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The Qur’an in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
القرآن في المنام
In Islam, dreaming of the Qur’an is most often a good sign in the Ibn Sirin collection. According to this collection, the one who recites it by heart returns what is entrusted to him and stands firm on the truth. Hearing it announces stronger authority and a good end, completing it the success of what you want. Each surah has its own meaning. Selling, burning or stealing a mushaf, however, is a bad sign.
فإن رأى كأنه يقرأ القرآن ظاهرا فإنه يكون مؤديا للأمانات مستقيما على الحق يأمر بالمعروف وينهى عن المنكرIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Whoever sees himself reciting the Qur’an by heart returns what is entrusted to him, stands firm on the truth, enjoins what is right and forbids what is wrong.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 5, vol. 1, p. 74
These words are from Abu Sa’id, the author of the collection, in chapter 5, which is devoted to the Qur’an. He bases them on the verse: “…reciting the verses of Allah […] they enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong”. Just before, he sets out the rule of the chapter: if the verse read in the dream speaks of mercy, the dreamer is given good news of mercy and blessing. If it speaks of punishment, he is warned against a sin he is committing or planning.
The meaning according to what you saw
The Ibn Sirin collection devotes its chapter 5 to the Qur’an. It first goes through the surahs one by one, then speaks of the mushaf and of recitation. Here are first the cases of the mushaf and of listening, then the surahs people search for most.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You read from a mushaf | You obtain wisdom, honour, renown and sound religion. In interpretation, the mushaf is wisdom.vol. 1, p. 74 |
| You buy a mushaf | Your knowledge of the religion spreads among people and you do good.vol. 1, pp. 74-75 |
| You sell, burn or steal a mushaf | Selling a mushaf: you take on shameful deeds. Burning it: you corrupt your religion. Stealing it: you forget the prayer.vol. 1, p. 75 |
| You kiss the mushaf | You do not fall short in your obligations.vol. 1, p. 75 |
| You hear the Qur’an | Your authority grows stronger and your end will be good.vol. 1, p. 75 |
| Your mushaf is taken from you | Your knowledge is taken away from you and your deeds in this world come to an end.vol. 1, p. 75 |
| The Qur’an is recited to you and you do not understand it | Something unpleasant reaches you, either from Allah or from those in power.vol. 1, pp. 75-76 |
| You complete the reading of the Qur’an | You obtain what you want and your good increases.vol. 1, p. 76 |
| You recite al-Fatiha or Surah al-Baqarah | Al-Fatiha: the doors of good open for you and the doors of evil close. Al-Baqarah: a long life and sound religion.vol. 1, p. 68 |
| You recite Surah Ya-Sin | You are granted love for the family of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.vol. 1, p. 70 |
| You recite Surah al-Ikhlas | You obtain what you hope for, your renown grows and you are protected from slips in the oneness of Allah. According to another opinion, the number of people you support decreases and your life becomes pleasant. It has also been said that reciting it announces that the end of life is near. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 74 |
| You recite al-Falaq or an-Nas | Al-Falaq: Allah keeps away from you the harm of people, jinn, harmful creatures and the envious. An-Nas: you are protected from trials and kept safe from Satan, his troops and their whisperings.vol. 1, p. 74 |
The dream of the mushaf interpreted by Ibn Sirin
وحكي أن امرأة رأت كأن في حجرها مصحفا وهي تقرأ منه فجاءت فروجتان تلتقطان كل كتابة فيه حتى استوفتا جميع كتابته أكلا فقصت رؤياها على ابن سيرين فقال ستلدين ابنين يحفظان القرآن فكان كذلكA woman saw in a dream a mushaf on her lap, and she was reading from it. Two chicks came and pecked at all the writing in the mushaf, until they had eaten every bit of it. She told her dream to Ibn Sirin, who said to her: “You will give birth to two sons who will learn the Qur’an by heart.” And so it was.
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 5, vol. 1, p. 76
Ibn Sirin reads the two chicks as two children, and swallowing the writing as keeping the Qur’an in memory.
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 reading or reciting the Qur’an in a dream mean in Islam?
According to the collection, reciting the Qur’an by heart shows a man who returns what is entrusted to him, stands firm on the truth, enjoins what is right and forbids what is wrong. Reading from a mushaf brings wisdom, honour, renown and sound religion (vol. 1, p. 74).
What does hearing the Qur’an in a dream mean in Islam?
The one who hears the Qur’an sees his authority grow stronger and will have a good end (vol. 1, p. 75). The collection sets apart the one to whom the Qur’an is recited without his understanding it: something unpleasant reaches him, from Allah or from those in power.
What does reciting the Qur’an to jinn in a dream mean?
In its chapter on the jinn, the collection says that the one who teaches the Qur’an to the jinn, or whom they listen to reciting it, receives a position of leadership and authority (vol. 1, p. 127). It quotes the verse: “Say, [O Muhammad], ‘It has been revealed to me that a group of the jinn listened…’”
Is dreaming of a burning Qur’an bad?
The collection speaks of the one who burns a mushaf himself: he corrupts his religion. Selling a mushaf means taking on shameful deeds, and stealing it means forgetting the prayer (vol. 1, p. 75). The collection also reports that a reciter dreamed he was tearing out the pages of the mushaf himself, one by one, and laying them on a fire whose flame died down. An interpreter saw in it a trial coming from those in power, which his recitation would calm (vol. 1, p. 76).
What does Surah al-Kahf mean in a dream?
The collection gives a meaning to each surah. For al-Kahf, the dreamer obtains what he hopes for and lives long, until he grows tired of life and wishes for death (vol. 1, p. 69). For al-Mulk, his possessions grow (vol. 1, p. 71).
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 5, vol. 1, pp. 67 to 76; chapter 20, vol. 1, p. 127 (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.