“The soul, fortunately, has an interpreter - often an unconscious but still a faithful interpreter - in the eye.” ~ Charlotte Bronte

Eyes = They need to distort what they see around them in order to keep themselves safe. They feel vulnerable at the thought of others seeing into their soul and so apply defensive screens.
‘Turning a blind eye’ ‘Blinkered to the truth’ ‘Looking into the window of my soul’

Apparently, a person is endowed with five sense faculties: sight, hearing, palate, smell and touch. Of all these the faculty of sight is the most important. Eyes are therefore rightly spoken of as 'windows of the soul.' Eyes do reveal the inner state of the mind - whatever it be, of peace and tranquility, or of anger and unrest. It is through the power of the eyes that a mesmerist or a hypnotist controls his subject. Some reptiles, too, transfix and paralyze their prey, making it immobile by casting their strong gaze on it. So is the case with an osprey or the fishing eagle. The wizard and the enchanter work their black art through the eyes. The mother transmits her love to a baby through her eyes. Even the domestic animals find comfort from the loving gaze of their master. Poets sing of the laughing eyes, sparkling eyes, liquid eyes, languishing eyes, drilling eyes, speaking eyes, and so on. The silent language of the eyes is wonderful indeed. Words fail to convey the expressiveness of the eyes. With no words, the eyes are still eloquent. Their silent speech and their appeal are universally acknowledged and go to the very heart.

Symbolic Meaning of Eyes

It's been said the eye is the window to the soul, which may explain why the symbolic meaning of eyes tends to be of a spiritual nature.

In Christianity the Eye of God is depicted hovering over a tent which is symbolic of the Tabernacle - the temple of the faithful. The eye here represents the omni-present spirit of God peering into the soul of the faithful - ever watchful over those who serve.

In Egypt we see the Eye of Horus (a.k.a. the eye of Ra, and also referred to as a wedjat or a udjat). In this context the eye is a symbol of protection and life. During his battle with Set, Horus' eye was ripped out and torn to pieces. Thoth, however, was able to save the eye and restored it by invoking the magic of the falcon.

It's interesting that in Egypt and Western occult traditions the left eye is considered a lunar trait and a symbol of northern direction. The right eye is a solar symbol and represents southern direction.

The "third eye" is referred to as the spiritual eye, the intuitive eye, or the eye of the soul. It is associated with the brow chakra (or Ajna chakra) which facilitates intuition and extra sensory perception. The third eye is depicted on the forehead of Shiva, and is symbolic of the inner eye that sees all things within a cosmic perspective.

In Dreaming the meaning of eyes indicates an opening into a new dimension. This is symbolic of your vision clearing and focusing in on a new direction. It may also indicate your ability to see past what is common and spiritually arrive to the point where your inner vision perceives all things in their divine glory - even the simplest of things become imbued with an exquisite quality inherent in all nature.

The symbolic meaning of eyes also carry a message of prophesy - literally seeing "a vision of the future." This translates well with ancient alchemists and astrologers speaking of eyes of the sky foretelling certain events as they chart the stars in certain patterns to ascertain various outcomes.

Symbolic Meaning of Eyes

• Focus
• Clarity
• Vision
• Prophesy
• Omniscience
• Presence
• Intelligence
• Perception
• Observation
• Opening
• Awareness

Many ancient esoteric as well as earth-based philosophies consider the eye as a channel or a passageway into a new dimension. Here the eye is not a physical symbol but rather a ethereal one in which consciousness may enter into a gateway of infinite expanse. This journey is traversed through the pitch-black channel of being-ness (represented by the black of the pupil). Once the threshold is crossed, one is said to obtain higher knowledge - a glimpse of heightened epiphany - comparable to enlightenment.

These perspectives combined with the actual shape of an eye reminds me of the numerical symbolism of zero.

Ultimately the symbolic meaning of the eye is what you make of it. Contemplate its meaning in relation to your own perspective and life situation. If eyes keep reoccurring to you (visions, dreams, random images throughout the day) it is certainly a message - it's your responsibility now to interpret that message as it relates to your personal experience.