The Dream Book of Self-Knowledge

Boy

a very frequent dream symbol since it represents all three male parts of the soul (instinctual, emotional and spiritual animus) of both women and men (if the reader wants to fully understand the broad range of meanings of the boy symbol, I recommend the Anima – Animus archetype)
if we are unable to distinguish which level (instinctual, emotional or spiritual) the dream boy belongs to, we have very little hope of uncovering the true meaning of the symbol and arriving at a meaningful interpretation of the dream.
of a child's age: symbolizes the emotional or rarely even the spiritual level – see Child; clearly does not have representation on the instinctual level.
virgin, untouched: in the unconscious a virgin is an important symbol of inner transformation; like the symbol of a child it represents the emotional or spiritual level, emotional animus (virgin) bears with it all signs for the possible division of emotional unity back to instinctual anima – animus (loss of virginity) along with the hidden desire for reunification on the instinctual level (sexual union), or a perfect child is born from the mystical union of the emotional animus and emotional anima (coniunctio) that is not similar to either his parents or anyone in this world (see Alchemist and Coniunctio archetypes) so that he is once again in time divided into spiritual animus and spiritual anima.
adolescent: people spend most of their lives moving between the instinctual and emotional spheres and this very transition is symbolized by the transformation (maturation) of a child into a man, and thus the transformation of the emotional component into the potentially instinctual; only rarely in dreams is the transformation reversed, i.e. the transformation of a man into a boy, which attests to the elevation of instincts to feelings.
after the maturation of the boy is completed the instinctual level is added to the emotional and spiritual plane since the adult boy discovered the antitheses of the male and female component and now, like his parents, he is striving for unification through a union of the physical bodies of a man and woman, from which a child will emerge as a representative of the emotional plane.
images with boys (sexually and romantically tinged): frequently fulfilled wishes of the past without deeper meaning.
transformation of a boy into a woman (seeing or experiencing): this is not a depreciation of the female part as indicated by interpretation of contemporary psychoanalysis, but an obvious attempt by the unconscious to nullify any attachment to one of the anima – animus antitheses; the transformation of the image of man into a woman or vice-versa discourages the search for completeness in the union of a man and woman (see Anima – Animus archetype).
with female breasts: anima – animus antitheses do not exist in unity and if a person wants to achieve unity he must set out on the difficult path of unifying antitheses; a hermaphrodite*¹⁹ is a symbol of unification on the emotional level and yields the unique possibility of existence as the mythical son of Hermes and Aphrodite – Hermaphroditus (see Anima – Animus and Alchemist archetypes); a hermaphrodite is a healing symbol of men for accepting one's hidden female side and a healing symbol of women for accepting one's hidden male side.
rescuing a boy: very positive since the dreamer rescues an integral part of himself for future unification (it is also positive to rescue the instinctual animus).
raped: fallen emotional animus; if it consists of rape from the front then this fall is caused by the female instinctual component; if the rape is anal, then the fall is caused by the male instinctual component.
giving the dreamer a gift: we can distinguish according to the type of gift which animus this concerns; we must then be very careful with the instinctual animus since the gift will require reciprocal services of an instinctual nature.
underground: the emotional or spiritual animus discovered through internalization (e.g. meditation).
instinctual animus is a boy: attacking and fighting, sexually active and desirous, a prostitute, whore, thief, drunk, under the influence of drugs, jealous, that eats, bites and swallows, playing cards, with a backpack or bags, on a bike, playing sports (except water sports), sitting on a bench, avoiding water, often falling through thin ice so as to "sober up" in the cold water from his desires and ultimately coming closer to feelings.
emotional animus is a boy: worshipping decency, giving a weapon against sexual symbols and thoughts, indifference towards sex and nakedness (beware: the clothing does not matter since emotional animus can even be revealed in rags), only acknowledges platonic love, does not like rudeness and sexual innuendos, sometimes can accept touches and sexuality, though this commences his fall to the instinctual level; the emotional animus advises that the dreamer abandons objects of the material world, is romantic, barefoot, taking off shoes, cleaning (in this way the animus helps the dreamer clean the "Augean stable"), visits a church or chapel, bathing a child (if it is not the child's father), with coins or other round and circular objects, able to fly, but only with spiritual anima in the images of the active imagination*⁴¹ (see Active Imagination archetype), abandoning the past, destroyed world (e.g. in dreams of the Apocalypse archetype), usually an earthling in images of the UFO – Initiation Ceremonies archetype, singing and playing music, bathing or swimming, preventing the dreaming woman from entering the woods, an incomprehensible boy (if the dreamer does not understand his emotional anima), asking for help, performing bodily needs, blindfolded – even in a game (not the eyes, but the heart is needed for decision-making), only rarely attacking when confronted by the pride of spiritual anima, riding a horse, taking care of animals, often a teacher, helping the dreaming woman against attackers, having a positive relationship to poetry; the emotional animus can also be a boy from the dreaming woman's surroundings, but only one for which the dreamer does not show the slightest sexual desire – a brother, for instance; even a three-year-old boy can represent emotional animus in dreams.
spiritual animus is a boy: in a tunnel, underground, in a secret place, imprisoned, in snowy glacial mountains, if he leads the dreamer (a woman) to unknown areas (otherwise it is emotional animus), an alien advising the dreamer to leave the emotional level, inspiring awe, often a prince, an incomprehensible boy (if the dreamer does not understand his spiritual animus), but only in connection with ice or snow, able to fly without technical means (see Active Imagination archetype), able to lead the dreaming woman through a snowy landscape to the sea (if the landscape does not have snow, then it is the emotional animus), sometimes appears to the dreamer miraculously transformed from a child; even a three-year-old boy can represent spiritual animus in a dream.