The Mysterious Purpose of Dreams

The purpose of dreams, according to the prophets, is to guide people onto the right path and to safeguard them: In a dream, a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls upon people as they slumber in their beds. Then He opens the ears of people and seals their instruction, to keep them away from mischief and pride from a man He keeps hidden.

Dreams are mentioned in Jewish texts as a means to help individuals in various ways. Rabbi Moshe of Coucy, of blessed memory, traveled to Spain to guide the Jewish people to return to faith and strengthen their fulfillment of commandments such as tefillin, mezuzah, and tzitzit.

Hashem assisted Rabbi Moshe, strengthened him, and sent dreams that inspired repentance and reinforced his message. Rabbi Moshe describes it in his sacred language: Hashem strengthened my arms through the dreams of Jews and non-Jews and through the visions of the stars, and caused the earth to tremble to the awe of Hashem, leading to great repentance and acceptance of thousands and tens of thousands of the commandments of tefillin, mezuzahs, and tzitzit. As stated in the verse, He saves one’s soul from the grave — the role of many dreams is to save lives.

As recounted in the Talmud, Rava’s father came to him in a dream and warned him of a danger from heaven, advising him to sleep elsewhere. Rava did so and discovered in the morning that his bed was pierced with swords from demons intended to harm him. Sometimes a person may not deserve a dream for their salvation, but because Hashem has mercy on animals, the dream reveals a danger that threatens both the person and the animals.

The Torah offers an example of this in Pharaoh’s dream, where he foresaw the famine that would strike Egypt. The dream depicted animals by the Nile as a hint to Pharaoh. The dream was not meant to save the people, as the Egyptians were sinful and corrupt at that time, but the animals were innocent. Thus, the humans were saved on account of the animals. Sometimes, dreams serve to save a person from wrongdoing.

Rabbi Eliezer ben Nathan, known as the Ranban, recounted that he allowed his son-in-law to use wine suspected of being idolatrous wine and deemed it permissible. That night, his teacher came to him in a dream and recited a verse disapproving of such an indulgence. From this, the Ranban realized that the wine was forbidden and fasted for two days in contrition.

At times, dreams reveal the correct halacha. Rabbi Ephraim of Regensburg, one of the early authorities, permitted eating a certain fish named burbita, over which poskim debated whether it was kosher or not. He dreamt of being offered a bowl full of reptiles, angering him, but the bearer reminded him that he had just permitted such a thing. Awaking mid-argument, Rabbi Ephraim realized his mistake in permitting the fish and promptly destroyed all dishes and bowls containing the fish. The Talmud states that sometimes even wicked people have pleasant dreams.

Such dreams are often the result of a good deed they once performed, providing them with temporary joy as recompense in this world, leaving them no share in the world to come. The Talmud speaks of people who dreamed of finding hidden wealth their fathers had concealed, only to discover it exactly where the dreams indicated.

In one story from the Talmud, the information was given in hints and initials, decoded by the sage who solved the dream’s mystery. Rabbi Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld, of blessed memory, was impoverished in his youth and dedicated to Torah despite his hardship.

One night, he dreamt the winning lottery number for the week and shared this with a friend. He decided not to buy the ticket, fearing wealth might interrupt his Torah study. He saw the dream as a test to see whether he valued wealth over Torah. The next day, both friends went to the ticket vendor and found the number Rabbi Yosef Chaim had dreamed was indeed the winning one.

Our Sages note there are dreams without a true reality, sent to soothe a troubled soul and offer peace of mind. Such dreams might lead to incidents influencing the dreamer’s life or others. For instance, seeing a certain situation in a dream might prepare one for the actual development, guiding their reaction accordingly.

Sometimes dreams direct actions that trigger a series of reactions affecting the world, aligning with divine will. Typically, a dream carries a message for the dreamer, encouraging repentance or informing how to act in a given situation.

Yet, occasionally, a dream is intended for someone other than the dreamer. The heavenly reason for this could be due to a particular whim, or perhaps the intended recipient is ostracized from heaven. These dreams hint to the dreamer that they may offer help to the person they dreamed about. Therefore, if the dream concerns a friend in distress, ancient writings suggest fasting and praying for that friend.

It is advised to inform the friend of the troubling dream so they may initiate repentance and prayer for themselves. Halachic authorities propose fasting on account of such dreams, as sometimes the foreboding dream about another actually concerns the dreamer. Therefore, fasting and repentance for a dream about another may be meritorious.

Some dreams involve someone else directly, and the reason it wasn’t dreamt by the involved person is to give the dream added weight and stability. This is because a dream about another person carries significant meaning. As our Sages taught, one sign of a true dream set to unfold is a dream about another. Often, the dream’s message is aimed at the dream interpreter. Pharaoh’s dreams, those of the chief baker and cupbearer, served largely to free Joseph from prison and elevate him to viceroy.