Wind in a Dream in Islam: Meaning by Ibn Sirin

الريح في المنام

In Islam, wind seen in a dream stands first for the ruler and his power, which can be useful or harmful. According to the Ibn Sirin collection, a gentle, clear wind is good and a blessing, while a storm announces the ruler’s injustice. Wind can also announce plenty, provision, victory and good news, or on the contrary a trial and illnesses.

الريح تدل على السلطان في ذاته لقوتها وسلطانها على ما دونها من المخلوقات مع نفعها وضرهاIn the Ibn Sirin collection: “Wind stands for the ruler himself, because of its strength and its power over the creatures beneath it, with the benefit and the harm it brings.”
Muntakhab al-kalâm, chapter 38, vol. 2, p. 40

The collection recalls that the wind was made to serve the prophet Sulayman (Solomon), peace be upon him, and that Allah sends it as good tidings of His mercy. Yet it was also by a wind that the people of ‘Ad were destroyed. Wind keeps these two sides in dreams: a blessing when it is gentle, a trial when it rages.

The meaning according to what you saw

Here are the cases described in the Ibn Sirin collection, mostly in the chapter on the sky, the air and the winds.

In your dream	Meaning in the collection
A gentle, clear wind	Good and a blessing.vol. 2, p. 42
A storm	The ruler’s injustice.vol. 2, p. 42
The wind carries you, without fear or darkness	You lead people if that suits you, or you travel by sea safely, or your trade picks up again. For a poor person, provision.vol. 2, p. 41
The wind carries you off while you are afraid, in dust and darkness	If you are on a ship, it is wrecked. If you are ill, the illness gets worse. Otherwise, upheavals and grave events, or orders from the ruler against you, or a murky trial that strikes you.vol. 2, p. 41
The wind uproots trees, knocks down walls, carries people away	A trial that strikes everyone: plague, flood, unrest, a raid, captivity, a heavy levy or injustice.vol. 2, pp. 41 and 42
A calm wind that pollinates plants	If people are suffering injustice, an epidemic or a siege, their situation changes and their worries lift.vol. 2, p. 42
The wind carries you from one place to another	You obtain power, or you set out on a journey from which you do not return.vol. 2, p. 42
A wind with dust	A sign of war.vol. 2, p. 42
A scorching wind, or a wind with thunder	The scorching wind (samûm) announces illnesses with fever. With thunder, an unjust and powerful ruler.vol. 2, p. 42
The wind destroys your house	The death of those who live there, at the hands of an unjust ruler.vol. 2, p. 125
The wind uproots palm trees	An epidemic strikes the place.vol. 2, p. 220
You own the wind	You obtain great power.vol. 2, p. 348

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 wind in a dream a good or bad sign in Islam?

It depends on the strength of the wind. The collection says that a gentle, clear wind is good and a blessing, and that a calm wind, of the kind that pollinates plants, lifts the worries of people suffering injustice or a trial. A storm, a wind that uproots trees or one that carries dust announces injustice, a trial or war.

What does a strong wind or a storm mean in a dream in Islam?

According to the collection, a storm announces the ruler’s injustice (vol. 2, p. 42). If the wind uproots trees, knocks down walls and carries people away, it is a general trial: plague, flood or unrest.

What does wind in the house mean in a dream?

The collection only speaks of a wind that destroys the house: it announces the death of those who live there, at the hands of an unjust ruler (vol. 2, p. 125). It does not speak of a simple draught in the house.

Does the collection speak of a dusty wind or of wind with rain?

A wind laden with dust is a sign of war (vol. 2, p. 42). The collection has no passage on wind with rain. For rain alone, see our page on rain.

Does the meaning change for a married, single or pregnant woman?

The Ibn Sirin collection makes no such distinction for wind. It distinguishes someone on a ship, the sick person, the poor person and someone fit for power.

Sources

Muntakhab al-kalâm fî tafsîr al-ahlâm, collection attributed to Muhammad ibn Sirin, chapter 38, vol. 2, pp. 40 to 42 (Arabic text, Shamela edition, OpenITI corpus).
Same collection, chapter 39, vol. 2, p. 125; chapter 43, vol. 2, p. 220; chapter 58, vol. 2, p. 348.
Sahih Muslim, no. 2263, for the three kinds of dreams.
English translations of the Ibn Sirin collection: tafsir-a7lem.com.