Is it possible to see the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in a dream with different characteristics, such that one person sees him with one characteristic and another person sees him with a different characteristic?

The true vision of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, is to see him with his physical characteristics as described in the hadith, for Satan cannot assume his true form. However, if he appears in another form or claims to be the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, this is a lie from Satan.

When he is seen in a form other than his true description, there are two scholarly opinions: 1. It indicates a deficiency in the faith of the one who sees the vision. 2. The opinion preferred by Ibn Taymiyyah is that this image is a lie from Satan, especially when seen in a waking state, for the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, lives a life in the barzakh (interspace) and cannot be seen in a waking state.

If the one who sees the vision reports a legal matter that contradicts the Qur’an and Sunnah, or a matter that requires proof, then no action should be taken based on it, for a vision is not a religious obligation and is merely glad tidings.