Triumph In Adversity: The Handsome Story of Yusuf (Part 1)

Full script for Episode 1 of Story Sunday for Ramadan Daily Dose 2020 with Mercy Mission - as shared in Twins Of Faith (Malaysia)'s page on YouTube and Facebook Live.Delivered on Sunday, 26 April 2020 (3rd Ramadhan, 1441AH)

Intro: The Role of Stories

·       Before we begin, perhaps we should ask ourselves: why storytelling?

·       You see, whether we realize it or not, as human beings we are hotwired to learn better through stories

·       Stories can deliver messages to us in a way that instructions or theoretical explanations will simply fail to convey

·       Some stories are used to entertain, some to promote products, some to convince management on this great proposal you have – and some stories are used to inspire and drive us into action. Stories can be so powerful that they can redefine the course of our lives to become better people.

·       That is why the Qur’an is full of stories – from the prophets, the best of mankind, to examples of the worst of disbelievers, including iblis, and firaun, and so on – to illustrate to us the best examples, the worst examples and in fact everything in between!

وَكُلًّا نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنْبَاءِ الرُّسُلِ مَا نُثَبِّتُ بِهِ فُؤَادَكَ ۚ وَجَاءَكَ فِي هَٰذِهِ الْحَقُّ وَمَوْعِظَةٌ وَذِكْرَىٰ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

"And each [story] We relate to you from the news of the messengers is that by which We make firm your heart. And there has come to you, in this, the truth and an instruction and a reminder for the believers."

(Hud 120)

o   This verse, Allah tells us that the stories of the previous prophets are there to strengthen the heart of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ himself! So if it strengthened him, how much more of an effect should that have for you and me?

o   The point of these stories are not just for us to tell it as if it is just some folk tale as entertainment, or as water cooler talk

o   It is for us to derive real life practical lessons from them. To use them as a means to elevate our lives

o   The names of the character may change. These people may have passed away long before us: Fir’aun, Iblis, Salih, Harun, Maryam, Dzul-Qarnain – but their character types will remain until the day of judgment.

o   Technology may change and evolve; but human nature has always – and will always – remain the same. And therefore it is upon us to extract these past stories to implement into our own lives.

Triumph In Adversity: Yusuf Alayhissalam

·       The Qur’an and Sunnah is a treasure chest of amazing stories that we need the world to hear. 

·       So with that in mind I thought, why don’t we begin our story Sunday with the Best of Stories – the story of Prophet Yusuf alayhissalam. A story in which Allah Himself testifies that it is the best of the stories: 

 نَحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ أَحْسَنَ الْقَصَصِ بِمَا أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ هَٰذَا الْقُرْآنَ 

"We relate to you, [O Muhammad], the best of stories in what We have revealed to you of this Qur'an" (Surah Yusuf, 3)

·       Our first episode is the Epic story of Triumph in Adversity: The Handsome story of Yusuf

·       I purposely said Handsome story of Yusuf, and not the story of Handsome Yusuf – and that is by design; for reasons I will get to later on insha Allah.

·       Ultimate exemplification of circumstances beyond your control, but making the best out of it

·       The story of Prophet Yusuf which I wish to share and to emphasize on in today’s session is a story of hope.

·       A lifelong journey of a beautiful person by the name of Yusuf who encounters classic series of tragedies and tribulations beyond his control – yet always making conscious decisions to make the best of what is within his control

·       And with that in mind it is also interesting to note when was this surah revealed

o   Although there are no exact dates, historical narrations and book of tafsir indicate that this was revealed throughout the 10^th or 11^th year of Prophethood – the Prophet’s final moments in Makkah.

o   The context of this was during very turbulent times when the Prophet had just lost two of the most beloved people in his household – Khadijah: his only wife and pillar of emotional support; and Abu Talib; who was his father figure whom raised him since childhood, and acting as the tribal leader of the tribe of Banu Hashim, acted as the pillar of physical support for the Prophet – who had died as a mushrik.

o   It was a time exemplified by the people of Quraysh inflicting some severe harm and oppression against the Prophet and the fellow Muslims, peaking when the Quraysh boycotted the Prophet and his companions for a period of three years

·       And it was in those moments, Allah revealed this surah

o   Almost as if to tell the Prophet – We Know these difficult circumstances you are going through. But here is a story of a person who was oppressed since childhood, yet persevered with patience, beauty of character, and continued to find ways to thrive at every turning point of his life – until eventually emerging triumphant, but never giving up

o   The verses of Allah were a source of motivation, strength and comfort for the Prophet ﷺ

·       This also should remind us to ask ourselves – what is our relationship with the Qur’an?

o   Do we use it as a means to uplift our lives, to learn from these stories to bring joy and reassurance to ourselves?

o   Many of us treat the Qur’an as a mere ritual, as just something we have to recite. Perhaps for some of us, outside of Ramadhan, we barely touch or recite the Qur’an.

o   Let’s capitalize on our Qur’an enthusiasm this Ramadhan and plant the sincere intention to renew our joy and strengthen our relationship with the kalam of Allah

·       And so with that in mind, my brother, my sister – as we go through our beautiful story of Prophet Yusuf on our Story Sunday, I want you to take this deep reflection in your own personal life or perhaps the life of others around you

o   Perhaps you may be in very difficult situations in your own life. You might be in an abusive relationship, might have to deal with troubled family relationships, difficult in-laws, an oppressive husband, severe poverty or financial constraints, loneliness, abandonment or isolation, oppression, or being not appreciated by the people around you

o   Allah knows the difficulties you are going through

o   Through this story I want you to remind yourself, that just as Allah Knows the situation of Yusuf, and Surely Helps His Slaves who are patient and put their trust in Him, in that same way, Allah Knows Your situation. He is Near to you. He Loves you. And perhaps it is out of His Love that he wants you to emerge stronger by thriving through these challenging times.

·       The main theme of this surah which we will emphasize this: you always have a choice

o   The story of Yusuf should empower all of us – you and I – that we always have a choice. When we are confronted with challenging moments in our life – we get to choose the narrative: will this be an adversity or a tragedy? Will this be your downfall, or your hero’s journey?

1.     In this story it will showcase to us that in spite of how difficult or unbearable a situation in your life may become, you always have a choice in making the best out of it, or simply surrendering as a victim of circumstances

2.     Yusuf teaches us his story where he always owned up to the situation and emerged victorious, like a boss.

o   You cannot control the incidents that happen to you – but you can control your reaction to those incidents

o   Or you can choose to surrender to it, lose hope and escalate into deeper depression

o   Because that, essentially is what depression is: that feeling that you have lost all hope and lost the willpower to get back on your feet

And so with that in mind, let us begin the story of Yusuf.

A few points to note:

·       Selective: because the surah is a pretty big surah, I will not be going through every single ayah – rather, I will go through several selected ones to illustrate key points of the story in the context that we are trying to bring forth

·       As we go along this session, I want to encourage you to also have with you a reference of the Qur’an with a good, simple translation that you are familiar with. Perhaps you can refer to Quran.com or the app iQuran

Ayah 4: The Dream

إِذْ قَالَ يُوسُفُ لِأَبِيهِ يَا أَبَتِ إِنِّي رَأَيْتُ أَحَدَ عَشَرَ كَوْكَبًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ رَأَيْتُهُمْ لِي سَاجِدِينَ ﴿٤﴾

(Remember) when Yusuf (Joseph) said to his father: "O my father! Verily, I saw (in a dream) eleven stars and the sun and the moon, I saw them prostrating themselves to me."

·        

Establishes the two main protagonists of this story: Yusuf, and his father, Ya’qub alayhissalam who was a Prophet of Allah

·       So here, little Yusuf has a strange fascinating dream – and who is the first person he decides to tell about it? His father

o   Not his friends, not any of his eleven brothers, but his father

o   And here is a very important point about establishing trust with our children

o   As parents, we need to create an environment where our children feel safe, secure and enthusiastic to share their stories with us.

o   Don’t expect that as a parent, this trust has to come by default. Oh I’m the father, he should trust me. That’s not how it works – it has to be nurtured. And this nurturing happens throughout the little decisions we make in our lives when they interact with us

o   When they encounter negative emotions when they tell us stories – when we ignore them,  gluing our eyes to our mobile phones and gadgets, or when they share their feelings, when we dismiss them as insignificant, or yell at them for wasting our time, eventually they will lose that trust

o   So if we keep doing that, they will find someone who they can trust to tell their stories. And then you lost control who that person may be. It could be a friend at school – good or bad, you don’t know? It could be Mr. Sensitive who steals your daughter’s heart. Or – this is a real story – it could be a charismatic friend who turns out to be a drug dealer.

o   If we don’t play that part, they will find someone who will

o   So this ayah reminds me as well as a father, to make conscious, deliberate decisions to really build that bond and relationship with my son, Muawiyah. He is only 2 years now, but this ayah places the long term big picture goal that I want to have with him. It’s challenging, no doubt. Especially these days when I’m working from home, every few minutes he’ll come by my place and tells me about fascinating discoveries.. which are sometimes as minor as a little stone he found outside, or showing me my pen that he conveniently broke. The instinct is to sometimes dismiss him or ignore him, but I know that may damage our relationship. 

·       Storytelling technique in the Qur’an: conciseness – we establish the main character, the relationship

Ayah 5: Don’t Tell your Brothers

Let us first begin with ayah number five. After Allah establishes the character of our Yusuf, his close relationship with his father, when he was the very first person that Yusuf, this young boy had, when he informed and his peculiar dream he had, of the moon, the sun and the 11 stars making prostration to him, this was the response of his father, Prophet Ya’qub:

قَالَ يَا بُنَيَّ لَا تَقْصُصْ رُؤْيَاكَ عَلَىٰ إِخْوَتِكَ فَيَكِيدُوا لَكَ كَيْدًا ۖ إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لِلْإِنْسَانِ عَدُوٌّ مُبِينٌ ﴿٥﴾

He said, "O my son, do not relate your vision to your brothers or they will contrive against you a plan. Indeed Satan, to man, is a manifest enemy.

What is immediately striking here is that

·       Ya’qub knows and recognizes his other children’s potential to do harm.

·       This teaches us as parents we should get to know our children, and not be in denial of their shortcomings. Sometimes we get upset when our child’s schoolteacher pinpoints several less-upright things they did at school, but in fact it could be true: we have just never seen those sides to them. Just accept them: we are not validating these characteristics, just swallowing the bitter truth. 

·       Ya’qub knows that he does not have direct control to change their attitude and behavior. So instead, he focuses on what is IN his control: do not tell them news that can fume up their jealousy, as this might fuel further hatred in them to plot against you. 

·       Alludes to an important point: we parents we don’t actually have any direct control over our children – we can guide, teach, influence, encourage, lead by example, and so on, but at the end of the day how they actually turn out is beyond our control. Allah teaches us several different examples in the Qur’an of how the Prophets themselves were tested with disobedient family members within their own households. Prophet Nuh was tested with his disobedient son. Prophet Lut faced a really disobedient wife who intended to assist in disobedience. And in this case, Prophet Ya’qub with his sons. 

·       This doesn’t mean we should just give up and leave it up to chance: we still have an obligation to do what is within our control à 66:6 “Save yourselves and your family members from the Fire”. But the lesson here, is to keep your expectations in check, and know that every person’s heart and guidance is in the hands of Allah.

o   In fact the lesson here is that Ya’qub advises his child. And this is something we must do as parents. Give them advice about the harsh realities of life, even if it hurts. Don’t just expect them to “figure it out”, no matter how obvious it may seem. It may seem obvious to you, but not necessarily for them. We need to practice empathy. Even if they already know it, there is no harm in reinforcing the lessons. Allah tells us to remind, for reminding benefits the believers

·       Bad children doesn’t mean bad parents. This also teaches us another lesson: just because we see a person’s children behaving a little bit “out of sync” doesn’t mean that they have “bad parents” or that their father or mother is guilty of “bad parenting” by any means. Prophet Nuh, Lut and Ya’qub were amongst the best examples of mankind.

·       Prophet Ya’qub here is also teaching us another lesson: yes, he recognizes the negative characteristics in his children, but at the same time, he also recognizes that these negativities come from the whispers of shaitan. Shaitan is a clear enemy to man, who is influencing and inducing these bad behaviors. He is not saying that they are inherently “evil” or “bad” people. He recognizes the evil influence of a third party at play here, and that toxic influence is what is destroying the relationship between these individuals – even though they are blood brothers!

·       And I also need to allude to an important point. We all know how the story ended. In spite of their evil schemes, and even persisted evil deeds when they were older, but at the end of the story, they all repented, and in surah Al-Baqarah ayah 133, Allah tells us how they all died upon guidance of monotheism, so therefore Alhamdulillah, a good ending was forthem.

o   What does this teach us? If we are in situations of family members being particularly difficult of negative, don’t be quick to conclusively say that “oh you are a failure”, or “you are a bad person”, a “terrible” husband, or throw your hands up in the air and declare “I don’t know what to do with you”, and so on.

o   If this is what you declare, then this narration will be what you sear in your head, and may even scar the person to subconsciously believe in it, and lose hope.

§  Oh my mother says I’m a hopeless guy. My wife basically thinks I’m a loser.  

o   Don’t do this! Maybe today you see them as what you see right here, right now. Be patient with them. Be optimistic, Allah can change their hearts. Recognize the devil that is corrupting his/her heart and mind, and they are going through an internal struggle to fight the devil inside. Empathize with them, be patient.

o   Yes, it will take time – in the case of the brothers of Yusuf, looking at the time frame of their mischief all the way up to their repentance, it was probably a span of at least 40 years. 40 years! How much have you put up with the people around you?

Ayah 8: Establishes the Basis of their Hatred: Envy

إِذْ قَالُوا لَيُوسُفُ وَأَخُوهُ أَحَبُّ إِلَىٰ أَبِينَا مِنَّا وَنَحْنُ عُصْبَةٌ إِنَّ أَبَانَا لَفِي ضَلَالٍ مُبِينٍ ﴿٨﴾

When they said, "Joseph and his brother are more beloved to our father than we, while we are a clan. Indeed, our father is in clear error.

·       This ayah establishes to us the basis of why they hate Yusuf so much to the extent that they are willing to throw him into a well, and in fact even to suggest to kill him: because they were jealous

·       “Our father is in clear error”. This teaches us the dangers of perception:

1.     They were envious of Yusuf because they perceived that the father showed more love towards him. But it was probably because Yusuf was the younger among them, and therefore they perceived that he gets special treatment. This is a normal human perception – the fact is our parents probably gave the older siblings that same special treatment when they were young, but they did not remember it.

§  This teaches us an added benefit that we should be careful not to immediately jump to negative conclusions in our family environment and working environment as well. Sometimes we see a slight difference in the way that our boss treats another person and we immediately jump to the conclusion of favoritism or bias. And we repeat the same language here “we see him in plain error”.

2.     According to their “logic”, by right their father should love them more because they had “strength” as a clan. They perceived physical strength should be more deserving to be loved.

§  But the fact is Ya’qub never showed any unjust favoritism, let alone choosing on the basis of strength!

Ayah 9, 10: The Plot

 اقْتُلُوا يُوسُفَ أَوِ اطْرَحُوهُ أَرْضًا يَخْلُ لَكُمْ وَجْهُ أَبِيكُمْ وَتَكُونُوا مِنْ بَعْدِهِ قَوْمًا صَالِحِينَ ﴿٩﴾

Kill Joseph or cast him out to [another] land; the countenance of your father will [then] be only for you, and you will be after that a righteous people." (9) 

·       The very first suggestion to handle this situation is to KILL HIM

o   This a prime example of toxic UNHEALTHY COMPETITION

o   If they had the spirit of healthy competition – even in the area of father’s love – they would perhaps suggest that they can be better people, do more nice things to get their father’s attention

o   Nope – they said, just kill the guy, get rid of him: Problem solved.

·       They mentioned here that they will repent afterwards – after we do this evil deed, later on we will be good people

o   This indicates the typical attitude of sinners. Just do sins now, when we grow old later on, after we retire, we go for Hajj. People like to procrastinate good deeds, and they just taichi and defer their repentance to an unspecified, unknown date, so they can pat themselves in the back and say, it’s okay you’re still young.

o   Be careful; do not commit sins with the intention to repent later. This is almost as if you are playing with Allah, and taking him as a fool. The fact is, you may do this sin, and before you even have a chance to repent, Allah will take your life.

o   A truly sincere person will not consider this

قَالَ قَائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ لَا تَقْتُلُوا يُوسُفَ وَأَلْقُوهُ فِي غَيَابَتِ الْجُبِّ يَلْتَقِطْهُ بَعْضُ السَّيَّارَةِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ فَاعِلِينَ

Said a speaker among them, "Do not kill Joseph but throw him into the bottom of the well; some travelers will pick him up - if you would do [something]." (10)

·       One of the brothers spoke up, and felt bad – so he suggested a lesser alternative

o   Throw him in a well instead

o   But in principle, this is still evil and unhealthy competition!

·       If we are in situations where we are in a losing battle when competing with others, then find ways to rise above that to regain your own victory: not by snatching away from others!

·       These verses teach us also that sibling rivalry and bullying is very real, and we should not take it lightly. Sometimes we look at a situation from a third party perspective and think how can they harm a cute little child. How can a group of children cause so much harm. And modern history has shown us how not only that this is possible but it has indeed taken place in our midst.

Ayah 15: Exiled

So after convincing their father Ya’qub with all sorts of false assurances, they finally went out to execute their plan

فَلَمَّا ذَهَبُوا بِهِ وَأَجْمَعُوا أَنْ يَجْعَلُوهُ فِي غَيَابَتِ الْجُبِّ ۚ

So when they took him [out] and agreed to put him into the bottom of the well...

o   Think about this idea: Yusuf, this little boy is thrown into a well, in the middle of nowhere, with no human being in sight. Can you imagine the mental torture that he has to go through in these moments?

o   That feeling of isolation can really push a person, mentally

o   To be exiled and thrown into a bottom of a well, even as an adult is very psychologically tormenting experience and can really mentally damage a person

o   which is why in prison, the worst prisoners get punished with “solitary confinement” as a disciplinary punishment for convicted prisoners. And this can really harm the person’s psyche and mental state possibly leading to more serious consequences such as depression and other mood disorders.

o   But if you are in solitary confinement, at least you know you are in a human facility. There is “hope” that the warden or prison guards will take you out

o   Imagine the case with Yusuf – in a well in the middle of the dessert. Absolutely no one there.

o   Even if you scream all you want in the middle of a dessert, especially at the bottom of the well, no one can hear you.

o   And so Yusuf had absolutely no idea when any human being will actually pass by, let alone good people who will save him

·       But Allah here strengthens his heart

وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْهِ لَتُنَبِّئَنَّهُمْ بِأَمْرِهِمْ هَٰذَا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ ﴿١٥﴾

But We inspired to him, "You will surely inform them [someday] about this affair of theirs while they do not perceive [your identity]." (15)

·       “one day you will inform them of their misdeeds”

·       And that’s it. To receive this assurance from Allah, is enough to give put this little boy’s heart and fears to rest

·       My brothers and my sisters – how do we feel about the assurance from Allah? How do we feel KNOWING that surely the good end is for those who believe? When Allah promises us Paradise for our good deeds? When we remain patient and steadfast despite the difficult and challenging times in our lives?

o   Sometimes we face some hardship – and Allah knows our hardship – and we are so quick to throw up our hands in the air and question Allah, ‘why me?’. We remain patient for a little longer and we question destiny and the qadar of Allah and say “how much longer do I have to remain patient?"

o   Do we forget the guarantee that Allah rewards every second of our patience?

o   We only live short lives in this dunia – 60, 70, 80 years on average. Some of us far less. And if we pass this test, how long will we live in Jannah?

o   Forever and ever

·       We know that later on, a caravan came by to pick up Yusuf, but how long must that have taken?

·       Also there is another interesting point to note – Ya’qub advises his sons, don’t tell your brothers, or else they will plot against you. Did Yusuf tell his brothers? No! and yet they still plotted against him. This teaches us that

o   Tawakkul: You can only do what is within your control. If you do your best to do the right thing, and still the outcome isn’t great, know that that is within the plan and qadar of Allah – He willed it to happen for a reason and for many wisdoms that perhaps we may not yet understand

Ayah 16, 17, 18: Drama

وَجَاءُوا أَبَاهُمْ عِشَاءً يَبْكُونَ ﴿١٦﴾ قَالُوا يَا أَبَانَا إِنَّا ذَهَبْنَا نَسْتَبِقُ وَتَرَكْنَا يُوسُفَ عِنْدَ مَتَاعِنَا فَأَكَلَهُ الذِّئْبُ ۖ وَمَا أَنْتَ بِمُؤْمِنٍ لَنَا وَلَوْ كُنَّا صَادِقِينَ ﴿١٧﴾ وَجَاءُوا عَلَىٰ قَمِيصِهِ بِدَمٍ كَذِبٍ ۚ قَالَ بَلْ سَوَّلَتْ لَكُمْ أَنْفُسُكُمْ أَمْرًا ۖ فَصَبْرٌ جَمِيلٌ ۖ وَاللَّـهُ الْمُسْتَعَانُ عَلَىٰ مَا تَصِفُونَ ﴿١٨﴾

And they came to their father at night, weeping. (16) They said, "O our father, indeed we went racing each other and left Joseph with our possessions, and a wolf ate him. But you would not believe us, even if we were truthful." (17) And they brought upon his shirt false blood. [Jacob] said, "Rather, your souls have enticed you to something, so patience is most fitting. And Allah is the one sought for help against that which you describe."

o   Shirt with fake blood

o   To convince ya’qub

o   Where did they get this false blood in the middle of this desert lands?

o   It’s not like you can purchase false blood on ebay. You can, actually. But they didn’t have this. So where did they get it?

o   The implication here is that they had to kill an animal and smear Yusuf’s shirt with that animal’s blood

o    

o   SubhanAllah look at this elaborate plot! How much detailed effort the brothers of Yusuf are when it comes to constructing the false narrative of their story to convince their father ya’qub

o   They come at night, all of them with false tears, crying. They gather up and create a false story and play upon their father’s emotion that he doesn’t trust them. And not only that, they take Yusuf’s shirt, they kill a wild animal in the dessert, take its blood and stain Yusuf’s shirt

o   This is the work of criminals – some of them are so elaborate in their evil misdeeds. Criminals are not idiots or uneducated people. In fact they are very intelligent. Unfortunately they use their intelligence for their own selfish reasons.

o   What got me thinking: are WE elaborate when it comes to our deeds? Especially in collaborative efforts in da’wah?

§  Sometimes I see when it comes to doing good deeds people have a “ah whatever man just do it man” without a real consideration of strategy, approach, wisdom and skill. As a result, a lot of our efforts are very short-lived and very ineffective

o   Da’wah work requires us to be elaborate and systematic: whether you want to start an organization to disseminate Islamic knowledge, to call others to Allah, or a charity initiative to help those in need

§  establish a team, a good system, even good marketing, a good logo

§  Why those crooks and thieves can put in so much effort and yet we have a “whatever” attitude when it comes to upholding the deen of Allah?

o   The Reaction of Ya’qub

o   He knows that they are lying, that they concocted this elaborate hoax to convince him. He knows because he understands the dream of Yusuf, that one day, his brothers and parents will make sujud to him – and since those moments have not yet come to pass, therefore it is impossible that he was killed. This was definitely a plot they fabricated

o   And it’s interesting to note here that he did not rebuke them, or punish them. Punishing them or yelling them won’t change anything. It won’t change their lying nature.

§  And at this stage, it is probably too late to go for a searching party to look for Yusuf. There is nothing he could have done. So what is within his control?

§  Patience is befitting for me.

§  I make du’aa against these evil plots

Ayah 19, 20: Discovered and Sold

وَجَاءَتْ سَيَّارَةٌ فَأَرْسَلُوا وَارِدَهُمْ فَأَدْلَىٰ دَلْوَهُ ۖ قَالَ يَا بُشْرَىٰ هَٰذَا غُلَامٌ ۚ وَأَسَرُّوهُ بِضَاعَةً ۚ وَاللَّـهُ عَلِيمٌ بِمَا يَعْمَلُونَ ﴿١٩﴾ وَشَرَوْهُ بِثَمَنٍ بَخْسٍ دَرَاهِمَ مَعْدُودَةٍ وَكَانُوا فِيهِ مِنَ الزَّاهِدِينَ ﴿٢٠﴾

And there came a company of travelers; then they sent their water drawer, and he let down his bucket. He said, "Good news! Here is a boy." And they concealed him, [taking him] as merchandise; and Allah was knowing of what they did. (19) And they sold him for a reduced price - a few dirhams - and they were, concerning him, of those content with little. (20) 

·       Yusuf Finally discovered

·       Hooray?

·       NO! Allah decreed that a group of SLAVE TRADERS discover him

·       What is your first reaction when you see a lost child in the middle of nowhere?

·       These guys see a boy and first thought “money!” and they concealed him with the rest of their merchandise

·       From solitary confinement to being sold into slavery = out of the frying pan, into the fire

Or is it...?

Ayah 21: The Man from Egypt

o   Next ayah: Allah describes who purchased Yusuf

o   Now, it’s worth noting that Yusuf and Ya’qub originated in Can’aa – distant land which is in our modern times somewhere in Palestine

وَقَالَ الَّذِي اشْتَرَاهُ مِنْ مِصْرَ لِامْرَأَتِهِ أَكْرِمِي مَثْوَاهُ عَسَىٰ أَنْ يَنْفَعَنَا أَوْ نَتَّخِذَهُ وَلَدًا ۚ وَكَذَٰلِكَ مَكَّنَّا لِيُوسُفَ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلِنُعَلِّمَهُ مِنْ تَأْوِيلِ الْأَحَادِيثِ ۚ وَاللَّـهُ غَالِبٌ عَلَىٰ أَمْرِهِ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ ﴿٢١﴾

And the one from Egypt who bought him said to his wife, "Make his residence comfortable. Perhaps he will benefit us, or we will adopt him as a son." And thus, We established Joseph in the land that We might teach him the interpretation of events. And Allah is predominant over His affair, but most of the people do not know.

o   Ponder upon this ayah that Allah clearly mentions here. We establish Yusuf in the land. Wait a minute – what do you mean “established” Yusuf? Didn’t he just get sold into slavery, here? Didn’t the story just take another plunge to another tragedy? From solitary confinement to slavery isn’t exactly a good situation, let alone an establishment of any form.

o   Fast forward and flash towards the end of the story – where this “establishment” has taken place and has come full circle. We know that in the end, Yusuf was appointed as al-‘aziz, the one in charge of the resources of Egypt. How did he get there? Because this man who bought Yusuf as a slave, was in fact al-‘Aziz. And it was the Qadar of Allah that this man had the intention to raise Yusuf as if he was his own child, and told his wife to treat him as such.

o   And throughout therefore Yusuf was raised and grew up – serving as a boy-slave who was treated well by his master – in this environment of leadership. Giving him the gradual exposure of managing and leading

o   And so coming back to this ayah here – Allah tells us He establishes Yusuf on the land on this very moment he gets oppressively sold as a slave!

o   What does this teach us?

o   Sometimes the darkest moments in our lives – the worst of trials and challenges- the greatest of tragedies and calamities – are what transform us to become the people we need to be. I want you to take a deep look into your own life – the challenges and calamities that perhaps you personally face.

o   Don’t look at that tragedy as your downfall – rather, it could be the triggering moments of your hero’s journey – IF you take the right choices to allow it to be your triumphant moments.

o   On a lighter note, let’s look at simple works of modern fantasy fiction that I am sure you and I can relate to.

o   How did Bruce Wayne become Batman?

o   How did Tony Stark decide to become Iron Man? To abandon his decadent, wealth-seeking playboy days and take the mature responsibility to use his intelligence and wealth to help humankind?

o   All great hero stories are born out of tragedies

o   But tragedy alone doesn’t make a hero

o   It is the choices they make in these tragic moments that define them

o   He did not struggle, be in denial, fight his master.

o   He obediently served his master, learned and developed as he grew up in that household in Egypt.

o   Own up to the situation, make the best of it.

So he stays with Al-Aziz until he attains the age of maturity

Ayah 22: Beginning of Life in Egypt

وَلَمَّا بَلَغَ أَشُدَّهُ آتَيْنَاهُ حُكْمًا وَعِلْمًا ۚ وَكَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ ﴿٢٢﴾

And when Joseph reached maturity, We gave him judgment and knowledge. And thus We reward the doers of good.

So yeah Alhamdulillah – all is well. Right?

Oh no sir.

The Story is just beginning – we haven’t even reached the part that emphasizes the handsome that is Yusuf. We haven’t revealed the triumphant achievement of Yusuf as the leader of the land.

But – QadarAllahu wa mashaa faal – as we bring the first Act of this amazing story to a close, as does our Episode for today in our Story Sunday for our Ramadan Daily Dose, as I leave you off with a frustrating cliff-hanger to salivate your taste buds for Episode 2. 

I hope this story has been beneficial for you and has provide genuinely useful insights in how we can incorporate them into our own lives – to make the right choices to become a better person. To take the little challenges, tragedies, adversities in our lives, to rewrite our narrative and rise like a boss and become the champion we have always needed to be.

Homework:

I want to leave you with a few assignments. They are quite simple. First of all:

1.     1. Look into your own life and reflect back on the adversities that you had gone through in your life. What were the choices that you made? Are you proud of your decisions? Could you have done better? How would you do things differently if you go through that same scenario?

2.     2. Reach out to someone in your life whom you feel may be going through some difficulty or trial. Just contact them and catch up with them. Don’t ask for any favours, don’t leverage from it. Just have good conversation and reach out to them, especially this Ramadhan in isolation. What can you do – what role can you play – to elevate the difficulties that they are going through?

3.     3. Recite surah Yusuf, slowly and intentionally, with these stories and lessons in mind. Feel the beauty of the kalam of Allah and really live the story of Yusuf. 

·       

JazakumUllahu khayran


· Ask Allah to accept all my good deeds and yours this Ramadhan

· BarakAllahu fikum

P/s - shout out and many thanks to all the viewers out there who shared their Pearls of Wisdom and notes for others! Masha Allah I am touched by all the great work. Keep it up. Hope you don't mind I "borrowed" it here!
Jazakumullahu khayran and may Allah bless all your efforts.