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Gold in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
الذهب في المنام
In Islam, seeing gold in a dream is generally a bad sign. The Ibn Sirin collection says that gold “is not praised”, because of its name and its yellow colour: it announces sadness and a loss of money. The Prophet ﷺ himself saw two gold bangles in a dream and interpreted them as two liars. Jewellery worn by a woman is the exception.
الذهب لا يحمد في التأويل لكراهة لفظه وصفرة لونه وتأويله حزن وغرم مالIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Gold is not praised in interpretation, because its name is disliked and its colour is yellow. Its interpretation is sadness and a loss of money.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 40, vol. 2, p. 135
In Arabic, gold is dhahab, and the verb dhahaba means “to go away”. The collection plays on this word: whoever finds an ingot of gold, “his money goes away”. It adds that raw gold is worse than worked gold, and that jewellery remains praiseworthy for women.
The two gold bangles in the hadith
The Prophet ﷺ told of this dream, which the collection itself quotes in its passage on bracelets:
بينا أنا نائم إذ أوتيت خزائن الأرض، فوضع في يدي سواران من ذهب، فكبرا علي وأهماني، فأوحي إلي أن انفخهما، فنفختهما فطارا، فأولتهما الكذابين اللذين أنا بينهما صاحب صنعاء وصاحب اليمامة“While sleeping, I was given the treasures of the world and two golden bangles were put in my hands, but I felt much annoyed, and those two bangles distressed me very much, but I was inspired that I should blow them off, so I blew them and they flew away. Then I interpreted that those two bangles were the liars between whom I was (i.e., the one of San‘a’ and the one of Yamama).”
Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 7037, narrated by Abu Hurayra
The two liars are al-Ansi, in Sanaa, and Musaylima, in al-Yamama, who claimed to be prophets. The collection relies on this hadith to say that there is no good in a bracelet.
The meaning according to what you saw
The Ibn Sirin collection deals with gold in chapter 40, on gold, silver, jewellery and metals. Here are the cases it describes, in the order of the text.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| You find an ingot of gold | Your money goes away, or a worry reaches you in proportion to the gold found, or the anger of a man in power.vol. 2, p. 135 |
| You wear something made of gold | You become related by marriage to people of your own standing.vol. 2, p. 135 |
| You wear a gold bracelet | An inheritance. But two bracelets, of gold or silver, announce something unpleasant coming from what you own.vol. 2, pp. 135 and 136 |
| You melt gold | You get into a dispute over an unpleasant matter and people talk about you.vol. 2, p. 136 |
| Your house is gilded or made of gold | A fire breaks out in it.vol. 2, p. 136 |
| You wear a gold necklace | A responsibility and a trust placed in your care. The meaning is the same for a necklace of silver, pearls or stones.vol. 2, p. 136 |
| You wear a gold anklet | Fear, imprisonment or a restraint.vol. 2, p. 136 |
| Raw gold or worked gold | Unworked gold is a loss. Worked into jewellery, it is less bad.vol. 2, p. 136 |
| A woman wears gold jewellery | An adornment, and something she takes pride in. According to one opinion, a woman’s jewellery is her children: gold her sons, silver her daughters.vol. 2, pp. 136 and 138 |
| A woman wears a crown | She will marry a man of high rank, powerful or rich. If she is pregnant, she gives birth to a boy.vol. 2, p. 142 |
| A gold earring | If a woman of the family is pregnant, she will have a boy. If the earring is silver, a girl.vol. 2, p. 143 |
| A gold ring | There is no good in a gold ring. According to another opinion, for a man it is a humiliation.vol. 2, pp. 144 and 145 |
Ibn Sirin’s story about the gold crown
رأيت كأن على رأسي تاجا من ذهب فقال له إن أباك في غرفة قد ذهب بصرهA man came and told Ibn Sirin: “I saw a crown of gold on my head.” Ibn Sirin replied: “Your father is in a room, and he has lost his sight.” A letter then reached the man to tell him so.
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 40, vol. 2, p. 142
Ibn Sirin explained that a crown, on a man’s head, stands for the one who is above him. The gold announced that he had lost something dear to him, and the dearest thing to him was his sight.
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 gold in a dream good in Islam?
In general, no. The Ibn Sirin collection says that gold is not praised and that it means sadness and a loss of money (vol. 2, p. 135). Jewellery worn by a woman is the exception: it remains praiseworthy for her.
What does finding gold in a dream mean in Islam?
Finding an ingot of gold announces a loss of money, a worry in proportion to the gold, or the anger of a man in power. The collection adds that raw gold is worse than gold worked into jewellery (vol. 2, pp. 135 and 136).
What does wearing a gold bracelet in a dream mean?
The collection gives two meanings. One gold bracelet worn announces an inheritance, but two bracelets announce something unpleasant linked to what you own. It recalls the hadith of the two gold bangles that the Prophet ﷺ interpreted as two liars (al-Bukhari, 7037).
What about a gold ring or a gold necklace in a dream?
The collection says there is no good in a gold ring (vol. 2, p. 144). A necklace, of gold or silver, announces instead a responsibility and a trust placed in your care (vol. 2, p. 136).
Does a dream of gold have the same meaning for a woman?
No. The collection says that all jewellery is praiseworthy for women, and bad for men, except what they are allowed to wear (vol. 2, p. 138). According to one opinion, a woman’s jewellery stands for her children: gold her sons, silver her daughters.
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 40, vol. 2, pp. 135 to 145 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of the Interpretation of Dreams, no. 7037 (see also no. 7034) (English translation by Muhammad Muhsin Khan).
- Sahih Muslim, no. 2263, for the three kinds of dreams.
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.