Quran
Hadith
Islamic Text
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
In the Name of Allah Most Merciful Most Kind
Short Answer
If you have a good dream, you should not share it. Rather you should keep it to yourself. You should only mention it to people who were a part of the dream.
Hadith
الرُّؤْيَا الحَسَنَةُ مِنَ اللَّهِ، فَإِذَا رَأَى أَحَدُكُمْ مَا يُحِبُّ فَلاَ يُحَدِّثْ بِهِ إِلَّا مَنْ يُحِبُّ
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Beautiful dreams are from Allah. So if any one of you sees that which he loves, he should not disclose it to anyone but whom he loves. (Sahih al-Bukhari, 7044).
The above Hadith narration makes it clear that one should not share a good dream broadly. Rather, it should be kept relatively private. There are many other Hadith narrations where the Prophet ﷺ discouraged sharing good dreams. For example Sunan al-Tirmidhi (2278), Sunan Ibn Maja (3914), Musnad Ahmad (16182), Sahih Ibn Hibban (6050) and many others besides.
Commentary
Adhering to the advice of the blessed Prophet ﷺ always leads to immense benefit in this life and the next. Therefore, if a Muslim does not share a good dream broadly, and rather adheres to the Sunnah, he will benefit in so many ways. Imam Ibn Hajr mentioned some of these in the Nass (text) below.
مَنْ لَا يُحِبُّ قَدْ يُفَسِّرُهَا لَهُ بِمَا لَا يُحِبُّ إِمَّا بُغْضًا وَإِمَّا حَسَدًا فَقَدْ تَقَعُ عَنْ تِلْكَ الصِّفَةِ أَوْ يَتَعَجَّلُ لِنَفْسِهِ مِنْ ذَلِكَ حُزْنًا. (فتح الباري شرح صحيح البخاري)
The one who does not love may interpret it in a way that is not positive. Either out of hatred or envy. Then that may occur. Alternatively, it may cause him sorrow. (Imam Ahmad bin Ali bin Hajr al-Asqalani, Fath al-Bari).
The preceding Nass (text) highlights the danger of sharing a good dream with someone who is not close to you. Such a person could misinterpret it, either on purpose or due to ignorance. Subsequently, the person who saw the dream will be impacted by it. He may experience sadness or sorrow. Alternatively, it could take him or her down the wrong path.
If the above potential harm is foreseeable when sharing a good dream, then it is far more likely when sharing a bad dream. Hence, the blessed Prophet ﷺ warned more vehemently against sharing a bad dream. It is generally best to keep all dreams to oneself. Dreams are usually personal to the individual.
The only time we are encouraged to share a dream is if we have a good dream about someone else. In such a case it is recommended to share it with him or her. In all other cases it is best to keep the dream to oneself. Be it a good dream or a bad dream.
Fitnah in the community
In our age there is an even more pressing reason to keep dreams private. Especially positive dreams. Many people share good dreams they claim to have had regarding a particular Shaykh, group, or religious practice. This is subsequently used as religious proof. Thus, people claim the Shaykh is to be followed or the group is rightly guided, or the particular action is praiseworthy.
This manner of judging right and wrong is not in line with the teachings of the Prophet ﷺ. Rather we must judge the merits of an action, group or individual according to the Quran and Sunnah. If we were to adhere to the teachings of Islam, then there would be less opportunity for misguidance.
Sadly, it is common to find a Shaykh or a group that is astray in terms of their actions or what they teach. However, due to the consistent dreams that are shared about them, people are unwilling to question or scrutinize. As a result, misguidance spreads. If we were to judge the merit of Shaykhs and groups upon Quran and Sunnah, then this door to Fitnah would be closed.
And Allah Most High Knows Best.
–Answered by Shaykh Noorud-deen Rashid (23.03.24)
