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Clouds in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
السحاب في المنام
In Islam, dreaming of clouds points first to Islam itself. The Ibn Sirin collection explains that the cloud carries the water that gives life to all creatures, just as Islam gives life to people and saves them. It can also stand for knowledge and wisdom. Black clouds, or clouds with signs of punishment, announce instead the orders and punishments of the ruler.
السحاب يدل على الإسلام الذي به حياة الناس ونجاتهمIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “The cloud stands for Islam, through which people live and are saved.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 38, vol. 2, p. 45
The collection gives the reason for this meaning in the next sentence: the cloud is a cause of Allah’s mercy, because it carries the water by which creatures live. The same passage adds other possible meanings: knowledge, fiqh, wisdom, armies, caravans, ships, a pregnant woman and the rain itself. The context of the dream and the dreamer’s situation decide which meaning applies.
The cloud and Islam in the hadith
A man came to tell the Prophet ﷺ about a dream. Abu Bakr asked permission to interpret it, and the Prophet ﷺ gave it to him:
إني رأيت الليلة في المنام ظلة تنطف السمن والعسل، فأرى الناس يتكففون منها، فالمستكثر والمستقل … قال أما الظلة فالإسلام، وأما الذي ينطف من العسل والسمن فالقرآن حلاوته تنطف“I saw in a dream, a cloud having shade. Butter and honey were dropping from it and I saw the people gathering it in their hands, some gathering much and some a little.” … Abu Bakr said: “The cloud with shade symbolizes Islam, and the butter and honey dropping from it, symbolizes the Qur’an, its sweetness dropping…”
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 7046, narrated by Ibn Abbas
At the end, the Prophet ﷺ told Abu Bakr: “You are right in some of it and wrong in some,” without saying on which point. The Ibn Sirin collection gives the cloud the same first meaning: Islam (vol. 2, p. 45).
The meaning according to what you saw
The Ibn Sirin collection speaks of clouds in the chapter on the sky, winds and rain. Here are the cases it describes, in the order of the text. For rain itself, see the page on rain.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| Black clouds, or clouds with signs of punishment | Events, punishments and orders of the ruler, because of the thunderbolts and stones such clouds can carry.vol. 2, p. 46 |
| A cloud in your house, or one that comes down onto your lap | The unbeliever embraces Islam. The believer gains knowledge and wisdom. If the dreamer wishes it, his wife becomes pregnant. If he has camels or a ship, they arrive.vol. 2, p. 46 |
| You ride on a cloud, or you see it moving forward | The unmarried man marries a pious woman. Whoever hopes for a journey or for Hajj accomplishes it. Otherwise, the student becomes known for his knowledge. For a man who goes on foot and keeps company with the ruler, the ruler gives him a noble mount to ride.vol. 2, p. 46 |
| Clouds follow one another, heavy with water, and people are waiting for them | If there is no sign of punishment in them, what people are waiting for comes to that region: some good, travelling companions, armies or caravans.vol. 2, p. 46 |
| Clouds fall onto the earth, onto houses, fields or trees | Torrents and rain, or locusts and birds. If they come with a violent wind, fire, stones, snakes or scorpions: an attack on the inhabitants, a caravan that brings news of the death of most of its travellers, a tax imposed by the ruler, locusts that ruin the crops, or doctrines and innovations that spread.vol. 2, pp. 46-47 |
| The cloud, according to another opinion | A great king or a kindly ruler. Mingling with the clouds means keeping company with such men. Eating from a cloud: lawful wealth or wisdom received from a man. Gathering it: wisdom received from a man of the same kind. Owning it: wisdom and kingship. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 47 |
| You build a house or a palace on the clouds | A house: noble and lawful wealth, with wisdom and high standing. A palace: he keeps away from sins thanks to a wisdom he acquires. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 47 |
| A cloud rains into your hand, or you become a cloud | A cloud raining into the hand: he gains wisdom and it passes through him to others. If he becomes a cloud that rains on people, he gives them money and they benefit from it. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 47 |
| A cloud without rain | The meaning depends on the person the cloud is linked to. A man tied to authority: a governor who is neither fair nor just. A merchant: he does not keep his commitments. A scholar: he keeps his knowledge to himself. A craftsman: he masters his trade and people need him. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, pp. 47-48 |
| A cloud with thunder and lightning | The appearance of a fearsome ruler who threatens in the name of what is right. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 48 |
| A cloud comes down from the sky and brings rain everywhere | A just imam is sent to that place, whether the cloud is white or black. A red cloud out of its season is anguish, a trial (fitna) or an illness.vol. 2, p. 48 |
| A cloud rises from the earth to the sky, or a dark cloud | According to another opinion, a cloud that rises from the earth and covers a town announces good and blessing. Whoever wants to travel makes his journey and comes back safe and sound. But if the dreamer is not a righteous man, he reaches what he is after in evil. A dark cloud is grief, a black cloud is great cold or sadness. (another opinion quoted in the collection)vol. 2, p. 48 |
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 clouds in a dream good or bad in Islam?
Most of the time it is good. The collection says that the cloud stands for Islam, then for knowledge and wisdom, and Abu Bakr interpreted the cloud in the hadith as Islam (al-Bukhari, 7046). The collection sets apart black clouds or clouds that carry punishment, a red cloud out of season and, according to another opinion, a dark cloud.
What do black clouds mean in a dream in Islam?
The collection gives two meanings. Black clouds, or clouds with signs of punishment, stand for the orders and punishments of the ruler (vol. 2, p. 46). According to another opinion reported in the collection, a black cloud is great cold or sadness, and a dark cloud is grief (vol. 2, p. 48).
What do white clouds mean in a dream in Islam?
The collection gives no meaning of its own to a white cloud. It only says that a cloud which comes down from the sky and brings rain everywhere announces a just imam, “whether the cloud is white or black” (vol. 2, p. 48).
What does it mean to see clouds falling in a dream?
Clouds that fall onto the earth, houses, fields or trees are torrents, rain, locusts or birds. If they come with a violent wind, fire, stones, snakes or scorpions, they announce an attack, deaths, a tax, a blight on the crops or innovations that spread (vol. 2, pp. 46 and 47).
What does riding a cloud mean in a dream in Islam?
Riding a cloud, or seeing it move forward, announces a pious wife for the unmarried man, a journey or Hajj for whoever hopes for it, and fame for the student (vol. 2, p. 46). According to another opinion, mingling with the clouds means keeping company with kings or kindly rulers (vol. 2, p. 47).
Does the collection speak of grey clouds?
No. The collection does not speak of grey clouds. It only distinguishes black, dark and red clouds, and the white or black cloud that brings rain everywhere.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 38, vol. 2, pp. 45 to 48 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Interpretation of Dreams, no. 7046 (English translation by Muhammad Muhsin Khan).
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.