Camel in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin

الجمل في المنام

In Islam, a camel in a dream most often stands for a man. The collection attributed to Ibn Sirin says: “Whoever owns camels subdues men of rank, and a single camel is a man.” Riding a camel announces a journey for a man in good health. The meaning changes a great deal with the state of the dreamer and what the animal does.

وأما من ملك إبلا فإنه يقهر رجالا لهم أقدار والجمل الواحد رجلIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Whoever owns camels subdues men of rank, and a single camel is a man.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 33, vol. 1, p. 347

This passage opens the part of the collection devoted to camels, in the chapter on horses, beasts of burden and herds. The collection adds that the camel can also stand for death, for an ignorant and hypocritical man, for a patient man who carries heavy loads, or for a ship, because camels are “the ships of the land”. For camel’s milk, see the page on milk.

The meaning according to what you saw

Here are the cases the collection describes, in the order of the text.

In your dream	Meaning in the collection
Camels enter a town without a load, or walk on the path of the animals	Clouds and rain.vol. 1, p. 347
You own camels	You subdue men of rank.vol. 1, p. 347
You ride a camel	For a sick man who rides it to travel, death: the camel is his bier. For a man in good health, a journey. But if he rides it in the middle of the town, or if the animal does not move, a sorrow and a worry that keep him from setting out, such as prison or illness. According to another opinion, riding an Arabian camel announces the hajj.vol. 1, pp. 348 and 350
A woman without a husband rides a camel	She marries. If her husband is away, he comes back. Unless the dream contains signs of evil and scandal: she then becomes known among people for it.vol. 1, p. 349
A camel slaughtered in a house	The master of the house dies if he is sick, or else his servant or his superior. If the meat is shared out and the bones separated, it is his inheritance. If it is slaughtered to be eaten and no one is sick, it is a store he opens to draw profit from it.vol. 1, p. 349
A camel in the middle of the town or of a crowd	A powerful man who is killed or who dies. Slaughtered, he is a victim of injustice. Skinned alive, he loses his authority, or is removed from it, and his wealth is taken.vol. 1, pp. 349 and 350
A camel eats meat, or runs over the houses and eats in each one	An epidemic among the people. If it chases people, it is a ruler, an enemy or a flood that harms them.vol. 1, p. 350
You fall from a camel, it kicks you or attacks you	Falling: poverty. Being kicked: an illness. Being attacked: an illness, a sorrow and a dispute with a man.vol. 1, pp. 350 and 351
You lead a camel by its halter to a known place	You guide a corrupt man towards good. According to another opinion, a leader submits to you. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 351
You take some camel hair	Lasting wealth.vol. 1, p. 351
Two camels fight	A war between two kings or two important men.vol. 1, p. 351
You touch a young camel	According to another opinion, touching a young camel, like any small child, is a sorrow and a preoccupation. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 1, p. 353

What Ibn Sirin answered about the she-camel

وحكي عن ابن سيرين أنه سئل عن رجل رأى ناقة فقال تتزوج وسأله آخر عن رجل رأى كأنه يسوق ناقة فقال منزلة وطاعة من امرأةIbn Sirin was asked about a man who had seen a she-camel. He replied: “You will marry.” Another asked him about a man who saw himself driving a she-camel. He replied: “A rank, and the obedience of a woman.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 33, vol. 1, p. 353

Just before, the collection recalls that the she-camel stands, among other things, for a woman, a year, a tree, a ship or a palm tree.

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 camel in a dream good or bad in Islam?

It depends on the dream. Owning camels means subduing men of rank, and taking some of their hair, lasting wealth. But the collection also gives heavy meanings: the death of a sick man who rides a camel to travel, an epidemic, the poverty of the one who falls from it (vol. 1, pp. 347 to 351).

What does riding a camel mean in a dream in Islam?

For a man in good health, a journey. For a sick man who rides it to travel, death. For a woman without a husband, a marriage. According to another opinion, riding an Arabian camel announces the hajj (vol. 1, pp. 348 to 350).

What does a camel chasing or attacking you mean in a dream in Islam?

The collection says that a camel chasing people is a ruler, an enemy or a flood that harms them (vol. 1, p. 350). If it attacks you, it is an illness, a sorrow and a dispute with a man.

What does a dead or slaughtered camel mean in a dream in Islam?

The collection does not speak of a camel that died by itself. Slaughtered in a house, it announces the death of the master of the house if he is sick, or of his servant or his superior. Slaughtered to be eaten, with no one sick in the house, it is a store one opens to draw profit from it (vol. 1, p. 349).

What does a white camel mean in a dream in Islam?

The collection gives no meaning to the colour of the camel. It distinguishes the she-camel, which stands for a woman or a year, and the young camel, which one touches, a sign of sorrow according to another opinion.

Sources

Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 33, vol. 1, pp. 347 to 353 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.