Pivotal Quote
“The bad dream that is scary (i.e. a nightmare), this comes from shayṭān, so this is not a warning of something. Whenever you wake up and you are scared of what you saw in the dream, this is not a true dream that is warning you against something, rather this is from shayṭān.“
سؤال وجواب – عربي – ٠:٥١ دقائق
Question and Answer – English [1:23]
Question:
How can we differentiate between a bad dream and a true dream that is warning us against something?
Answer:
The bad dream that is scary (i.e. a nightmare), this comes from shayṭān, so this is not a warning of something. Whenever you wake up and you are scared of what you saw in the dream, this is not a true dream that is warning you against something, rather this is from shayṭān. As the Messenger of Allāh (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said,
“If anyone of you sees in a dream that which worries him then let him lightly spit to his left three times because shayṭān is playing with him.” [Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 4/1772]
As for the true/good dream, it could either be good news or it could be a warning against something, however, it is not going to come in the form of a nightmare. If you have a nightmare, that is not a warning against something, that is not from Allāh; that is shayṭān playing with you.
And also, it could simply be that the dreams you see are neither a warning nor glad tidings, but that you had some thoughts going through your mind during the day and those thoughts are recycled at night.