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Committing a Sin in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
الذنب في المنام
In Islam, the collection attributed to Ibn Sirin separates the sin committed from the sin admitted. Committing a sin in a dream announces a debt. Admitting your fault announces power, honour and repentance, like Adam and Hawwa saying: “Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves.” Repentance announces authority, honour and blessing after a trial.
والإقرار على النفس بالذنب والمعصية نيل عز وشرف وتوبةIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Admitting the sin and the disobedience against oneself means gaining power, honour and repentance.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 53, vol. 2, p. 310
The collection bases this meaning on the words of Adam and Hawwa in the Qur’an: “Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves” (Surah al-A’raf, verse 23). The sentence is found in the chapter on opposites, where each thing is set against its contrary: sin and repentance, admission and denial.
Those who mixed good and bad deeds, in the hadith
In a long dream narrated by Samura ibn Jundab, the Prophet ﷺ saw men with one half of the body very handsome and the other half very ugly. They were told to go and throw themselves into a river. They came back with their ugliness gone. The explanation given at the end of the hadith is:
وأما القوم الذين كانوا شطر منهم حسنا وشطر منهم قبيحا فإنهم قوم خلطوا عملا صالحا وآخر سيئا تجاوز الله عنهم“The men you saw half handsome and half ugly were those persons who had mixed an act that was good with another that was bad, but Allah forgave them.”
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 7047, narrated by Samura ibn Jundab
This passage describes what was shown to the Prophet ﷺ in his dream. The meanings given to an ordinary dreamer are those of the collection, set out below.
The meaning according to what you saw
The collection speaks of sin through many dreams: prayer, fasting, death, the body, the house. Here are the main cases, with their reference.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You admit your fault | You gain power, honour and repentance, after the words of Adam and Hawwa.vol. 2, p. 310 |
| You commit a sin | You take on a debt. In the same way, debt in a dream shows that one commits sins.vol. 2, pp. 310 and 311 |
| You repent | You gain authority, honour and blessing, after enduring a trial.vol. 2, p. 311 |
| You prostrate | Victory, and repentance from a sin you are in. It is also a sign of gain, long life and safety from dangers.vol. 1, p. 87 |
| You ask Allah for forgiveness | Lawful provision and a child, after the verse: “Ask forgiveness of your Lord. Indeed, He is ever a Perpetual Forgiver.” If it is after the prayer, with your face turned away from the qibla, you commit a sin and die without repenting of it. Keeping silent when you are invited to ask forgiveness shows hypocrisy. If your face is turned towards the qibla, your supplication is answered.vol. 1, pp. 89 and 90 |
| You fast two months in a row as an expiation | You repent of a sin you are in. Fasting the whole year: you avoid acts of disobedience.vol. 1, p. 97 |
| You die and then come back to life | You commit a sin, then you repent. The collection quotes: “Our Lord, You made us lifeless twice and gave us life twice, and we have confessed our sins.”vol. 1, p. 104 |
| You learn the Qur’an or literature from books | You repent of your sins.vol. 1, p. 133 |
| Your head is lowered and you are bent over before a gathering | You have committed a sin, you regret it and you repent of it.vol. 1, p. 137 |
| You perform the full ablution (ghusl) | It purifies from sins and removes worries. Washing in the sea also wipes away sins.vol. 1, p. 79 and vol. 2, p. 168 |
| You enter a house and shut the door behind you | You keep away from disobeying Allah.vol. 2, p. 85 |
| A wall falls on you | You have committed many sins, and their punishment comes quickly.vol. 2, p. 86 |
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 committing a sin in a dream mean in Islam?
According to the collection, committing a sin in a dream announces that you take on a debt, and debt in turn shows that one commits sins (vol. 2, pp. 310 and 311). The meaning changes if the dreamer admits the fault or repents of it.
Is it a good sign to dream of repenting or asking forgiveness?
Yes, in the collection. Asking Allah for forgiveness in a dream announces lawful provision and a child, after the verse “Ask forgiveness of your Lord. Indeed, He is ever a Perpetual Forgiver” (vol. 1, p. 89). Repentance announces authority, honour and blessing after a trial. After the prayer, asking forgiveness while facing the qibla announces an answered supplication, and facing elsewhere a sin one does not repent of.
Which dreams announce repentance?
The collection names several: prostrating, fasting two months of expiation, dying then coming back to life, learning the Qur’an, keeping your head lowered before a gathering, swimming on your back. All of them point to a sin followed by repentance.
Which dreams point to sins?
A wall falling on the dreamer shows many sins and a quick punishment (vol. 2, p. 86). Elsewhere, the collection says that a chain shows great disobedience (vol. 1, p. 296), that dirt on clothing stands for sins or worries (vol. 1, p. 314), and that going down into the sea means persisting in sins (vol. 2, p. 168).
Does washing in a dream wipe away sins?
The collection says that the full ablution (ghusl) purifies from sins and removes worries (vol. 1, p. 79), and that washing in the sea also wipes away sins (vol. 2, p. 168).
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 53, vol. 2, pp. 310 and 311, with chapters 8, 10, 13, 16, 21, 22, 31, 32, 39 and 41 for the other cases (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Sahih al-Bukhari, book of dream interpretation, no. 7047.
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.