Have you ever woken up from a dream where you were soaring through the sky, feeling utterly free and weightless? Dreams about flying are among the most exhilarating experiences our sleeping minds can offer — and they carry profound spiritual messages that your soul is longing for you to understand. In my forty-plus years as a psychic medium, I’ve helped thousands of people decode these powerful night visions, and I can tell you that when your spirit takes flight in your dreams, something beautiful is happening within you.
Flying dreams are one of the most common dreams people experience, and yet each one is uniquely personal. Whether you were gliding effortlessly over mountaintops or struggling to stay airborne, your subconscious is speaking a language that deserves to be heard. Let me help you understand what your flying dreams are truly telling you.
Flying dreams are powerful spiritual messages about your soul’s desire for freedom, growth and transcendence. They often appear during pivotal moments of personal transformation.
Why Flying Dreams Feel So Real
If you’ve ever had a flying dream, you know that the sensation stays with you long after you open your eyes. There’s a reason for that. Your spirit doesn’t recognise the boundaries between the waking world and the dream world the way your conscious mind does. When you fly in a dream, your soul is quite literally experiencing a form of liberation — and that visceral feeling of wind beneath you, of the ground falling away, is as real to your spirit as anything you experience with your eyes open.
I remember the first flying dream I ever had as a young girl growing up in County Galway. I must have been about seven years old, and I dreamt I was floating above the green fields near our cottage, looking down at the sheep dotting the hillside like little cotton balls. When I woke up, I was convinced I could still feel the cool Irish air on my face. My grandmother, who had the gift herself, told me that flying dreams meant my spirit was learning to stretch its wings. She was right — it was around that same time that my psychic abilities first began to stir.
Neuroscientists will tell you that your vestibular system — the part of your brain that controls balance — is active during REM sleep, which can create those incredibly realistic sensations of floating and soaring. But I believe there’s something deeper at work. Your brain may provide the mechanism, but your spirit provides the meaning.
The Spiritual Meaning of Flying Dreams
At their core, flying dreams speak to the deepest yearnings of your soul. They are messages from a place beyond everyday consciousness, and they tend to appear when your spirit is ready to evolve. Here are the most significant spiritual meanings I’ve encountered in my practice:
Freedom and liberation. This is the most fundamental message of flying dreams. Your soul is telling you that you are ready to break free from something — a limiting belief, a toxic relationship, a career that no longer serves your purpose. The ease or difficulty of your flight reveals how close you are to achieving that freedom.
Spiritual ascension. In many spiritual traditions, flying represents the soul’s journey toward higher consciousness. If you’ve been meditating, praying or doing inner work, a flying dream is often confirmation that you’re making genuine spiritual progress. Your soul is literally rising.
A shift in perspective. When you fly above the landscape of your life, you gain a view that’s impossible from the ground. Your spirit may be urging you to step back from a situation and see it from a higher vantage point. Sometimes the answers we seek are only visible from above.
Connection with the divine. In biblical and many spiritual traditions, flight symbolises closeness to God or the divine. Your flying dream may be a sign that your prayers are being heard, that angelic beings are near, or that you’re being called to a deeper relationship with your spirituality.
Common Types of Flying Dreams
Not all flying dreams are created equal, and the specific way you fly tells a distinct story about where you are on your spiritual journey.
Effortless soaring is the most beautiful kind of flying dream. You glide without effort, the world spread out below you like a painting. This dream appears when you’re in alignment with your higher purpose. Everything is flowing, and your spirit wants you to know it.
Struggling to stay airborne is far more common than people realise. You flap your arms, you kick your legs, you rise a few feet and then sink back down. This dream reflects areas in your waking life where you feel held back. Self-doubt, fear of judgement, or practical obstacles are weighing on your spirit.
Flying low to the ground suggests you’re playing it safe. Your spirit is capable of so much more, but something — perhaps fear, perhaps comfort — is keeping you from reaching your full potential. It’s a gentle nudge from the universe to aim higher.
Flying too high and losing control can feel terrifying. This dream often appears when ambition or ego is outpacing your spiritual grounding. It’s a reminder to stay humble and connected to what truly matters — much like the story of Icarus in Greek mythology.
Flying to escape danger is your spirit’s way of processing threat. If you’re being chased in your dream and take to the sky, you may be avoiding a confrontation in your waking life rather than facing it head-on. This is quite different from dreams about falling, which often represent a loss of control rather than an attempt to regain it.
The way you fly in your dream matters enormously. Effortless flight signals spiritual alignment, while struggling to stay airborne points to areas where you need to release fear and self-doubt.
Flying Dreams and Your Emotional State
The emotions you feel during a flying dream are just as important as the dream itself. They act as a compass, pointing you toward the true spiritual message.
Joy and exhilaration during flight is a wonderful sign. It means your spirit is celebrating — you’ve broken through a barrier, made a brave choice, or opened yourself to new possibilities. This emotion is pure confirmation that you’re on the right path.
Fear and anxiety while flying reveals inner conflict. Part of you wants to soar, but another part is terrified of what heights might bring. This is incredibly common among people who are on the verge of a major life change. Your spirit is ready; your ego is not.
Peace and calm suggests a deep spiritual connection. When you fly in complete serenity, it often indicates that you’re experiencing a form of astral travel or lucid dreaming — a state where your consciousness is aware that you’re dreaming and can guide the experience.
Frustration — particularly when you can’t fly high enough or keep getting pulled back down — mirrors feelings of powerlessness in your waking life. Your spirit is highlighting exactly where you need to reclaim your personal power.
What Different Flying Scenarios Mean
The landscape and context of your flying dream adds layers of meaning that can transform your understanding of the message.
Flying over water connects your dream to the emotional realm. If the water below is calm and clear, you’re navigating your emotions with grace. If it’s stormy or dark, there are unprocessed feelings demanding your attention. I always recommend reading about dreams about water alongside flying dreams, as the two often work hand in hand.
Flying over mountains represents overcoming challenges. Mountains in dreams symbolise obstacles, and flying over them means you have — or will have — the strength to rise above whatever is blocking your path.
Flying through clouds suggests you’re moving through uncertainty. Clouds obscure your vision, much like confusion in waking life. But the fact that you’re flying through them, rather than being stopped by them, is a positive sign that clarity is coming.
Flying at night speaks to your relationship with the unknown. Darkness in dreams often represents the shadow self — the parts of you that you haven’t fully acknowledged. Flying through darkness shows courage and a willingness to explore your deeper nature. This mirrors some of the themes found in dreams about snakes, which also deal with hidden aspects of the self.
Flying with someone else is deeply meaningful. If you recognise the person, it often indicates a soul connection — someone who is rising alongside you spiritually. If the person is a stranger, they may represent a spirit guide or aspect of yourself that’s emerging.
Flying Dreams and Spiritual Awakening
In my experience, flying dreams become dramatically more frequent during periods of spiritual awakening. When your consciousness is expanding, your dream life becomes more vivid, more symbolic and more meaningful. Flying is one of the clearest signs that your spirit is evolving.
Many of the people I’ve counselled over the years report a surge in flying dreams after beginning a meditation practice, starting energy healing work, or going through a significant life transition like a divorce, a career change or the loss of a loved one. These are all catalysts for spiritual growth, and your dreams reflect that growth by literally lifting you off the ground.
If your flying dreams are becoming more frequent or more vivid, I’d encourage you to pay close attention. Your spirit is telling you that you’re ready for the next stage of your journey. Don’t resist it — lean in, trust the process, and let your soul guide you upward.
Frequent flying dreams are one of the clearest signs of spiritual awakening. If you’re experiencing them more often, your consciousness is expanding and your spirit is evolving to a higher level.
What to Do When You Have Flying Dreams
Flying dreams are gifts, and like any gift, they deserve to be honoured. Here’s how I recommend working with them:
Keep a dream journal. Write down every detail the moment you wake up — the sensations, the emotions, the landscape, the colours. Flying dreams fade quickly, and the details often hold the most important clues.
Notice what’s happening in your life. Flying dreams don’t appear randomly. Ask yourself: what am I trying to break free from? What new heights am I reaching toward? What fears are holding me back? The answers will illuminate the dream’s message.
Meditate on the dream. Before bed the following night, close your eyes and revisit the flying dream in your mind. Ask your spirit guides to help you understand its meaning. You may be surprised by the insights that come through.
Look for patterns. If you’re having recurring flying dreams, track how they change over time. Are you flying higher? More freely? With less fear? These shifts mirror your spiritual progress in waking life.
Trust the message. Above all, trust that your flying dream appeared for a reason. Your spirit doesn’t waste energy on meaningless visions. If you dreamt of flight, there’s something your soul wants you to know — and the simple act of paying attention is often the first step toward understanding it.
I’ve seen so many beautiful transformations begin with a single flying dream. One of my clients, a woman in her fifties who had spent decades in a career she despised, started having nightly dreams of soaring over the ocean. Within six months of honouring those dreams and listening to their message, she’d left her job, enrolled in art school, and told me she finally felt like she was living. That’s the power of paying attention to what your spirit is telling you.
Whatever your flying dream looked like, know this: your soul chose to show you the sky for a reason. You were meant to fly, dear one — in your dreams and in your life. Trust your wings.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean when you dream about flying?
Flying dreams most commonly symbolise a desire for freedom, spiritual growth and transcendence. They often appear during times of personal transformation or when your soul is ready to break free from limiting circumstances. The specific meaning depends on how you flew, what emotions you felt, and what was happening in your waking life at the time.
Are flying dreams a sign of spiritual awakening?
Yes, flying dreams are one of the most common signs of spiritual awakening. When your consciousness begins to expand through meditation, prayer or significant life changes, your dream life often becomes more vivid and symbolic. Flying represents your spirit’s ascension to a higher level of awareness.
Why do I struggle to fly in my dreams?
Struggling to stay airborne in a dream reflects areas in your waking life where you feel held back or limited. Self-doubt, fear of failure, or practical obstacles may be weighing on your spirit. This type of dream is a gentle message to examine what’s preventing you from reaching your full potential.
Is flying in a dream the same as astral projection?
While flying dreams and astral projection share similarities, they aren’t exactly the same. Astral projection is a conscious out-of-body experience, whereas flying dreams typically occur during normal REM sleep. However, some spiritual practitioners believe that certain flying dreams — particularly those that feel extraordinarily vivid and peaceful — may be a form of unconscious astral travel.
What does it mean to fly over water in a dream?
Flying over water in a dream connects the themes of freedom with your emotional world. Calm, clear water below suggests you’re navigating your emotions with grace and wisdom. Stormy or dark water indicates unprocessed emotions that need your attention. The combination of flight and water is a powerful spiritual symbol of emotional transcendence.
Do flying dreams mean good luck?
In many spiritual traditions, flying dreams are considered auspicious signs. They suggest you’re overcoming obstacles, rising above challenges and aligning with your higher purpose. While I wouldn’t call it “luck” exactly, flying dreams often appear at turning points that lead to positive outcomes — because they reflect your inner readiness for growth and change.
Can you control flying dreams?
Yes, through a practice called lucid dreaming. When you become aware that you’re dreaming, you can often direct your flight — choosing where to go, how high to fly, and what to explore. Techniques like reality checks during the day and setting intentions before sleep can help you achieve lucidity in your flying dreams.
Why do I keep having recurring flying dreams?
Recurring flying dreams are your spirit’s way of emphasising a message you haven’t fully received yet. Pay attention to how the dreams evolve — are you flying higher, more freely, or with different emotions each time? These changes mirror your spiritual progress. Keep a dream journal to track the patterns, as they often reveal a clear trajectory of personal and spiritual growth.
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