Posted by Mohammad Awais Tahir
Mandatory Characteristics
Characteristic # 1
From Allah THAT GIVES YOU A GLAD TIDING
Dreams that give a glad tiding are from Allah.So, if we see a dream that makes us happy in any way then probably it is a dream from Allah. Narrated Abu Sa'id Al-Khudri: The Prophet said,
"If anyone of you sees a dream that he likes, then it is from Allah, and he should thank Allah for it and narrate it to others; but if he sees something else, i.e., a dream that he dislikes, then it is from Satan, and he should seek refuge with Allah from its evil, and he should not mention it to anybody, for it will not harm him." (Sahih Al Bukhari)
From Shaitan TRIES TO MAKE YOU WORRIED
If you have a dream that makes you worried, or that tries to inculcate some vain fear in your main then that dream is from shaitan. Jabir reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: There came to him (the Holy Prophet) a desert Arab and said: I saw in a dream that I had been beheaded and I had been following it (the severed head). Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) reprimanded him saying: Do not inform about the vain sporting of devil with you during the night. (Sahih Al Muslim)
From Nafs MIXED
Dreams that are a result of our thoughts might make us worried or might make us happy. It depends on the content that we embed in our mind that takes some haphazard shape in the dream. All sorts of emotions might come out as a result of a mixed dream.
Filter # 1 : Hence, it is easy to filter out false dreams. Any dream which is displeasing to you on the face of it, is either from shaitan or because of some fear that you have in the back of your mind (type 3). But, any displeasing dream will not be from Allah. Now, if one has a pleasing dream can one be sure that this is from Allah, it could also be some intense unaccomplished wish. To confirm whether it is a type 1 dream or not we should look at the other characteristics. And Allah Knows Best.
Characteristic # 2
From Allah HAVE MEANING AND INTERPRETATION
Allah gives us some glad tiding, or shows us some path, or gives us some future information. Also, the dream can be an encouragement etc. In short, the dream has some meaning, and if it is a 'coded' dream then it needs an interpretation.
From Shaitan MEANINGLESS
Dreams from Shaitan are meaningless and is a try of Shaitan to make us worried.
From Nafs MEANINGLESS
Dreams from Nafs do tell us about the nature and thoughts of the dreamer but they have no real information for the dreamer himself, and he ought not disclose such dreams to others. Hence, for the dreamer these dreams are meaningless.
Filter # 2 : Hence, one can make out from the content and guess whether it is a type 1 dream or not. It is not that difficult to guess which content is meaningful and which one is meaningless. And Allah Knows Best.
Characteristic # 3
From Allah RECURRING
It is the sunnah of Allah to repeat the important message, as we see in the Holy Qur'an the Ayaat of great value are repeated again and again. Similarly, important dreams from Allah are repeated again and again.
From Shaitan and Nafs SINGLE TIME
It rarely happens that a dream from Shaitan or Nafs is repeated as it is.
Filter # 3 : Filtering out satanic dreams, which either have an immodest content or try to make us worried, is easy. A dream from Nafs repeating itself as it is, is something whose probability is near to impossibility, considering the randomness of dreams of Nafs. Hence, a dream which is recurring is of some value and is a dream of type 1. And Allah Knows Best.
Characteristic # 4
From Allah LOOKS AS IF EVENTS ARE REALITY IN THEIR PORTRAYAL
Dreams from Allah are a 'reality' of some higher order, hence one feels them a reality during the dream. This leaves a long-lasting effect on one's mind he remembers the dream in a better with the minute details. He remains fully immersed in the dream and it seems like a reality to him.
From Shaitan LOOKS LIKES THOUGHTS, NOT CONSISTENT WITH FACTS
Dreams from Shaitan, look like a movie-scene more than a reality. They have so many loop-holes, so many happenings that are not consistent with the facts. Many a times, one makes it out during the dream that this is not a reality, I must be dreaming and at the very same instant the dream ends.
From Nafs COMBINE REALITY AND FANTASY TOGETHER
Dreams from Nafs are a combination of reality and fantasy. It depends on the intensity of the dreams from 'Nafs' because sometimes the dream is very clear, and sometimes it is vague. Nevertheless, a careful insight into the dreams shows that the events don't seem like a reality in portrayal like the dreams from Allah are.
Filter # 4: Once again, one can easily ignore the dreams from shaitan. It's not difficult to make out a movie-scene from a reality. It can become difficult some times to differentiate between dreams from Nafs and dreams from Allah, on based of this characteristic alone. But if one combines other characteristics with it then it becomes easy. Filter # 4 and Filter # 5 should always be used together for a better analysis.
Characteristic # 5
From Allah REMEMBERS DETAILS OF DREAM
Dreams from Allah seem just like a reality. As compared to other types of dreams, in the computational language, dreams from Allah have a very high 'quality'. One can remember the minutest details of the dreams from Allah.
Ibn e Khuldun writes in his Muqadma : "Another sign is that the dream vision stays and remains impressed with all its details in the memory of (the person who perceived it). Neither neglect nor forgetfulness affects it. No thinking or remembering is required, in order to have it present (to one's mind). The (dream vision) remains pictured in the mind of (the dreamer) when he awakes. Nothing of it is lost to him. This is because perception by the soul does not take place in time and requires no consecutive order, but takes place all at once and within a single time element."(Muqamda ibn e Khuldun , Chapter: The Science of Dream Interpretation)
When Allah sends us a message directly, then it is not on us to remind ourselves of it continually so that we remember it, instead Allah's message has the in-built capacity that one remembers its minute details, until Allah wishes to wipe it off from one's mind for one reason or the other. As Allah said to Prophet Muhammad in Surah Al Qiyamah : " Do not set your tongue in motion to make haste with (the revelation of the Qur'an). It is up to us to put it together and to recite it. And when we recite it, follow its recitation. Then, it is up to us to explain it."
From Shaitan FORGET DETAILS AND MIXES IT
One tends to forget dreams from Shaitan as soon as he wakes, not if he 'forcefully' reminds himself of it.
From Nafs MAY FORGET DETAILS AND MIXES DETAILS
Dreams of type 3 have a better retention than type 2, but one cannot remember the minute details of the dream."Confused dreams, on the other hand, take place in time, because they rest in the powers of the brain and are brought from the power of memory to the common sense by the imagination, as we have stated. (The process is an action of the body,) and all actions of the body take place in time. Thus, they (require) a consecutive order, in order to perceive anything, with something coming first and something else coming later.Forgetfulness, which always affects the powers of the brain, affects (them). That is not the case with the perceptions of the rational soul. They do not take place in time and have no consecutive order. Perceptions that are impressed in (the rational soul) are impressed all at once in the briefest moment. Thus, after (the sleeper) is awake, (his) dream vision remains present in his memory for quite some time. In no way does it slip his mind as the result of neglect, if it originally made a strong impression. However, if it requires thinking and application to remember a dream vision after a sleeper is awake, and if he has forgotten many of its details before he can remember them again, the dream vision is not a true one but a confused dream." (Muqamda ibn e Khuldun ,Chapter: The Science of Dream Interpretation)
Filter # 5 : Dreams that are useless do not have good retention, they do not have a good 'quality'. One tends to forget the details of such dreams as soon as he wakes up. Dreams from Allah on the other hand are those which are just like reality. So, if you have to 'struggle' to remember the details of the dreams, or you 'fill-up' the missing-links of a dream by yourself then it is surely not a dream from Allah.
Characteristic # 6
From Allah CHASTE NOT INDECENT
Allah never commands what is shameful. (Surah Al A'araf 7:28)
From Shaitan INDECENT
For he (Shaitan) commands you what is evil and shameful, and that ye should say of Allah that of which ye have no knowledge. (Surah Al Baqarah 2:169)
From Nafs BY NATURE OF DREAMER AND SEXUAL ORIENTATION
"Nor do I absolve my own self (of blame): the (human) soul is certainly prone to evil, unless my Lord do bestow His Mercy: but surely my Lord is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful."(Surah Yusuf 12:53)
Those who desire indecent acts and involve themselves in them during are expected to see the same in dreams.
Filter # 6 : Any indecent dream can easily be disregarded as a false dream (type 2 and type 3). Of course decency in dreams is not exactly what decency means in this world. For example : if someone dreams of the end times, and everyone is running naked, that might not be counted as a indecent dream. Also, those who involve themselves in indecency throughout the day, might find modesty in the most impure of dreams. He who abides by the Islamic ruling of modesty, will not see an immodest dream, and if he does so will immediately realize it to be a game of shaitan or the nafs.
Characteristic # 7
From Allah DOES NOT OCCUR BECAUSE OF WET DREAMS See characteristic # 6
From Shaitan MAY OCCUR BECAUSE OF WET DREAMS See characteristic # 6
From Nafs MAY OCCUR BECAUSE OF WET DREAMS
Wet dreams after a certain time period. At that time, shaitan or the nafs takes up the opportunity to show indecent images to a person in dream. Of course, that does not hold true for everyone. There are those who have wet dreams without even the slightest of indecency. Hence, it depends on the piety of the person, his age, his marital status as to what sort of wet dream he normally experiences.
Filter # 7 : Any wet dream is to be disregarded as a meaningless dream.
Characteristic # 8
From Allah DEAL WITH PRESENT OR NEAR OR DISTANT FUTURE
Dreams from Allah are either a live experience or they give some direct or indirect message or glad tiding for near and distant future. Example of live experience, can be meeting with dead. For examples of dreams that deal with future see Reference # 2, 3 and 4.
From Shaitan NO RELATION WITH PAST, PRESENT OR FUTURE
Dreams from Shaitan are meaningless and have no relation whatsoever with past, present or future.
From Nafs AS A RESULT OF SOME HAPPENING IN NEAR OR DISTANT PAST
Dreams from Nafs are a result of some feeling deposited in the brain as a result of some happening in near or distant past. For example : A child wishes to eat an ice-cream, but his parents don't fulfill his wish during the day, then the child's wish might be fulfilled in the dream. Also, dreams from Nafs might express the general behavior, mentality or actions of the dreamer. Hence, one is advised to tell dreams only to the one who loves, because telling a dream of Nafs by mistake to someone not appropriate, might reveal some of your secret to him.
Filter # 8 : It is pretty tough to differentiate between dreams on this characteristic, as this is a hidden characteristic not evident to the dreamer. Any extreme pending wish taking some shape in the dream can be mistakenly take as a glad tiding for future. Dreams that come from Allah are of vital importance, hence, fulfillment of an ice cream wish can easily be identified as type 3 dream, and fulfillment of one's wish for umrah can be taken as a glad tiding from Allah (See Reference # 9).
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