Sterilization in a spiritual sense is somewhat ambivalent. It can either suggest purity of spirit or a belief in austerity, which does not allow the Self to grow. To dream of sterilizing something suggests a need for cleansing at a deep level. We wish to get rid of hurts or traumas and are prepared to put in the effort to do so. ?Sterilizing? a situation may be taking the emotion out of it. Sterility suggests an absence of ideas and motivation. The need not to be sidetracked in everyday life can present in dreams as a sterile environment. Dreams of alienation, or of being captured by aliens, often have such an image. For a woman to dream of being sterilized, either by an operation or otherwise, may be connecting with her feeling of powerlessness. In a man's dream sterilization may suggest sexual dissatisfactions or doubts about his self-image. You might also like to consult the entries for Abduct, Alien/Alienated and Operation.