Abstract

Dreams and visions are of central importance in Islam because the first revelations of the Prophet were received in the form of true dreams. Early Islamic writers gave particular attention to dreams and their interpretation and a rich literature was developed on this subject. Mystics and Sufis were well acquainted with and followed the premises that Islamic thinkers proposed in books of dream interpretation. However, for them, the true dream was of particular importance and through it they could access unique knowledge which helped them in their spiritual progress. This paper tries to analyze dreams and visions in the works of Rumi. As one would expect, Rumi does not have a systematic presentation or a holistic theory on this subject. Hence we have divided our investigation into five main subjects: The taxonomy of dreams and visions and their definitions The world of dreams and visions The relationship between the world of dream and reality The vision of God The return to the origin. Through these five sections, some dimensions of dream and vision in the works of Rumi and their status in his thought are elucidated.