyday thoughts are of little value; they should come out of the blue. Third, dreams featuring words, animals, or celestial phenomena are often quite accurate.
For example, in 2003, a man went from the Spring Festival through March without landing a single business deal and was very frustrated. One night, he dreamed he was walking along a river in a light rain. The ground was slippery, and he saw a small cart with a trailer holding two large fish. Someone by the river was pouring water from a bucket into the trailer. After that, he began climbing a cliff. Because of the rain, it was treacherously slick, and he struggled to climb, bracing both forearms on the top edge. He saw a flat area above and was just about to pull himself up when he slipped and fell.
Shortly after this dream, his business began to flourish, and that year proved remarkable—whenever he received one order, a second would follow within a week, truly a case of “good things come in pairs.” His finances were strong throughout the year, and his career reached a peak. Unfortunately, just as he was preparing to undertake something significant, he made a poor decision and couldn’t continue. The arc of the entire year echoed that dream.
There are also methods for interpreting dreams, such as divining from dream imagery or analyzing written characters that appear in dreams.
The "Book of Northern History" records: When Gao Yang, Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi, was about to ascend the throne, he had just been granted the title King of Qi by the Emperor of Wei. One night, he dreamed someone tapped his forehead with a writing brush. The next day, he told Wang Tan Zhe the dream and asked, “Should I step down?” Wang Tan Zhe bowed and congratulated him, saying, “Your Majesty, this is a sign of elevation; you should not step down but ascend the throne.” That same year, the Emperor of Wei abdicated, and Gao Yang became emperor.
Both the "Yin Hua Lu" and "Ji Yi Lu" recount that after Liu Zongyuan returned to the capital from his post in Yongzhou, he consulted a fortune teller about a dream: “My surname is Liu, and last night I dreamed that a willow tree had fallen. Is this an ominous sign?” The fortune teller replied, “A fallen willow becomes willow wood. Wood signifies shepherding. Are you perhaps destined to be the governor of Liuzhou?” In the Han dynasty, the chief civil and military official of a province was called a “shepherd,” equivalent to the position of governor in the Tang dynasty.