PROPHET YUSUF (‘a)Prophets of Allah

A long time ago, in the land of Kana’an, there lived a prophet whose name was Yaq’ub (‘a) He had 12 sons but he was fond of the youngest, Yusuf. Yusuf (‘a) was the most handsome and pious of them all. One morning, Yusuf ran to his father and said to him: Last night I dreamt that eleven stars, the sun and the moon were prostrating to me. Yaqub (‘a) said: My dear Yusuf, do not say a word about his dream to your brothers.

Prophet Yaqub (‘a) knew that his other sons were jealous of Yusuf so he tried his best to keep Yusuf with him at all times. One day, the brothers were sitting together and talking about how their father loved Yusuf more than them. They decided that they would have to get rid of Yusuf. After some discussion, they came up with an idea. The very next day, they asked their father if Yusuf could accompany them while they tended their sheep. Initially Ya’qub (‘a) was hesitant but after a lot of insisting, he finally agreed.

When they reached the desert, they removed Yusuf’s shirt and threw him down into a well. They then slaughtered a sheep and smeared its blood on his shirt and returned home. When Prophet Yaq’ub asked them about Yusuf, they replied O father, we left Yusuf for a short while and he was eaten up by a wolf. Here is his shirt. Prophet Yaq’ub (‘a) knew that his sons were lying. He became very sad and cried so much until he lost his eyesight.

The next day, a caravan passed by the desert. Since they were thirsty, they let their bucket down the well and were very surprised when a handsome young boy came up to the top. They decided to take him with them. They sold him to the king of Egypt and he started a new life from that day on.

After a few years, he grew up into a handsome young man. Zulaykha, the king’s wife, wanted to have Yusuf (‘a) but Prophet Yusuf turned her down as it was a considered a major sin. When she didn’t get her way, Zulaykha complained to her husband against Yusuf (‘a). Later she hatched a plot against him and he was imprisoned.

One night, the king had a dream and related it to his advisors. I saw seven thin cows eating seven fat ones. Then I saw seven dry stalks of corn swallowing seven green stalks. Does anyone know what this means? One of them told the king that there is a young boy in the prison who would be able to interpret this dream.

The man went to the prison and asked Yusuf (‘a) to interpret the king’s dream. For seven years you will have a good harvest, but for the next seven years, the whole of Egypt will be dry. You will have to store wheat and barley so that it will become useful when times are bad. The man hurriedly went to tell the king the meaning of his dream. The king immediately asked to see Yusuf (‘a).

When the king saw how truthful and clever he was, he immediately set Yusuf (‘a) free and when Yusuf (‘s) suggested a solution to the problem of the coming famine, he gave him the responsibility of leading the people and administrating the provisions.

For the first seven years, Prophet Yusuf (‘a) bought all the wheat, barley and other grains and stored them carefully. After seven years, the whole of Kan’aan became dry. People came from far off places to buy the wheat and barley. Even Prophet Yaq’ub (‘a) sent his sons to Egypt to buy some grain.

When Yusuf (‘a) saw his brothers, he recognized them but they did not recognize him. Allah helped Yusuf trick his brothers in order to make them understand that what they had done to him was wrong. They asked for his forgiveness and he forgave them. Then he immediately asked about his father. The brothers sadly replied: Our father has become blind since he has been crying so much for you. Yusuf (‘a) gave them his shirt saying: Here take my shirt and put it over his eyes. His eyesight will come back.

When Prophet Ya’qub (‘a) put the shirt over his eyes, his eyesight was restored. He then returned to Egypt with his sons. When Yusuf (‘a) saw them coming, he went to welcome them. They immediately dismounted their horses and all fell in prostration. Yusuf (‘a) was very happy to see his father.

F.T.Jaffer