Tears can represent hurt or compassion, and it is often this latter meaning that applies spiritually. Experiencing compassion in a dream can make us more aware of the necessity for it in waking life. To dream of being in tears and then to wake up and discover that we are actually crying, suggests that some hurt or trauma has come sufficiently close to the surface to enable us to deal with it on a conscious level. To interpret tearing something up in dreams will depend on whether the action is destructive or one of division in order to share. If the article is already torn, then there is an aspect of our lives that is less than perfect and has been damaged in some way. Tears in dreams can indicate an emotional release and a cleansing. If we are crying we may not feel we are able to give way to emotion in everyday life, but can do so in the safe scenario of a dream. If we dream of someone we know in tears we perhaps need to look at our own conduct to see if it is appropriate. If we do not know them then we have offended against our own code of behaviour. Consult the entries for Emotions and Weeping for further information.