After a day of study I decided to sleep. I had a really fast dream and by fast it seemed instantaneous. An angel (or what it appeared to be an Angel appeared. The entity identified itself as one I suppose but it wasn't the angel that perplexes me, but when it identified itself by its name I immediately bowed...
I am not sure if in Islam dreams are interpreted as symbols or warnings but what do you guys think?
Hi,
Interesting dream!
In Islam dreams can be of three types
1.
rahmaani :those that come from Allaah. These can be glad tiding,guidance or a warning. I think you were referring to this, it's possible your dream has a meaning.
2. nafsaani:psychological, they come from within a person. For example you have been thinking about something the entire day, and you dream about it.
3.
shaytaani :those that come from the Shaytaan, mostly nightmares.
This is based on the hadith from the prophet muhammad in which he said
"Dreams are of three types: a dream from Allaah, a dream which causes distress and which comes from the Shaytaan, and a dream which comes from what a person thinks about when he is awake, and he sees it when he is asleep.” (al-Bukhaari, 6499; Muslim, 4200)
Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “If any one of you sees a dream that he likes, this is from Allaah, so let him praise Allaah for it and talk about it to others. If he sees other than that, a dream that he dislikes, this is from the Shaytaan, so let him seek refuge with Allaah from its evil and not mention it to anyone, for it will not harm him.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 6584, and Muslim, 5862).
We believe that the dreams of the Prophets are revelation and they are protected from the Shaytaan. For example the dream that prophet Yusuf(joseph) had and Abraham peace be upon them both.
The dreams of people other than the Prophets are to be examined in the light of the clear revelation( the Qur’aan and Sunnah). If they are in accordance with the Qur’aan and Sunnah, all well and good. otherwise,we as muslims don't act upon it.
Here are a few examples of a few symbols and meaning
Imaam al-Baghawi said:
Know that the interpretation of dreams falls into various categories. Dreams may be interpreted in the light of the Qur’aan or in the light of the Sunnah, or by means of the proverbs that are current among people, or by names and metaphors, or in terms of opposites. (
Sharh al-Sunnah, 12/220)
He gave examples of this, such as:
Interpretation in the light of the Qur’aan: such as a rope meaning a covenant, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And hold fast, all of you together, to the Rope of Allaah…” [Aal ‘Imraan 3:103]
Interpretation in the light of the Sunnah: such as the crow representing an immoral man (
faasiq), because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) called it such.
Interpretation by means of proverbs: such a digging a hole meaning a plot, because people say “Whoever digs a hole will fall in it.”
Interpretation by means of names: such as seeing a man called Raashid meaning wisdom.
Interpretation by means of opposites: such as fear meaning safety, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And He will surely give them in exchange a safe security after their fear” [al-Noor 24:55]
There are actually quite a few books on dream interpretations in Islam. There's one book in English which I would recommend it also mentions some of the symbols. If you're interested let me know and I'll post the link.