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Baby in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
الطفل في المنام
In Islam, seeing a baby in a dream has more than one meaning. The Ibn Sirin collection separates girls from boys. A little boy stands for a weak enemy, or for light worries. A little girl announces plenty and ease after hardship. Carrying a little boy means that you will have authority to manage.
وأما الصبي في التأويل فعدو ضعيف يظهر صداقة ثم يظهر عداوةIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “As for the little boy, in interpretation he is a weak enemy, who shows friendship and then shows hostility.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 21, vol. 1, p. 133
This sentence opens the passage of the collection on children, in the chapter on the people seen in dreams. The meaning changes with the child’s sex and with what you do with the child. The collection also explains why several births at once announce worry: children are only raised at the cost of many worries.
The meaning according to what you saw
Most cases come from chapter 21 of the collection, which deals with the people seen in dreams, from the old man to the little child. The others are taken from other chapters, with their page.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| A little boy | A weak enemy, who shows friendship and then hostility. According to another opinion, little boys announce light worries.vol. 1, p. 133 |
| A little girl | Plenty, relief and ease after hardship, which grows and increases.vol. 1, p. 133 |
| You carry a little boy | You will have authority to manage.vol. 1, p. 133 |
| Several children are born to you at once | Worry, because children are only raised at the cost of many worries.vol. 1, p. 133 |
| You have a young child who does not touch your body | A gain that you obtain, or spoils. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 133 |
| You become a child yourself | You lose some of your dignity. The dream also announces the end of a worry you are in.vol. 1, p. 133 |
| A man sees that a boy is born to him | A great worry. If a girl is born to him, he obtains a good.vol. 2, p. 313 |
| A woman nurses someone | The world closes for her, or she is held back, as a wet nurse stays seated while the child feeds. If she is pregnant, her pregnancy goes well.vol. 2, p. 342 |
| You kiss a little child | Affection between the child’s father and you.vol. 2, p. 342 |
| A cradle | A blessing, good and good deeds.vol. 2, p. 284 |
| A child gives the call to prayer | His parents are cleared of a lie or a slander, recalling the story of Jesus (peace be upon him).vol. 1, p. 83 |
| Your son dies | You are freed from an enemy. If it is your daughter who dies, you lose hope of a relief.vol. 1, p. 106 |
Ibn Sirin’s story about the crying child
رأيت كأن في حجري صبيا يصيح فقال اتق الله ولا تضرب بالعودA man came and told Ibn Sirin: “I saw in a dream a little boy crying out on my lap.” Ibn Sirin replied: “Fear Allah, and do not play the lute.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 21, vol. 1, p. 133
The collection does not explain Ibn Sirin’s reasoning. It keeps this story as an example of his method: the dream is read in the light of the dreamer’s conduct, and not only from the image.
Before you interpret your dream
Not every dream carries a meaning. The Prophet ﷺ described three kinds: a good dream, which is glad tidings from Allah; a distressing dream, which comes from Satan; and what a person tells himself during the day (Sahih Muslim, no. 2263). Only the first is read with a collection like Ibn Sirin’s. See the three kinds of dreams, and if your dream frightened you, what to do after a bad dream.
Frequently asked questions
Is seeing a baby in a dream good in Islam?
It depends on the child. The Ibn Sirin collection sees in a little girl plenty and ease after hardship. A little boy stands for a weak enemy, or according to another opinion light worries (vol. 1, p. 133).
What does a baby boy or a baby girl mean in a dream in Islam?
For a man, seeing that a boy is born to him announces a great worry, and a girl a good (vol. 2, p. 313). The collection keeps the same contrast for little children: the girl is a sign of plenty, the boy a weak enemy.
What does holding a baby in a dream mean in Islam?
The collection says that whoever sees himself carrying a little boy will have authority to manage (vol. 1, p. 133). It does not say whether the child is held in the arms or carried some other way.
What does a crying baby mean in a dream?
The collection gives no general rule on a baby’s crying. It only reports the dream of a man who saw a child crying out on his lap: Ibn Sirin told him to fear Allah and to stop playing the lute. This answer was aimed at that dreamer’s life.
Does the collection speak of twins or of a dead baby?
It does not speak of twins. It only says that several births at once announce worry. On death, it speaks of the son and not of the baby: the death of a son in a dream means being freed from an enemy (vol. 1, p. 106).
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 21, vol. 1, p. 133 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Same collection, vol. 1, pp. 83 and 106, and vol. 2, pp. 284, 313 and 342.
- Sahih Muslim, no. 2263, for the three kinds of dreams.
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.