The Dream Book
Foreword to
A Selective Discussion of the Interpretation of Dreams
by Muhammad ibn Sirin
In the name of Allah, the All-Merciful, All-Compassionate
Praise belongs to Allah, the Lord of the Universe and may Allah bless the most glorious of the Messengers, Muhammad, and his pure family and noble chosen Companions.
May Allah grant you success! The beginner should know that everything which we see in dreams can be divided into two categories. One category comes from Allah and the other comes from Shaytan. This is based on the words of the Messenger, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, "The true dream (ru'ya) is from Allah and the ordinary dream (hulm) is from Shaytan." Those dreams which are ascribed to Allah are sound, even though all dreams, true or otherwise, are created by Allah. The sound dream is the true dream which brings good news and warning. It is that dream which the Prophet referred to as "a forty-sixth part of prophecy." Both unbelievers and misguided believers can experience a true dream.
The dream which is disliked is the one who is ascribed to Shaytan. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, commanded us to conceal it and to spit to the left side. He promised that the one who did this would not be harmed by such a dream. No matter whether the disliked dream saddens or alarms, it is still false or a dream which may lead to temptation, betrayal and jealousy rather than putting one on guard against wrong actions, avoiding heedlessness and preventing destructive actions. Shaytan commands to outrgeous actions, and false dreams are described as coming from Shaytan when he urges people to act in a deviant manner. However, Allah the All-Glorious is the One who creates all that one sees in dreams, be it good or evil.
If someone has a wet dream, he must perform a complete ablution (ghusl), and that dream is ascribed to Shaytan. It is the same in all your dreams which consist of the chatter of the self (nafs), its hopes, fears and sorrows which have no wisdom which lends itself to interpretation. It is the same with dreams which come to a person who goes to sleep when his stomach is full or completely empty. It is the same when he experiences a daydream. There is no sense in it and it is of no benefit. Neither nature nor food has any authority in the dream. Moreover, Shaytan has no real authority in the dream, in spite of what we ascribe to him in respect of it. Dreams are actually the creation of Allah Almighty. It normally happens that the true dream is created in the prescence of the angel who is entrusted with it. For that reason, it is ascribed to the angel. Allah creates false dreams in the presence of Shaytan and so that dream is ascribed to Shaytan. A person who lies about his dream therefore forges lies against Allah Almighty.
If someone has a dream, he should only recount his dream to someone with knowledge, someone with good counsel, or one of his people who is considered to possess good judgement as is related in certain traditions. When the interpreter hears the dream from the dreamer, he should hold back from interpreting it if it is something hateful or he has insufficient recognition of it. He should say, "It is good for you and evil for your enemies. You should enjoy its good and beware its evil." When he thinks that the dream is meant for people in general, he says, "It is good for us and evil for our enemies. We enjoy its good and are on guard against its evil. The good is for us and the evil is for our enemies."
It is best to interpret dreams in the early morning when the interpreter's power of understanding in strong the dreamer remembers the dream more clearly because understanding is usually found in the early mornings before it disperses into one's various worries and desires. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "O Allah, bless my Community in the early mornings."
Interpretation is done by analogy, finding examples, and comparison. Supposition is not taken into consideration. You do not accept the dream unless it appears to be true when the dreamer is awake or the interpreter sees evidence of that. Interpretation is done by the meaning or by the derivation of the names (of the things seen in the dream). The interpreter should not resort to something which suppresses the meaning in the waking state or rely on that when he hears it. He should not rely on any reckoning made by astrologers.
Shaytan cannot assume the likeness of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in a dream. "Whoever sees him, has truly seen him." The dead person is in a real abode. Whatever he says in a dream is true as long as he is someone who is free of temptation and deception. The same holds true for a child who does not know about lying and it is also true for all dumb animals when they speak. Their words are true. The words of something which is normally dumb is a sign and a wonder. Everyone who is a liar when he is awake - like an astrologer and diviner - lies in the dream. Someone in a state of major impurity (janaba), a drunkard, and a simple-minded slavegirl or slaveboy may sometimes experience a true dream, even though most of the time Shaytan overpowers them with bad dreams The person who lies in converstations while he is awake generally has false dreams. The most truthful of people has the truest dreams.
The interpreter only deals with the dream to show how its metaphors are connected to good news, warning, information, or benefit in this world or the Hereafter. He discards everything else so that there will not be any confusion or padding from Shaytan. The interpreter must take into account the parables, meanings and clear portions of the Qur'an, as when Allah says about the rope, "Take hold of the rope of Allah" (3:103) and referring to women as "hidden pearls (eggs)." (37:49) He refers to the hypocrites "as propped-up wood" (63:4) and He says, "When kings enter a city, they disorder it ." (27:34) He says, "If you seek an opening, the opening has come to you" (8:19) and said in reference to slander "Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother?" (49:12)
In his interpretation, the interpreter also needs to be familiar with the traditions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and the metaphors he used. For instance, he said "five vicious ones." Then he mentioned he crow, the kite, the scorpion, the mouse, and the voracious dog. He said in reference to women, "Be careful of the long-necked jars," and he also said, "Woman was created from a rib."
The interpreter also needs to know commonplace metaphors like the words of the Prophet Ibrahim to his son Isma'il, "Change your lintel," i.e. divorce your wife. When the Messiah came to the prostitute, he said in admonishment, "The doctor comes to the sick person." By the "doctor", he meant the man of knowledge and the the sick person means the ignorant person and the one who behaves badly. Luqman told his son, "Change your bed," i.e. your wife. When Abu Hurayra heard someone say that the Dajjal had emerged, he said, "A lie the dyers lied," i.e the liars.
He also needs to be familiar with poetry and rajaz-verse, and the interpretation of their meanings which will reflects the meanings of metaphors in dreams, as the poet said:
A caller called to the dew and
a glass from which one sips,
but
its drink does not suggest water or wine.
By the caller he means the call of the song, and by the glass he means the woman's mouth. Another poet said:
The narcissus does not have a pledge.
The
pledge belongs to the myrtle.
Another poet said:
You are a rose and a rose lasts for only a month, not for months.
My passion is the myrtle and the myrtle is steadfast forever.
In that he referred to the fact hat the rose and narcissus do not last long, but the myrtle lasts and endures. This interpretation is used when it occurs in a dream.
The interpreter also needs to know the etymology and meanings of words. For instance,the root of "kufr" (rejection, disbelief) is to cover up. The root of "maghfira" (forgiveness) is to veil. "Dhulm" (injustice) means to put something in other than its proper place. "Fisq" (outrage, licentiousness) is to leave and come out, and so forth. He also needs to be in a sound condition and to eat proper food and drink, and to be sincere in his actions. By that he will enjoy excellent distinction among people in interpretation.
There are two sorts of true dreams. One sort is easy to explain and requires no interpretation or explanation. Another sort is indirect and hidden, but wisdom is lodged in it. The information in it consists of visible matters. All that has one nature in the summer and another nature in the winter is considered according to the time of the dream and according to its essence and substance at that moment - like trees, fresh dates, the sea, fire, clothes, houses, snakes and scorpions. Whatever has one nature at night and another nature by day is considered in the night dream by that nature and in the day dream by its normal nature - like the sun, the moon,the stars, lamps, light, darkness, hedgehogs, bats and the like. Whatever has a normal pattern among people which it keeps in dreams at all times or in one time rather than another, that normal pattern is left in the dream. For instance, this is the case when someone eats meat in a dream when he normally eats meat. When he dreams of a dirham coming to him, he profits from it as when he is awake. When he dreams of rain, he sees it when he is awake. The normal pattern can also mean the opposite. It can be different than its contents.
Everything he sees in the dream has two aspects: one aspect indicates good and the other aspect indicates evil. If the dreamer is righteous, he tells him the better of the two aspects. If the dreamer is wicked he tells him the worse of the two aspects. If the thing which he dreamt has many different aspects which contradict one another, he should not insist on one particular aspect rather than others unless there is extra testimony or proof established by the consciousness of the dreamer in the dream or by the evidence of the place in which the dreamer saw himself.
The dream may deal with what has passed and finished and so it reminds him about when he forgot to be thankful in the past, or an action in which he disobeyed Allah, or consequences which still remains from that act, or an act of repentance for it which he has put off. It may come about the future and inform him about the good or evil which will come - like death, rain, wealth, poverty, might, abasement, hardship and ease.
The same dream can vary in interpretation with different people according to their difference in fortune even though the dream is the same. The interpretation of that dream object which they see in a dream is only done proficiently when it has wide range of possible meanings - as in the case of the pomegranate. It may mean a village which the Sultan seizes or a city which he rules. The rind is its walls and the seeds are its people. It may mean the house of a merchant where his family lives. It may be his bath-house or hotel or his ship full of people and property in the middle of the sea. It may be his fully stocked shop or his full ledger. It may be his bag which contains dirhams and dinars. It may be a book or the Qur'an belonging to a man of knowledge or a devout worshipper. The rind are its pages and the seeds are his book wherein lies its usability. It may be a wife for a widower with her property and beauty. For the pregnant woman, it may be a girl concealed in her womb and blood. In amounts of property, it may be a house for the ruler, a lot of money for the worker, 1000 dinars for a wealthy family, 100 dinars for a merchant, ten dinars for a middle man, one dirham for a pauper, a small measure for the very poor, or a loaf of bread or a measure of food like a pomegranate which he had seen. It is one of the knots to be unravelled by interpretation, investigation and comparison of examples which people use.
A man might dream of something and its interpretation might refer to his full-brother, his foster relation, his namesake, his in-law, his friend, his neighbour or someone like him in any of the fields. People may share in the dream by two of these reasons. An example would be someone with the same lineage - like his full brother. They share in paternity, lineage and the mother. It is also like his namesake, neighbour and equal. Partnership is only valid when there are two or more shared aspects. The dream is never transferred automatically from the one who dreams it unless its meanings are inappropriate to him or the one who shares in it is more entitled to it by evidence which he sees in him while he is awake. Close examination may then increase that likelihood - like the evidence of death. It is not transferred from the one who dreams it unless he is physically sound when awake while the one who shares with him is ill.Then he is more entitled to it than him due to his illness since illness is near to death and shares with death in the interpretation.
Therefore the interpreter must be as we described. He must possess good behaviour, cleverness, intelligence, and fear of Allah. He must recognise the circumstances, qualities, measures and forms of people. He takes not of what normally changes or alters when winter departs or when summer comes. He should be familiar with the times and the rains and damages prevalent in those times. He should know the shipping times, the ebb and flow of the tides, and the customs of the city and its people, and what is particular to each city and what is native to it. This is like what al-Qurtubi said about "jawras" (millet). It may indicate the one who is absent coming from Yemen because half of the name is "ja"( he came, ja'a) and "waras" (woad) is a kind of plant which only comes from Yemen. He should recognise the details of particular dreams in the popular usage in normal dreams as well as dream objects from which people benefit - like the sky, sun, moon, stars, rain, wind, mosques and public squares. When he dreams of those things which are particular to him or which he sees in his own room pertain particularly to him.
The ancients said that if a person is dominated by black bile, he dreams of corpses, blackness, terors and fears. If he is dominated by yellow bile, he dreams of fire, lamps, blood and things dyed red. If he is dominated by phelgm, he dreams of whiteness, water, dew and waves. If he is dominated by blood, he dreams of drinking, wines, music, and songs.
It is related that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "There are three types of dreams: good news from Allah Almighty, the dream from Shaytan and a dream through which a man talks to himself." The Prophet also said, "Prophethood has departed and the good news remains." One of the commentators spoke that the words of Allah Almighty, "They have good news in the life of this world" (10:65) refers to a good dream." It is said that if the slave goes to sleep while he is in prostration, his Lord says, "Look at My slave! His ruh is with Me while his body is engaged in obeying Me." It is related from Abu'd-Darda', "When a man sleeps, his ruh ascends to heaven until it is brought to the Throne. If he is in a state of purity, then he has permission to prostate. If he is in a state of major impurity, he does not have permission to prostrate."
People disagree about the nafs and the ruh. Some people say that they are the same thing with two different names, as one can use "rajul" or "insan" for man. They are both blood connected to blood. They cease when blood departs. The evidence for that is that the corpse only lacks blood in his body. They have a proof in that linguistically since the Arabs use "nafisat" for menstruation which comes from "nafs". They call the woman "nafsa'" when she is in childbed since the "nafs" flows. It is the blood. Sometimes it still occurs in language when people say, "The nafs flowed out," when someone dies. Blood is ascribed to the nafs because of its connection to it.
Others state that they are two different things. The ruh is cold and the nafs is hot. This is why blowing from the ruh is seen as cold rather than the breath (nafas) of the breath which is hot. The Arabs refer to "blowing" as ruh because it comes from the ruh. This is the school of the person who names the thing according to what it is connected to and its cause. He calls "plants" "dew" because they exist by dew. They call the rain "sky' because it comes from the sky.
They take "nafas" (breath) from nafs. They said, "The nafs is a breath (nasama)." It is said, "So-and-so freed a nasama," i.e. a soul. Allah says, "They will question you about the ruh. Say: 'The ruh is from the command of my Lord.' You have only been given a little of knowledge." (17:85) Some commentators believe that the ruh means the ruh of life in these places. Some commentators believe that it is one of the angels which stands in one row and while the angels stand in a row. If it is as the ancients mentioned, how can one assume knowledge of anything which Allah has kept for Himself and about which He did not even inform the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace? He was tested by being asked about it so that it would be testimony for him and a sign of his prophethood.
Ibn Qutayba said, "Since the dream may have different possibilities and can be changed from the basic principles which normally apply by something additional or by a contradictory word, or it can change from the path of good to the path of evil in different forms and different times and moments, its interpretation may sometimes derive from the expression of a word, sometimes from the expression of a meaning, sometimes from its opposite, sometimes from the Book of Allah, sometimes from a hadith, and sometimes from a common model and famous verse. I will mention some examples in interpretation before mentioning the roots. This is designed to guide you to the correct method.
As for the interpretation by names, it may apply to the outward expression like a man called al-Fadl (favour) may be interpreted as "ifdal (favour)". A man called Rashid (guide) may be interpreted as "irshad" or "rushd" (guidance). A man called Salim (sound) may be interpreted as salama (well being). There are numerous instances of that. It is related that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "In the night, I dreamt that we were in the house of 'Uqba ibn Rafi' and he brought us Ratab ibn Tab. I interpreted this as elevation (rifa'a) for us in this world and the Next, and that our deen has become excellent (tayyib, from the verb taba)."
It is related that Sharik ibn Abi Shimr said, "I dreamt that my teeth (asnan) fell out. I asked Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab about it and he told me, 'I must console you if your dream is true. All of the people of your age (asnan) will die before you.'" Sa'id interpreted the dream by the expression, not by the basic principle because the basic rule regarding teeth is that they are relatives. It is related that Bishr ibn Abi'l-'Aliyya said, "I asked Muhammad about a man who dreamt that all his teeth had fallen out. He said, 'This is a man whose relatives are cut off.'" Muhammad interpreted that by the root, not the expression.
It is related that al-Asma'i said, "A man bought some land and dreamt that his nephew was walking in it. He stepped on the head of a snake (hayya) wherever he stepped. He said, "If his dream is true, then all the plants in it will live (hayat = life)."
He said that when the word has many letters, then he may interpret by some of the letters according to the school of the investigator. For example, when he dreams of a quince (safarjal) and there is nothing in the dream which indicates that it is illness, he interprets it as a journey because half of it is journey (safar). It is the same with the lily of the valley (susan) when he leaves aside what is normally ascribed to it in the interpretation and applies it to its outward name. He interprets evil (su') in it because half of it is "su" (evil). The poet said:
You gave me a lily of the valley.
It does not have
excellence when it is given.
Its beginning is evil, and if you
were to bring the end of it,
it is a bad year (su'
sana).
Interpretation by meaning is the basis of most interpretations - as in the case of the citron. If it is not property or a child, it is interpreted as hypocrisy because of the difference between its outer and inner parts. The poet said:
His lover gave him a citron. He
wept and was on his guard
against the aversion
of the citron.
He marvelled at what she gave him
and tasted it.
And its inward is
different from its outward.
As for the interpretation based popular usage and common expressions, an example of that is that people say call a liar a "dyer" since people commonly say, "so-and-so dyed the hadith." They also say that if someone dreams that his hands are long he will will be charitable since people say, "He has a longer hand than you," i.e. he gives more than you. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, told his wives, "The quickest of you to join me will be the one with the longest hand." That was Zaynab bint Jahsh, the first of his wives to die. She used to help people with charity. They say that illness is hypocrisy since people say about someone who does not keep his promise to you, "He is sick in his words and his promise." Allah says, "In their hearts is a sickness and Allah has increased them in sickness," (2:10), meaning hypocrisy.
They say that mucous is a child since people say about someone who looks like his father, "He is his spitting image," and "the cat is the lion's snot." The basis for this is that Nuh had the lion in the Ark. When they were bothered by mice, Nuh prayed to Allah and so the lion sneezed and the cat came out with its snot. It is the closest thing in resemblance to it. When someone dreams that he is shooting people with arrows or a gun or stoning them, he will slander them. People say, "I stoned so-and-so" by saying he did a vile deed. Allah says, "Those who stone chaste woman and those who stone (accuse of adultery) their wives." (24:4, 6)
They say that someone who dreams that his limbs are cut off will travel and leave his property or children in some land. People say, "They are cut off in the land." Allah says about the people of Saba', "We tore them to pieces," and He says, "We cut them into communities in the earth." They say that the locusts are sometimes a mob of people because the Arabs call a mob "locusts". Washing the hands with soap is a sign of despair since they say about someone who does not except any good from someone that "he has washed his hands of him."
They say that ram represents a mighty invincible man since people say, "This is the ram of the people." They say that the falcon is a man with courage and dynamism since people say, "He is a falcon among men."
Things can be interpreted to mean the opposite, as they say that weeping means joy and laughter means sorrow. When two men are in conflict with each other they say that the sun and moon are fighting. When they are of the same sort, the one thrown to the ground will be victorious and the one who throws to the ground will be defeated. They say that the plague is war and war is the plague. They say that the flood means an enemy and the enemy signifies a flood. Eating figs signifies regret and regret means eating figs. If someone dreams that he has died and his death does not have the form of death with weeping, burial in a grave, or shrouding, part of his home will be destroyed. They say that locusts represent an army and an army means locusts.
As for interpreting the dream by increase or decrease, they say that weeping means joy. If it is accompanied by wailing, it means affliction. Laughter is sorrow, but if it is accompanied by smiling it is good. They say that the walnut signifies a buried treasure. If there is clatter with it, it is a quarrel. They say that when he takes a measure of oil, that means fornication. If the oil flows on his face, it is sorrow. If there is a lot of it on the head (ra's), it represents flattering the leader (ra'is). Saffron signifies good praise. If its colour shows on his clothes or body, that is illness or anxiety. A beating means clothing. If he is shackled, that is evil words about him from which he is unable to defend himself.
If someone dreams that he has feathers (rish), that represents his household goods (riyash) and blessing. If he flies with wings, he will ascend to power according to the height to which he rises from the earth. When someone dreams that his hand is cut off and he is guarding it, he will have profit from a brother or child. If he sreams that he has been parted from it, that is a misfortune regarding a brother or child. When the sick man dreams that he is healthy and leaves his home without speaking, then he will die. If he speaks, then he will get better. They say that mice mean women as long as they are the same colour. If they are different colours and there are black and white ones among them, then that signifies days and nights. As for fish, when the man knows how many they are, they are women. If the number is too great to know, then they represent property and booty.
The dream is interpreted by the moment, as you say about someone riding an elephant. He will obtain a huge matter of little use. If he dreams that during the daytime, he will divorce his wife or incur some sort of evil because of her. A vulture represents a dirty stupid man. The truest dreams are before dawn and at midday. The truest of moments is the moment when flowers are in bloom and the moment when the fruits are plucked. The weakest of times is the winter.
The dream can be differ from its basic principle in different types of people according to their crafts, worth and religions. What is mercy for one can be punishment for someone else. One of the most amazing things about the dream is that a man may dream that some disaster will befall him and that something good will come to him and then that very disaster befalls him and that very good comes to him. The same thing can happen with dirhams which he dreams he will receive, an office to which he dreams he will be appointed, a hajj he dreams he will make, and when an absent person comes in a dream and then comes when he is awake. The small child might dream something and then it happens to one of his parents. It is the same with a woman and her husband or the people in her household.
It is reported that 'Umar ibn al-Khattab sent a qadi to Syria. The man set out and then came straight back. 'Umar asked him, "What brought you back?" He said, "I dreamt that the sun and moon were fighting and that some of the stars were with the sun and some of them were with the moon." 'Umar asked, "Which were you with?" "The moon," he replied. He said, "Go away, You will never be appointed to any post by me." Then 'Umar recited, "We blotted out the Sign of the night and made the Sign of the day a time for seeing." (17:12) In the Battle of Siffin, this man was killed with the Syrians.
Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Mawsuli said, "I was with Yazid ibn Mazid when he remarked, 'I dreamt a strange dream.' He summoned a dream interpreter and told him, 'I dreamt that I took a sandpiper and was going to sacrifice it. I ran the knife over its throat three times and then I turned it over and sacrificed it the fourth time.' He said, 'That is a good dream. This is a virgin you are interested in. You will not succeed with her three times and then you will the fourth time.' 'Yes,' he said. The interpreter said, 'There was something else in the dream.' 'What is it?' Yazid asked. He said, 'There ws a slavegirl who broke wind.' Yazid, exclaimed, 'You speak the truth, by Allah! How did you know?' He said, "The name of the bird is taytawa (sandpiper - and durayta means breaking wind)."
Ibn Qutayba said, "The interpreter confirm what he is told and not act arbitrarily. When something is unclear to him, he should not be too proud too say, 'I do not know it." Ibn Sirin, the Imam of the people of this science, said that he held back more often that he gave interpretation."
Al-Asma'i related from Abu'l-Miqdam or Qurra ibn Khalid, "I was with Ibn Sirin when he was asked about dreams. I estimate that he only interpreted one dream out of forty."
Ibn Qutayba said, "You should try to understand and clarify the words of the one who had the dream, and then you must compare it with the principles. If you see that there are sound words which indicate straightforward meanings which resemble one another, you then interpret the dream after you have asked Allah to give to success in the right answer. If you find that the dream can have two contrary meanings, then you find out which of them is the most appropriate to the expressions and apply that. If you see that the principles are sound while there are certain matters within it which are not proper, then you discard the stuffing and concentrate on what is sound in the dream. If you see that the entire dream is mixed up and does not conform to the principles, then you know that it is a muddled dream, so leave it alone. If the matter is confused for you, then ask Allah to make it clear. Then ask the man about how he felt in his journey if he dreamt of a journey, and in the hunt if he dreamt of a hunt, and in his words if he dreamt of words. Then you decide by his consciousness in it. If there was no consciousness then take the things in it according to what seems clear to you.
The natures of people vary in the dream, and they proceed as is their habit in dreams, so they may understand the dreams themselves. That is stronger than the basic principle. It the dream may proceed accordings to a man's habit and deviate from the principle. The dream can be diverted from its evil root by good words and pious action or from its good root by obscene and evil words.
If a dream indicates something detestable and ugly, you should veil that and conceal it as well as you can in words and hide it, or at the very most, whisper it to the dreamer. That is what Ibn Sirin did did when he was asked about the man who gouged out eggs from their shells and took the white and left the yellow. He said, "You do not have certainty in your dream. It is only conjecture and probable opinion." If you inform the dreamer about something ugly, you connect a fault to him of which he may not actually be guilty. If he does have that fault, he may stop doing it and not repeat it.
Know that the principles of dreams consists of categories, types and natures. The category is like trees, wild beasts and birds. All of these are generally men. The type is that he knows the species of the tree, the species of wild beast, and the species of bird. If the tree is a date palm, that is an Arab man because most dates originate from Arab lands. If the bird is a peacock, it is a Persian. If it is a male ostrich, it is a bedouin.
The nature of that is that he looks to the nature of that tree and then judges the trees by its own nature. If the tree is a walnut you judge the man by its nature as meaning harsh in behaviour and contentious in debate. If it is a date palm, you judge that it is a useful and productive man since Allah Almighty says, "a good tree whose roots are firm and whose branches are in heaven." (14:24) He means the date.
If it is a bird, you know that it is a man who travels as birds do. Then you look at its nature. If it is a peacock, it is a foreign man who is handsome and wealthy. If it is a vulture, it is a king. If it is a crow it is a debauched man, a lying traitor since the Prophet said, "Nuh, peace be upon him, sent the crow to learn the state of the waters and whether they had receded or not. The crow found a corpse floating on the water and landed on it and did not return." A proverb was made about the crow. If it is a magpie, it is a man who is not trusted or reliable and has no deen. If it is an eagle, it is a warring, unjust, fearsome rebel ruler who resembles the eagle with its claws, ripping and feeding on birds, and its rending their flesh.
The dreamer must seek for the truth and not add somathing to his dream which was not in it, thereby ruining the dream, cheating himself and making himself one of the wrongdoers in the sight of Allah.
It is reported that 'Ali ibn Abi Talib said, "The fearful has no true dream except what he wants," i.e. in his interpreting it as relief from his situation and the departure of his fear. Someone dreams that he gets a measure of dates and receives he gets 100 dirhams. Another person dreams the same thing and gets 1000 dirhams. Someone else dreams the same thing and it means sweetness in his deen and his setting thing right in the deen. That comes from the aspirations of men, their values, and preference for the deen.
Someone dreams that he gets ten lotus fruits and he receives ten silver dirhams. Another dreams the same thing and gets 1000 dirhams. That is according to their worth and nature. The truest of dreams is the dream of a king.
Perhaps there might be something not in harmony with a man's nature in his dream in a familiar place which he knows or a camp or a house or a man or a beautiful woman or an ugly woman or someone he knows or does not know, or a bird, an animal, a waymark, a direction, a food, a drink, or arms or something else. Then he becomes enamoured with it when he sees it in his dream. Therefore concern, fear, weeping, affliction, disturbance or something else which he dislikes afflicts him. In other parts of the dream, he is in the position of someone else in its interpretation or its example. The nature of a man may agree in his dream with some of what is described in the dream and so he is enamoured when he sees it in his dream. Then he receives blessing, property, victory or something else of what he loves and he is, at the same time, in the position of other people outside of the dream when it is interpreted. A man may be truthful in his words and his dream is truthful. He may be a liar and like to lie, so his dream usually lies. He can be a liar and hate lying in other people and then his dream will be truthful because of that.
The dream at night is stronger than the dream in the day. The most truthful time for dreams is before dawn. When the dream is short and compact and there are no extra words of anything superfluous in it, it is more penetrating and quicker to take place.
Take care not to distort a question from the known aspect of its interpretation in the principles, or to take it beyond its known limit because of your desire or fear. Then you would be a liar and the path of truth in it will become obscure for you. It is better for you to remain silent if you do not want to speak about it.
If you see what you dislike in your dream, then recite the Throne Verse when you wake up and spit to your left side and say, "I seek refuge with the Lord of Musa and 'Isa and Ibrahim who was loyal and Muhammad the Chosen from the evil of the dream which I saw lest it harm me in my deen or this world or my livelihood. His refuge is inaccessible and His praise is glorious. There is no god but Him."
You must know the times. When trees are bearing its fruit at the time of yout dream, that is a strong dream and a source of hope and there is little delay in it. If the dream occurs when the fruits of the tree and its benefits have been plucked and the business occurs, then the dream is more penetrating and effective. It is sounder and more favourable. If the tree has put forth its leaves but its fruits have not yet come, thent he dream is less strong than what I have described. If its leaves have fallen and its fruits are gone, then the dream is weaker still. Confused dreams are frequent ar such times.
When someone comes to you wanting you to interpret his dream and it is about a fault which Allah has veiled, then do not give him an answer in it which he would not want another person to know. This is when he is afflicted and there is no trick on his part. Rather suggest it to him indirectly so that he can learn it, unless there is a way out of it for him or he insists on its being disclosed or desires it. Then warn him about that and veil it as Allah has commanded and veil what comes to you from the dream in the interpreting the secrets of the Muslims and their faults. Do not tell anyone about it except the dreamer himself. Do not discuss it with other people and do not name him if you do mention it. Do not relate a question from anyone regarding a dream if it contains some fault which he dislikes. If you do that, then you will have slandered the person.
Do not present your opinion in a question until you have investigated it and know its aspect, its outlet, its worth, and the different natures which I have described to you. In so doing, you will see how shaytan acts attempting to mix it up and confuse it for you, and how he inserts doubts and padding in it. If you refine and purify the dreams from these evils which I have described to you and you find what is sound, straight and agrees with wisdom in the interpretation, that then is its sound interpretation.
I heard that Ibn Sirin used to do that. When a dream was brought to him, he pondered it for a long time, asking the person with the dream about his state, himself, his work, his people, his livelihood, and what was common with him in all these questions and what he did not know. He did not omit anything. He drew conclusions from that and used it in the question by his pursuit of its science.
You penetrate into the knowledge of the dream by three types of knowledge which are necessary. The first of them is to know the basic principles, their meanings, their differences, and their strength and weakness in good or evil so that you know the weight of the interpretation and the weight of the principles and whether they are strong or weak, and what can be relied upon in the question presented to you. If it is a matter such that part of it indicates evil and part indicates good, then weigh the two matters and the two principles exactly according to the strength of each principle in interpretation. Then take the most likely and stronger one.
The second type is that you connect the principles to each other until you extricate the sound words about the substance according to the principles of interpretation and their strength and weakness and you discard the trivial parts, whims and sorrows of shaytan, and other things which I have described to you. It may become evident to you that it is not a true dream and you will not find its interpretation, and so you do not accept the dream.
The third sort is the intensity of your investigation and delving into the question which you do not recognise until you recognise it. You seek direction from other principles by the words of the one who had the dream. That is the strongest science of dream intepretation because they claim that the sciences of the principles are derived from that. The intepreter derives its interpretation through that means. If not, the result is more quickly attained by imitating past Prophets, Messengers and wise men in that, Allah willing.
Understand then! If you want to understand, then weigh the words of the dream as to what is strong and weak in it and then draw a conclusion about the matter. I heard that a woman asked Ibn Sirin about a dream. She had dreamt of a manacled, shackled man. He told her, "It is not true because the shackle (qayd) us constancy in the deen and belief while the manacle (ghull) is treachery and disbelief. The believer is not unbeliever." She said, "By Allah, I really did see this dream. I can almost see the manacle on his neck. It was a dog's wood collar." When he heard the dog's wood collar (sajur) mentioned, he said, "Yes, now I know it because the sajur is made of wood. In a dream, wood signifies hypocrisy in the deen. Allah said that the hypocrites are like 'propped-up wood' (53:4). The wood collar and manacle are together and each of them is interpreted as hypocrisy, treachery and disbelief. In interpretation, the two of them together are stronger than the fetter alone without supporting evidence. This is a man who lays false claim to a father and his people and claims to be an Arab but is not one of them." The woman exclaimed, "We belong to Allah and to Him we return!"
That is the case with each question which has additional testimony or something which indicates the identification of the interpretation as in the dream of Pharaoh which he recounted to the Prophet Yusuf, "I dreamt of seven fat cows eating seven lean ones, etc." The fat cows were the fertile years and the lean ones were barren years. He said that the seven green ears of wheat and the other dry ones are the above-mentioned years in the interpretation of these years, just as the wood collar attests to the manacle being identified as treachery and disbelief.
There is no type of knowledge and wisdom which is not needed in the interpretation of dreams, even mathematics, shares of inheritnace, judgements, Arabic and its strange words for the meaning of names, parables, laws of the deen and religious practices, the lawful and unlawful, the prayer, wudu', and other knowledges. Dispute in it is used as analogy and the meaning is taken from it. So the principles of commentary which you possess are more successful in intepretation than what the dreamer tells you to try to make you abandon the principles, even if you consider him to be a truthful, reliable person.
Know that none of the ancient principles of the dream have changed. Rather the states of people, their aspirations, their manners, and their preference for this world over the Next World has changed. That is why the principle whose interpretation involves the aspiration of man and his desire has changed. Previously that aspiration was his deen rather than his worldly life, and now that aspriation has been transferred from his deen and his preference for it in favour of his aspirations for this world and his possessions and affluence. It is the stronger of the two aspirations which people have today - except in the case of the people of the deen and those who make do with little of this world. The Companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, saw dates and intrepreted them as being sweetness in the deen. They saw honey and it was interpreted as the recitation of the Qur'an, knowledge and piety. The sweetness of that was in their hearts. Today that sweetness and aspiration in most people have moved to this world and its affluence except for the few whom I have described.