Bees are a very important part of the ecology on earth. Without them, we would have very few plants, and we certainly wouldn’t have the food choices available to us today if they didn’t exist.
But bees also have an important role in our dreams. They can carry a range of messages at the exact time we need to know them.
They also provide an insight into the laws of nature which still govern us, too.
Bees in dreams relate to new beginnings and endings, relationships, commitment, and what drives you through life and all of its glory and all of its problems.
But all the symbolism behind bees is nuanced, and ties directly to the dreamer’s own associations with bees and their memories.
It’s also closely linked to the context of the dream, in how the bees appeared, what they did, and how you reacted within the dream.
So how do you know what your specific bee dream means?
Keep reading to discover the symbolism behind your individual bee dream, and what it means to you now.
The Spiritual Reasons Why Bees Appear In Dreams
In dreams, bees are associated with your environment, and how well it’s working for you.
These clever creatures draw your attention to the social health in your life, any pressure you might be under, and act as a spirit level for how you’re juggling different priorities within your life.
One common theme concerning bees in dreams is all to do with the people around you, and the connections you make.
They refer to organization, planning, teamwork, the wealth and wisdom in a community, as well as creativity, productivity, balance, and tranquility.
Bees are closely linked to intuition, your subconscious, and connecting to your shadow self, too.
Bee symbolism is believed to be governed by emotions, and in dreams, they represent the most extreme emotions we are capable of, including terror and love.
In this case, if you dream of bees often, your subconscious is taking stock of your emotions, helping you to process them effectively.
They also point to the ‘hive’, collective consciousness, social atmosphere, how well you value your relationships, and exactly how much you are affected by them.
As such, dreaming of bees can point to isolation, an undercurrent of anxiety surrounding your relationships or people in general, or a desire to stand out among the rest.
It’s worth noting that bees aren’t a negative dream symbol, on the whole. This is despite how they commonly appear in dreams, most often representing your fear of something by attacking you.
If you dream of a bee chasing you or stinging you, this reveals how you are running from your greatest worries, in the hope that you might spare yourself pain.
What Do Different Types Of Bees Mean In A Dream?
It’s worth looking at different types of bees that might appear in your dream, as this can affect the meaning.
The Meaning Behind Dreams Of Honeybees
Honeybees appearing in your dream represent manifestation, prosperity, listening to your instincts, and community.
As honeybees – not surprisingly – are the ones responsible for making honey, they also carry the symbolism of enjoying the results of your hard work.
When you dream of honeybees, you might also see a queen bee, which symbolizes the need to assert control over your life with your intuition and own truth.
Honeybees can feature in your dreams when you are trying to reorder your life, and make it fit your dream of what you want life to look like.
This may include searching for like-minded people who hold similar values, which could be in spiritual terms, people who resonate with you emotionally, or challenge you to be a better version of yourself.
But honey bees in your dreams aren’t always a positive sign that you’re willing to grow.
In some dreams, honeybees signal isolation, where you feel withdrawn from not only society, but nature and the world as a whole.
You may feel depressed, lonely, or completely lethargic. If this dream sounds familiar, it’s time to adjust things in your life until you get to a better headspace, and align your core values with your life.
Honeybees may also appear in dreams when something in waking life is holding you back, such as financial constraints and blocks in your creative output, causing you to feel completely stuck.
The honeybee dream symbol encourages you to look at your waking life as one big picture, rather than focusing on certain aspects and letting others fall to the wayside.
Honey bees in dreams symbolize the connection between everything, and draw your gaze to the parts of your life which need your attention.
Bumblebees In Your Dream
Dreaming of bumblebees indicate your strong will, determination, humility, and power.
If you dream of many bumblebees, these lovely insects (see also article titled ‘Butterflies In Dreams: What’s The Hidden Spiritual Meaning?’) are telling you to keep going. Keep moving towards your goal, and don’t expect to reach it straight away.
These things take time, and as long as you make steady progress, and practice humility, you will get where you want to be, at the time when you need to be there.
Bumblebees are very hard workers, and don’t require praise in order to keep pushing towards their goal. Instead, they do things one at a time, but they also have the tendency to overwork themselves, to the point where it puts their lives at risk.
You may have seen an exhausted bumblebee or a few during the height of summer, where they have pushed themselves too hard.
If you dream of tired or dying bumblebees, similarly you need to take a break or slow down the pace, otherwise you risk burnout.
Maybe you’re becoming distracted by things that have no merit concerning your goal, such as other people’s expectations whose opinions don’t influence the outcome.
If you dream of a massive bumblebee, something is taking up the majority of your focus, or you’re ignoring something that you should really be paying attention to.
Your dream calls on you to find a way to juggle your priorities more effectively, so that you don’t drop any of your ‘spinning plates’.
If, in your dream, a large bumblebee attacks you, something concerning in waking life is taking up all of your attention, and at this point, you’re just watching problems multiply.
Wasps In Dreams
Dreaming of wasps can be positive or negative, depending on your own associations, and how they appear in dreams.
Positively, they represent the brave part of you which is always ready to defend your goals and the people that you love.
It points your gaze to the part of you that will have no qualms about confronting others, which may suggest an argument in the near future that you may need to take charge of, or one which you caused by accident.
On a negative note, wasps represent how you are being taken advantage of, either energetically, emotionally, or you’re being influenced to do something you’d never consider on your own.
Dreams like this also point to narcissism and losing your way.
A Swarm Of Bees
A swarm of bees appearing in your dream points to overwhelming anxiety, inner struggles, change, and distractions.
In nature, bees swarm when they are ready to form a new hive elsewhere, and in dreams, this relates to starting a new chapter in your life.
The Symbolism Behind Different Colored Bees In Your Dream
Similarly to cat dreams (see also article titled ‘What Do Cats Mean In Your Dreams?‘) and fish dreams, the color of the bees in your dreams also holds some significance.
A White Bee Dream Meaning
A white bee in your dream represents the divine, the mysteries that nature holds, a generous and caring spirit, and prosperity.
Dreaming of a white bee reveals that you could do with exploring your spirituality in more detail, or you need to heal yourself or someone else in some form.
It also calls on you to work on listening to your intuition, and learning how to distinguish it from your hopes and fears.
Dreaming Of A Black Bee
A black bee appearing in your dreams represents your shadow self, or the emotions which live in your unconscious mind.
Black bees also embody creativity and the connections you have with other people.
Black bees also hold most of the negative symbolism of bee dreams in general, including feeling isolated, cut off from the world, and needing to find yourself.
Common Bee Dreams And What They Mean
Large Bees In Your Dream
If you dream of a large bee, or many bees that have no business being as large as they are in your dreams, this represents a problem which is too important to ignore.
The more you try to hide or run from this problem, the bigger it will get, and the worse it will ‘sting’ you in the future.
Large bees in your dream can suggest you’re putting something off which really needs your attention now, such as a deadline, a deteriorating relationship, or a problem in your work life.
Large bees may also signal new beginnings which will change your life.
A Bee In Your Ear In A Dream
Dreaming of having a bee in your ear is an unpleasant experience to say the least.
However, most of the time this dream represents the wisdom that comes from your instincts, being deeply connected to nature, and picking up on small signals that point to something coming in the future.
Bees in your ear in a dream also point to someone who is lying or keeping secrets from you, or even a betrayal of some kind.
The image of a bee in your ear also relates to your spirituality being controlled or influenced in a way that it shouldn’t be.
Don’t forget, your spiritual self is unique to you, and only you can find your own path.
Dreaming Of Being Chased By Bees
Dreaming of being chased by bees refers to worries about the future, but you’re letting them fill up the present, so there’s no room for anything else.
You’re letting your anxieties about the future blind you to what’s going on in the present, allowing great opportunities for happiness and progress slip on by.
Wondering what the future has in store for you to a detrimental point will only cause you more anxiety than you need. If it gets bad enough, you may start questioning your current stability, and run away from problems that don’t need to be problems at all.
Dreaming of being chased by bees also points to a high level of social anxiety. Perhaps you measure your own self-worth by other people’s opinions, and not by your own experiences and abilities.
Maybe you’re under a lot of pressure to do the right things or act in a certain way, and overthinking every way your behavior can be interpreted has left you exhausted.
The stress compounded by every anxiety you are focusing on is a fitting symbolism for bees chasing you.
It’s indicative of not just one problem, but a few, that are making things much worse than they need to be.
If you are chased by a single bee, this dream is drawing your attention to one source of worry.
As bees usually symbolize community, it’s possible that this insect (see also article about dragonfly dream meanings) reflects one person who is the source of all your anxiety right now.
It may be someone who is toxic, trying to sabotage you in some way. Or, this worry is self-inflicted, caused by not wanting to let one specific person in your life down.
Being Stung By A Bee In A Dream
Dreaming of being stung by a bee suggests that your own actions are causing you to fail in some way.
It could be that you’re overly focused on negativity, and because you believe that things will go badly, you’re fulfilling a self-prophecy of sorts.
You may be sabotaging your own goals without realizing, or deep down, you know exactly what you’re doing.
While you fail to recognize it consciously, your dream is calling on you to change things, while you can.
A dream of being stung by a bee can potentially suggest that you’re being too brash lately.
You fail to consider other people’s reactions or emotions when you make decisions, and this will cost you in the near future.
Bees represent the inherent need for connection, something which we all share to some degree, some more than others.
Dreams of being stung by a bee suggest that making a decision not to help others, or consciously bringing them down, will only set you up for failure, especially if you’re trying to trip someone else up.
Alternatively, dreaming of a bee sting implies that someone you love and trust is moving against you on some level.
Subconsciously, this will affect you much deeper than you might imagine at first, perhaps to the point where you stop letting people in completely.
It’s also worth being a little cautious about people who you instinctively want to compete with, as this can be a sign that you’ll clash on some level soon.
Dreaming of a bee sting can also represent a conflict with an authority figure in your life, where you are at odds with someone you normally look to for advice, creating some instability in waking life.
Seeing Bees Attack Someone In A Dream
In dreams, seeing bees attack someone else reveals your sympathy for other people’s suffering, or how you’ve witnessed something that goes against every moral fiber of your being, but you know you cannot stop it.
In spiritual terms, bees often represent balance, and being in tune with their surroundings.
Bees are tremendously affected by their environment, and if something is off-balance, they can suffer greatly, as any beekeeper will tell you.
Dreaming of bees swarming against someone or chasing them points to an imbalance in your own life or environment, one which you feel you don’t have much control over, if any at all.
This may relate to your professional life, where a decision has been made that you completely disagree with, an aspect of your environment which is suffering, or disharmony within your own community.
If you have recurring dreams of bees, especially bees attacking other people, this points to a high level of emotional sensitivity, which some people call being an empath.
This is where you feel greatly affected by other people’s emotions, so much so that they could be your own. Any imbalance within your own community or social environment can create great stress.
If you dream of someone you love being attacked by bees, this is a direct mirror of your worries for their wellbeing.
It’s also an admission to yourself: you cannot fix everything, and you have as much say over the universe and its ways as you do over a swarm of bees.
Dreaming Of Being Attacked By Bees
A dream where you are attacked by bees in some way points to your emotions getting the better of you. These feelings are the result of problems in your work life, or social circle.
Whatever the cause, these emotions are making you act irrationally, clouding your judgment.
You need to take control of your situation, and get back into a healthy routine.
Bees in dreams represent those in your life which have the greatest influence over you. This may not be in terms of power, but if they’re doing well or when they help you, or you help them, this gives you an extra boost in waking life.
Dreams of bees attacking you represent problems in your relationships, or community.
Maybe you are under pressure when it comes to keeping up with your responsibilities, and some of your relationships are suffering as a result.
The bees may also attack in your dreams due to dramas in your working life or personal life, something which has a ripple effect over the other areas in your life.
When you consider how much we use technology now, it can be difficult to switch off, and prevent yourself from comparing your life and your achievements to what others have done.
It’s interesting to note that when you use screens more and more, your way of thinking changes. Your approach shifts. Your attention span, certainly, is shorter.
When you constantly compare yourself to others to a detrimental level, your emotional health suffers, and your dream reflects these changes on a subconscious level.
Dreaming of bees attacking you can also mirror rejection or a snub from someone you greatly admire, love, or trust in waking life.
As rejection is a coiled mess of different emotions, vulnerabilities, and insecurities, dredging up any existing unresolved issues, the angry bees in your dream represents the chaos that can ensue.
Subconsciously, emotional hang ups and insecurities can well up over time, and you may not even feel them at all until an event like rejection occurs, bringing them all to the surface at once.
Killing A Bee In A Dream Meaning
Dreaming of killing a bee represents your reluctance or even fear of committing to a community, or one person in particular.
Bees represent community in the most intrinsic sense: where connections form naturally, and they are vital for the health of the colony.
If you dream of killing a bee, you are getting in your own way of being part of a community in waking life, or you’re unwilling to let new connections form.
In the case of recurring dreams where you kill bees, this represents social anxiety, and introversion to the point of it being detrimental to your life.
Bees rely on each other for the hive to survive, but sometimes, we have an aversion to strong connections, believing that they make us vulnerable, or drive us to distraction.
Both points are true to some extent, and you may feel as though it’s better off if you do everything yourself.
However, this dream is pointing out the necessity of needing people, and how you are stronger for forming and maintaining these connections.
If you dream of killing many bees in a dream, this relates to your strong sense of individuality. Perhaps you’re seeing the disadvantages of people following something blindly, and you refuse to join in.
Dreaming Of Dead Bees
Seeing dead bees in your dream hints at negativity and imbalance in your life.
As death in dreams is essentially a synonym for change, this dream may signal that it’s time to move on from something, as you’ve learned all you can, or your environment no longer suits you at all.
This could be in terms of a relationship, where you live, what you do, or what you follow spiritually.
Seeing A Beehive In Your Dream
A beehive in your dream is synonymous with parts of your life that require organization in order to run well, such as your home life, professional life, or social network.
In dreams, beehives can embody the place in life where you feel the most productive, the most aware, or the most comfortable.
It’s where you have a strong sense of belonging, where you feel in tune with your environment and aware of your thoughts and actions, and how one affects the other.
On a negative note, beehives can point your attention to imbalances and overwhelming responsibilities in waking life.
These dreams serve to tell you where you need to focus your attention the most, not only to regain control over your life but also to make sure you feel as grounded as possible.
For instance, dreaming of a beehive in your workspace reflects your worries about a situation within your career, one which you need to take action to resolve as quickly as possible.
A Beekeeper Appearing in Your Dream
If you dream of a beekeeper, this represents being connected to your environment, working with nature rather than against it, leading others, and the management of people or of your life as a whole.
A beekeeper in your dream may also signal a new start in your career, where you will branch off and start a new venture by yourself.
The beekeeper also relates to how well you might manage these aspects in life.
For instance, if you see a beekeeper being chased by bees in your dream, you feel you don’t have the authority or control that you need in order to succeed.
Maybe things are completely spinning out of your control, where other people are making the decisions for you, or they’re claiming your hard work as their own.
A beekeeper can also represent a discord in your work life, where you feel things aren’t being run the way they should, and this symbol also relates to the reluctance to say something, especially if it’s not your place to do so.
Final Thoughts
Bees are a very spiritual dream symbol, so it makes sense that their appearance in our dreams relates to our sense of spirituality, and things that we can adjust in order to live a more fulfilled life.
In dreams, bees represent connections: between you and the world, and your relationships with other people. They may reflect problems in waking life, or large changes to come.
When bees appear in dreams, they also serve to heighten your spiritual awareness, and point you towards a path where you are then able to better connect to your spirituality, and your intuition.
This will help guide you immensely through waking life and its trials, and strengthen your connections to yourself, your community, and the world around you.
Bees also emphasize that while there are many aspects of life, they are all connected as one moving part. These insects (see also article titled ‘Dreaming About Cockroaches And What It Means‘) also focus your gaze onto the things that need your attention, in order for your life to become more of what you want.