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Fruits in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
الفاكهة في المنام
In Islam, dreaming of sweet fruit seen in its season is generally a good sign. The collection attributed to Ibn Sirin says that every sweet fruit is provision, wealth and good, except black grapes and figs. It adds that yellow fruit announces an illness and sour fruit worry and sadness. Green fruit is not an illness.
وكل ثمر حلو سوى ما وصفت مما يغلب عليه صفرة اللون أو يكون حامضا لم يدرك في وقته المعروف فإنه رزق ومال وخيرIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Every sweet fruit, apart from what I have described, that which is mostly yellow in colour or is sour and has not ripened in its known season, is provision, wealth and good.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 43, vol. 2, p. 218
The collection deals with fruit in chapter 43, the chapter on fruit trees and their fruit. It sets out this general rule, and the same sentence then ends with an exception: “except black grapes and figs, for there is no good in them in any case”. Colour, taste and season therefore count as much as the fruit itself.
The meaning according to what you saw
The sentences on fruit in general are scattered through chapter 43, between the passages given to each fruit. Here are the cases the collection describes, with the page of each one.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| Sweet fruit, in its season | Provision, wealth and good. This good lasts as long as that fruit lasts among other fruits. The collection makes an exception for black grapes and figs, “with no good in them in any case”.vol. 2, p. 218 |
| Yellow, sour or green fruit | Yellow fruit is an illness. Sour fruit is worry and sadness. Green fruit is not an illness.vol. 2, p. 216 |
| Fruit found in every season, such as dried dates or raisins | They are good. Fruits found only in one season are good in their season, except those that carry a disliked name or an ugly story. Out of their season, their outcome is bad.vol. 2, p. 208-209 |
| You obtain fruit | There is no harm in it in its season, if it carries one of the goods described: provision, religion or knowledge. If you think in the dream that it comes from Paradise, it is knowledge and religion, without any doubt.vol. 2, p. 218 |
| You pick fruit from a tree while sitting | Wealth that comes to you without effort or fatigue.vol. 2, p. 218 |
| You pick a fruit from the tree | You receive knowledge from a scholar.vol. 2, p. 221 |
| You gather fruit at the foot of the tree | A dispute with a man. Another passage says: you dispute with a man of noble rank and you win.vol. 2, p. 221 and 348 |
| Fruit, for a poor person, a rich person or someone who is afraid | For the poor, wealth. For the rich, more wealth. For the one who is afraid, safety. The collection bases this on two verses of the Qur’an. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 221 |
| Fresh fruit or dried fruit | Fresh fruit is provision that does not last, because it spoils quickly. Dried fruit is abundant and lasting provision. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 221-222 |
| Fruit is scattered over you | You become known for your piety and your goodness.vol. 2, p. 222 |
| People eat the fruit of trees in a house | If this fruit announces good and provision, it is a festive meal. If it is among the fruits that announce grief, it is a meal of mourning.vol. 2, p. 203-204 |
| Angels hold trays of fruit | The dreamer leaves this world as a martyr. The collection quotes this case in the chapter on angels.vol. 1, p. 63 |
Ibn Sirin’s story about the pomegranate
هي امرأة تتزوجها فإن أكلتها فجيدA man came and said to Ibn Sirin: “I saw a pomegranate in my hand.” He replied: “It is a woman you will marry. If you eat it, that is good.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 43, vol. 2, p. 222
In the same passage, the collection says that a sweet pomegranate is wealth gathered, and a sour pomegranate worry and affliction.
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 fruits in a dream a good sign in Islam?
Often, yes. The Ibn Sirin collection says that every sweet fruit, in its season, is provision, wealth and good. It makes an exception for black grapes and figs, and it gives a negative meaning to yellow fruit (illness) and sour fruit (worry and sadness).
What does eating or receiving fruit in a dream mean in Islam?
The collection speaks mostly of obtaining fruit: there is no harm in it in its season, and if it seems to come from Paradise, it is knowledge and religion. When people eat the fruit of trees in a house, it is a festive meal if the fruit is good, a meal of mourning if it announces grief (vol. 2, pp. 203 and 204).
What does dried fruit mean in a dream?
According to an opinion quoted by the collection, dried fruit is abundant and lasting provision, while fresh fruit is provision that does not last, because it spoils quickly (vol. 2, pp. 221 and 222).
What does plucking or gathering fruit in a dream mean in Islam?
Picking a fruit from the tree is receiving knowledge from a scholar. Picking it while sitting is wealth obtained without fatigue. Gathering fruit at the foot of the tree announces a dispute with a man (vol. 2, p. 221). Another passage adds: with a man of noble rank, and you win (p. 348).
What about red fruit, rotten fruit or mango?
The collection speaks neither of red fruit, nor of rotten fruit, nor of mango. It only distinguishes yellow fruit, a sign of illness, sour fruit, a sign of worry, and green fruit, which is not an illness. What you read elsewhere about these cases does not come from this text.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 43, vol. 2, pp. 203 to 222 and p. 348, chapter 3, vol. 1, p. 63 (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.