People
Dreaming of a king in Islam
In short
For al-Nabulusi, becoming a king may signify sovereignty, power, and authority, but also a swift death for someone unfit for it. The Muntakhab attributed to Ibn Sirin associates seeing Solomon with kingship, knowledge, and religious understanding.
A summary of the passages quoted below. These are authors’ interpretations, not a prediction: a dream is understood through the dreamer and all its details.
What the interpretation books say
al-Nabulusi — Taʿṭīr al-Anām fī Taʿbīr al-Manām
أنه تحول ملكا وهو ليس بأهل لذلك فإنه يموت سريعا وإن كان محتملا لذلك نال رياسة ودولة وسلطانا وقوة.
[Whoever sees himself] become a king when he is unfit for it will die soon; if he is capable of it, he will attain leadership, sovereignty, authority, and power.
Muntakhab al-Kalām fī Tafsīr al-Aḥlām (attributed to Ibn Sirin)
Attribution to Ibn Sirin rejected: why
سليمان عليه السلام رزق الملك والعلم والفقه
[Whoever sees] Solomon, peace be upon him, is granted kingship, knowledge, and religious understanding.
Keep in mind
- An interpretation is a human effort: Abu Bakr himself was partly wrong before the Prophet ﷺ. (al-Bukhari 7046 and Muslim 2269)
- Appearances deceive: an unpleasant-looking dream may be interpreted as good, and vice versa. (al-Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim 15/18)
- A dream is not a fatwa: make no serious decision on its strength alone. (al-Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim 1/115)
If this dream upset you: what the Sunnah asks
The Prophet ﷺ taught that an unpleasant dream comes from Satan, and that it does not harm the one who does the following. (al-Bukhari 7045 · al-Bukhari 3292)
Seek Allah’s protection, three times
Against the evil of this dream and against Satan. The wording given by al-Nawawi: “aʿūdhu billāhi mina sh-shayṭāni wa min sharrihā” — I seek refuge with Allah from Satan and from the evil of this dream. (al-Bukhari 7044 · Muslim 2262 · al-Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim 15/18)
Blow lightly three times to your left
The narrations say “blow” (nafth), “spit lightly” (tafl) or “spit” (basq): a light breath, to drive Satan away. (Muslim 2261 · al-Bukhari 7044 · Muslim 2262)
Turn over onto your other side
Change the side you were sleeping on. (Muslim 2262)
Get up and pray
If you can; al-Nawawi recommends two units of prayer (rakʿa). (Muslim 2263 · al-Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim 15/18)
Tell no one about it
Neither recount it nor seek to have it interpreted. A Bedouin dreamt that his head was cut off; the Prophet ﷺ told him: “Do not tell of how Satan toys with you in your sleep.” (al-Bukhari 7045 · Muslim 2263 · Muslim 2268 · al-Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim 15/18)
“It will not harm him”: that is the promise of the hadith. Al-Nawawi adds that doing only some of these acts is enough, by Allah’s leave. (al-Bukhari 7045 · al-Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim 15/18)
Related symbols
- Religious scholar, sheikhSeeing a jurist or scholar indicates, for al-Nabulusi, intelligence and knowledge; for the sinner, repentance; for the misguided, guidance. An unknown old man is good fortune and happiness, and following him is following good.
- A man, someone you knowA known man seen in a dream is, for both books, that man himself — or someone like him or bearing his name — from whom one expects something. The Muntakhab sees an unknown young man as an enemy; an unknown old man is good fortune.
- Gold, jewelleryFor both authors gold is not a good sign for a man — its name, dhahab, evokes what goes away — with exceptions: a bracelet worn is an inheritance, a large piece received is authority. For women, wearing jewellery is praiseworthy adornment.
All the symbols in the dictionary