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Shirt in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
القميص في المنام
In Islam, a shirt seen in a dream points to the dreamer’s state in his earnings, his provision and his religion. Anything added to the shirt or missing from it touches these areas. The Prophet ﷺ interpreted the shirts he saw on people in his dream as religion. A white shirt is religion and goodness, a shirt with a torn collar is poverty.
وقميص الرجل شأنه في مكسبه ومعيشته ودينهIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “A man’s shirt is his state in his earnings, his livelihood and his religion.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 29, vol. 1, p. 250
The collection adds at once: “Whatever he sees in it, more or less, relates to that.” It then quotes two other opinions, both based on the Qur’an, and reports the dream of the Prophet ﷺ about shirts.
Shirts and religion in the hadith
Abu Sa’id al-Khudri reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
بينما أنا نائم رأيت الناس يعرضون علي، وعليهم قمص، منها ما يبلغ الثدي، ومنها ما يبلغ دون ذلك، ومر علي عمر بن الخطاب وعليه قميص يجره. قالوا: ما أولت يا رسول الله؟ قال: الدين“While I was sleeping, some people were displayed before me (in a dream). They were wearing shirts, some of which were merely covering their breasts, and some a bit longer. Then there passed before me, ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab wearing a shirt he was dragging it (on the ground behind him.)” They (the people) asked, “What have you interpreted (about the dream) O Allah’s Apostle?” He said, “The Religion.”
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 7008, narrated by Abu Sa’id al-Khudri
The Ibn Sirin collection reports this dream in the middle of its passage on the shirt.
The meaning according to what you saw
The collection speaks of the shirt in the chapter on clothes, then in a few other passages. Here are the cases it describes, in the order of the text.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| The shirt, according to another opinion | Good news, from the words of Yusuf (Joseph), peace be upon him: “Take this, my shirt.” (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 250 |
| The shirt, according to a third opinion | For a man, a wife, and for a woman, a husband, from the verse: “They are clothing for you and you are clothing for them.” (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 250 |
| Your shirt comes unstitched | The dreamer separates from his wife.vol. 1, p. 250 |
| You wear a shirt without sleeves | A sound state in religion, but the dreamer has no wealth and cannot work, because the sleeves stand for what the hand owns.vol. 1, p. 250 |
| The collar of your shirt is torn | A sign of poverty.vol. 1, p. 250 |
| You have many shirts | Many good deeds, which will earn him a great reward in the Hereafter.vol. 1, p. 250 |
| A white shirt | Religion and goodness.vol. 1, p. 250 |
| A woman wears a new, thick and loose shirt | A good state in her religion and in her life, and a good state for her husband.vol. 1, p. 251 |
| A linen shirt | An honourable living and lawful wealth.vol. 1, p. 257 |
| A worn or torn shirt | For a woman who sees her shirt worn and short, it is dishonour: what covered her is exposed. The one who tears his shirt on himself quarrels with his family and loses his livelihood.vol. 1, p. 258 |
| Blood on your shirt | If the dreamer does not know where this blood comes from, people lie about him without his knowing, as in the story of Yusuf (Joseph), peace be upon him.vol. 1, p. 292 |
| A knot tied on the shirt | A business contract.vol. 2, p. 338 |
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 a shirt mean in a dream in Islam?
According to the Ibn Sirin collection, a man’s shirt is his state in his earnings, his livelihood and his religion. Whatever is added to it or missing from it touches these areas (vol. 1, p. 250). The Prophet ﷺ interpreted the shirts in his dream as religion (al-Bukhari, 7008).
What does wearing a white shirt in a dream mean in Islam?
The collection says that a white shirt is religion and goodness (vol. 1, p. 250). It makes no difference between a man and a woman dreamer.
Is a torn shirt in a dream bad in Islam?
Yes, in the cases the collection quotes. A torn collar is a sign of poverty, a shirt that comes unstitched announces separation from one’s wife, and tearing one’s shirt on oneself announces a quarrel with one’s family and the loss of one’s livelihood.
What does a new shirt mean in a dream?
For a woman, a new, thick and loose shirt announces a good state in her religion, in her life and for her husband (vol. 1, p. 251). More broadly, the collection says that new clothes announce ease and joy.
Does the collection speak of buying a shirt or of a blue shirt?
No. The passage on the shirt deals neither with buying one nor with the colour blue. It speaks only of the white shirt, and, for clothes in general, it says that blue is worry and sadness.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 29, vol. 1, pp. 250 to 258; chapter 31, vol. 1, p. 292; chapter 58, vol. 2, p. 338 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Interpretation of Dreams, no. 7008 (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.