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Travel in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
السفر في المنام
In Islam, travelling in a dream announces a change first of all. The Ibn Sirin collection says that travel points to moving from one place to another and from one state to another. Whoever sees himself travelling crosses a land. Coming back from a journey announces paying off a right that is owed, and according to another opinion the end of worries. Some dreams announce a journey that is prevented.
السفر يدل على الانتقال من مكان إلى مكان وعلى الانتقال من حال إلى حالIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Travel points to moving from one place to another, and to moving from one state to another.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 55, vol. 2, p. 322
This sentence opens the chapter on travel, walking, jumping, flying and coming back from a journey. The collection adds that travel also points to measuring land: whoever sees himself travelling crosses a land, and whoever sees himself measuring a land sets out on a journey. The meaning therefore depends on what the dreamer leaves and where he is going.
The meaning according to what you saw
Travel appears in the chapter devoted to it (chapter 55, vol. 2) and in several other chapters of the Ibn Sirin collection. Here are the cases it describes, in the order of the text.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You travel with a dead person | Your affairs become confused for you.vol. 1, p. 115 |
| You see your head upside down while you want to travel | According to another opinion, an obstacle prevents you from leaving: you will not get what you wish for right away, but later. For a traveller far from home, it is the return to his country after a delay, when he does not expect it. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 137 |
| Your leg breaks while you want to travel | Stay and do not leave. If one of your legs becomes longer than the other, you set out on a journey.vol. 1, p. 213 |
| You see sawiq (flour of roasted grain) | A good religion and a journey on earth, according to the verse: “And take provisions, but indeed, the best provision is fear of Allah.”vol. 1, p. 216 |
| You ride a mule | You set out on a journey, because the mule is a mount for travel. Unless you have a fierce opponent, a cunning enemy or a dishonest servant: you will then defeat him.vol. 1, pp. 330 and 331 |
| A cloud rises from the earth to the sky and covers a town | According to some, it is good and a blessing. If the dreamer wants to travel, his journey takes place and he comes back safe and sound. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 48 |
| You wash with hot water while you want to travel | Do not travel.vol. 2, p. 107 |
| You jump from the earth until you come close to the sky | You travel until you reach Mecca.vol. 2, p. 322 |
| You fly through the air | According to some, flying announces a journey, if the dreamer needs one, because it is moving from one state to another. If your flight reaches its goal, you obtain something good during your journey. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, pp. 323 and 324 |
| You come back from a journey | You pay off a right that you owe. According to another opinion, it is the end of worries, safety and a blessing. This dream can also point to the dreamer’s repentance, because repentance is a return.vol. 2, pp. 324 and 325 |
| You make a big jump | A long journey. Jumping from one place to another is moving from one state to another.vol. 2, p. 325 |
| You say farewell | Farewells point, among other things, to travel: for a sick person, it is death; for a husband, divorce.vol. 2, p. 353 |
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 travelling in a dream mean in Islam?
Travel points to moving from one place to another and from one state to another (vol. 2, p. 322). The exact meaning depends on what you leave, your mount, your destination and your return.
What does travelling by plane, car or train mean in a dream in Islam?
The collection does not speak of planes, cars or trains. The closest case is flying through the air: according to some, it announces a journey, if the dreamer needs one, and if the flight reaches its goal, the dreamer obtains something good during his journey (vol. 2, pp. 323 and 324).
What does coming back from a journey mean in a dream?
Coming back from a journey means the dreamer pays off a right that he owes. According to another opinion, it is the end of worries and a blessing, according to the verse: “So they returned with favor from Allah and bounty.” It can also point to repentance (vol. 2, pp. 324 and 325).
Which dreams announce that a journey will be prevented?
For someone who wants to travel, the collection mentions a broken leg (“let him stay”), washing with hot water (“let him not travel”), the head upside down, according to one opinion, and seeing oneself sick, because the sick cannot move about (vol. 1, p. 199).
Does the meaning change for a married or a single woman?
The collection makes no such distinction for travel. It only distinguishes someone who wants to travel, someone who is already travelling far from home, the sick person and the husband.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 55, vol. 2, pp. 322 to 325; and passages from chapters 16, 22, 25, 26, 33, 38, 39 and 58 (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.