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Moon in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin
القمر في المنام
In Islam, the moon seen in a dream stands first for the king’s vizier, or for a ruler placed below the sovereign. The Ibn Sirin collection also sees in it the scholar who guides people, as the moon guides at night, as well as a child, a husband or a wife of great beauty. A bright full moon is good for the people of the place.
القمر في الأصل وزير الملك الأعظم أو سلطان دون الملك الأعظم والنجوم حوله جنودهIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “The moon, at root, is the vizier of the greatest king, or a ruler below the greatest king. The stars around it are his soldiers.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 38, vol. 2, p. 31
The collection adds that the moon can point to the scholar and the jurist, because it guides in the darkness. A beautiful person is also compared to the moon, hence the meaning of husband, wife or child. In Surah Yusuf, the moon that prostrates to Yusuf (peace be upon him) is his father, according to the same collection. Since the moon waxes and wanes, it can also show what grows or shrinks: money, deeds, health.
The meaning according to what you saw
The Ibn Sirin collection deals with the moon in the chapter on the sky, the sun and the stars. Here are the cases it describes, in the order of the text.
| In your dream | Meaning in the collection |
|---|---|
| The sun and the moon rise over you | Your parents are pleased with you. If they have no rays, they are displeased.vol. 2, p. 30 |
| The sun, the moon and the stars turn black or dull | A change in the blessings of this world.vol. 2, p. 30 |
| The sun and the moon on your right, your left, in front of you or behind you | Worry and fear, or a hardship and a defeat that drive you to flee. The collection quotes the verse: “And the sun and the moon are joined, man will say on that Day, ‘Where is the [place of] escape?’” (Surah 75, verses 9 and 10).vol. 2, p. 30 |
| The moon comes down to a sick person | At the start of the month, he recovers. At the end of the month, his end draws near, according to what is left of the month.vol. 2, p. 31 |
| The moon is with you, in your lap or in your hand | A marriage, to a spouse whose worth matches its light, for a man as for a woman.vol. 2, pp. 31 and 32 |
| The moon disappears or rises | If it disappears, the matter you are pursuing, good or bad, is over. If it rises, the matter is only beginning.vol. 2, p. 32 |
| The full moon, bright, in its place in the sky | The king’s vizier is useful to the people of that place.vol. 2, p. 32 |
| You look at the moon and see your face in it | The dreamer’s death.vol. 2, p. 32 |
| You hang on to the moon | Good received from the ruler.vol. 2, p. 32 |
| The moon becomes a sun | Good, honour and money coming from the dreamer’s mother or wife.vol. 2, p. 32 |
| The moon is in your house | A man came to Ibn Sirin and said: “I saw the moon in our house.” He replied: “The ruler will come down to your city.”vol. 2, p. 33 |
| The crescent turns red | The dreamer’s wife has a miscarriage.vol. 2, p. 35 |
Ibn Sirin’s story about the moon and the Pleiades
أن امرأة جاءت إلى ابن سيرين وهو يتغدى فقالت رأيت كأن القمر داخل في الثريا ومناديا ينادي أن ائتي ابن سيرين فقصي عليه رؤياكIt is reported that a woman came to Ibn Sirin while he was eating. She said: “I saw the moon enter the Pleiades, and someone was calling out: go to Ibn Sirin and tell him your dream.” He drew his hand back from the dish and made her repeat her dream. His face changed, he stood up and said to his sister: “She claims that I will die within seven days.” He died on the seventh day.
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 38, vol. 2, p. 33
This story is a rare case: the interpreter understands that the dream told by another person concerns him.
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 the moon in a dream good in Islam?
Most often, yes. A bright full moon is a vizier useful to the people, the moon in your lap announces a marriage, and hanging on to the moon announces good from the ruler. The collection also mentions serious cases: seeing your own face in the moon announces death (vol. 2, p. 32).
What does seeing the sun and moon together in a dream mean in Islam?
According to the collection, the sun and the moon rising over the dreamer show that his parents are pleased with him. Without rays, they are displeased. If they are around him, on the right, on the left, in front or behind, it is worry and fear, or a hardship and a defeat that drive him to flee (vol. 2, p. 30).
What does seeing several moons in a dream mean?
The collection reports that Aisha saw three moons fall into her room. Abu Bakr told her that, if her dream was true, three of the best people on earth would be buried there (vol. 2, p. 32). The collection gives no general rule for two or more moons.
What does a red moon or a falling moon mean in a dream?
The collection has no passage on a red moon. It does speak of a red crescent: the dreamer’s wife has a miscarriage (vol. 2, p. 35). For a falling moon, it mainly reports the dream of Aisha, in which three moons fall into her room. It also says that a crescent fallen to the earth announces the death of a scholar, or of his child (vol. 2, p. 35).
Does the meaning change for a married, single or pregnant woman?
The collection does not separate the married woman, the single woman or the pregnant woman for the moon. It says that whoever sees the moon near him, in his lap or in his hand, will marry, man or woman (vol. 2, pp. 31 and 32).
Sources
- Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 38, vol. 2, pp. 30 to 35 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus). For the moon in the dream of Yusuf: introduction, vol. 1, p. 37.
- Sahih Muslim, no. 2263, for the three kinds of dreams.
- English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.