A Ship’s Sail

According to Khalid al-Isfahani, seeing the sails of a ship spread open in a dream signifies that the dreamer is a person renowned among the people and one whose word carries authority.

Seeing the sails gathered and tied in a dream is contrary to this interpretation. Seeing oneself open the sails with one’s own hand signifies that one wishes to perform good works in order to gain renown and will assist the people; seeing oneself gather the sails with one’s own hand signifies that one has lost one’s former renown among the people through an evil and unnecessary deed.

According to Kirmani, seeing oneself setting sail in a dream signifies deliverance from one’s sins. Just as the sail is the cause of the ship’s movement, wealth is the measure of a person’s movement; therefore, there are also those who interpret setting sail as wealth. Whoever sees the sail he has opened filled with wind begins an undertaking for the sake of profit and saves the money he earns.

Seeing in a dream that the sail is sometimes filled by the wind and sometimes emptied signifies gain at times and loss at others. Seeing a full and swollen sail suddenly become empty signifies that the dreamer’s wealth will depart from his hand.

Whoever sees himself open a sail on a ship and manage it well will manage the affairs of his household well. If he is a merchant, there will be order in his buying and selling. Whoever sees that he does not manage the sail he has opened well, this means that he will likewise be unable to succeed in his affairs.

According to Abu Sa‘id al-Wa‘iz, seeing the sail torn in a dream signifies that the dreamer’s affairs will become confused; seeing the sail pierced and unable to catch the wind signifies that he will spend money because of an illness or a calamity; seeing oneself make and sew the sail anew, or repair and patch it, signifies that his disrupted affairs will be set right and that, if he works, he will succeed.

It can be read as a sign of easing, receiving support, gaining morale, or a fruitful development.

Underestimating opportunities, succumbing to comfort, or being late may reduce the positive effect.

In the interpretation, the themes of work and responsibility, success and reputation, the emotional tone in the dream, and how the symbol concludes in the dream should be evaluated together.