Animals
Dreaming of worms in Islam
In short
For both books, worms are the children and dependants who live off the dreamer’s wealth.
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
(دودة) في المنام بنت والدود بنات والدود في البطن هم عياله يأكلون من ماله
A worm in a dream is a daughter, and worms are daughters; worms in the belly are his dependants, who eat from his wealth.
(ومن رأى) كأن الدود يخرج من فمه فإن أهل بيته يريدون أن يخدعوه ويمكروا به وهو يعلم ذلك وينجو من مكرهم
Whoever sees worms coming out of his mouth: his household want to deceive him and plot against him; he knows it and escapes their scheme.
Muntakhab al-Kalām fī Tafsīr al-Aḥlām (attributed to Ibn Sirin)
Attribution to Ibn Sirin rejected: why
(الدود) في البطن عياله الذين هم سدس ماله
Worms in the belly are his dependants, who account for a sixth of his wealth.
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
- Mouse, ratBoth books see the mouse as a dishonest woman or a thief; yet many mice playing in the house announce provision, and black and white mice are nights and days.
- SpiderFor al-Nabulusi the spider stands for a weak schemer — or, in another view, an ascetic — and its web for fragility.
- Baby, childFor al-Nabulusi, carrying an infant is a worry; but a baby girl found, carried or born announces relief for the prisoner, the debtor or the bewitched. A handsome child entering a besieged town heralds deliverance.
All the symbols in the dictionary