Does Islam recognize what is known as the interpretation of dreams?
A truthful dream is a part of prophethood and the beginning of revelation. It becomes truer as time approaches [the Day of Judgment] and for those who are more truthful in speech. Dreams are of three types: divine (Rahmani), psychological (Nafsani), and devilish (Shaytani). The dreams of prophets are infallible revelation. For a dream to be truthful, the dreamer must be truthful, consume lawful sustenance, maintain purity, and engage in remembrance (dhikr) before sleep. The truest dreams occur at dawn (Sahar).
Dreams are classified into truthful (like the prophecy of prophets and righteous people) and muddled dreams (daydreams) (devilish manipulation, or impossible by reason, or self-talk).
Etiquette concerning dreams: - A beloved dream: Praise Allah, rejoice in it, and speak of it to those whom you love. - A disliked dream: Seek refuge with Allah from its evil and from Satan, spit lightly to the left three times, do not mention it to anyone, pray, and turn from the side one was sleeping on. It should not be narrated except to a scholar, a sincere advisor, a perceptive person, or a beloved one.
The interpretation of dreams is done by referring to the Qur'an, the Sunnah, proverbs, names and meanings, or the opposite. The book "Tafsir al-Manam" attributed to Ibn Sirin is of doubtful attribution.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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