Saddam Hussein Snake Dream

Diary: Saddam’s Recurring Snake Dream

Its not often you come across hearing about a dream from a dictator. I randomly came across a fascinating article written by Lisa DePaulo called ‘Tuesday with Saddam‘, about the capture and detainment of Saddam Hussein. After spending 9 months evading capture, Saddam was finally caught by the United States military in 2003. He was taken to a undisclosed area and guarded by a rookie specialist named Sean O’Shea.

The 19 year old Pennsylvania National Guard who never left his small town Minooka, has now been assigned to head overseas in Kuwait. After being stationed one month he was shipped to an unknown location in Baghdad to guard one of the most high – profile prisoners in U.S history. After being assessed by his superiors, Sean was led down a long, filthy hallway, over a floor of broken concrete, past a bunch of empty rooms. Inside the cell was Saddam sitting on a red plastic chair.

“He just came out with this big smile and shook our hands,” Sean says. Then he put his hand over his heart and told them—in decent English—how good it was to meet them. He was meeting Saddam f**king Hussein!”

For the next 10 months Sean was assigned to guard, assist, or talk with Saddam only if he wants to engage in a conversation. Saddam is awaiting trial to determine his fate. Sean avidly wrote his experiences in his diary stating: “Part of me wanted to punch him in the face. Another part wanted to know what was going on in his head.”

Months passed before the two started to become familiar with each other, they started to bond exchanging stories. Sean knowing the atrocities Saddam has inflicted on his people saw him as just a normal funny guy. Saddam randomly spoke about women, his dreams or jokes that would make him laugh. He offered Sean a cigar as they smoked talking about his recurring snake dream.

Saddam’s Snake Dream:

“Then we started talking about the war a little bit which led him to telling me about his sons. As he was telling me about them and how they died, he said, My 3 sons [he included his grandson] died in this war while I was underground. He said when someone came to tell him about it, he was proud that they died for their country. As he was talking more about everything he lost, tears were in his eyes. I didn’t know what to say so I just said, Sorry for your losses. He then told me about this dream he was having about a snake and he tried to kill it but he couldn’t. Then an American came and killed it for him”.

On November 5 of the next year, Saddam found guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death by hanging. After an unsuccessful appeal, he was executed on December 30, 2006. Despite a prolonged search, weapons of mass destruction were never found in Iraq. Sean being deployed back to his hometown  was told by one of his troops that replaced him: Saddam was hurt that Sean never said good-bye to him before he left.

Decoding Saddam Dream: Analysis

Just a small snippet of Saddam’s dream may open up the unconscious door to how he truly felt. He spoke very highly about his sons, however his eldest son Uday Hussein was a textbook psychopath.  He was a monster even by the standards of Saddam, considered a sadist with a taste for cruelty so extreme that even his father was forced to acknowledge that his first-born son would not be a worthy heir.

Was Saddam Trying To Kill His Own Son?

In this case when the snake emerges it doesn’t come with glad tidings. Saddam said he was happy his sons died for their country; or on an unconscious level, was he happy the Americans killed his son? An american then came in an killed the snake for him as he wasn’t able to do it himself. The snake can be a metaphoric symbol of an enemy or an unpredictable hidden threat.

Uday appeared to have been killed by a bullet in the head, but it was not known whether he had been shot by the US forces during the three hour firefight – or suicide. Regardless his life was ended because of the US hunting him down.

Could the dream suggest he wanted to kill his son, but didn’t have the means to do so? Could it imply that he tried to kill his son but failed? Did he unconsciously know once his son became president of Iraq he would be just as barbaric as Hitler? A tyrant having a dream about a snake makes you think how deadly this snake could possibly be.

Was Saddam Afraid To Commit Suicide? 

Another analysis of his snake dream suggests the snake was him in disguise, but was too scared to face death. He was chastised for being such a ruthless dictator, once president of Iraq ends up a defenseless coward in the hands of his enemy.

Could this have been a precognitive dream foreshadowing his own demise? Could the Americans in the dream reflect the force that was stopping his own unacknowledged shadow?  After his trial he was found guilty of crimes against humanity and was sentenced to hang.

The American Snake:

Could the snake be the American government? They once sided with Saddam during the Reagan administration against Iran, then turned their back on him. A snake is cold blooded and strikes with lethal force, the ability to kill once provoked. Could this dream suggest accusing him of 9/11 and having weapons of mass destruction? The wanting of his oil?

Conclusion: 

We would really never know what really went on in the mind of Saddam, however we are fortunate that he discuses his dream to Sean during his 10 month imprisonment. Despite his own behaviors he was a man just like everybody else. He experienced loved twice from his first and second wife, had a family and used to love Cheetos. He had a turbulent upbringing by being abandoned by his mother and left in the hands of a terrible uncle. Not making excuses but this could have been a factor.

Understanding your dreams or doing shadow work gives you insight to how dark or amazing we can be as people. Our dreams and the symbols in them give us insight to what is really going on behind the scenes. Who we pretend to be be in our daily life might be polar opposite to how we really are. Could you be a Saddam Hussein once given unlimited power and money?