Dreaming of snow in Buddhism: meaning
In Buddhism snow shows impermanence: it falls, covers everything and melts again. According to tradition the Tibetan yogi Milarepa sat snowed in for months in a cave and kept meditating. A snow dream can be about silence, letting go and impermanence in Buddhist readings.
Within this tradition
Anicca, impermanence, is one of the three marks of existence in the Buddha's teaching. Nothing stays as it is. Snow is an almost perfect image of that: a landscape that changes in one night, and disappears again a few days later. Whoever watches melting snow in a dream can read it as an invitation to let go of what passes, without attaching grief to it.
In the Tibetan tradition snow is also an image of inwardness. Milarepa, the great yogi and poet, withdrew into caves in the Himalayas. According to a well-known story he was so heavily snowed in at a cave near Lapchi that his disciples thought he had died. When the snow melted, they found him alive and singing. A dream about being snowed in can be read in that light not only as standstill, but also as a time of inwardness that enriches you.
In Zen the expression snow in a silver bowl refers to things that resemble each other yet differ: white in white. It is an image of silence and of seeing without naming at once.
According to the Milindapañha many dreams arise from what occupies the mind during the day. A snow dream in winter is therefore often simply about winter.
Common variations
Melting snow
Impermanence: letting go of what passes.
Being snowed in
A time of inwardness, like Milarepa in his cave.
Quietly falling snow
Silence and attention, seeing without naming at once.
Tracks in the snow disappearing
Everything passes, your worries too.
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Write your dream in the appFrequently asked questions
What is anicca?
Impermanence: one of the three marks of existence. Nothing stays as it is.
Who was Milarepa?
A famous Tibetan yogi and poet who meditated for years in caves; according to tradition he survived being snowed in at a cave.
Is a snow dream a message?
Buddhism is sober: many dreams arise from what occupies the mind. The image can still help with letting go.