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Sickness in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
المرض في المنام
In Islam, dreaming that you are sick is not a good sign for your religion. The Ibn Sirin collection says that whoever sees himself sick finds his religion corrupted, but he does not die that year. According to another opinion, illnesses concern the religion while announcing health of the body. The meaning changes with the illness and the dreamer’s situation.
ومن رأى أنه مريض فسد دينه ولا يموت تلك السنةIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Whoever sees that he is sick, his religion becomes corrupted, and he does not die that year.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 58, vol. 2, p. 356
This sentence is found in the chapter on miscellaneous subjects. The collection also devotes a whole chapter, the 25th, to illnesses and disabilities. The same idea appears there: an illness seen in a dream first touches the dreamer’s religion. On this point the collection quotes the verse: “In their hearts is disease.” But the same chapter reports more favourable opinions, and it makes a distinction between the sick person, the traveller, the fighter and the rich man.
The meaning according to what you saw
Here are the cases described in the chapter on illnesses of the Ibn Sirin collection (chapter 25, vol. 1), in the order of the text.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You have a fever | According to Abu Sa’id, fever is not praised: it announces death. Whoever is seen with a fever gets involved in a matter that corrupts his religion. According to another opinion, he will live long, be in good health and have more wealth.vol. 1, p. 197 |
| You have scabies | Without fluid, it is worry and fatigue coming from relatives. With fluid, it is money earned through effort.vol. 1, p. 197 |
| You faint | There is no good in this dream; it is not praised in interpretation.vol. 1, p. 198 |
| Illnesses in general, according to another opinion | They touch the religion, according to the verse: “In their hearts is disease”, but they announce health of the body. For someone at war, it is a wound. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 198 |
| You see your wife sick | Her religion becomes better.vol. 1, p. 199 |
| A sick person drinks fresh water, wears a crown, or climbs a fruit tree or the top of a mountain | Signs of healing and good health for the sick person.vol. 1, p. 199 |
| You see yourself weakened by an illness | Little religion.vol. 1, p. 199 |
| Illness seen in a dream, according to another opinion | Joy, victory and a gain of money for someone who is in distress. For the rich, it is need, because a sick person is in need. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 199 |
| You want to travel and you see yourself sick | An obstacle prevents you from leaving, because the sick cannot move about.vol. 1, p. 199 |
| You are struck with leprosy | Your deeds are cancelled because of your boldness towards Allah. You are also accused of something shameful of which you are innocent.vol. 1, p. 199 |
| You have a cold illness or a hot illness | A cold illness: you neglect the duties of worship and the rights of others, and the punishment of Allah has reached you. A hot illness: a worry that comes from the ruler.vol. 1, p. 200 |
| You have an illness of the head or a headache | An illness of the head points first to the dreamer’s chief. According to another opinion, a headache is a sin from which one must repent, with a good deed, according to the verse about whoever has an ailment of the head and makes up for it with fasting, charity or a sacrifice.vol. 1, p. 200 |
Ibn Sirin’s story about leprosy
أن رجلا أى ابن سيرين فقال رأيت كأني مجذوم فقال أنت رجل يشار إليك بأمر قبيح وأنت منه برئA man came to Ibn Sirin and said: “I saw in a dream that I was a leper.” He replied: “You are a man who is pointed at for something shameful, and you are innocent of it.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 25, vol. 1, p. 200
The Arabic text has a misprint at the start of the story (“أى” for “أتى”, he came); it does not change the meaning.
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 sickness in a dream a bad sign in Islam?
For the religion, yes: whoever sees himself sick finds his religion corrupted, but he does not die that year (vol. 2, p. 356). The collection also quotes more favourable opinions: health of the body, or joy and gain for someone who is in distress.
What does a skin disease mean in a dream in Islam?
Scabies without fluid is worry and fatigue coming from relatives; with fluid, it is money earned through effort (vol. 1, p. 197). For leprosy, Ibn Sirin told a dreamer that he was accused of something shameful of which he was innocent.
What does seeing a sick person in a dream mean in Islam?
The only relative named is the wife: whoever sees his wife sick, her religion becomes better (vol. 1, p. 199). According to another opinion, seeing scabies or white patches on the skin (al-baras) on another person is not praised in interpretation (vol. 1, p. 197). The collection gives no meaning for a sick parent, child or friend.
Does the collection speak of a deadly disease or cancer?
No, it does not speak of cancer. Among the unfavourable cases: fever, which announces death according to Abu Sa’id, fainting, in which there is no good, and leprosy, which cancels deeds. According to another opinion, fever on the contrary announces a long life and good health.
Which dreams announce the healing of a sick person?
According to the collection, a sick person who drinks fresh water, wears a crown, or climbs a fruit tree or the top of a mountain sees signs of healing and good health (vol. 1, p. 199).
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 25, vol. 1, pp. 197 to 200; chapter 58, vol. 2, p. 356 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Sahih Muslim, no. 2263, for the three kinds of dreams.
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.