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Key in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
المفتاح في المنام
In Islam, a key seen in a dream is a good sign in the Ibn Sirin collection. It announces standing with those in power, wealth, wisdom and piety. Finding keys gives power and wealth in proportion to what is found. Opening a door with a key is a prayer that is answered. The Prophet ﷺ himself saw in a dream the keys of the treasures of the earth.
وأما المفتاح فإنه دال على تقدم عند السلطان والمال والحكمة والصلاحIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “The key points to a high standing with the ruler, to wealth, wisdom and piety.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 49, vol. 2, p. 297
The collection bases this meaning on the Qur’an. Allah says: “To Him belong the keys of the heavens and the earth” (Qur’an 39:63), that is, their power and their treasures. And He says of the treasures of Qarun that their keys “would burden a band of strong men” (Qur’an 28:76). The key is therefore what gives access to power and wealth. The collection adds a simple rule: “every closing is a worry, and every opening a relief.”
The keys of the treasures of the earth in the hadith
Abu Hurayra reports that he heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:
بعثت بجوامع الكلم، ونصرت بالرعب، وبينا أنا نائم أتيت بمفاتيح خزائن الأرض، فوضعت في يدي“I have been sent with Jawami al-Kalim (i.e., the shortest expression carrying the widest meanings), and I was made victorious with awe (cast into the hearts of the enemy), and while I was sleeping, the keys of the treasures of the earth were brought to me and were put in my hand.”
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 7013, narrated by Abu Hurayra
This dream of the Prophet ﷺ agrees with what the collection says: keys seen in a dream are linked to power and riches.
The meaning according to what you saw
The passage on keys and locks is in the chapter on the furniture and tools of the house. Here are the cases it describes, in the order of the text.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You open a lock | The unmarried man marries. The prisoner is freed through prayer. The one in a lawsuit wins. The poor man receives a living, through a wife, a partnership or a journey. The judge or the mufti finds the answer that escaped him. It can also mean separating a husband and wife or two partners, rightly or wrongly, depending on the dream.vol. 2, p. 296 |
| You see a key | Standing with the ruler, wealth, wisdom and piety.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| The key of Paradise | Great authority in religion, many good deeds, or a treasure and lawful wealth received as an inheritance.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| You keep the key of the Kaaba | You become the chamberlain of a great ruler or of an imam.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| Several keys, a bunch of keys | Power, wealth and great fortune.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| You find one or several keys | You obtain power and wealth, in proportion to what you found.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| You open a door with a key | A prayer that is answered, for you, your parents or others. You get what you seek with someone’s help, just as a door does not open without the hand that turns the key.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| You open a tower with a key and go in | Great relief and great good, through prayer and the help of others.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| You lock a door with a padlock, or open it | Locking: giving a guarantor. Opening: relief and the end of a surety.vol. 2, p. 297 |
| An iron key | A man of great strength.vol. 2, p. 298 |
| You open a door or a lock | Victory, after the verse: “victory from Allah and an imminent conquest” (Qur’an 61:13).vol. 2, p. 298 |
| You open a chest with a key and take precious stones out of it | You question a scholar, because the scholar is a treasure and its key is the question.vol. 2, p. 154 |
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 key in a dream a good sign in Islam?
Yes. The Ibn Sirin collection links the key to standing, wealth, wisdom and piety. The Prophet ﷺ saw in a dream the keys of the treasures of the earth placed in his hand (al-Bukhari, 7013). The collection adds that every opening is a relief.
What does finding or receiving keys in a dream mean in Islam?
According to the collection, whoever finds one or several keys obtains power and wealth, in proportion to what he found (vol. 2, p. 297). The text does not speak of a key given by a particular person.
What does opening a door with a key mean in a dream?
It is a prayer that is answered, for the dreamer, his parents or others. He gets what he seeks with someone’s help. Opening a door or a lock also announces victory, after Qur’an 61:13.
What does a broken or lost key mean in a dream in Islam?
The collection speaks neither of a broken key, nor of a lost key, nor of a car key. The cases it describes are a key seen or found, the key of Paradise and of the Kaaba, the iron key, and opening a door, a tower, a chest or a lock.
Is the meaning different for a married woman, a single woman or a pregnant woman?
The collection does not distinguish the married or pregnant woman for the key. It mentions the unmarried man who opens a lock: he marries (vol. 2, p. 296). The other meanings apply to everyone according to their situation: the prisoner, the litigant, the poor man, the judge.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 49, vol. 2, pp. 296 to 298 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Same collection, chapter 40, vol. 2, p. 154, for the chest opened with a key.
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Interpretation of Dreams, no. 7013 (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.