AUSAN

AL-QASAS
Commentary Surah Yusuf
(The 12th Chapter Of G'lorious Quran)
Sheikh
Abdur
SUBULAS PUBLICATIONS
Subulas Salaam

Bolton
BL35AQ
United Kingdom
Preface
HadhratAqdas, Sheikhul Mashaikh, Tutorof , FounderofMadaaris,
LecturerofSahih 1 Bukhari, Hadhrat l a n Sulaiman YusufIbn
SulaimanMotalasahib, A1lah blessuswithhis a n andgranthim
longlife. e n .
Translation SheikhMahmood Chandia
___________________7afs'eer
PREFACE
the Allah the most compassionate the most merciful
The dearest Abdur Raheem Sahib, lecturer in Hadith in Darul
Allah protect requested to provide preface his
work, exegesis ofSurah Yusuf. This surah comprises
disciplines ofstudy, such as astronomy, geography, mineralogy, sociology,
sciences ofthenoble Quran are limitless and amanifestationofthe
quraruc verse:
Say: Iftheocean were ink(to write out) thewords ofmy Lord, then surely, the
would dry before the words of Lord finished, even ifWe
another similar its aid. (Q. 18: 109)
At the beginning ofthe surah the following introductory is contained.
The words al-kitab al-mubln ('the Manifest Book'), provide the ofthe
Book. The words anzalnahu ('indeed We have revealed it') reveal the
source ofthe Book. The words quran (' Quran')
tl1e Book. The words, ahsan al-qasas ('the most beautiful ofstories') indicate
specific chaptertitle. Likewise the quranic words la ('do 110t
relate dream') supported the hadith 'do not relate visiol1except to
intelligent person etiquettes oft11e science of
and their interpretation. The words/ayakidu kayda (' otherwise will
concoct plot against substantiate the of of esoteric
knowledge whom is disclosed and future eventllalities
unveiled and that the articulation ofsuch knqwledge should not held as
improper. The words wa kadhalikayajtablka rabbuka ('and Lord wiH
choose indicate the science of disclosures and character
Effectively, each word seems to unfold body ofknowledge that the reader of
tllis work would acquainted with.
1sllpplicate to Allah that establish this work as source ofbenefit
iii
:7I1-2asas _
author, its readers and who assist in the printing and publicationofit.
This surah, as 1have previously stated, contains about situations
t11at boththe of distinction andthe masses intheirworldlylives.
It exposesthe hiddenj ealousy ofProphet Yusuf s brotherstowards andhis
subsequent separation his father, Prophet Ya'qub him)
\;v'ho virtually 10st his sightdueto lifetimes 10nging forandremembrance of
his belovedson. This raisesthequestion: what impact didthis separationhave
tl1e mother? LikewisehowdidthelateHadrat IslamulHaqq Sahib
(ex-Shaykh ul-Hadith ofDarul and his wife, who were also
separated their son during his infancy whilst residents amongst Hindu
in India, liveout theremainingthirtyfive yearsoftheir lives? The
Prophet qub him) however was eventuallyrepatriatedwith
bls son during the latter part ofhis life whilst the latter was the Govemor of
Egypt. at this point, was also ofthe lengthy sequel ofevents,
\vhichcharacterised his son's life. Thisincludestheperiodofhis son's infancy,
enslavement and ofcourse the extent to which Zulekha and other Egyptian
womenwereinfatuatedwith ofwhichisrecordedin greatdetail inthe

infamous infatuation hasproduced numerous invarious mediums.
is also Yusufand approximately25 years ago 1had to stay
il1 Egypt short while. few months ago, 1related to MOlllvi Irshad,
ofHoward StrcetMosque, Bradford of ZLlleklla
11is dcparturcto Egypt formarital purposcs. The is as foJlows:
\NI1CI1 I wasjust twcnty-fivc ycars oragc, 1rcsidcd il1 Egypt <1 Sl1011
\I/Ili/c.;. I liv(xl tllat was sitLlatcd top SI10P MajJis al
S11;1'h Strcct This l.llC I_agl1irigli tl1C vcgctablc markct.
J altcl1<Jc(1 local Mosquc, Wl1icIl was 1()C;1tC(1 sliglltly orrtllC 011
si(Jc slrcct, /iJr tl1c fi (jai praycrs. J\ t I 111 witll
\V110 wOlI](1 (ILlril1g 111CiI" timc.
\\/c.;t-c.;: Vlltllamtlla(! cxlrcl11cly COLlrlcOLIS Mi(1I1al
1;111 ;11)(1 sJIIIII/1(liY)(]llal al1(1 MIIsta[:1 al1 c.;xccptioll;11 ()Il OIIC
1\'
____________________7afseer C5urahYusu{
occasion1arrangedtheir co11ective names in verse of poetry and recited it
theirpresence. Theywere exceedingly charmed theverseand
that it resembled Hariri' sMaqamat. The verse was:
1eulogised (madI1) Muhammad the chosen (al-Mustafa)
three regularlyvisited at f1at afterthe Asrprayer and occasiona11y1
would them at their residence.
instance, Muhammad invited to his house for after Isha. 1
noticed arrival that extra special had paid to the
We indulged in in the presence ofhis parents and other
membersofhis familyinthecourtyardofhis house. At point,
and Midhat took to inside the house where Muhammad' s sister,
Zulekha,was alsopresent. shortconversation, Midhat,pointingtowards
Zulekha tlle capacity ofher '1marry her to
to gatherthe meto make
anabsolute matterof 1 myself
to deliver positive and oftl1e proposalimpolite,
1remained but the botl1
their anxiety and the despite doors
to convince .i.U '011
despondel1t tl1e sl1e \vas fact
oftl1e verse ... = :..; liJ) slle did desil'e
despite of
\vitllOlIt \vitl1cssil1g \\'it11
vcrse (iesiHxi tiiti 1tiiili
t11is.
Sl1aykll, S11aykl1 Mtlllal1l111atl
I11Cl\:Y Illal l1atlill1 tlS 10 aL)slail1
li'Olll \\ii Iltll t)1'0111CI"S posscssit)[1s 10 11bltk
C\Pl'L'ssioll olllCl,\'isL' IlblI L'111Si\L' L'VL'll
IL'tJ1IL'sl.
,.
_
1experienced similarscenario. Zulekha andher familyextended marriage
proposal with the utmost reverence, courtesy and according to the Islamic
8uidelines, but 1didnot oblige.
As consequence ofleaving Zulekha heartbroken, when 1intended to
marry at the ageoffifty, twentyfiveyearsafterthe incident,1continued
to hear theechoofher brokenheart in the ofMuhammad andMidhat
,vithtwostreamsoftears flowing her eyes. 1wouldalsofindmyself
llttering with distress: )s. 4 'Oh due to forsaking
andsupplicating infavour ofZulekha, and occasion
thiswould supplemented withthepetitionofProphet Yaqub
.J# J.i .)1;:' :il 'Allah is the whose succour is sought'
(Q. 12: 18). Eventua11y andcontinuous supplications overwhelmed
thebitterness ofZulekha's broken heartand heart's aspirations werefulfilled.
At present, the invocationofProphet Yusuf(peace him) remains
rnytongue:
.;;, .:.>" \\ _ '9'\ ... .:Jljl:... jj':;"j
__ ...... " ,"-,..-"" --'... "-" .. -
\'1', C:iJ\ . "1' ..:Ji
,.1': d lf"o) J.
Lord! Indeed have bestowed sovereignty and taught the
ofdreams. OhCreatorofthe heavensandthe earth, are
Protector inthisworldandtheHereafter.' (Q. 12:101). But it fails to continue
vvith the words j Jj death as submitting
to our Will and let amongst therighteousesdue to the infancyof
children, MuhammadandSulayman.
ardent aspiration remains that MuhammadandSulaymandevelop into
complete personificationofProphet Yusuf, ProphetYaqubandtheirsuccessor
Prophet Muhammad them and1, in finalmoment, utter
vvith ultimate contentment 'Grant [Oh Lord!] death as submitting to
our Wi11 andlet amongsttherighteous.'
(Hadrat YusufMotala (Sahib)
vi
Foreword
SisterAatika
__________________:7afteerO(r5urallYUSirJ(
Foreword
SurahYusufis taleof contradistinctions andlonging and
forbearance in the ofloss. It provides compelling ofthe
reward endurance. ThisTafseer is powerful antidote tothe
values ofinstant gratificationthatWestemMuslims inparticular, aspire towards.
lessonofSurah Yusufis inspiring. The ofProphet Yusufs
charactershowsthat lastingcontentmentcomesthroughobedienceto AllaJh..
The trialsthat ProphetYusuf experienced, were throughhis digni1:y
andcompassion.
Allahgrant us the strengthto fulfil our devotions aspiringto thebeautyof
ProphetYusuf thelovethat he hadfor his family visitthereader
inspire withthe greaterlovefor AllahandHisMessenger
Allah bestow Maulana Abdur Raheem with renewed success in
endeavours and reward handsomely for..enriching the reader with his
knowledge.
AatikaBora
27/4/02
ix
___________________
Foreword Author
S11eikh, Hadhrat Maulana llsufMotala Sahib givehim
long and prosperous life) requested to writethe Tafseer ofSural1
Yusuf forourmonthlymagazine, Subulas Salaam, 1wastakenaback insurprise
awe, for1considered mysel fneither quali fied, norworthy fortheundertakjng.
However, sinceone's parentsandteachers constantlystressingthe virtues
ofrespectingthe wishes of s elders, 1concededto the request before
andtook to writingthe Tafseer.
At the inception,the weight ofthe responsibilitydawned Having to
for lessons throughout the week, as teacherofSahih Muslim and
Mishkat Shareef,1found time to major restraintduringthe weekdays. So
1settledinto habit ofwriting the Tafseer Sundays, after Fajr SaHlh.
theGraceofAllahandwiththeduasof Sheikh, Al1ah to lighten
thetask, 311d graduallythe'burden' oftheresponsibilitygavewaytothesweetness
ofresearchandwriting. That is why noticethat 1was unableto write
much commentaryinthe ofthe Surah, however, inthe latter 1
have tried to cover as topics as possible.
IfI was asked as to the reason why Hadhrat chose the Tafseer ofSurah
Yusufin particular,1would not knowthe answer. However, 1 venture
say that SurahYusufhas aspects, especial1y lessonsregarding
(Sabr), 311d thoseregarding dreams311d theirinterpretations. Nowadays, people
very littleattentionto When person's life is engrossedin sin,
is apttoseeanig11tmare t11311 sweetdream. Ifsomeonewatches television
till the latehours ofthe nig11t, thenfal1s asleepandneglectshis Fajr Salah,how
he expect to see meaningful dream? This is why people have deep
neglect of this science. And if someone does relate trlle dream and tlle
interpretation tums out to then people refuse to accept ttLis
and simplymake ofsuch people. As the sayinggoes: \.,4>:- LJ ,J"'\..J\
'People showhostilitytowardsthat whichtheydo not know.'

Jf1lsan _
Hadhrat's is Yusuf LiketheProphet blessed
with the wisdom of andtheir interpretations. Hadhrat veryoften
sees dreams, which tum out to as clear as the stroke ofdawn.
Recently, just beforehisdeparture forSouth tovisithis agedmother,his
'wife-whilst carryingtheir youngest son in her arms- slipped down flight of
stairs. Both were injured with the child having to taken in emergency for
When1heardoftheincident, 1approached Hadhratto console
smiledandrelated he sawthenightbefore. said, dunyaof
isAjeeb (Amazing). Sometimes theAngelof comesandwams
llS ofsomethingwhichis goingto happen." he said, "1saw that the
rnajlis ofHad11fat Sheikhrahmatu11ahi alaihi wastakingplace. Hadhrat beckoned
and1was goingtowards MunawwarHussainSahib great
Kha1ifah ofHadhrat) rnet theway and startedtalkingto 1listenedto
then 1mentionedthat Hadhrat was calling so 1had to go. obliged
andwe parted.1turned aroundto see that he startedclimbingsomestairs, and
1stoodtheremotionless whilehe forhewas elderly and1felthemight
assistance. Afterclimbing fewstairs, he tumbled and ftomstep
to stepinto hawz(pondforwudhu) that was at the end.1rushedtowards
andpulledhimout.1thoughtthathemighthave fatally injured. However,
he openedhis eyesand said, '1 am alright'."
he (Hadhrat) saw that the sun was rising in such manner that cross
\\'as embedded in it. felt very grieved and related the dream in very
distressedmannersaying,"W hadhoped fortherising and yet 1see
tllis?" Then few days later he said, "The dream has constantly
and 1 realizing that thecrosswas morelike plus signin maths.1feel
that the sunshouldnot interpretedaccording to its spellingbut accordingto
tbie pronunciation, whichwould 'son' . 1have feelingthat about
to bless with son and perhaps not just but more owing to the plus
si;gn." true. FirstA1lah giftedhimwithMuhammadandthen
S\llaiman.
hesaid, "1 sawMaulanaAhmadul1ahSahib thefonner
Stleikhul Hadith ofJamiah Hussainiyah. to house at the Darul
xiv
___________________'lafseer
Uloom and 1was we1coming him." The next day Maulana's grandson, Hafiz
Uwais, was brought to the Daml-Uloom for admission. Hadhrat said, "This is
the interpretation. Maulana to intercedefor his grandson' s admission."
Hadhrat is alsogiftedwiththe abilityto interpret dreamsiri wonderful
Maulana YusufMamoon Sahibrelatedthat he sawHadhrat Maulana
Haq Sahib rahmatullahi alaihi in dream after his death. saw in Nebo
Street in verypleasant mood wearingbright white clothes. had tasbeeh
in his hand. Maulana asked "Hadhrat! Haven't died?"
replied. "No 1amalive."
Upon hearing the dream, Hadhrat replied, "When person sees someone after
his death as though he is still this means that given him tfte
rankofashaheed Martyr)." "They are alive" andAllah gives
this rank to whoever he wills.
The Hadith says that the dream of true believer is ofthe forty-six
parts ofNubuwwah. another hadith the Prophet said, "Nothing
Nubuwwat is left except for Mubashshiraat." The companions asked, "What
areMubashshiraat Rasoolullah?" replied, gooddreamwhich
sees or which someone else sees for him."
Hadhrat saw dream, which tumed out to interpreted
thedreamofthe kingaswell asthedreamsofthe imprisonedones.
used to have dreams, so much so that Ibrahim preparedto sacrificeh.is
beloved son, 1smail seeing dream for three consecutive nights.
Prophet used torelatehis dreams andwould interpret the dreams as seen
the Sahabahradhi Allahu
The Ulama ofthis Umrnah have followed the Prophet in every field and,
consequently, theyalsosee dreamsandgiveinterpretations tothem.
the recent scholarsareHadhrat Maulana RashidAhmad Gangohi rahmatul1ahi
alaihi,HadhratMaulanaQasimNanotwi rahmatullahi alaihi.
Hadhrat SheikhulHadithMaulanaMuharnmadZakariyyal1 rahmatullahi

71f..2asas _
was alsoanexpert inthis field. writes in replyto letter, our dream
ofki1ling snakesis gooddream,asit means'killing' conternptible, vilehabits.
Itwould greatgiftofAllah killed-off badhamtsaswell asthose
ofyoursand friends."
anotherletterhewrites: "Donot so muchattention to 1fyou see
pleasant dream thank And ifyou see disturbing dream then recite
j-' thenspittoyourleft. Thisis whatwe have taught
inHadith. Dozensofpeopleseedreamsregarding thehumblewriter. However,
1myselfsee very few dreams. 1don't mention to people that 1sawthis
- yourfirst dreamthatsomeoneispreaching andthe ofRasulullah
isplacedthere;is quiteclear.The JanazahofRasulullahdenotesthedeathof
lllsSunnahs. ThatRasulullahisrubbing hishandsoverhis indicates.his grief
and distress over the situation ofthe Muslims. our own grief in the dream
showsyour feelings overthestateofMuslims, which mostoftenmention.
Allah ourdeenand he givesome sukoon(tranquility) to our
Prophet
In another letter he writes: see oneselfclean shaven in dream depends
thereligious inclination ofthepersonhavingthedream.Ifhe is religious,
it is gladtidingofforgiveness. 'The dwellersofJannah wi1l hairless
andbeardless However, iftheperson isirreligious thenthisisemulating
Kuffar. (i.e.theperson have beardinrealitybut hemight copying
Kuffar in some other way). 1)) your casethe secondinterpretationcannot
taken into account,therefore, the first is definite."
summarise, dreams do have meanings. 1f person sees dream which he
t1links couldhold some meaningthenhe shouldenquire aboutitsinterpretation.
the grace of Almighty Allah, the Tafseer has completed. 1would
categoricallyadmit that this humblework does not dojustice to what s
",,'ords deserve. It would have an impossibility for sinful person like
myselfto write the Paak an:d Pure words ofThe Almighty. 1fsomething
good has brought forthit is throughthe Graceof and ifmistakes
have made, then it is dueto inability- forgive
xvi
__________________7afseer
But 1am constant1y reminded ofmy Hadhrat's urgings, for time the
notionof notcontinuing hadcrossed mind.But Hadhrat's kindwordsof
encouragement kept going. givehim longlife,and hekeep
his blessedshadeover our headsfor as longaswe live.1remember readingthe
words ofMufti Mahmood Sahib in letterto his Sheikh, Hadhrat Sheikhul
Hadithrahmatullahi alaihi writes,"1wish1woulddieduringthe lifetimeof
Hadhrat becausethen 1couldhave some hope ofdying with for the
sanctity ofmy is alsodue to your Duas andyour blessed 1do
not know whether 1would able to safeguard after Hadhrat, if
Hadhrat were to die before
Furthermore,1would alsoliketo thankthe groupofstudentswho assisted
throughout thediscourses withthetypingandpagemaking. Mostrecently,
IrfanSidyot, AbidGhulam Rasul, Molvi Saeed Mulla, Molvi Ishtiaq
MolviYunusRawatandMolviAsimHafiz. Not to forget MolviIsmailGanga1:,
Sister Aatika and others who took the trouble of proof reading
correctingthe earlydrafts.
acceptourhumbleeffortsandmakethem sourceof forgiveness
inthehereafter.
xvii
Introduction
___________________7afreer 0/ e5urahYusu/
Tafseer ofSiirah Yusuf
Authors Note
1 the Tafseer usufin the of Most Gracious
Most Merciful. 1seek His refuge from evils and 1very humbly
His help in the hard task ahead ofme.
As beginner with knowledge and experience ofwriting in English 1have
nothing but high hopes assistance from 1have before various
Ofthe Holy from which 1give to the
translation ofPickthall, thereafterTafseer Majidi and then various others. 1
to make the as short as possible, giving references whatever
1
Brief Account ofthe Siirah
Surah Yusufis Makkan Surah i.e. Surah that was revealed in Makkah
before Hijrah. It consists of111 verses and 12 ruku'.s. It is Surah lisl1f
because the story is mentioned therein. In the previous SUra.h
(Surah Hood), the stories of ofProphets have related,
in Surah Yusufonly Prophet's story is Stories ofthe Prophets
are related in different chapters different reasons, but mainly they serve to
console the Holy Prophet the hardships he was enduring. The story of
is mentioned in chapter because it was revealed the request
ofpeople. Likewise the story ofAshaabe-Kahfand Zul-Qarnain is mentioned
only chapter as it was revealed request.'
Cause Revelation
verses ofthe Holy connected to certain incidents, which were
cause oftheir revelation. The Mufassireen rahimahumullah have written
books regarding these causes, e.g. Suyuti rahmatullahi alail1i's
1 01' ldrees Khandhalwi
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_
'Lubabunnuqul Fi Nuzool' Theseincidents quite important because
quiteoftenthemeaningof verse understood withoutknowingthe
forit'srevelation.
InthecaseofSfuah Yusuf,tworeasons mentioned:
1. Sa'adIbnAbi
and the Prophet had recited it to the Sahabah for period oftime,
they requested, "Howwonderful it would ifyou alsoconversedwith
thus A11ah revealedthe verse "A11ah has sent down the best speech."
Then they said, Prophet ofA11ah tell us story!" and A11ah revealed
SfuahYusuf andthe verse, "We to verygoodnarration. "2
2. Dhahaaknarrates :fromIbnAbbas "TheJewsquestioned theProphet
$ regardingthe situationofthe Prophet Yaqub and his sons, especially
Theyenquiredas towhy andhowthey to Egypt whilst they
v{ere origina11y from Syria." ThereuponAllah Sfuah
MaulanaAbdul MajidDaryabadi writes in Majidi', "Thestory ofJoseph
asgi inthe is similarbut not identical totheBiblicalstory; the
atmosphereis whollydifferent. TheBiblical storyis like folktale in which
has Itstendency istoexalttheclever, financia11y mindedJew
against theEgyptian, andto certain andtribal peculiarities in late
Jewishhistory. Josephis shownasbuying thecatt1e andthe landofthe
poorEgyptians for theStateunderthestressoffamine conditions, andmaking
tlleIsraelites rulers overPharaoh's catt1e. TheQur'amc story, theotherhand,
ismorethan merenarrativethanahighlyspiritual sennon, explainingtheseeming
contradictions of1ife, theenduringnatureofvirtuc in world full off1uxand
changeandthemarvellous working ofAllah etema1 purposeinHis as
unfolded to us thewidecanvasofhistory."4
Introduction
1nowbriefly mention story the authorityof Suyuti's
YusuI' 3 - Khazin
'Khalln
MUJi(li 35(,:2
xxii
__________________ e5urahYusu/
.'DurreManthur'. Pleasenotethat someofthe contentsaredebatableandshall
explained duringthedetailed
Jareer and1bnAbi Hatim have related Suddi, that Suddi has said,
"Prophet Yaqub in Syria and ms was for ms two sons,
Yusuf and ms brother Binyamin Their fathersextreme for Hadhrat
Yusuf causedtheotherbrothersto jealous ofhim. Hadhrat Yusuf'
saw in dream that stars, the moon and the sun were in
prostrationbefore him. infonnedhisfather ofthe dreamandhisfather advised
son,donotrecount thyvisiontothybrethren, lestthey scheme
plot against thee." Whenthenewsofthe dreamreached hisbrothers it inflamed
theirjealousyandthey "Surely YusufandhisbrotheraremoredeareI'
to our fatherthanwe, whereaswe are band"(theywere tenin number)
fatheris in manifest indeed." Theymeant that he is surelywrongin his
judgmentof us."SlayYusuforcasthimawaytosomeland, yourfather's solitude:
wi11 free for and will thereafter favoured" he means, .
seekrepentance forwhat didwithhim.Then speakerfIomamongstthem
said(thespeakerwas ahuza) "Donot slayYusufbut cast intothebottom
ofthe well, some caravanwil1 take if doing." When they
haddecided overit, theyapproached theirfatherandsaidtohim our father!
Whyis it thatthoudoesnot trustuswithYusuf?" replied, "1 will neversendl
him in your for 1 lest wolf devour him, while are
neglectofhim. said,'Ifthewolfdevouredhimdespite ofournumbers, we
shall surelybe 10st." Thushe sent them.
It was when theyhadreachedthe opencountrythat theybrought to ligh1
their enmity. One ofthem begantobeat so triedto seek
help fromanotherwhoin tUm tookover andalsohit him. foundthat
were merciful and theybeat ti11 he was close to death. Hadhrat usuf
began screaming and saying, father, Yaqub, ifonly were to
what is being done to son his halfbrothers." When the brothers had
nearly killed him ahuzacried(tohisbrothers), "Didn't give anoaththat
wouldnot Yusuf." Theythentookhimto wellandbeganto10wer
in, btlt thesidesobstructedhis descent.They tiedms al1d pulled offhis
s11irt as pleaded, brot11ers! Giveback shirtso covermyselfwitl1
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71hsan 71f.2asas _
it intheweH." Insteadtheytaunted, theelevenstars, the andthe
suntoentertain "1 didnot seeanything." lowered himhalf
way downthewell thenlethim go, thinkingthat he would killed,but there
was water in theweH andhe landedinsideit without hann. got to
largestoneandbeganto crywhenhisbrothersbeganto him.
They thought they should crush him with boulder, but ahuza got and .
stoppedthern, he reminded thern, havesurelygiven anoaththat
wouldnot him." ahuzawouldbringfood to
Before returning totheirfather theycaught smallgoat, slaughtered it and
spreadingits blood HadhratYusuf shirt theyapproached their father
crying.Hadhrat aqub heardtheirvoices,becomingfrightened he asked,
sons, what has happened to Has some problem with
your goats?" replied, "No." Sohe asked, "Whathashappened toYusuf?"
Theysaid: "Father! Wewent offracingandleftYusufby ourthings,so wolf
(fevoured himandthough wiltnotputcredenceinus."Meaning, willnotbelieve
11S we arethetruthful). aqub weptandscreamed at thetop
ofhis voicethenasked, "Whereishis shirt." brought himtheshirtcovered
\vith false blood. grabbed the shirt and threw it his and began to
untilhiswhole wassmeared withthebloodffomtheshirt. cried,
"Thiswolf, childrenis merciless,so how did he eat Yusuf, and did not
teartheshirt?"
There caravan andtheysenttheirwaterdrawerwholetdownhisbucket.
Yusuf took hold fthe rope at the bottomandappearedover the side. As
soon asthepersonwho hadthrownin the bucketsaw he caHed to of
ttiscomparuons whowas asBushra. said, Bushra, thisis child."
The brothers ofYusuf hearing this and infonnedthem that this
vvas slaveoftheirs whohadrun away. Theywamed in their own
language thatifhe beingtheirslave, theywouldsurely him. "Do
t]hink we retumwith t6 Yaqub whereas wehaveinfonnedhimthat
wolfhas eaten theycried. Hadhrat brothers!
with to father Yaquband 1will bear the responsibility ofhis
happincsswith and1wi]] ncvermentionthis (incident) to But
xxiv
__________________ e5urdYusu{
theyrefused, so usuf said,"1 amtheirslave."
thetwo purchased him. thenfeared whattosaytotheircaravan
members ifthey askedwhere theyhad got him. So, They said, "Wewill teH
them that these are somegoods we purchased at the weH", the
'they hid him as merchandise. And they sold him for mean price! fe'h'
counteddirhams' (Thesumwas oftwentydirhams).
They took to Egyptwherethe ofEgypt bought him, andtook
himtohishouse. saidtohiswife"Makehislodging goodly. Perhaps he
profitus orwemaytakehimas ason." Hiswife inlovewith
saidto Yusuf, howbeautiful hairyou have!" will
the first part f body to out and scattered around." She sai<i,
"Whatbeautifuleyes have!" replied, wiH the firstpart oftllle
body to flowto the ground."Shethensaid, Yusuf, What beautiful ils
yours!" said, isforthesoilto eat." thou! isin the
language,he said, refuge(1 seek), he (the is lordand
has made goodlydwelling, so1won't betrayhis trustwithhiswife."But
shestayed himuntilhebegantodesire her. Shebesought himandhebesougllt
her sotheyenteredthehouse(andsheclosedthedoors),he was aboutto
himself whensuddenly there wasbefore him vision ofhis father
standing inthehousebiting his finger. wassaying, Yusuf, donot haye
intercourse withherbecause arelike birdintheskythatcannot caught.
When her will likethesamebirdwhenit dies, it falls thle
earth and cannotprotect itself. arelike an whichhas never used
(in the fields)and ifyou heryou will likethe same when it dies,
water entersthe roots ofits hornsbut it cannotkeep it away."
Thus,he puHed himselftogetherandproceeded tothe exit. Shecaught with
him andgrabbed handful ofhis shirtftombehindandtoreit. thre'h'
it downandhastened towards thedoqr. bothfound hermaster(hercousin
brother)sitting thedoor.Uponseeinghimthewomanexclaimed, "Whatils
the need ofhim who intended evil towards thy household except that he
imprisoned or an afflictive chastisement?" triedto seduce so1pushed
him away ftom myself and1torehis shirt." said, "No, she seduced
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and refusing, shetookholdof shirtandtoreit off cousin
eoncludedthat therealitycould found ftom the shirt. said, "Check
, andseeifthe shirtis tom ffomtheftont, thenshe istrueandhe is ftom the
liars. Andifit istom ftom theback,thenshehas liedandhe is ffomthetruthful."
whenthe shirtwasbrought,hefoundthat it was tom ftom behind, sohe
said, "Verilyit is the guileofyou women, the guileofyou women is mighty.
Yusuf1 awayffomthis,andthou womanaskforgiveness forthysin."
said, "Donot do thisagail1." Andthewomeninthetownsaid, "Thewifeofthe
has solicitedher page. has inflamedher with
'Shagaf (theroot ofthe word) mentionedinthe means strike
heart, whichis as themouthofthe heart. The statementmeans that
1:he enteredtheskinandreachedthe heart. Thensheheardoftheir cunning
1:alk. "She sent to them messenger and prepared for them banquet and
providedeachwith knife."and citronto eat. Thensheordered to
enter unto them. When he madehis entryandthe women saw him, they were
completelytakenaback. Theybegantocut theirhands thinkingthat theywere
cutting the ftuit. They were saying, "How perfect is No is he
(Yusuf); he is angel."
She said, "Thisis whom reproached for. Assuredly1solicited but
abstained."After lladopenedllisclothing,1don't know wllat made him
cllange his mind. Yusufsaid, Lord! Prison is dearer to than wllat
thesewomen to."Meaningun1awful intercourse. thewoman said
to her llusband, "This Hebrew slave has degraded amidst tlle
excused himselfby te11ing themtllat1triedto seduce and1can'tgo and
te11 tllemstoriesas we11 (makeexcuses),so eitheryou grant mepermission to
80 out and make excuses like is doing, or put him into prisonjust as
imprisoned Tllis is wllere says, it occurred to
them after they had seen the signs'. Meaning tlle tear in tlle shirt, tlle
cuttingoftllehandsetc, to imprisonhim for season. "Tllereenteredwith him
two youths in the prison" The king angry with llis baker who was
plottingtopoisonhim soheimprisoned alongwithhisbut1er (winebearer).
entered the prison he said, "1 interpret dreams." ofthe
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youths saidtohispartner, wewill test thisHebrewslave." Theytold
ofdreaming something, which they in reality had not dreamt about. They
fabricated story and interpretedtheir fabricateddream. Thewine
bearer said, "Verily1sawmyself pressingwine" and the bak:er said, "Verily1
sawmyself headbreadwhereofthebirdswereeating." Yusuf
told them, "No food wi11 not to for your sustenance, but that
beforeit comesto 1shallhavedeclaredto the interpretationthereof."
gavethe interpretationofthe dreamssaying, ofyou wi11
wine forhis master." Meaninghe wi11 retumedto his original state. "As
for the other he wi11 executedandbirdswi11 eat offhis head."
We break: the lengthystoryhereandcommencewith detailedcommentary()f
theSUrah.
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Tafseer Of Surah Yusuf
___________________'7afseer
Tafseer OfSurah Yusuf
From the briefaccount ofYusuf s story we deduce some similarities
between and our Holy Prophet $.
beginning s prophethood was marked true drearn. Similarly
Ummul Mu'mineen Aishah radiyallhu anha first'signs
revelation to the Holy Prophet If! were through true dreams, whatever
dreamt would occur like the light dawn "5
Yusuf had drearnt that eleven stars and the sun and moon were
before which meant his parents and his eleven brothers will prostrate
him.The interpretation becarne reality though after lengthy period oftime.
brothers ofYusuf werej ealous ofhim, they beat him and tortured him
in many ways, and finally did their utmost to slay Nevertheless, Yusufili,\
kept patient and steadfast, seeking Allfth help, and Allfth granted him
dignity and victory, however when the brothers before him he said 1:0
them, today, Allrih/orgive and is
the kindest o/the kind. never complained did he mention their
evils, rather he forgave them and bestowed upon them many favours and gifts.
Similarly, the Prophet ofAllah was taunted and oppressed in ways.
The Quraish tried to him, but he stayed steadfast upon Allah
When they his command after the conquest ofMakkah he recited
the same verse, reproach be/all today, /orgive
he is the kindest the kind. " are the/reed ones. " also
gave the many converts greatportion ofthe war booty gained in the Batt1e()f
which took place straight after the conquest ofMakkah. gave thelll
to hundred carnels each.
Yusuf s story showed his abstinence and piety. Even though he was in his
youth and the desire for women and the temptation to commit sins was at
its peak, he still safeguarded himself, with Allah help ofcourse. This ShOVfS
5Bukhari 3, Muslim 231, Tirmizi 3565
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Ithat Prophets are sinless. They cannot commit sin becausethey have gained
special attentionofAHah. theirgooddeeds andthroughconstant
of
1recaH here storyofLoot inthebible,whichsaysthatwhenAHah's wrath
liescended the whole town and as result its inhabitants were killed,
only Loot andhistwodaughters wereleftbehind.Thedaughters thoughtto
1hemselves that now that the whole townhas perished,we would not exist
Ilonger unless we think of way ofbecoming pregnant. They knew that their
:father would not commit adulterywith his own daughters, so they plotted to
!sive some wine andmake him drunk.Accordingly,theymade drunk .
the:first night andtheeldersister 'ithhim, then thesecondnight the
younger did the same. They both g{)t pregnant and the generation which
110W exists are the offspringofthese two girlsandtheir father.
Howfalseis thisstory! Indeedit must stem theadditions madeinthebible
some insane people. Who would want to accept that he is an illegitimate
child?How aProphet ofAllah. such gravesin? baselessness
ofthe storyis self-evident.
1was mentioning that Yusufi%:1 safeguardedhimself against the
offerof beautiful, youngvirgin. Similarly, suchoffersweremadetoourNoble
Prophet if, in his early prophethood, when the people ofMakkah offered to
marry to their prettiest daughtersin return for forsakinghis mission.
The Prophet however remained steadfast. (,

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Verse 1
t))-.r)),J))t,

"AlifLaam Raa, These are t1,e verses oji1le Manifest Book."
"AlifLaam Raa.. "
These abbreviatedletters, AI-Hu1'ooful Muqatta Much has written
about meanings. Some commentatorssaythat they names
some say that they the names ofthe Sfuah's in which they mentioned.
This understood in Surah Sad, Qafand Noon etc. The
majority ofMufassi1'een say that they secretcodebetween their Revealer
and to whom they were revealed (i.e. Allah and his
Bakr Siddique used to say, every book tllae secrets
and Alldh fkj's in the Qu1' tlle tlle beginning oftlle
SU1'ah
Ali used to say, every book the1'e some tlle
wo1'ds ofthis book the Hija. "
Umar Uthman Ghani and Mas'ood said,
Muqatta those Wl1iCll ..... "
other words, between each writer to letter is
some signswhich understood two. Si111ilarly some
indications in these letters, whicll AlIall l1is Prophet
We ordered to believe each letter we
recitewe shal1 ten so [orAlif we gail1 30 Hasanah.
Qadhi Baidhawi alail1i has givel1 verdict
regarding the Muqatta 11e says, f1'011l the
otlle1' SaIUl!Jall::t, tlmt theil'
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explanation is not intended. But at the same time they could indicating
the miraculous nature ofthe Qur'dn."
This could explainedin twoways:
1. The a1gebra from 'Alif to consists of 29 letters. The
a1so from the same 29. The is a1so compiled
the same 291etters. The kuffarwho are with the
a1so conversethroughthe same1etters. The Qur' the disbelievers .
in numerous verses tobringforward work likethe Qur' Nonewas to
<10 so theyadmittedtheir failure. Sowith theseletters remindsthem
1:hat this book is not preparedwith ChineseAlphabet,rather it iswith the same .
a1phabet, which use should to tack1e it. If do so
this that thisbook is not Muhammadsbook - It is ffom very high
sourcei.e. the Lord ofMuhammad fi the Lord ofthe Universe. Thus, the
natureofthe Qur' becomes manifest.
2. the alphabeticalletterscorrectlywith theiroriginalpronunciationis
the work of person who has to the Madrasah and learned under the
guidanceof Ustadh (teacher). daughter Aishah fluent1y talk in her
mother tongue;Gujrati. However, if shewas askedtoreadthe Gujratialphabet
she would never to do so, because she has not leamed them.
There were three learned persons in the whole ofMakkah, who would
out letters write their reply for the
person who has never visited Madrasah in his whole life read or
the alphabet. For such person (i.e. Muhammad fi) to
theseletterscorrectlyis quiteimpossible, whenhe mentions them in
remarkable manner whichcannot done except highlyeducated
person e.g. the letters used in Muqatta are 14, in 29 Surah's they are
rnentioned inhalvesaccording totherulesofTajweed thosementioned are .
ones mostl used in theArabic etc.
So Muqatta shed some light the miracle ofthe Qur' through the
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Sahib-e-Qur'an (the who brought it to us).
"These verses are 0/ manifest book.... "
manifest book means, whose divine character is explicit and the
commands, constitutions, sermons and instructions, are bright and
The Arabic language is described the words 'manifest' and 'clear' in many
other verses ofthe indeed this Qur isa revelation {'}/the
Lord 0/the Worlds. /aithful spirit (Angel Jibraeel) down with it.
thy heart that thou shouldst o/the warners. plain Arabic
languagf!. " the revelation is in plain Arabic language.j8
"Language o/thatone to whom they re/er is non-Arabic, whereas this
(the Qur language) is very clear Arabic. "9
The Holy Prophet has his followers to speak Arabic. once said
the "Whosoever has capability 0/conversing in Arabic must
not speak language, the non-Arabic languages create
hypocrisy. " (Ibn Taymiya the authority ofAl-Silafi ttom Ibn Umar
also said, are three reasons being attached to Arabic; 1. I
Arab, 2. The words o/the Qur are Arabic and J The
0/Jannaties shall in Arabic. "(Ibn Asaakir Ibn Abbas)
Umar Ibn says, "Learn Arabic, because it is part of deen."
(Introduction to Maqamat Maulana Idrees kandhalwi)
Arabic is the oldest language Earth. In 'Roohul ' it is stated that
when Adam was created he was taught Arabic and he used to converse
Arabic. When he made the mistake ofeating the prohibited tree, he was
sent to Earth and Arabic was taken away ttom he was then taught anotheJr
language called Suryani. After acceptinghis repentance, Allah Arabic
7Uthmani 1040:2
8Surah Shu'ra 92-195
9Surah Sajdah 40
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1:0 him. Then as time went and his children spread, they invented other

has qualities. It is sovast that for expressing meaning
jJndplenty ofwords and for word there are several meanings e.g. 'Lion'
has:fivehundredwords,for 'sword' thereare words, for 'calamity'
are four thousand words, and for 'snake', two hundred words.
Verse 2
"We have revealed Qur in Arabic so that understand
"
A.rabic is the most versatile, weH ordered,wise grand It has
fortherevelationofthe As theHoly Prophet
the :first audienceofthe Qur' alsoArabs. So through the Arabs
this lightshould spreadto fourcomersofthe Earth.The words
indicate thisfact, i.e. ofthe reasons forrevealingin yourlanguage
is that arethenationofthe Prophet so:first shouldtasteitsknowledge
and secrets theiImake others taste them - And happened.
Kathir writes: "The most honourable book, was revealed in the most
words, the most honourable Prophet, through the most
honourable angel, and this took place in the most honourable part the
earth (Makkah), the beginning o/the revelation was in the most honourable
month the year which is Ramadhiin, so it is per/ected all
channels. "10
Some scholars say that theJews taught the polytheists ofMakkah howto test
Holy Prophet questioning him about the story and Joseph.
This storyexistedintheHebrewlanguage (whichtheArabsdo not understand)
}O!!thmuni 1040:2
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so revealed this Sfuah and the story in Arabic so that the
Arabs could understand
With regards to there being Non-Arabic words in the Qur' anthere is difference
ofopinion:
1) lJbaydah ofthe opinion that there is not single non-Arabic word
in the Qur' an. supports his view through the verse before us, i.e.
Qur in Arabic. "
2) Ibn Mujahid and Ikrimah ofthe opinion that there are sorne
non-Arabic words in the Qur' an e.g. 'Qistaas" 'Sijjeel '. 'Qistaas' is
word rneaning 'Justice', and 'Sijjeel' is aPersian word rneaning 'Stones of
Gravel'.
says, opinions are correct; in the sense that the words
mentioned are originally non-Arabic, but when the Arabs used them in
their conversation, they Arabic and are now regarded as Arabic
words, though originally derivedfrom another language. "12
Verse 3
UWe narrate unto t/le most beautiful stories, ill t/zat we /zave
illspired in tbls Qur'iin, tllougl, be/ore (its narration) were 0/
tl,e "
..We narrate... "
lt is ofthe Almigi1tyLord that uses of in many
(}
IIKllUZ111
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ofthe Even though is the and only God, has
partnersnor anychildren; usesit to showHis Pride andDignity. Indeed
aloneisworthyof prideanddignitythatprevailswithintheuniverse.
Prophet saying of is upper sheet and
1Jignity is Lower sheet, whosoever attempts separate them
1shall throw him in the fire. "
also said, fJ4f, there is who loves being
praised so much. "
So it is only who is worthy ofall10ftyranks, is the Lord, the Majestic,
1:he Creator, andthe Sustainerandonly isworthyof Praises. iswhy
usestheword 'We'.
1clarified this matter because it so happened that group ofCruistlan
missionaries pretending to attracted to Islam entered the Jami Masjid in
Prestonandstartedshowering questions theImam. mainquestionwas
,;vhat Ihave indicatedabove, i.e. 'If thenwhy does he say, We
done this, We have createdthis etc.?' Theword 'We' points towards the
Christianbeliefoftrinity.
The answeris very clear from what 1have said above that the use of'We' is
solely to show His Pride andDignity. Do they not seethat the Queen uses the
pronoun We inher address to thenation ChristmasDay!
The same whichuses 'We' hasrejectedanypartnership to
saying, "Surely those disbelieve who say Alldh is the third o/three. "The
declares the unity ofGod saying, is Alldh, the
Alldh'the eternal besought begotteth nor was begotten.
And there is comparable unto Him. "13
The answer is very clear. the Almighty safeguardour and
keep us steadfast upon the straight path.
"The most beautiful stories... "
The indication is either towards thewhole Qur'an, as the consists of
Ikhlaas
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___________________7afseer <5urahYusu/
stories ofthe previous nations to take heed ftom, towards the story ofYusuf'
because it is ful1 ofwisdom and knowledge.1t consists oftales ofkings"
slaves and scholars ofthe time, the evil plots ofwomen, being patient in the
ofhardships put enemies, forgiving them when they under
command, and other benefiting factors ofthe Sfuah.
Ataa rahmatullahi alaihi says, "Whichever grieved person recites Sural.!
Yusuj, he will get through "14
Some Ulama say that this Surah is named the best of because
is other Sfuah in the Qur' an, which consists ofso muchwisdom and so
lessons as this Sfuah. The final verse ofthis Sfuahverifies this, "Indeed
there is in their stories institution endured with understanding. "]5
"V
1 were
if
t
h
unaware....
"
Hadhrat Idrees rahmatullahi alaihi writes, are
three sources knowing something: sense; listening to
someone or reading book; seeing it with own eyes. "
previous stories have connectionwith sense, as the events 0:[
the past known through sense. The Noble Prophet i3 dicl
not hear these stories ftom historian. Ifsomeone says he heard the stories
from particular Jew Christian then he should make the identity ofthat
person known. The Noble Prophet i3was unlettered so it is impossible to say
that he have read those events in book. Furthermore, which books were
available to 100k through them and in which library were they to found?
Those who object should bring forth names ofsuch libraries. With regards to
the third point, it is apparent that these events occurred 10ngbefore the
the Prophet f3, so he was not there to observe them. Now there is
possibility, and that is to know these evel1tsthrough external source,
which is known in the Shari 'dh as Wahi. Allah through the angel Jibraeel
revealed the stories to him. Thus, his prophethood becomes evident
the Miracle ofthe Qur' fu1 comes to light.

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rahmatullahi alaihi says in his commentary, the
revelation sent down in the the Qur we relate to
very story in very beautiful style. were not aware this
as your people were ignorant it to this time. "
This story was found in the books ofhistory the Bible but in the form of
fiction. fu1 hasdescribedthestoryin its form, anditsrelevant
and useful portions so impressivelynarratedt4at it not pointed out the
mistakes ofthe ofthe Book and the storywriters but also led towards
significant gloriousconclusionsandprinciples. Right1y speaking, it
opened newchapterofknowledge andresearch supplieddeep directions
under its ref1ective description. Some of the most facts lessons
summarisedbelow:
1. The determination of cannot checked, delayed, put off
power, whenAllah tobestowHis grace individual
deprivehim ofthat blessing. the whole world
ttle wi11 of its co11ected efforts.
2.. and perseverance is the key to the success ofthis world and the
ofthe other world.
3. The result ofmalice and envy is but 10ss degradation.
4. wisdom is very noble element. wisdom, overcomes
difficulties makeshis lifesuccessfu1 inbothworlds.
5. Moralvirtue and piety makes in the eyes ofthe enemies
malevolent though it after 10ng These and other
innumerab secrets facts described inthis, themost beautifulofstories.
Commentators havedescribed several traditions abouttheoriginof itsrevelation.
substance of these traditionsis that the Jews questioned the
through the Idolaters, about the settlement ofthe Bani
Israeel in Egypt. They asked how they sett1ed in Egypt (that they had to
12
____. 7afseer e5urahYusu[
Pharaoh) when Hadhrat Ibrahim and Hadhrat Ishaq and their children
originallybelongedto the country ofShaam. The Muslims have also probably
curious to know the real story full offacts and insights. Moreover, th.e
events and incidents, which were elaborated in the Surah, had parallel with
those in the times ofthe Holy The revelation was as
such, great source of and consolation to the Holy Prophet tllle
other side it was great lesson to the eyes ofthe people, wh.o
had at last compelled the Holy Prophet to vacate his native land, but failed in
theirplans to bring about the downfall ofthe Holy The Jews, whose
questions were characterised malicious test to disprove his
got satisfactory answer to their query but still resisted from believing in his
Prophethood. However, the main cause ofthe settlement ofBani Israeel in
Egypt is the story ofHadhrat Generations ofBani Israeel spread
there till Hadhrat Musa rose and emancipated them from the slavery of
Pharaoh and the Qibtees."
Verse 4
When Yusufsaid to hisfa.tller, 110 1 saJi' ill dream eleven
stars and tl,e sun and 1 SaJV tl,em p,'ostratillg before "
]
the son ofYaqub as is stated aH{blitll
. (
son SOl1 .'1011
is, SO/l o/Yaqub o/lsll(/(] o{l!mlllim. ..
Hii(/itll in the Sal1ill says: ,vas is
tllc J10blcst is 11110 is best
;11 . .. said, "We 110t {/sk tllis. .. exclail11cd,
l10blest is Pmp/lct :!i.."-: .'1011
1111(//, 8011 P/,opllet o.f"AII{l/1 :f.: 8011 . .. said,
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do not ask about this. " questioned, ask about the mines
Arabs. " (I.e.just as the mines throwout gold, silver, copper steel, etc.
theArabs ofdifferent types.)Theyreplied inthe affinnative. said,
who was the best people during Jahiliyyah is the best Islam, if he
attains the understanding religion. "'16
There two opinionswith regardsto the Yusuf:
It is Hebrew i.e.
2. It is
has narrated from "Asa/literally means grie/
at its highest level, whereas means slave. Both meanings prevailed
in Yusu/thus he was named Yusuf "17
Yusuf8"f1 was the most handsome child ofYaqub Although his eleven
brothers were also very handsome, Yusuf s beauty was outstanding. In
Sahih Bukhari we read, the night 1passed Yusuf 1realised
that he was given halfaportion o/the beauty o/mankind. "18
'Nhen he saw the dream he was seventeen years old. His father 10ved him so
rnuch that he couldn't bear his separation and for this reason when he was
separatedhe cried somuch that he blind.
Sayyid Sulaiman Mansoorpuri writes, stayed in the well for three
days, thenhe servedtherulerofEgypt forsixyears, andthenspent sevenyears
inj ail. At the age ofthirty he the govemor ofEgypt. was reunited
\vith his parents at forty and departed from this world at 110. His coffin was
buriedin Egypt. made wil1 thatwhenBani IsraeelleaveEgypttheyshould
tak:e his coffmwiththemandburyhimnear Maqdis. 'Nhen Musa
Egypt withBani Israeel, it impossible for thecaravantoproceed. Musa
rememberedthewill so he dug thecoffmout andtookit with
16Bukhari 3104, Muslim 4383, Abu Dawud 4229, Musnad Ahmad 7183,
Muwatta Malik 1573 - Ibn Kathir
17Khiizin
18Muslim 234, Musnad Ahmad ]2047
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__________________7afseer durdyusa/
himtoBaitulMaqdis whereitwasburiedinthegraveyard ofIbralrimKhalilullall,
alongwithhis ancestors.
"1 saw eleven stars, the sun and the ... "
says, saw that the starsdescendedfIom the sky alongwith
the sun and the and prostrated before him. saw this dream
Fridaynight (thenight precedingFriday), whichwas alsoLailatul Qadr. The
interpretation was that the stars were his brothers who were to
source of guidance like the stars, the sun his father and the his
mother accordingtothe opinionofQatada."
Suddi says that the is his aunt becausehis mother Raheel (Rachel)
had died.(1t isthe customto fathers secondwifeasmotherespecia11y when
sheis the mother's sister.)
"1saw them prostrating be/ore ... "
saysthiscouldhavetwomeanings:
1) prostrating, it ismeantthattheywould underhisrule. happened
when they settleddown in Egypt andYusuf was its ruler.)
2) The literalmeaning i.e. puttingthe forehead earth also taken into
account, because in those times it was form of Our Shari 'lih has
now forbiddenthis.
In Sunan Ibn Majah we read: 'When Muaz retumed fIomSyria, he prostrated
before the Prophet The Prophet exclaimed, Muaz! What is
this? replied, "When 1went Syria 1saw the Christians prostrating
their religious leaders and their generals. So 1 thought myself
that we should do the same " Prophet of said, not d'o
this! If1 were order someone prostrate in/ront other than
Alllih, 1 would order the wife prostrate be/ore her husband (due the
rights he has over her). who holds soul! woman cannot/uljill
the rights her Lord (Alllih) until she has /uljilled the rights her
husband. "'19
In Mishkat we read the authority Ahmad rahmatullahi alaihi,
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71hsan 71f-2asas _
Aishah radiyaZZahu anha says, "The Prophet was seated between the
Muhajireen and Ansaar, when forward and prostrated before
the The Sahabah t$.said, Prophet Even the animaZs
and the trees prostrate be/ore have more rights over us and
there/ore we shouZdprostrate replied, "Worshipyour Lord
and respectyour brother" (i.e.he called himselftheir brother due to humbleness
and in order to draw their attention to the fact that he was human being who
was not worthy ofworship). Then he used similar words to those mentioned in
the Hildith.
20
In Dawud we find the same request from Qays Ibn Sa' ad to which the
Prophet ii!J!; said, "If were to pass grave, wouZd prostrate to
it?" said, "The Prophet replied, don '! (prostrate before
mewhile alive and inffont ofyou). "21
Teebi explains, "Prostration is the right %nZy who is eternaZ, who is
aZiveand does die, and to who sovereignty there is end. " In other
words the Prophet $ said, might bow down be/ore due to respect
IvhiZe in when 1go beneath the soiZ wouZddislike
,doing the same to " It concludes that would prostrate before
:someonewho is alive and that is so should prostate before

Shah Abdul Ghani rahmatuZZahi aZaihi writes inthe commentary ofIbn Majah,
"Prostrating be/ore someone or something worship is Ku(r and
prostrating/or greeting is aZthough regarded as Ku/r, nevertheZess it is
Haram, because the Prophet i$/orbade the Sahabah /rom doing so. "
()adhi Sulaiman rahmatuZZahi aZaihiwrites, "Yusuf dream is amazing
(jue to three reasons:
1) Seeing stars with the existence ofthe Sun is amazing because the
19Ibn Majah 1843
20Musnad Ahmad 23331
21Abu Dawud 1828
22Mishkat 282
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stars fade away at the light ofdawn. It is impossible to see the Sun and the stars
together.
2) What is the reason behind seeingjust among thousands?
3) saw them prostrating which is also astonishing, as stars prostate
before anything.
These the reasons why Yusuf related the dream to his beloved father.
Verse 5
said, dear son! Do not relate your vision to your brothers,
lest they devise secretly plot against Indeed Satan is to
openfoe. "
Allama Uthmani writes, aqub to Yusuf;%\ not disclose
this dream to your brothers. The Satan is always lying in ambush
he instigate your brothers against through insinuation, because
the interpretation the dream is too clear. "
It was not difficu1t thing for the brothers to understand thle
meaning ofthe dream. were the sons of great Prophet and therefore
aqub ;%\' s apprehension was not wrong. Perhaps might also felt
beforehand that the stepbrothers were jealous ofYusufbecause of
the attention and their father reserved for him. So Hadhrat aqub
thought that ifhis brothers heard the dream, they would surely do
to Yusuf;%\and thus degrade themselves aridmake their end
Satan would his active role in this drama because the
belonged to less than Prophet and his family. This was the reason why
Yaqub forbade Yusuf;%\todisclose his vision before his stepbrothers. As
for his real brother Binyamin, although there was fear thathe would
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Yusuf,it wasvery1ik:e1y thatBinyaminmightdisc10se itbeforeother as
hewas youngerthanYusuf andthusthenewsmightreachtheearsof
the stepbrothers. 23
Ru 1iterally means dream. Dreams areofthree types:
1) Hadithun Nafs: The conversation ofthe heart. When engages
himse1fin taskthroughout theday,he seethat inhis dreamsat night e.g.
personin shall seehisbe10ved whois engrossed inthe e1ection
sees the assembly halls, students worried about exams sees re1ated
scenes, etc.
2) Adhgaathu Disturbing Dreams seenthroughtheinstigation
ofShaytaan. These are teni.:fying, sometimes worrying andsometimes
p1easing; wet dreamsa1so underthiscategory.
These two types do not ho1d interpretation. person affected satanic
attacks shou1d recite Aayatul Kursi before retiring to bed. In Hiidith in
Sahih Bukhari the Prophet has said that ifyou reciteAayatul Kursi before
retiringto bed, Allah wi11 commandan ange1 to stand your bedside and
Satan wi11 to to The ange1 stays there unti1
wakeup.
3) Ru 'ya-e-Salih: Just and pious dreams. Dreams that free from se1f
indu1gence andsatanicattacks.
TheUlamasaythatthisis sortofspiritua1 sighting. When personsleepsand
his extema1 senses are out offunction, the spirit observes and 1istens to the
matters ofthe wor1d. Thespirit sometimes 1istens tothesayings of
His ange1s, sometimesit seesorigina1 fonns of wor1d1y thingsandsometimes
theiridenticallsimi1ar appearances whichindicate towards thefuture events e.g.
Yusuf&;!ll's dream of stars, the sun and the bowing before him
which indicates future events. These are the true dreams and they require
interpretations fromanexpertinthisfie1d. IntheHiidith, thesedreamsaresaid
to the forty-sixth part ofProphethood. Meaningthat theProphetswerefirst
bestowedwith truedreamsandthen with Prophethood.
23Uthmani 1043:2
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Since the Prophets are:ftee :ftom se1f-deceit aswell as :ftomthe instigationsof
Satan, their dreams a1so Wahi. Satan never overpower them;
whatevertheydreamis reve1ation :ftom Ibrahim dreamtthathe was
s1aughteringIsmai1, his on1y sonatthetime, andhe actedaccording1y.
The Awliya not and thus their dreams cannot regarded as
Wahi. Their dreamsareca11ed ilhaam. Thedreamsof saintwi11
to his virtues and piety i.e. the more piety, the more truthfu1 his dreams. The
average Mus1im'sdreamsaresometimestrueandsometimesfa1se.
Note. Sometimes afasiq or even kafir a1so sees true dreams. Like in
story, the ru1er ofEgypt, kafir, saw sevencows and seven greenears of
and it was interpreted
Note. Some denythe conceptofdreams.Theirmain argumentis
that duringthe s1eep or stateofunconsciousness the sensesof human
out offunctionthus they seenor hearnor anything.
ask, 'Did these neversee dreamduringtheir1ifetime?'
Certain1y, theymust havedreamtsomethingat somestage.Our answerto their
objection is that the senses aremere1y creationof is of
showingus somethingwithout the aidofthe senses.
Thedefinitionofdreamsaccording toImamNawawiandImamMazriis,
createswithin the heart 6f s1eeper some observationsin the samemanner
as creates within the heart ofthe awake. do whatever
wishes, s1eep nor beingawakecanstopHim :ftomfulfilling His desire. "24
Ta'beer
Every 1ayman cannot conduct an interpretationbfdreams. It needs detai1ed
studyoftherulesofinterpretation. Oneshouldknow fully thelanguage inwhich
the dream was seen, he should know the Qur' an and Sunnah, he should ha'v'e
in mind the interpretationsgiven the Prophet and thepious followers
24Marit\11 QlIr'an Khandhalwi, Khazin
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a:mong the Ummah. Otherwise"si11ymistakes wi11 take and
"ri11 person his dream to the Prophet
Siddique permission and gave the interpretation. The Prophet
said, got some it right, and /altered in some. "
Muhammad Ibn Sireen, who is the Imam ofinterpretation, was conftonted
who said, "1 dreamt myseZjgiving Adhaan, " said, shall
blessed with journey hajj. " Another person and related the
same dream. said, that shall engaged in robbery. "His
s1:udents were amazed at the different interpretations of dream. said,
first person looked religious, and1took interpretation/rom the verse,
, .
'And call unto mankind hajj. '2S The other person was different
and 1 took the interpretation the verse, herald called
are thieves. "26 His interpretation proved to true.
Musa "The Prophet said, "1saw in dream that 1
migrating Makkah to town palm trees. thought was
towards Yamamah or Hajar, then it turned out to Yathrib
earlier o/Madinah) and1 dreamt that 1shook sword and it
the centre, this was the tragedy that be/ell the Muslims in the
battle Uhud. Then 1saw that 1shook it more and it returned to the
best o//orms, and this was the conquest o/Makkah and the unity o/Muslims
which generated "27
Hurairah narrates that the Prophet said, "While 1was sleeping, the
treasures the earth were brought be/ore then two golden bangles
were fists. They burden/or 1 was ordered to blow
them, 1 blew and they disappeared. 1 took the interpretation that they are
the two impostors surrounding AswadAnasi o/Sana alld Musaylama
Yamamah. "28
2SSGrah Hajj 27
26SGrah Yusuf' 70
27Bukhari 6514/6519, Muslim 4217, lbn Majah 391]
28Bukhari 6513, Muslim 4218, Tirmizi 2216, Musnad Ahmad 7901
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Note. Ibn Umar i.'1 the greate.'1t/orgerie.'1 that
.'1how.'1 hi.'1 eye.'1 what they have not " (I.e. says that I saw such and
such dream when he has not seen it in reality. It is regarded as the greatest lie,
because it is lying that Allah showed such and such drearn
whereas Allah
Note. Saeed :fi."Qffi the Prophet $, correct
are tho.'1e in the early the orning. " (Since the body has
completed its rest, the stomach is emptyand therefore there is less possibility of
dream caused the filling ofthe intestines. Also, this is the time ofdescent
ofthe angels and the time of ofduas.)30
"lndeed Satan i.'1 to "
Another verse in Surah Faatir says, "Verily, Satan i.'1 to .'10
treat only hi.'1 that they might
the o/the blazingfire. "31
His with started when he was ordered to prostrate before
and he rejected, objecting in very jealous manner saying, "1
created fire and he clay. Andfire i.'1 to clay. So the
not be/ore the in/erior. then expelled from
Jannah (paradise) and he vowed, thy power Il.'1hall lead them
"32
also said, "Surely 1 take appointedportion thy
And .'1urely 1 will mi.'1lead them, and .'1urely 1 will create in
them, and .'1urely 1 will them to .'1lit the ear.'1 ofthe cattle, ami
.'1urely 1will command them and they will change Alldh '.'1 creation (de/ace
the nature). " (Allah says) "And w/lO.'1oever choo.'1e.'1 "satan /or /riend
in.'1tead Alldh ha.'1 .'1urely .'1uffered lo.'1.'1 that i.'1 manife.'1t. Satan promi.'1es
them and create.'1 in them /al.'1e hope.'1, but Satan '.'1 promi.'1e.'1 are nothing
29Bukllari
30Til'mizi 2200, Musnad Allmad 1081 Darami 2053
31 Fatll 6
Siid 82
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deception. "33
Verse 6
And thus does your Lord choose and teach the reality 0/ .
events and complete His and the /amily 0/
Yaqub, just as completed them your two/athers, Ibrahim
and Ishaq verily your Lord is knowing, wise.
Tafseer Majidi comments, as thou hast seen in thy dream, thy Lord
I1Jill choose thee His apostleship, and as gifi will teach
thee the interpretation discourses, and will/ulfill His the
house o/Yaqub. "
... "
The Sufeessaythat there two typesofpeople amongthoseassociatedwith
1. Those who chosen 2. Those who draw themse1ves
loserto and attainHisp1easure. says, chooses/or Himself
l1/hom wills, and guides unto Himselfwho turns (to "34
Prophets definitelyfromthe first category, as prophethood
achieved abundancein worshipor otherway. Nevertheless, amongthe
Prophetsof some who seem to distinguished in thisrespect,
for example, Prophet Muhammad is sobelovedto that has
never addressed him his We study the Qur' and realise that
33Surah Nisa ] 18-120
34Surall Shu'ra ] 3
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someoccasions addresses him withthewords Muzzammil' some
occasions says Muddathir' 'Ya-ayyuhan-nablye'
rasool'.
In the sameway has shown this to Musa and Ibrahirn
&;LWhenwereadthe verse, weunderstandthatYusuf isa1so among
thosewho speciallychosen andmost be10ved to
teaches the reality ofevents. "
wordsrea1ities ofevents verymeaningfu1. inc1ude the sharpness
and.a1ertness to solvethe most comp1icated matters with ease. The abi1ity to
see events before their occurrence, and the interpretationsofdreams. of
thesequa1ities foundinYusuf&;\.
specia1ised in interpretationsofdreams. Some scholars said
that is the founder of this science. From the Muslim Ummah Imarn
MuhammadIbn Sireen, the great scho1ar is saidto the Imamofthis field.
"Complete his favours... "
Arabicword 'Ni is1iterally usedforcircumstances inwhich person
gainsp1easure. In the thewordhasbeenusedforintema1, extemal,
religious andwor1d1yp1easures alike:
hath loaded with His favours both without and within. "35
if would count the bounty cannot reckon "36
path those whom Thou hast favoured. "37
(Jesus) is nothing but servant Allah) whom we bestowed
favour. "38
Takingtheseverses intoaccount we thatthe fulfilled Yusuf
of kindsandthebiggestfavouramongstthemis apost1eship.
35SGrah Luqman 20
36SGrah Ibrahim 34
37SGrah Zukruf 59
38SGrah Zukruf 59
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lord is knowing wise. "
endingthe versewiththesewordsthereis anindicationtowardsthereason
for thepreference ofYusuf i.e. since knows everythingandsince
is themost wise, haschosen says.in anotherverse: "AZZdh knows
best with whom to place his message. " There is also an indication that the
knowledgeandwisdomwhichYusuf goingtoreceive is ftom but the
andWiseCreatorHimself.
Verse 7
"Verily in and his brethren there signs (0/Alllih 's
sovereignty) the seekers (o/truth)."
Tafseer Uthmani comments, "Those who want to lesson(reachsome
suchstories, for them are signsof guidanceand lessonin
story ofYusuf andhis brethren. Hearing this story, mark of
powerandGIOlYof inscribedinthehearts. Theproofofthetruthfulness
ofthe Prophet is obtainedin that he has divulgedthehistoricalfactsso
1horough1yand clearly, thoughheis 'Ummi' andhas learnt ftom mortal.
No explanationto this fact given except that Divine Revelation had
1aughthimand informedhimabout thehistorical detai1s ofthe past. For the
who had enquiredabout thisstoryat the incitementofthe Jews, there
is greatlessoninthat as thebrothersofYusuf drovehim out ofthehouse,
plottedhismurderandexpulsion, anddegraded himimmensely. At last day
they to remorsefully andinutterdestitution. Allah Yusuf&#l\
to the high ranks ofspiritual andmaterial wealth andglory, and he in retum
tumed blind to the faults ofhis brothersand forgavethemwith an
lleart. SimilarlythebrethrenoftheHoly Prophet schemes against
troubledhimmercilessly, attackedhis andprestigeand final1y
c:ompelled him to hishome. Soontheday whenthe sunofhis glory
shone and after few years the historical day ofThe Victory
'Vvhen the Prophet $ forgave his countrybrotherstheirpast faults.saying
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the same wordswhichHadhrat Yusuf:%!\ saidto his brethren.
.. and his brethren.. "
Yusufhad real brother,Binyamin, andtenhalfbrothers. Thenamesare as
follows:
1. Reuben, 2. Shamoon, 3. Laawi, 4. ahuda, 5. AsPkaar and 6.
these six are from the wife 'Leah'. 7. Jadd and 8. Aaashar, from slave girl
'Zulfa'. 9. Naftali and 10.Dan, ftomslavegirl 'Balha'.39
As mentioned before, it must kept in mind that Yusuf:%!\'s brothers we[e
not Thereisneither Islamic narration nor Israeli story
their prophethood. This is theopinionofIbn Ibn Kathir,Ibn Taymiyah
andAllamalJthmanirahmatullahi alaihim.
Some scholarsheldthe opinionoftheir prop'hethood. Theirmain reasoning:is
through the verse, HWe revealed and and Ishaq and
Yaqub and the tribes, etc. "The indication oftribes is thought to towarcls
the sons ofYaqub :%!\.
However, Ibn Kathir says that the said meaning is merely possibIe
interpretation. The other meaning which is much stronger is that since th.e
ProphetsofBani Israel were from theprogenyofYaqub the indication1IS
towards those Prophets and not towards the sons of"Yaqub kno\\"s
best.
Note: tenbrotherswhoplottedagainsthim andinthe end
was victorious. Similarly there were ten tribes ofQuraish who were the
most activeinhurting beloved Namely, 1. Makhzoom,2.
Adyy, 3. 4. Asad, 5. Umayyah, 6.
Saheem, 7. Hanifa, 8. Abd-ddar, 9. and 10.
Nawfal. They embracedIslamin the
39
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71f.2asas _
Verse 8
R'ecall, when they said, and his brother (Binyamin)
dearer to father than we, whereas we than
they, and indeed father is in clear mistake.
Tafseer Majidi relates the verses ofthe Bible, which are quite similar to
tJ:le Qur' verses.
The Bible says, "Now IsraellovedJoseph than all his children, because
he was the son his old age. " 41 /ather loved him above the rest
his sons, both because the beauty his body and the virtues his
mind,/or he excelled the rest in prudence. "42 Joseph centered the
love his " 43
Othmani writes, 'Badhrat aqub ;%\loved Yusuf;%\andhis rea1 brother,
Binyamin very much because they were younger than their stepbrothers. Their
had died so they required more and Moreover, Hadhrat
Yaqub through divine revelation, had understood that the future ofYusuf
high1yresplendent. Beside that, his extraordinary beauty ofhis and
his character attracted the attention ofHadhrat Yaqub His stepbrothers
\vere dissatisfied with this behaviour. Theythought that it was they who stood
tJ:le of being powerful band and were the ofhis old age, while
Yusuf and Binyamin were chidren without expectations. With these
ideas in mind they said that, /ather was in great mistake (or manifest
regarding that afJair, and he did not evaluate his profit and loss. "
Why did Yaqub;%j\ give preference to and Binyamin
41Genesls (The First Book Of Moses) 37:3- Tafseer Majidi
of the Jews: 11.2.1- Tafseer Majidi
43The Book Of Jeremiah 246:7 - Tafseer Majidi
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whereas it is s clear order that fathershou1d treat his childrenequally?
We read in Sahilbi to our belovedProphet andrequested
him to thewitnessof gi:ft, whichhe wantedto giveto his sonNu'man.
Prophet enquired, have other children? replied, "Yes. "
The Prophet enquired, have given s.imilar gift to all
them?" said, "No. "The Prophet said, get else to
yourwitness. Does it not pleaseyou that they equal to obedience?"
said; The Prophet said, do not do this. "
Answer: It quite clear that being Prophet, Hadhrat Yaqub must have
treated them equally with regards to worldJy affairs e.g. food, clothing
sustenance,etc. But thematter is beyond ones control. The heart is not
in s control;it attachedor attractedtowards childmore thanthe
other. Therewill questioningregardingthis. will only questioned
ifhe acts accordingly in outward matters preferring to the other.
Holy Prophet had nine wives at time. would treat them equally
his love for some ofthem was more than the others. This is why he
thingsequa11y, yet he wouldsupplicate inthe following words, All{ih!
is sharing what is in control, so do not reckon what is
beyond control. "i.e. the love ofthe heart. It is the case with children.
Note: It is permissible to give more attentionto child, ifthere are special
reasons for that e.g. he or she is disabled, or poorer than others or he or she is
engagedin studyingandneeds morehelp. Inthesecases is allowedto
more attentiontothat particularchild.
Verse 9
\:; J J;tJ JI
: I \- C:j o.k; ....
J \/ 'u/
(Olle said) Yusuf or cast him away to some land, your fatlrer's
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.71f..2asas _
favour will then free for and will thereafter good
fellows. "
ofmalicewasbumingin theirhearts. At last,theycounse11ed thatin the
ofYusuf it was not possibleto drawthe special attentionoftheir
so Yusuf should finished. Eitherthey should cast
awayin some distantland wherehe couldhave retum. WhenYusuf
would away natura11y they wi11 entitled to the
oftheir father. veryprobablywasnot significant intheir
eyes. His position, they might have thought, was supplementaryto
Afterwards,theythought, theywouldrepent oftheirsins and pardonedand
pious
Some commentators have said that, thereafter goodfellows, "
meansthat afterremoving theirway, theiraffairs wou1d set
right, asthecountenance oftheirfatherwould change them,beingdisappointed.

They said the above due to jealousy. How damaging is this bad habit? See
jealousy has done to the household of great Prophet of Hurting
the person in never satisfy except thejealous person.
This is why said, "1 please all persons except
thejealousone. nothing please except the destruction
ofthefavours or bountiesfrom the towards whom hefeelsjealous.. "
especia11y taughtus toseekrefuge thejealousyofthejea1ous.
\1V read in Surah Falaq: (we seek refuge) from the evil ofthejealous
...,vhen he shows jealousy. "
will thereafter goodfellows. "
Shaytaan is greatest and the greatest traitor. he casts in their
the thought ofcommitting major sin thepossibility ofbecoming
virtuousafterwardsthroughrepentance.
. is question regardingtheforgiveness of but twothingsshould
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in mind. First the sin ofkilling is major sin, the Qur' an states that
killing Mu'min is majorsinleadingto etemal punishment inhell. TheHiidith
alsostatesthat aftershirk, murderisthe gravest sin.
Secondly, repentance is originally from sins which committed through
forgetfulness, beingunmindful andunaware ofthe ofthe sin.The
Holy Qur'an says, "Forgiveness is only incumbent Alliih towards those
who do evil ignorance (and) then turn quickly repentance) to
These are they towards whom Alliih relenteth. Alliih is Ever
All- Wise "44.
Therearetwoconditionsof accepting repentance mentionedhere:
1) 'Do an ill deed in ignorance' - through evil desires and knowing the
gravepunishment forthatparticular sin.
2) 'Repent quickly' - ifrepentance is not dbne quicklyenoughit couldhave
harsheffects that person. Furthermore, it is not 'min' shabit to commit
sinsinthehopeof forgiveness. Therefore, thethoughtofkil1ing Yusuf
thenrepenting afterwards is verymisleading. safeguardus
the evil thoughtsput in our minds the accursed Shaytaan, and he make
us awareofthe eviltricksofShaytaanand hesafeguardus from fal1ing into
his traps. Ameen.
Verse 10
speaker among them said 'Do not kill but, if
must doing, then j1ing into t/le bottom pit; some travellet'
pick "
The speaker was Juda ahuda) who saidthat kil1ing was severething
44SGrah Nisa 17
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they cou1d their objectwithoutit. Ifthey want toremove fromthat
it was advisablethat theycast insomeunknownwe11, far awayfrom
their own habitat. has quoted some 1inguiststhat 'Gayabat
Jabb 'is acabin made in thewa11 ofa we11just the surfaceofthewater.
short, they dec1ined to bear the sin ofintentiona1 murder. In that case some
passingor someonetemporari1y residingtheremight take himout of
thewe11 andthus their handswou1d innocent ofbloodshed; the snakesha11
die and the stick wi11 not break.
Verse 11
They said; father! Why is it that do not with
whereas we indeed his sincere well-wishers?"
Having formedthe p10t, thebrothersproceededand put it into execution. The
indicates that they had a1so made such requests before, but Hadhrat
Yaqub was not satisfiedand refusedto 1et Yusuf go with them.
Verse 12
"Send him with tomorrow that he re/resh himself (with
and play. Lo! We shall take good
writes, made possible pretensions inpersuading their
fatherto send withthemto their.pastures. They saidthat
wou1d dull at home, and his hea1th wou1d spoi1ed ifhe was not
permitted totheoutskirtsfor running, p1ayingandenjoyingfree1y inthe c1imate
ofjung1es. In the forest atmosphere, wou1d free1y and eat
jungle and wou1d ha1e andhearty.1tis saidthat generaJ1y their games
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and enjoyments in the jungles were archery and racing.
has said playing within limits is source ofpleasure and exercise
for children, and the brothers made vehement requests and promised
protection. Thus Hadhrat Yaqub was forced to send Yusufwith them.
Commentators have written that they had also enticed separately1:0
recreation and outing.
Verse 13
said, "Verily it grieves that should take away and 1
lest wolf eat him while are heedless 0/him. "
Hadhrat said to them that the veryidea ofhis separation Yusuf
grieved him. Besides, Yusufwas and the fear of carnivore beast like
wolfwas painful.1t is said thatwolves were found.in thatjungle.
45
Abdul Majid Daryabadi rabmatuJ1ahi alaihi writes, "Though nOlN
comparatively rare, in ancient Palestine, wolves were amongst the most
prominent wild animals. "
Mufti Shafi sahib states, aqub had seen dream that he himselfwas
mountain and was in the valley. Suddenly ten wolves surrounded
Yusufand tried to attack him. ofthe wolves defended Yusufand saved
him. Thereafter Yusufdisappeared into the Earth - the interpretation to
thatthe ten wolves were theten brothers and the wolfthat defended hirn
4
was Yahuda the eldest brother, and being thrown in the well was the
disappearance. "
45Utlll11U 11 i 1049:2
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Abbashas saidthat due to thedream, aqub fearedfrom his sons, but
didnot disclose the fu11
aqub his fears, but howcouldheput themoff theirintentions? If they
",rere drivento hostilitythey causehimharm. must deal with his
sonswisely andcautiously. pleadedthat he was anold anddueto his
immense forYusufhe wouldsurely misshim and sadwithouthim.
.Andafter Yusuf was sma11 ofless thantenyears. wasnot ofan
a.ge to with them. Theywould busy in their gamewhile wolfmight
and attackYusuf In sayingthis, aqub unwi11ingly gavethem
and theyused the same In other words that whichwas to happen
reflected inhis heartbeforehand.
Idrees writes, "Sincethehearts ofthe Prophets aresound,
sme11 the fa1sehood fromwhat isbeingsaidtothem.TheHlidith says,
is said with the contentment the heart whereas lies hold the
doubt. "Upon hearingtheirrequest; aqub instant1y realisedthejealousy
wickednessoftheirplot.
The Sufisderivefromherethat Taqdeeris, after victoriousover Tadbeer.
The strong feelingofYaqub andboth his excuseswere to stop the
separationofYusuf;%\. aqub;%\ was compe11ed to let Yusuf go against
his wishes. The Sufis say, "What value does the will servant hold in
relation to the will the Lord. "
Verse 14
They said, "I[tlle wolfwere to devour him despite numbers,
then surely we the losers. "
Theysaid,"How isit possiblethatin thepresence of such powerful bandlike
U:S, wolf devour our young brother?" It means we are nothing and we
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have 10st everythingofour character as strong and powerfu1 group. 46
Yaqub hadmentionedtworeasonsfornot 1etting Yusuf go with them:
1) His for such that he wou1d to bear the
separation.
2) had fearthat somewo1f eat him. The brothersrebuttedthe
objection but not the first, that was the cause oftheir
Verse 15
J\ Jc: ': .j\\F\ J

-( J.J. '" '" J ... -: :" wJ/
J
/ .....
;1.\ U ,.J> J \...L/b ,.J>fl; "1 6" ._\ .u\
, / \. \. "'... ; \ ; '" ",'"
50 when t/ley did take away and they agreed to throw him
down to t/le bottom o/the well; And we hinted to shall
tell them t1lis their affair while they perceive "
Commentators have re1ated heart rending and poignant stories from the time
when Yusuf andhis brotherswent out ofsight fromHadhrat aqub
to the moment when they cast him into the well. God knows to vvhat extent
they arecorrect. The Qur'an, fromtheviewpointofits aim, does not
attach much importance to such sentimenta1 detai1s, as they do not serve
sublimemotive except emotiona1 presentationto excitethehuman passion of
the reader. The excitement ofhuman passions the princip1e theme of
dramasandnove1s, but it iscertain1y not the themeof thedivinebook. The
\vor1d1y storieswritten thewor1d1y writersgenerally exciteand
to passionate 1amentation. But the aims at the creation ofthat
sensitivity andtender-heartedness in theheartofthe audience andreaders whose
source are Iman (be1ief) and Irfan (recognition of the Lord).
sensitiveness, whichisfoundinthebe1ievers andtheunbe1ievers and inthe
anima1s, is not the genera1 ofthe Qur' an un1ike common orators
and writers.
46Uthmani 1049:2
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in this story the Qur' an has described, omitting the middle events,
the 1ast thing, that the with all possible pretexts, took
away fromtheirfatheranddecided tothrowhiminthewell according
to their prearranged At the time God had hinted to Yusufwithout the
others being concious ofthis, not to worry; day he wou1d tell them ofall
their activities and treatment, and that he would ofsuch high rank at that
time that his brothersWOlJJd not know him, due to the 1apse oftime it wou1d
difficu1t forthem torecognisehim.
How this divinehint or indication to Yusuf eitherin dream, or when
awak:e throughinspiration throughan ange1- is subject which is absent
theQur' It issaidof course, observingthe whayna thatreve1ation
i:s confinedto the age offortyyears and becauseHadhrat Yusuf
vvas at the
Al1ah withYusuf in his difficu1ties, andsufferings, ashe
i:s with his servantswhoput theirtrustinhim. Hisbrothers, betrayedhim and
1eft the perhapstodieor to soldintoslavery. Buthe was undaunted.
His couragenever fai1ed him.
1recall here story ofHazrat Rashid Ahmed Gangohi rahmatullahi
a1aihi (died 1323 When he was five or six years old, he created
ofperforminghis sa1aah inthemasjid. dayhewas 1ate, the sa1aah had
started. had to take water out ofthe well to perform wudhu. As he pulled
tlhe bucket, he accident1y slipped and inside. hearing the noise
theirsa1aah and towardsthewell. Theywererea11y scared. However,
Hazrat shouted from inside 'Do not worry, 1 safe. 1have seated myse1f
iJl1side thebucket.' It is this couragethat made Hazratwhat he was. shou1d
t:ry and read the biograpby of Hazrat Gangohi rahmatullahi a1aihi named
azkiratur-Rashid".
conso1e that the daywill when shall
10ft rank and will informthemoftheir evi1 activitiestowards
and theywon'tevenrecogniseyou.
- 1050:2
34