Traditionally a handshake symbolizes a welcome into heaven and a farewell to earthly existence. Our spiritual journey contains many welcomes and goodbyes, and today the handshake symbolizes the transitions we make. Equally the handshake can suggest the touch of healers and is also a sign of good faith. A handshake is a mark of appreciation and of acknowledgement. In dreams it suggests that an emotional bond has been forged, which cannot easily be broken. Agreements are often sealed by a handshake, the idea being that we are not going to attack our opposite number if we have shaken hands. In dreams, shaking hands will represent at least a partial bond with the other person since, from the times of chivalry, we remove our gloves in order to do so. If the sleeves of the two hands are masculine and feminine in the dream, or the hands are bound by cords, the handshake may symbolize matrimony, the latter by pagan rites. You might like to consult the entries for Bonds, Cord, Gloves and Wedding/Wedding Dress/Wedding Ring for further information.