Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Assalamo Alaikum Brother Burhan,

My husband Khalil keeps getting disturbances in his sleep at night. Sometimes it's a bad dream and he gets up screaming or barking like a dog.

Last night there was no dream and he got up screaming clasping his teeth and both his palms too. Every time he does this we immediately say the 4 kuls and then he is in peace. I am really worried about this whole thing.

Can you please explain why this happens?

Thanks and jazakalllah!

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Bad dreams

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 9.144 Narrated by Abu Huraira

Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "When the Day of Resurrection approaches, the dreams of a true believer will hardly fail to come true, and a dream of a believer is one of forty-six parts of Prophetism, and whatever belongs to Prothetism can never be false." Muhammad bin Sirin said, "But I say this." He said, "It used to be said, 'There are three types of dreams:

1. The reflection of one's thoughts and experiences one has during wakefulness,
2. what is suggested by the Shaytaan to frighten the dreamer,
3. or glad tidings from Allah.

So, if someone has a dream which he dislikes, he should not tell it to others, but get up and offer a prayer.'"

In light of the above hadith, if one has a good dream then it is always from Allah Subhanah in the form of good tidings. Whenever one experiences good dreams and good tidings, one must be grateful to Allah Subhanah and redouble their efforts in doing good righteous deeds to make themselves deserving of the honor which their Lord Most Merciful has bestowed upon them.

If one has an evil or frightening dream, without an iota of a doubt, it is from the accursed Shaytaan. One should immediately take refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytaan by declaring ‘Aoodibillahi minas Shaitaan ar-rajeem’, disregard the dream nor give it any importance or significance, and abstain from mentioning the dream to anyone; for it will never be able to harm them.

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 9.168 Narrated by Abu Salama

I used to see a dream which would make me sick till I heard Abu Qatada saying, "I too, used to see a dream which would make me sick till I heard the Prophet (saws) saying, "A good dream is from Allah, so if anyone of you saw a dream which he liked, he should not tell it to anybody except to the one whom he loves, and if he saw a dream which he disliked, then he should seek refuge with Allah from its evil and from the evil of the Shaytaan, and spit three times (on his left) and should not tell it to anybody, for it will not harm him."

Respected sister in Islam, from the contents of the dream it is evident that the dreams your husband has experienced are evil dreams with which the Shaytaan tries to despair, frighten, and scare mankind. All your husband needs to do is keep his full and absolute trust and belief in his Lord Most Merciful, remain constant in seeking refuge in his Lord Most High from the evil of the accursed Shaytaan, and never ever fear the approaching of some evil because of such dreams….it is expected that The Lord Most High, Most Majestic will protect him and his family from every harm and every evil, Insha Allah.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan