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Cow in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
البقرة في المنام
In Islam, a cow seen in a dream stands for a year. Ibn Sirin preferred fat cows to lean ones, because fat cows are years of plenty and lean ones years of scarcity, as in the story of Yusuf (peace be upon him). The collection also links the cow to money and to the wife. A blow from its horn announces a loss, a cow leaping on the dreamer a trial.
وكان ابن سيرين يقول سمان البقر لمن ملكها أحب إلي من المهازيل لأن السمان سنون خصبة والمهازيل سنون جدبةIbn Sirin said: “Ibn Sirin used to say: fat cows, for the one who owns them, are dearer to me than lean ones, because the fat ones are fertile years and the lean ones are years of drought.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 33, vol. 1, p. 339
Here Ibn Sirin relies on Surah Yusuf, where the king of Egypt sees seven fat cows eaten by seven lean cows. The collection in fact opens the passage with these words: “The cow is a year.” The meaning of a dream about a cow therefore depends first on its condition, fat or lean, then on what the dreamer does with it.
The cows in the dream of the Prophet ﷺ
The Prophet ﷺ saw cows in a dream that he interpreted himself, as Abu Musa reports:
رأيت في المنام أني أهاجر من مكة إلى أرض بها نخل فذهب وهلي إلى أنها اليمامة أو هجر فإذا هي المدينة يثرب ورأيت فيها بقرا والله خير فإذا هم المؤمنون يوم أحد“I saw in a dream that I was migrating from Mecca to a land where there were date palm trees. I thought that it might be the land of Al-Yamama or Hajar, but behold, it turned out to be Yathrib (i.e. Medina). And I saw cows (being slaughtered) there, but the reward given by Allah is better (than worldly benefits). Behold, those cows proved to symbolize the believers (who were killed) on the Day (of the battle) of Uhud…”
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 7035, narrated by Abu Musa al-Ash’ari
The Ibn Sirin collection cites this dream in the chapter on weapons, in a version where the cows are slaughtered: the Prophet ﷺ interprets them as those of his Companions who would be killed.
The meaning according to what you saw
The Ibn Sirin collection deals with the cow in the chapter on horses, beasts of burden and livestock. Here are the cases it describes, in the order of the text.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| A fat or lean cow | The cow is a year. Fat, a fertile year. Lean, a year of scarcity.vol. 1, p. 339 |
| A cow, according to another opinion | A rise in standing and money. A fat cow is a well-off woman, a lean one a poor woman. A milk cow is a good and useful woman. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 339 |
| A cow marked with white on the forehead, the flank or the hindquarters | A difficulty at the beginning of the year for the mark on the forehead, in the middle of the year for the flank, at the end of the year for the hindquarters. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 339 |
| A skinned cow | According to some, a misfortune among the relatives. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 339 |
| You eat beef | According to some, lawful money earned during the year, because the cow is a year. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 340 |
| You buy a fat cow | Governing a prosperous town, if the dreamer is worthy of it.vol. 1, p. 340 |
| You receive a cow | An estate obtained from an important man. For an unmarried man, marriage to a blessed woman. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 340 |
| You ride a cow, or it enters your home and you tie it up | Wealth, joy and relief from worries.vol. 1, p. 340 |
| A cow strikes you with its horn | A loss. The dreamer is not safe from the people of his house and his relatives.vol. 1, p. 340 |
| A cow scratches you or leaps on you | Scratched: an illness in proportion to the scratch. If the cow leaps on you: a trial and a punishment, and the author fears that you may be killed.vol. 1, p. 341 |
| Cows enter a town, one after the other | Years that come upon people: fat, ease; lean, difficulties. All yellow, illnesses.vol. 1, pp. 341 and 342 |
| You milk a cow and drink its milk, or you are given a calf | The poor man becomes rich, the rich man gains in wealth and honour. A calf received announces a child. A pregnant cow is a year of hoped-for plenty.vol. 1, p. 342 |
Ibn Sirin’s story about the slaughtered cow
أن رجلا أتى ابن سيرين فقال رأيت كأني أذبح بقرة أو ثورا فقال أخاف أن تبقر رجلا فإن رأيت دما خرج فهو أشدIt is reported that a man came to Ibn Sirin and said: “I saw that I was slaughtering a cow or a bull.” He replied: “I fear that you will rip a man’s belly open. If you saw blood flowing, it is more serious.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 33, vol. 1, p. 343
Ibn Sirin adds that without blood, it is lighter. Here he links the word baqara, “cow”, to the verb baqara, “to rip open the belly”: an example of his method, which sometimes draws the meaning from the very name of the thing seen.
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 cow in a dream good or bad in Islam?
It depends above all on its condition. A fat cow announces a year of plenty, a lean cow a difficult year, according to Ibn Sirin (vol. 1, p. 339). A cow that enters your home brings wealth and joy, a blow from its horn announces a loss.
What does a cow attacking you mean in a dream in Islam?
According to the collection, a blow from the horn announces a loss, and the dreamer is not safe from his relatives. A cow that scratches announces an illness, and a cow that leaps on the dreamer a trial and a punishment (vol. 1, pp. 340 and 341).
What does milking a cow mean in a dream?
Milking a cow and drinking its milk makes the poor man rich and increases the wealth and honour of the rich man (vol. 1, p. 342). For cow’s milk itself, see the page on milk: a year of plenty and lawful wealth.
What does a white, black or brown cow mean in a dream in Islam?
The collection gives no meaning of its own to a white, black or brown cow. It says that the colours of cows are interpreted like those of horses, and that cows all yellow entering a town announce illnesses. It also speaks of white marks on the forehead or the flank, a sign of difficulty.
Does the meaning change for a married woman, a single woman or a pregnant woman?
The collection does not distinguish the married woman, the single woman or the pregnant woman for the cow. It cites only one case linked to status: an unmarried man who receives a cow marries a blessed woman (vol. 1, p. 340). The rest applies to everyone.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 33, vol. 1, pp. 339 to 343 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Interpretation of Dreams, no. 7035 (English translation by Muhammad Muhsin Khan).
- Sahih Muslim, no. 2263, for the three kinds of dreams.
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.