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SURE
Yusuf Suresi
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A. (Alef), L. (Lam), R. (Raa), the Surah opens with these letters introductory front the Arabic Alphabet to draw attention to the miracle of the Quran which though written in the people's tongue, cannot be emulated. These are divinely discoursed verses flowing with the precision and grace that are symbolic of the Book -the Quran- the spirit of truth that guides into all truth.
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Bearing upon your present circumstances, We relate to you O Muhammad a most engaging story thought and felt in superlatives. It constitutes an integral part of the Quran We reveal to you, notwithstanding that before it you were unmindful of divine knowledge, true events and illumination and enlightenment.
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His father expressed his thoughts in words with grace divine imbued; he said to him: "My son, relate not your vision to your brothers -half brothers- lest they plot against you and entice you into danger: actuated by envy, they may fall as puppets in the hands of AL-Shaytan (Satan) who is indeed an avowed enemy to man. "
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"Thus", he continued, "will Allah, your Creator, choose you and impart to you the knowledge of interpreting visions and sense impressions in sleep and what they prefigure of future events, He complements his bounty and munificence to you and to the progeny of Ya'qub as much as He made all grace abound in your grandfathers Ibrahim (Abraham) and Ishaq (Isaac) before. Allah, your Creator is indeed 'Alimun (Omniscient) and Hakimun (Wise).
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But one of them said: "Do not kill Yusuf, for such an act shall be a grave error that threatens a fatal result; throw him down the well where he would be out of sight, and there, he will be picked up by some company of merchants, travellers or others, that is if you have indeed decided to get rid of him. "
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And they took him and went away, and agreed among themselves, and were united in thought, to place him at the bottom of the well -said to have been dry-. There and then We inspired just confidence and peace of mind to him -Yusuf- and inspired him with the feeling, thus: "You shall one day inform them of the evil they had committed against you at a time when they fail to recognize you nor perceive ever they shall see you again."
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There came a caravan of merchants traveling to Egypt with merchandise. They sent on their water purveyor, the harbinger, who found a well; he let his bucket to draw water. But as he hauled up the bucket, he did not find water but a youth clinging to the rope and the bucket instead. There he announced with joy the good news of hauling up a youth, and they hid him in their merchandise, and Allah was fully aware of what they were doing.
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Being divinely gifted with the letter of credit nature has written upon his face honoured wherever presented, he was outbid in the slave market by a high court Egyptian official (AZIZ) who said to his wife: " Treat him kindly and with honour and respect to enjoy his stay; he may prove useful to us and helpful in effecting a purpose, or we may adopt him as a son. " Thus did We establish him firmly in the land, wherefore We imparted to him the knowledge of interpreting visions and sense impressions in sleep and what they prefigure of future events. Allah prevails upon His edict which inevitably produces its intended effect and answers its purpose, but most people do not realize this fact.
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Then when he –Yusuf- reached the stage of life wherein he had the ability for effective action and firmness of mind, character, will and purpose, We imparted to him wisdom and divine knowledge. For thus do We reward those who perfect their illustrious toils and turn their thoughts on moral excellence and benevolence.
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The lady of the house -wife of the high official- where he lived, tried to induce him to surrender his chastity; she closed the doors and said to him: "Come to me". But he said: "Allah forbid, He is my Creator; He has been kind to me, He delivered me from harm and gave me a good home and my master gave me a hearty welcome and a hospitable reception in his house; no, but never shall heaven prosper the wrongful of actions."
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She had a passionate and libidinous desire of him, a desire she meant to bring to effect physically, and he had a desire of her, a desire that was psychical. It might have been physical, had he not felt Allah in his bosom and the internal recognition of the moral quality of one's motives and actions approving the right and condemning the wrong. We stirred his mind and his heart to live in the conscientious practice of all that is good so that We guard him from evil and immorality; He was indeed one of Our sincere worshippers.
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To escape the threatened evil he ran to the door: as she chased him she could only reach the hack of his garment, and in his struggle to advance forward, the back of his garment was torn. The master was just coming in and they all met at the door. To justify her action and have her revenge, she said to her husband: "What punishment should be appropriate for someone who tried to assail your wife's virtue but that he be imprisoned or suffers a condign punishment!"
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When she heard of their evil intent aggravating her guilt, she invited them to her house and gave them a banquet. The seats were propped up with cushions, the table was set with delightful food and table knives were put in place, one for each. When they were served with the course whereat they use the knives, she ordered him –Yusuf- to come into the room. When the women saw him they were overwhelmed with wonder and they marvelled at his exceptional good looks with profound admiration to the extent that they missed the fruit and wounded their hands. They exclaimed " Allah forbid this is not a mortal; he is none other than a highly impressive, stately and distinguished angel."
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Along with Yusuf, two young men serving in the court were dismissed and put in prison. Each of them had a dream. One of them saw himself pressing grapes to make wine and the other saw himself carrying bread on his head and the birds were eating therefrom. Impressed by Yusuf's appearance which they thought was conformable to reason and piety, they asked him: "Can you reveal to us the significance of these dreams! We do see you a man of piety and we see in you virtue in its true signification."
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"Rest assured", he said, before food is brought to you, I will have informed you of the interpretation of your dreams. This is a part of the divine knowledge Allah, my Creator has imparted to me in consequence of conforming my will to His will. I have forsaken the system of faith of a people who deny Allah and refuse to acknowledge the truth of the Hereafter.
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"In fact, " he added, "those whom you worship besides Him are but names of objects you and your fathers have designated as gods; a system of faith and worship Allah has never authorized. Indeed, decision, command and judgement are asserted as Allah's own, He ordained that you worship no one but Him. This is the right system of faith and worship but most people do not perceive this fact."
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"Fellow prisoners said Yusuf, "Now, you shall have the interpretation of your dreams": "As to the fellow pressing grapes, he will be released and restored to his position and will serve his master -the king- with wine, whereas the other will be crucified and the vultures will prey upon his head. There, the die is cast concerning your enquiry."
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Then said he to the inmate whom he thought would be released: "Mention my name and my story, O fellow, to the king when you are in his presence. " But in the midst of the court he -the servant- yielded to the lower part of his nature which is guided by AL-Shaytan and forgot to mention to the king the story of his fellow prisoner. By consequence, Yusuf remained in confinement for a few years - said to be not less than three years-.
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And for once said the king to his retinue: "I saw in my dream seven fat cows eaten by seven lean and emaciated ones, and seven green ears of corn and seven others dry. Give me O counselors an opinion as it seems to you on that sense impression I had in my sleep if you are well versed in interpreting dreams."
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He asked: "Yusuf; O man of righteousness and truth, reveal to us this dream and what it prefigures: Seven fat cows were eaten by seven lean and emaciated ones, and seven green ears of corn together with seven dry ones. " " Give me your opinion so that I go back to the people and inform them of what they should expect."
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Yusuf did not only tell him of what people should expect but also suggested the safe measures to be taken. He said: "You shall sow the land in diligent labouring and when it is the season for reaping and gathering in the ripened grain, leave it in its ears and lay it up in store except a little which you will eat."
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The king, now pleased, said: "Bring him to me. " When the king's messenger went to fetch him, Yusuf with just confidence, said to the messenger.: "Go back to your master and ask him to re open my case and question the women who wounded their hands at the banquet and what did they have in mind to be up to trap! "Allah, my creator is indeed fully aware of their cunning."
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There and then did the king summon the women and question them. He asked: "What was your purpose and intention when you tried to solicit Yusuf?" They said: "Allah forbid, we have never known him to be morally depraved". The court official's wife, now being brought to her senses said: "Now that the truth transpired, it was I who solicited him and he has indeed been telling the truth."
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"I'm not trying", she said, "to vindicate my wrong nor do I absolve myself of the guilt which resided in my intention. One's ego inclines one to propound evil except those who are graced with Allah's mercy, and Providence their guide; Allah, my Creator, is indeed Ghafurun (Forgiving) and Rahimun (Merciful)."
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There, Yusuf said: "Now, O king, that you have faith in me, then entrust ''me with the granaries and the storehouses of the agricultural and natural products of the land and with the treasuries of the realm, and you shall find me trustworthy and capable of guarding the interests of the kingdom and knowing how to manage and administer affairs cleverly"
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He supplied them with their requirement of corn; he talked with them acting as if he did not know they had a half brother he said to them: "So, you have a brother through your father. Bring him to me; do you not see that I dispense the measure to the full and that I afford welcome and extend the most generous hospitality to guests and visitors!."
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When they returned to their father, they said to him: "O father we have been threatened with the denial of future corn-measures unless we be accompanied by our brother –Benjamin-, therefore, we beg you to send him with us so that we can get our supply of corn, and we solemnly promise to guard him home.
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But when they unloaded and opened their bags, they found their money had been refunded to them and there, they said: "Look O father, what more do we want! There is our money; it has been returned to us; we will provision our family, guard our brother and add a camel's load good at need; It is but a small quantity. "
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The father said: "I will not send him –Benjamin- with you until you have given me a binding oath with a solemn appeal to Allah in witness that you shall bring him back to me unless you are surrounded, ,. Having made an oath to him, he said to them: "There, shall Allah be our witness Who stands guard over what we discourse."
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He -Ya'qub- in a word with grace divine imbued, advised his sons," not to make entry through the same gate. He said to them: " O my sons, do not all enter by the same gate but segregate yourselves from one another and enter by different gates. Not that I will deprecate a misfortune that Allah has meant to befall you, it is not in mortals to command success." "Allah is He Who has the command; in Him do I trust and in Him must all the faithful put their trust."
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Albeit they entered in the manner conformable to their father's advice, it did not mean that they would have escaped a misfortune decreed by Allah, but it was only a notion in Ya'qub's mind wherefore his reason was satisfied. He was imbued with divine knowledge We had imparted to him, but most people are not so imbued nor do they perceive this fact.
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When they came to where Yusuf was, he took his full brother -Benjamin- by his side, and in a manner designed to escape observation, he declared to him his identity and actuated him with the feeling of confidence and said to him: "Do not grieve at heart over what their minds and souls had impelled them to do. "
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He –Yusuf- began the search with their sacks before searching that of his brother -Benjamin-, then he brought it out of Benjamin's saddle bags. Thus did We design a stratagem for Yusuf to outwit his brothers according to the inspired plan. He could not have detained his brother -Benjamin- by exercising judicial authority not conformable to the statutes of the realm, nor could he have applied the Jewish law of full restitution for the theft or the enslavement by the state unless Allah had willed. So it was. We raise whom We will to higher ranks and exalt them in dignity, wisdom and power. Above every one having mastery of knowledge, there is one who is endowed with more substantial knowledge; and above every one whose sum of knowledge with grace divine imbued there is AL-'Alim (the All-Knowing, the Omniscient).
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There and then said the brothers, adding insult to injury: "If he has appropriated dishonestly something belonging to someone else, a brother of his had committed theft aforetime. " Yusuf swallowed his resentment and kept it down, and in words spoken aside he said: "You went further and fared worse; it shall go bad with you here and worse Hereafter, and Allah knows every falsity you devise."
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When they lost hope of pursuading him to change his position, they were reticent about their intentions wherefore they withdrew and conferred in secret: "Do you not know", said their eldest, "or have you forgotten that your father has bound you by an oath with a solemn appeal to Allah! what of your sense of guilt of negligence and want of reasonable care which has bereaved our father of his son Yusuf. Therefore, I have resolved never to depart from hence until my father has permitted me to do so or Allah has determined me on a course of action; He gives the law whereas all other judges just interpret it."
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"Go back to your father", he added, and say to him: your son -Benjamin- has committed a theft and we were associated with the event and we only relate what we saw with our own eyes; and when we bound ourselves by the vow, we did not indulge in prophecy to foretell future events or realize the unseen.
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He withdrew away from them and retired from their society, weeping and expressing his feeling of grief aroused by the loss of Yusuf. He said: " what a pity it is to lose Yusuf! " and he felt profound grief and mourned passionately to the extent that his eyes turned opaque and impenetrable to sight in the train of his mental pain and deep sorrow.
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" My sons " he added: "go back to your older brother and feel all of you after Yusuf and his brother -Benjamin- and do not nurse despair nor give up hope of Allah's mercy. Indeed no one despairs of Allah's mercy but those who do not pin their faith to Him nor do they justify faith as a conviction operative on their character and will."
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When the brothers went back and joined the eldest brother and were granted audience of the vizier –Yusuf-, they said to him, appealing to his charity: "O noble one we and our family have had a severe touch of misfortunes and the famine has levied distress upon us, and we have brought the little we could afford in exchange for the corn we need. We seek your kindness and your benevolence for the alleviation of our mental and physical distress. We should be grateful indeed if you would give us the full measure of corn and consider the extra you add as charitable alms comforting the poor; blessed indeed is he that considers the poor, for Allah rewards the benevolent."
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They said: "Indeed you are Yusuf, are you not!" "Indeed I am," said Yusuf, "and this is my brother –Benjamin-. Allah has graced us with His divine favour and benediction, and conferred on us prosperity, for he who entertains the profound reverence dutiful to Allah and be unwearied in the face of difficulties and able to endure evil shall be greatly rewarded. Allah does not annul, withhold or withdraw the fruit people are entitled to reap from their deeds of wisdom and piety."
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And he raised aloft his parents to his -the vizier's- seat of dignity and Authority and there and then did all of them bow to the ground in respect, reverence and admiration. There, said Yusuf to his father: "O father, this is the interpretation of my vision which was brought before my mind's eyes during sleep, and Allah has verified it and made it come true". "He was gracious to me; He brought to effect my release from prison and your emigration from the desert in Can'an to settle in the city in Egypt after AL-Shaytan had sown malevolence and ill-will in my brothers' bosoms against me". "Indeed Allah, my Creator, moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform as He will; He is indeed AL-'Alim and AL-Hakim".
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To express his gratitude to Allah, he -Yusuf- came out with an invocatory prayer, thus: "O Allah, my Creator, You have graced me with pre-eminence in respect of power, dominion and authority, and You have imparted to me the knowledge of interpreting visions and what they prefigure of future events; You are the Creator, Who generated the heavens and the earth; You are my Tutelary Guardian here and Hereafter. " "Disembody my soul, O Allah, impressed with the image of religious and spiritual virtues and join me to those whose deeds had been imprinted with wisdom and piety."
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Such narrative as We have inspired to you O Muhammad is an epitome of the chief points of a larger invisible work embracing unseen forces and motives, thoughts and feelings, complications and results not usually seen or perceived by people but win through in the end as Allah has planned. Nor were you O Muhammad in their circles when they ( the brothers, the retinue and the women resolved unanimously to accomplish what they had maliciously schemed.
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Nor are most people moved by the convincing divine signs and marvels, expositions and illustrations to exercise spiritual apprehension of divine truths nor do they justify faith as a conviction operative on their character and will, even though you Muhammad are full of keen desire to guide them into all truth.
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Say to them -the infidels-: "This is my way of presenting divine inducements to the people, based on clear and comprehensible evidence; inducements which I, in collaboration with those who follow me, use to invite people to the path of Allah; glory to Him, and extolled are His glorious attributes wherefore never do I incorporate with Him other deities"
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We never sent Messengers before you O Muhammad whom We inspired, but were men chosen from among the town dwellers whose deeds were natural to man. Have these people not journeyed through the land and looked with their minds' eyes to see what was the end of those who preceded them! Indeed the abode in Paradise is infinitely better for those who had entertained the profound reverence dutiful to Allah in life below; can you people not reflect!
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Our Messengers O Muhammad do face hardships and difficulties, adversities and distresses to the extent that they give up hope of their followers' constancy and begin to think that they take them for impostors. There and then the turning point is reached and Our help comes in good time. We deliver whom We will and punish whom We will and never is Our retributive punishment averted from those who grow daily more and more wicked.
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Indeed there has been an example or a great lesson in the narratives of the Messengers; a lesson lessoning those of intellect into abhorrence of impatience and despair and the abuse of divine faculties. Such narratives as have been disclosed by divine means are not a feigned tales, but an integral part of the Quran corroborating and authoritatively validating all the divine Books revealed before it in time and serving as an excellent interpretation expounding all the statutes and ordinances past and present revealed to all human beings exacting obedience from the whole. It is emblematic of the spirit of truth that guides the faithful into all truth and it is a mercy to those who lift to Allah their inward sight.