Home › Dream dictionary › Slaughtering
Slaughtering in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
الذبح في المنام
In Islam, the meaning of a slaughtering dream depends on the intention. The sacrifice (al-udhiya) announces relief from every worry and baraka. Slaughtering an animal to eat its meat often announces money. Slaughtering what may not be slaughtered points to injustice. Slaughtering a ram without knowing why, outside the Sunna: the dreamer kills a man, oppresses him or torments him. For a slaughtered cow, Ibn Sirin judged spilt blood more serious.
وأما الأضحية فبشارة بالفرج من جميع الهموم وظهور البركةIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “As for the sacrifice, it is glad tidings of relief from every worry and of baraka appearing.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 14, vol. 1, p. 102
The collection bases this meaning on the Qur’an, which gave Ibrahim (peace be upon him) glad tidings of the birth of Ishaq and of blessing. In its introduction, it also recalls that Ibrahim saw in a dream that he was sacrificing his son, and that on waking he followed the command he had received, as the verse says: “O my son, indeed I have seen in a dream that I [must] sacrifice you” (Surah as-Saffat, 37:102).
The meaning according to what you saw
The Ibn Sirin collection speaks of the sacrifice in the chapter on hajj and offerings, then of slaughtering each animal in the chapter on livestock. Here are the cases it describes.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You offer a sacrifice: a camel, a cow or a ram | Relief from every worry, and baraka. If the dreamer’s wife is pregnant, she gives birth to a righteous son. Sacrificing a camel, a cow or a ram: the dreamer frees slaves. The slave is freed, the captive released, the debtor sees his debt paid, the poor man becomes rich, the frightened one is made safe, the one who has never made hajj performs it, the fighter is given victory and the distressed one is relieved.vol. 1, p. 102 |
| You share out the meat of your sacrifice, or you steal part of an offering | Sharing the meat among people: you come out of your worries and gain power and honour. Stealing part of an offering: you lie about Allah.vol. 1, p. 102 |
| A sick person offers a sacrifice | According to some, his dream points to his death. According to others, he will meet misery.vol. 1, p. 102 |
| You see the Feast of Sacrifice (Eid al-Adha) | The return of a past joy and safety from ruin, because it was on that day that Isma’il was ransomed from the sacrifice.vol. 1, p. 102 |
| You slaughter a ram | Without knowing why: you overcome a man by surprise, or you testify against him truthfully, if the slaughter follows the Sunna, facing the qibla, in the name of Allah. Otherwise, you kill a man, oppress him or torment him. As a sacrifice: repentance, a debt paid, a vow fulfilled.vol. 1, pp. 355 and 356 |
| You slaughter a cow or an ox | A man told this dream to Ibn Sirin, who replied: “I fear that you will slit a man’s belly open. If you saw blood flow, it is more serious, and I fear it may reach a fatal point. If you did not see blood, it is less serious.”vol. 1, p. 343 |
| You slaughter a bull | If the dreamer is a ruler, he kills one of his officials or someone who rebelled against him. For others, he subdues a man he fears and overcomes him, and he causes a man’s death through testimony he gives against him.vol. 1, p. 344 |
| A camel slaughtered in a house | The master of the house dies if he is ill, or his servant, his slave or his chief dies, especially if the meat is shared out and the bones separated: it is then his inheritance. If the camel was slaughtered to be eaten and no one is ill, it is a store that is opened to draw profit from it.vol. 1, p. 349 |
| You slaughter a she-donkey to eat its meat | Money and ease. If the dreamer slaughters it without intending to eat it, he spoils his own livelihood.vol. 2, pp. 413 and 414 |
| You slaughter an animal that may not lawfully be slaughtered | A sign of the dreamer’s injustice and of confusion in his deeds between himself and Allah.vol. 1, p. 301 |
| An ox is slaughtered in a neighbourhood and its meat shared out | A calamity: an important man dies and his wealth is shared out. The same goes for the camel, the ram and the calf. If the animal is slaughtered in another way and its meat goes to the dreamer’s cooking pot, it is provision if he eats it.vol. 2, p. 345 |
| You slaughter a rooster | Whoever slaughters a rooster does not answer the muezzin. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 405 |
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
What does slaughtering a sheep in a dream mean in Islam?
The collection speaks of the ram. Slaughtered as a sacrifice, it announces repentance, a debt paid and a vow fulfilled. Slaughtered without knowing why, it announces victory over a man if the slaughter follows the Sunna. Otherwise, the dreamer kills a man, oppresses him or torments him (vol. 1, pp. 355 and 356).
Does blood flowing during the slaughter change the meaning?
Yes, for Ibn Sirin. To a man who had slaughtered a cow or an ox in a dream, he said that flowing blood makes the dream more serious, and that the absence of blood makes it less serious (vol. 1, p. 343). The collection does not give this rule for other animals.
What does slaughtering someone in a dream mean in Islam?
In the chapter on disputes, the collection says: “As for slaughtering, it is disobedience (al-‘uqûq) and injustice” (vol. 2, p. 331). The other cases, such as slaughtering a known person or seeing a person slaughtered, are covered on the page about killing someone.
Is dreaming of the Eid sacrifice a good sign?
Yes. The sacrifice announces relief from every worry and baraka. Seeing the Feast of Sacrifice announces the return of a past joy and safety, because Isma’il was ransomed on that day (vol. 1, p. 102). The sick person who sacrifices is an exception: according to some, this dream announces his death. Stealing part of an offering means lying about Allah.
What does slaughtering a rooster or a chicken in a dream mean?
According to one opinion quoted in the collection, whoever slaughters a rooster does not answer the muezzin (vol. 1, p. 405). The page about the rooster gives the other meanings of this bird.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 14, vol. 1, p. 102, and chapter 33, vol. 1, pp. 343 to 356 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Same collection, vol. 1, pp. 35, 301 and 405, and vol. 2, pp. 331, 345, 413 and 414.
- Sahih Muslim, no. 2263, for the three kinds of dreams.
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.