▲ Leans unlucky (a warning) Traditionally a warning — read it as pointing to what to watch, not as doom
You handle a tricky person or your own whims well; if it runs wild, you carry too much.
Category: Animals (how to read this category)
Psychology
Keeping a monkey reflects trying to bring something hard to handle under control, a fickle person, or your own mischief and impulses. A friendly monkey shows growing confidence in managing it. One that wrecked the room suggests too much responsibility. If it was caged, you may be locking away your own free-spirited side.
Folklore and history
Sarumawashi, monkey performance, has a long history in Japan, once taken door to door at New Year. Monkeys were believed to protect horses, and stables reportedly kept monkeys or enshrined their images or skulls. The art nearly died out but was later revived and continues today. Dream lore reads keeping a monkey as winning over something difficult.
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This site's view
In this site's view, the kept monkey is also you, the one who learned the tricks: playing the expected role well and earning applause. Yet just as a performing monkey offstage is still a wild creature, you have a face behind the role. If the dream monkey did no tricks and simply gazed out the window, it may be a quiet wish to return to where you belong.
Going deeper: our reading
Monkeys are clever and curious, yet however used to people they become, they are said never to lose their wild temperament. In this site's reading, keeping a monkey reflects someone or something that requires your constant attention: a demanding child, a moody relative, an ageing parent who needs help. Because they matter, you cannot leave them be, and your own time quietly disappears. A monkey on your shoulder suggests a very close bond that feels heavy yet hard to leave. A monkey in a cage suggests you may be restricting someone's freedom too much in order to protect them. Dressing it in clothes suggests a wish to fit them into the shape you want. This is our speculation, but if you were tired from caring for it, you may need someone to look after you too.
What to do on waking
Take fifteen minutes today that belong to no one but you. A walk, or nothing at all, restores your strength to manage.
In this scene
- ◎Good It comes close or is friendly: help is near (good)
- ▲Warn It attacks or bites: a held-back feeling or friction nearby (warning)
- It is dead or weak: the strength it stands for is running low
- Big, white or gold: the meaning is stronger; white and gold lean lucky
- It felt good: the lucky reading gets stronger
- ▲Warn It felt frightening or painful: the warning reading gets stronger — rest first
- The same dream again and again: something your mind has not settled yet
Turning a bad dream
In Japan, people once tried to turn a worrying dream for the better: a baku charm under the pillow, telling the dream to a nandina bush, or reciting an old dream-turning poem. Read the column on dream trading and dream-turning
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FAQ
Q. Is dreaming of keeping a Monkey a good or bad sign?
A. Traditionally a warning — read it as pointing to what to watch, not as doom. You handle a tricky person or your own whims well; if it runs wild, you carry too much.
Q. Why do I keep dreaming of keeping a Monkey?
A. A recurring dream usually points to something your mind has not settled yet. Research suggests such dreams tend to stop once the underlying worry is resolved. Keeping a dream diary helps you notice what triggers it.
Q. What should I do after dreaming of keeping a Monkey?
A. Take fifteen minutes today that belong to no one but you. A walk, or nothing at all, restores your strength to manage.
Related dream essays
- True Dreams and Reverse Dreams: Why We Read Dreams Backwards
- Buying Dreams, Turning Dreams: A Japanese History of Dream Trading and Dream Charms
Read this dream with your own scene in the Dream Dictionary →
More dreams in "Animals"
- Being Chased by a Fox
- A Fox Cub
- Being Bitten by a Monkey
- Being Chased by a Monkey
- A Monkey Stealing Your Things
- A Troop of Monkeys
- Catching a Carp
- Feeding Carp
- A Black Carp
- A Dead Carp
- A Leaping Carp
- Being Bitten by a Turtle
※ Dream interpretation here is entertainment drawing on psychology and folklore — it is not scientifically proven. "This site's view" is our own interpretation.
