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Climbing in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
الصعود في المنام
In Islam, climbing in a dream is usually a good sign. The Ibn Sirin collection says that every climb, up a slope, a hill or a roof, means you obtain what you are seeking. It makes one exception: climbing straight up, sheer, is toil with no good in it. Coming down from a hill, a palace or a mountain means the matter you seek falls through, though other passages give another meaning.
وكل صعود يراه الإنسان على عقبة أو تل أو سطح أو غير ذلك فإنه نيل ما هو طالب من قضاء الحاجة التي يريدهاIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Every climb a person sees, up a slope, a hill, a roof or anything else, means obtaining what he is seeking: the need he wants fulfilled.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 39, vol. 2, p. 67
The collection gives this general rule in the chapter on the earth and mountains. It comes back to it in the chapter on opposites, which sets climbing against coming down. Stairs, the mountain, the sky and the upper room have their own pages: this page gathers the other cases of climbing.
Climbing and holding the handhold, in the hadith
Al-Bukhari reports, through a chain that includes Muhammad ibn Sirin, that Abdullah ibn Salam told this dream:
إنما رأيت كأنما عمود وضع في روضة خضراء، فنصب فيها، وفي رأسها عروة، وفي أسفلها منصف، والمنصف الوصيف، فقيل ارقه. فرقيت حتى أخذت بالعروة. فقصصتها على رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يموت عبد الله وهو آخذ بالعروة الوثقى“… I saw (in a dream) that a post was fixed in a green garden. At the top of the post there was a handhold and below it there was a servant. I was asked to climb (the post). So I climbed it till I got hold of the handhold.” Then I narrated this dream to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ). Allah’s Apostle said, “‘Abdullah will die while still holding the firm reliable handhold (i.e., Islam).”
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 7010, narrated by Qays ibn Ubad
The firmest handhold (al-‘urwa al-wuthqâ) is an expression from the Qur’an. The Prophet ﷺ gave no other explanation in this account: the words in brackets were added by the translator.
The meaning according to what you saw
Here are the cases of climbing described in the collection, apart from those already covered on the pages about stairs, the mountain and the sky.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You climb a slope, a hill or a roof | You obtain what you are seeking and your need is fulfilled.vol. 2, p. 67 |
| You climb straight up, sheer | Toil, with no good in it. The collection says that the praiseworthy climb is the one that winds, the way one goes up a mountain, and that every rise is praiseworthy except climbing straight up. It cites the verse: “I will cover him with arduous torment” (Surah al-Muddaththir, 74:17), where the Arabic word for this torment, sa’ûd, means a steep climb.vol. 2, pp. 67 and 68 |
| You climb a mountain | In the chapter on opposites: grief and a journey. In the chapter on mountains: the mountain is the goal you are aiming for, reached in proportion to how far you climbed.vol. 2, pp. 308 and 67 |
| You climb into the sky up to its stars | You obtain honour and a position of leadership. If, once up there, you become one of the stars that guide, you obtain the imamate.vol. 2, p. 308 |
| You come back down from the sky after climbing it | Humiliation after power. According to another opinion, the blessings of this world together with authority in religion. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 308 |
| You come down from a hill, a palace, a mountain or a high place | The matter you are seeking comes undone and is not completed. Coming down from a high place: worry and sadness. For coming down a mountain, the chapter on opposites says the reverse: relief, and according to another opinion, a change of situation and resources that run short. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, pp. 67, 71 and 308 |
| You fly upwards without wings | You obtain what you wish for and you rise in proportion to the height you reach. If you fly until you vanish into the sky and do not come back, it is death.vol. 2, p. 324 |
| You leap from the ground to near the sky | You travel until you reach Makkah. If you leap until you stay between the sky and the earth, it is your death and your bier being carried away.vol. 2, pp. 322 and 323 |
| You see yourself on a hill | For a sick person, it is his bier, especially if he sees people below him. If you preach or give the call to prayer there, you obtain, if you are worthy of it, kingship, a judgeship, the giving of fatwas, the call to prayer, preaching or renown.vol. 2, pp. 70 and 71 |
| You want to rise above people | If you manage it, you become arrogant and then you are humbled, according to the verse: “That home of the Hereafter We assign to those who do not desire exaltedness upon the earth or corruption. And the [best] outcome is for the righteous” (Surah al-Qasas, 28:83). If you do not want to rise, you obtain elevation and joy.vol. 2, p. 337 |
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 climbing up high in a dream mean in Islam?
The collection says that every climb, up a slope, a hill, a roof or anything else, means you obtain what you are seeking. Flying upwards without wings also means a wish fulfilled, in proportion to the height reached. Flying until you vanish into the sky and do not come back is death (vol. 2, pp. 67 and 324).
Is climbing a mountain in a dream good in Islam?
The collection gives two readings. In one passage, climbing a mountain points to grief and a journey. In another, the mountain is the goal you aim for, reached in proportion to how far you climbed (vol. 2, pp. 67 and 308). The page about the mountain gives the other cases.
What does climbing stairs in a dream mean in Islam?
The collection gives a whole passage to stairs and ladders. Climbing stairs there most often announces elevation or power, with particular meanings for the sick person and the traveller. Everything is set out on the page about stairs.
What does climbing to the sky in a dream mean?
Climbing into the sky up to the stars announces honour and a position of leadership. Coming back down from the sky after climbing it is humiliation after power or, according to another opinion, the blessings of this world together with authority in religion (vol. 2, p. 308).
Does the collection speak of going up in a lift or onto a horse?
The collection does not speak of lifts, which did not exist. Getting on a horse falls under another Arabic word, the mount, and is covered on the page about the horse.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 39, vol. 2, pp. 67, 68, 70 and 71; chapter 53, vol. 2, p. 308; chapter 55, vol. 2, pp. 322 to 324; chapter 58, vol. 2, p. 337 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Interpretation of Dreams, no. 7010 (English translation by Muhammad Muhsin Khan).
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.