Underwater in a dream

What it means

Being underwater at night, in a dark context, or seeing people underwater represents a warfare dream — dealing with a marine spirit or marine spirits.

This indicates a spirit attempting to establish a spiritual influence or deceptive agreement in order to dictate oppression over the dreamer's life. On waking, the dreamer may need to renounce the deception of the marine spirits over their life, and any involvement with or entertaining of them.

Being submerged, moving through, and emerging on the other side represents God's deliverance — His way is in the sea, and His path in the great waters, though His footsteps are not known.

Jonah was compassed about by the waters even to the soul, yet the Lord brought up his life from corruption. Being under the water is not the end of the account.

How to tell the difference

THE CONTEXT IS THE DIAGNOSTIC. A dream of playing in a river, sea or ocean, or of swimming, is to be treated as marine spirits attempting to establish a spiritual influence or deceptive agreement for oppression WHEN the setting is grey, dark, at night, at sundown, or carries a gloomy or mixed-emotion mood. The same activity in a bright, peaceful dream is not marine. Note the distinction from Hiding: in a concealment dream, darkness identifies the THREAT the dreamer is being covered from; in a water dream, darkness identifies the KINGDOM being dealt with. THE PATTERN OF A WATER-IMMERSION DREAM. Such a dream often begins with a compelling urge, a mysterious voice, or being led by a deceased relative or an unknown figure toward a natural body of water — most commonly a river, a waterfall, or a deep pool (isiziba). GOING UNDER: the core of the dream is being fully submerged beneath the surface. Unlike ordinary drowning, which brings panic and a lack of air, these dreams often shift in tone once the dreamer is underwater. BREATHING UNDERWATER: the hallmark of a spiritual water-immersion dream is the realisation that the dreamer can breathe beneath the surface. This signifies a transition into the spiritual realm and is a sign of initiation. For a Christian, it signals that a link is being created with the dreamer's consent, connecting to their life and destiny so that these spirits may oppress them and control that destiny until it is lost to them. They manipulate the circumstances around the dreamer so that the dreamer is deceived into believing these spirits are more powerful than their faith. HOWEVER — and this must always be said — With one who is not in Christ these spirits can and do establish covenants. For those in Christ, they cannot establish a covenant, because Christ's covenant already secures the believer. They may, however, seek to establish a spiritual influence, deceptive agreement, or foothold through temptation, deception, or unrepented sin, which may provide an occasion — sometimes described as 'legal ground' — for spiritual oppression, though never for overturning Christ's covenant. Their tactic against a believer is therefore to suffocate by controlling the situations around their life until they give in. Never deliver the warning without this assurance.

Related symbols

• Dark Water
• Deep Waters
• Drowning
• Whirlpool
• Familiar Spirits