Dreaming Lens: Where was the lighthouse? Was it in operating condition? Was it daytime or nighttime? Was there a storm or fog present? Was there anyone inhabiting it?
Personal Focus: A lighthouse is located on a shoreline and provides perspective in an otherwise concealed landscape. During a fog, the lighthouse emits both a visual and audio clue to allow travelers to navigate through what would otherwise be dangerous territory.
To get to the core of this symbol, we begin with where a lighthouse is located. The ocean represents the deep emotional unconscious parts of the human psyche. Land is what is conscious and within our awareness. The shoreline is where these two vastly different landscapes meet. Because they are so very different in nature, the boundary that exists between land and sea can be a strange and sometimes treacherous place. This is true of the shoreline where the land meets the sea in the real world. In the world of symbolic meaning, these two dichotomous elements of the human condition interact with each other in a dramatic and sometimes violent way.
To be more specific, a person on land must be careful of the violence of crashing waves and the depths of the ocean so as not to be drowned. Someone traveling at sea must avoid destroying their vessel on the jagged edges of land that sometimes appear unexpectedly. Viewed through the prism of symbolic interpretation, when you are grounded in conscious awareness (on land), there is a danger that unconscious emotions can overtake you and drag you under. Conversely, when you are exploring the unconscious emotions (being at sea), you run the risk of being unexpectedly damaged by thoughts and ideas that may jut out and inadvertently trip you up.
The next layer of interpretation connects with what is happening when a lighthouse is put into operation. During a storm or heavy fog, the lighthouse provides a distinct indicator of where the land is located for the safety of boats and ships at sea. The important element for interpretation, however, is the conditions that cause a lighthouse to be necessary: storms, fog, or both.
Both of these weather-related phenomenon arise when water is drawn into the air. When emotional content (water) mixes violently with the thought process (air) it can produce a chaotic experience (fog or storm) that leaves you blind. If there is a lighthouse in your dream, you may want to consider what is happening in your life that may require a safe port in a storm or navigation through the invisibility of a fog.
A lighthouse in a still calm scenario points to the anticipation of difficulty to come. One that is inoperable may be expressing fears around being ready to face challenging interactions and still maintain your sense of safety. An abandoned lighthouse may hearken back to an earlier protective measure that no longer serves you. What you are doing at the lighthouse in the dream should contribute to your interpretation. (See also Beams of Light.)