The Prophet Yusuf (AS)
[Joseph]
(Taken from Stories of the Prophets by Muhammad Sadeq Rahmati)
Ansariyan Publications
P.O.B. 37185/187 QUM
Islamic Republic of Iran
The Dream
One morning, when Yusuf (as) woke up and got out of bed, he was cheerful and happy. He went to Yaqub, his father, and said: "O my dear father! Last night I had a wonderful dream. In my dream, I saw eleven stars, the sun and the moon prostrating themselves before me." On hearing this, his father became very happy and said: "Dear son! This dream is a true vision and shows your brilliant future. Remember not to say anything about it to your brothers, as they may become jealous of you and plot something evil against you."

When Yusuf (as) was a small boy, his mother Rachel died andhe and his brother, Benjamin, became orphans. That is why Yaqub loved Yusuf so much. His father's affection caused his other brothers to hate and be jealous of him. They made a plan to separate Yusuf from his father, so that he may love them alone.

One day, his brothers went to their father and said: "Dear father, why don't you trust us with Yusuf? We want nothing but good for him. Let him come with us tomorrow to the desert, where he may play and enjoy himself. We will take good care of him." Yaqub was aware of their evil thoughts and knew that they had plotted to kill him. It was the reason why they insisted on taking Yusuf with them. Their father did not want to show them his fear and anxiety, so he said: "It makes me unhappy that he goes away from me and besides, I fear that a wolf might eat him while you are heedless of him." Yusuf's brothers replied: "We are a brave group and accept responsibility for anything that may happen to him. We are sure that everything will be all right."

Early next morning, Yusuf (as) and his brothers left Canaan gate. They had not gone very far when his brothers became angry and rough and behaved harshly towards him. When they got to the Canaan well, they stripped Yusuf of his clothing and cast him naked into the well. His wailing and his cold sighs had no affect on them. Their jealousy towards him could not stop them from doing such a crime. His merciless brothers felt relieved after throwing him into the depth of the well. They thought their father would forget him and grow to love them instead. This is what they thought, but the fate was different and Allah's (swt) will was done.

It was dark when his brothers returned to their father, weeping. They showed him Yusuf's shirt, which they had stained with the blood of a bird. They said: "O father! We are sorry to tell you, what you fearedand tred to prevent just happened. To tell you the truth, we were busy in a shooting competition and left Yusuf by himself. Suddenyl a wolf attacked him and tore him to pieces. There was nothing we could do. His blood-stained shirt and our weeping eyes are good evidence that we speak the truth. You may not believe us, though we are telling the truth."