The 20 Luckiest Dreams in Korean Dream Lore

Korean dream lore has a long list of 길몽 (gilmong), dreams that are supposed to bring good luck. Some make immediate sense: a dragon soaring into the sky, a pile of gold. Others are baffling until someone explains them. Why would anyone celebrate a dream about their house burning down, or about stepping in poop?

Here are twenty of the dreams Korean folklore counts as luckiest, from the grand to the gross. The order is ours, loosely from the most famous to the most surprising. The readings come from popular Korean dream dictionaries and writing on Korean dream culture.

As always, this is folklore, not prediction. It’s a guide to what a Korean grandmother might say about your dream, not a forecast.

The famous animals

1. A dragon rising into the sky

The dragon is the king of Korean dreams. A dragon ascending into the sky is read as the best dream of all: wishes granted and a big rise in status. Riding a dragon is a classic exam and promotion dream, and a dragon in a pregnancy dream is read as a child destined for great things. See the dragon dream page.

2. A pig walking into your house

If the dragon is about status, the pig is about money. A pig coming through your door is the classic money dream, partly because the character for pig, 豚, is read don in Korean, the same sound as the word for money. This is the dream that sends people straight to a lottery shop. Full readings on the pig dream page.

3. A huge snake coming into your home

A big snake, the 구렁이 (gureongi), slithering into the house sounds like a nightmare. In Korean lore it’s wealth and blessings “rolling in,” and it’s often read as a taemong too. Size and direction matter: the bigger the snake and the more it’s coming toward you, the better. More on the snake dream page.

4. A tiger in your arms

The tiger stands for power and protection. A tiger that comes into your embrace is read as meeting a powerful supporter, or as a taemong for a brave child. Being chased by a tiger is another matter, so check the tiger dream page for the full picture.

5. Catching a big carp

Korean lore loves the carp because of the old tale of the carp that leaps the Dragon Gate and turns into a dragon. Catching a large, lively carp is read as gaining wealth, success in an exam or career, or a precious child. A golden carp is the version people brag about. See the carp dream page.

6. A turtle coming home

Turtles mean long life, wisdom and steady luck. A turtle walking into your house is read as wealth and blessings arriving, and catching one as a long-awaited goal finally coming through. It’s a slow animal with a patient kind of luck. See the turtle dream page.

7. A cow walking in

For centuries a cow was the most valuable thing a farming family owned. That’s why a cow coming into your house is read as property and wealth increasing, and a cow giving birth as wealth multiplying or a happy family event. It’s the reward-for-hard-work dream. See the cow dream page.

8. Riding a white horse

Horses mean movement, ambition and getting ahead. Riding a white horse is one of the classic success dreams, read as rising in the world or meeting a good partner. A horse with wings is even better: sudden, unexpected success. See the horse dream page.

9. Fish in clear water

Fish stand for plenty and the flow of money. Catching fish in clear water is read as gain, and a big school of fish as profit coming from several directions at once. Clear water matters, since murky water tends to read less kindly. See the fish dream page.

10. Honey from a beehive

Bees are the hardworking insect, and their reward is honey. Taking honey from a hive is read as effort turning into money, and eating honey as enjoying a sweet result. Getting stung is a mixed reading, so see the bee dream page for that.

11. A writhing mass of maggots

Here’s where the list turns surprising. Korean dream books usually read bugs as small worries, but maggots are the exception: a dream full of maggots is read as wealth growing. Dream books don’t say why. An easy way to remember it is the sheer number of them, multiplying like money. See the maggot dream page.

The sky and treasure

12. The sun coming into your arms

Celestial dreams are among the grandest in Korean lore. The sun rising is read as improving fortune. The sun entering your arms is read as a major honor, or as one of the best taemong there is, announcing a child who will do great things.

13. A bright full moon

The full moon is read as matters being completed smoothly. A moon coming into your chest is a classic taemong for a bright, admired child. And the sun and moon rising together is read as two people, or two projects, prospering side by side.

14. Finding gold

This one needs no explanation. Getting hold of a lump of gold is read as gaining great wealth or honor, and digging for gold as hard work that finally pays off. Receiving a gold ring is read as a promise, a contract or a valuable new connection, and sometimes as a taemong.

15. Flying

Flying through the air under your own power is read as a lucky dream of rising and success. Falling is the reverse. If you were soaring easily and enjoying the view, folklore approves.

The scary ones that are secretly lucky

16. Your house on fire

This is the classic “wait, that’s lucky?” dream. A big fire in your house is read as business booming and wealth flooding in, and the bigger and brighter the blaze, the better. Smoke without flames reads less kindly, so the ideal fire burns clean and bright. Some writers explain it as trouble burning away.

17. Poop, everywhere

Poop is one of the most famous lucky dreams in Korea. Stepping in it is read as an unexpected gain, getting it on your body as a large sum of money, and a toilet overflowing with it as wealth pouring in. The more there is, the better. Wiping it off, though, is read as a warning that the money could slip away.

18. Dying

Dreaming of your own death is frightening, and Korean lore reads it as one of the good ones. It’s called a dream of rebirth: something old ends and something new begins. Dying and coming back to life is read as overcoming a hardship and rising stronger.

19. A corpse in your home

Even grimmer, and even luckier. Seeing a dead body is read as gaining wealth or profit, and bringing a corpse into the house is one of the classic dreams of large wealth arriving. It’s one of the clearest examples of Korean dream lore reading a scene against its surface mood.

20. Blood on your clothes

Blood in Korean dreams is mostly read as wealth and vitality, not danger. Blood staining your clothes is read as an unexpected windfall, and a nosebleed as blocked matters clearing and money coming in. Black, murky blood is the exception, read as a reminder to look after your health.

Why so many lucky dreams look like nightmares

If you read the second half of this list and winced, you’re not alone. A lot of Korean dream lore runs on reversal. Death means renewal. Fire means things flourishing. Poop, blood and maggots mean money.

Writers on Korean dream culture have offered a few explanations. Fire burns away trouble. Bodily fluids flush out what’s bad. Things that pile up, like poop or maggots, stand for wealth that piles up too. Whatever the logic, the effect is comforting: you can wake from a horrible dream and find that folklore is on your side.

A few rules that apply to every dream on this list

• Direction matters. Something lucky coming toward you or into your house is good. The same thing leaving is usually read as luck leaving.
• Size matters. Bigger pigs, bigger snakes, bigger fires and bigger piles all read as bigger luck.
• Condition matters. Healthy, lively animals are better than sick or dead ones, and clear water is better than muddy water.
• Holding on matters. Catching, holding, riding or eating the lucky thing usually beats just seeing it.

What to do after a lucky dream

Koreans have a few classic responses: buy one lottery ticket for fun, keep the dream to yourself until the luck arrives, or sell it to a friend or relative. See Had a Good Dream? What Koreans Do Next and Buying and Selling Dreams in Korea.

Questions people ask

What is the single luckiest dream in Korea? The dragon and the pig are the two most famous lucky dreams, the dragon for status and success, the pig for money. Which one is “luckier” is a friendly argument with no final answer.

Are these dreams guaranteed to bring luck? No. These are traditional readings, folklore, not prediction. They describe how Korean culture tells the story of a dream.

Why is dreaming about poop lucky? Poop is read as wealth, especially when there’s a lot of it or it gets on you. It’s one of the most famous reversal dreams in Korean lore.

Is dreaming about death really good in Korea? In traditional readings, usually yes. Your own death is read as renewal, the end of one chapter and the start of another.

Do these dreams also count as taemong? Some do. Dragons, tigers, big snakes, carp, turtles, the sun and the moon are all classic pregnancy dreams. See What Is a Taemong?