Muslims have a superiority over the People of the Book in the belief that Muslims have not only deep devotion and love for the last Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) but equally believe in all the other prophets and have love and affection for them. The reason for this is the decision of Allah Almighty which is repeated time and again in the Holy Quran. According to this, a Muslim must believe in all the prophets. The rejection of one prophet is equal to the denial of all prophets.
Allah Almighty arranged special arrangements for those Prophets to keep them innocent of all sins. So that they were always spotless in their character, morals, and deeds. The previous nations not only committed the crime of denying the prophethood of some of the prophets but also attributed immoral beliefs and actions to them. When the Qur’an narrates the events of those prophets, it also makes sure to state the truth along with refuting the slanders of the People of the Book. In this way, the Quran, along with being a book of guidance, has become an unblemished record of the life and character of the prophets. A Muslim can find many aspects of guidance through studying this record of which tells of these incomparable personalities.
Prophet Joseph (Yusuf) as a role model
The name of Prophet Joseph Peace Be Upon Him (PBUH) is significant among those prophets because Allah Almighty has described the events of his life in the Holy Qur’an under the title of Ahsan Al-Qasas, meaning the best of the stories. The pattern of his personality and character that emerges in the events narrated in Surah Joseph is unique. Prophet Joseph’s life is a perfect example for Muslims in the current moral crisis.
Today, my intention is to talk to you about the personality of this beloved Prophet of Allah. And let us try to explore together how the character of this great Prophet, whom Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) mentioned by the name of Kareem Ibn Kareem Ibn Kareem Ibn Kareem i.e Joseph who is son of Jacob (Yaqub) who is son of Isaac (Ishaq) who is son of Abraham (Ibrahim) [Bukhari 3382], is a perfect example for us.
Psychology of patience without complaints and negative thinking
As it is clear from the above hadith, Prophet Joseph was the great-grandson of Prophet Abraham, the grandson of Prophet Issac, and the son of Prophet Jacob. All three of them were glorious Prophets. Signs of leadership and virtues were evident from his childhood. Especially the Holy Quran mentions one of his dreams in which he dreamt of eleven stars, a sun, and a moon prostrating in front of him. His father loved him a lot because of his noble traits. But this love and attention bestowed by Prophet Jacob made his stepbrothers jealous of him. Eventually, they threw him in the bottom of an empty well. A caravan enslaved him, took him from Palestine to Egypt, and sold him there to a local official titled as Aziz-e-Misr. At such young age, he experienced the worst by human beings. But because of these experiences, he did not suffer from negative thinking. Quran stated that his father was deeply saddened by his separation. But he endured it patiently despite knowing that his sons were involved in Joseph’s disappearance. He kept asking Allah for help during this great suffering. The great son of the great father also adopted the same attitude. He did not allow evil, anger, revenge, and complaint to become part of his personality in response to unfavorable situations. He chose the virtues of kindness, patience, and endurance manifested on many occasions in his coming life.
This is the first lesson from Prophet Joseph’s life history. In life, even if a person faces terrible experiences from others, he should trust Allah and resort to supplication instead of reacting. In this way, man becomes entitled to the exceptional help and mercy of Allah Almighty, which was fully manifested in the life of Prophet Joseph. Allah Almighty blessed him with remarkable grace. Along with prophethood and honor, Allah also blessed him to reign in Egypt which was the greatest superpower of that time. However, suppose a person adopts evil in response to adverse circumstances, nothing happens except that another immoral person is added to the list of many bad people.
Unfortunately, today’s Muslims are prone to reactionary psychology, both individually and collectively. They lack patience and endurance. They forget their status and position. They fall immediately to the level of others if they see a person making a mistake while driving on the road or if any abusive action comes from a non-Muslim nation. This is the psychology of reaction which led to the trend of terrorism and suicidal attacks in our society.
Chastity and Purity
A significant event in the life of Prophet Joseph is when he was taken as an enslaved person. Instead of considering him a slave, his Master treated him with great respect and affection. When he grew up, Allah Almighty gifted him with masculine beauty and attractiveness, accompanied by many other characteristics. But his beauty caused another storm in his life after separation from his parents and being far off from his homeland. Zelicha, the wife of Aziz (the official title of the Master), got fascinated by him. Like today’s western societies, adultery was common in those days. One day Zelicha seized the opportunity and closed the door of the room. She started inviting him to sin. It would be an ample opportunity for someone else. However, the seed of patience and fear of God that Prophet Joseph sowed in his personality had become a tenacious tree with age. Under the shade of that tree, he got protected from the heat of the fire burning in Zelicha’s heart. Instead of youthful zeal, he answered her to fear God and refused to slip into that filth.
At this very moment, Aziz came. Zelicha wanted to blame him for her sin, but Allah saved him from this accusation. It became clear to Aziz that the fault lies in his wife. Joseph’s beauty and Zelicha’s love got widespread among the masses, and other city women also tried their luck but failed. Zelicha expressed her determination that the prison cell and humiliation would be his destiny if he did not fall into her trap. Seeing this, Prophet Joseph, the iron rock of patience, prayed to the Lord that he preferred the humiliation of prison to the pleasure of sin. His sensitivity to his innocence was reflected when he was granted release. He spent so many years in jail. Still, he made it a condition of his freedom to ask the truth about the incident caused by those ladies. So that there is no blame left on his moral standing and Aziz also finds out that he did not commit any kind of betrayal. When Zelicha and the other women confessed their guilt and his innocence, he came out of the prison nobly.
This is the second lesson of his biography. Especially for today’s youth, it is crucial to understand that chastity is the greatest asset of a believing servant. It’s a farfetched thing for a believing servant to commit a sin, rather, if he is surrounded by evil from all around like a flood, a believing servant should still be chaste. Like virtuous Joseph, one should flee from such a place; even if the path to rescue oneself leads to some hell-like prison. In the hereafter, the consequence of adultery is the hell of God and its blazing fire, which no human being can bear. The flood of immorality came from all sides in today’s era. And the survivors of this flood will be Prophet Joseph’s companions.
Humility and trust
The next lesson of his life is humbleness. When Zulicha and other women confessed to their crime in the king’s court, he was finally proved innocent. Then the words that he uttered could not come out of the mouth of an ordinary man. On that occasion, he explained, “I did not insist on being innocent because I am showing off my self-esteem. The soul is provoked to evil, except that there is mercy of my Lord upon someone.”
Those words clearly demonstrate that the one who spoke them was living in the sense of God’s greatness in such a way that he did not remark it as his own goodness. He considered all his goodness as His Lord’s mercy and His blessings. This humbleness does not mean that he was a victim of an inferiority complex. He was fully aware of his abilities. When the king wanted to make him his notable companion. He presented himself with complete confidence to take over the responsibility of the country’s management to deal with the coming covenant he had predicted.
This beautiful balance of humility and confidence is the highest virtue of any human being. Humility never lets anyone come close to arrogance, and trust protects from any kind of feeling of inferiority. I want my readers to understand that whenever human beings are harmed by other human beings, one of the significant causes is arrogance and low self-esteem. Arrogant people harm the life, property, and honor of others; and people suffering from low self-esteem spread evils like hypocrisy, boasting, extravagance, etc., in the society, which is the root of thousands of problems; whereas people with humility and trust always benefit human beings.
Justice, wisdom, and prudence
Prophet Joseph had the qualities of justice, wisdom, prudence, and planning to confidently carry out that responsibility. He knew that famine would start after seven years and continue for seven years. In the agricultural age, such a long famine meant that the majority of the people would die of starvation, and the whole civilization and empire would be destroyed. But Prophet Joseph made the best arrangements to deal with it. He provided people only the grain they needed and saved the rest of the grain. Eventually, a vast stock of food was accumulated in those seven years.
He introduced the ration system during the famine days. Everyone had to come by himself to get the ration to avoid grain stocking. There was a special arrangement for the accurate measurement of grain. People were only allowed to take grain only on one camel. All those matters were taking place under his direct supervision. With wisdom and planning, he saved the lives of millions of people in Egypt and many surrounding countries.
The quality of justice, wisdom, and prudence is required from every believer. Every human being has to face good and bad situations. The believer never overspends in the prosperous days so that he gets forced to beg people in the days of hardship. The believer plans his life and prepares for good and bad situations. The attribute of planning keeps him successful in all the circumstances of life. He not only protects himself from humiliation or need but also helps others in difficult times as well as spends in the way of Allah. Thus he gathers rewards with both hands in this world and also in the hereafter.
Dignity and goodness in response to evil
It is one characteristic not to commit evil in response to evil. But showing goodness in response to hostility is an attribute that Allah Almighty bestows on the most fortunate people. That quality of nobleness was highlighted and reflected in the life of Prophet Joseph. In the story of Prophet Jospeph, it is manifested at various occasions. The greatest manifestation of that was his dealing with his unjust stepbrothers who had got him enslaved after separating him from his parents and homeland. But when there was a seven-year famine in Egypt, it effects spread far and wide; even his homeland Palestine, which as a separate country, was not spared by it. Then his brothers came to Egypt in the hope of grain. They were unable to recognize him, but he recognized them. If he had wanted to, he would have hanged all his brothers at that moment or at least refused to give them grain. But on the contrary, not only did he provide them with grain, but he ordered his slaves to quietly put their money back in their luggage.
He did the same thing in prison. When he was prisoned, two more prisoners were also brought there. They both asked him about the interpretation of their dream. He interpreted the dreams correctly for both of them. According to interpretation, one person will be hanged to death. The other will be restored to his position and serve wine to his Master. He also said to the wine server, “When you are released, tell my story to the king that an innocent man has been imprisoned for no reason.” But after the wine server was released, he forgot about Prophet Joseph’s request.
After a long time, the king had a dream that no one could interpret. The wine server remembered Joseph, who had told the true meaning of dreams. So the wine server came to see Joseph with the king’s permission to ask about the reality of the dream. It was an opportunity for Prophet Joseph to get angry and embarrass him about how this thankless man forgot that favor after his release. But Prophet Joseph did not say a word. Instead, not only did he described the dream that there would be famine in seven years, he also explained the solution to the problem. This biography and character are undoubtedly humanity’s ascension that only the fortunate get.
Those characteristics and qualities were extraordinary attributes of the prophets, especially the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Unfortunately, muslims consider following the Prophet means following specific outwardly actions. In reality, it is to follow the above characteristics and moral attitude. This character is born only after great courage, but the world falls at man’s feet once it is achieved.
The Basis of God’s Gift and Forgiveness
Another important lesson in the story of Prophet Joseph is the description of the foundations that lead to the Lord’s gift to the servant. Allah Almighty reveals time and again that he bestowed special grace on him. Still, it is made clear that he proved his merit through faith, sincerity, benevolence, patience, and piety. In verses 22, 24, 56, 57, and 90 of Chapter Yusuf (of the Holy Quran), readers can observe that Allah declares that His belssings depends on those characteristics which were present in every respect in Prophet Jospeh. I had already discussed the patience, righteousness, purity, and kindness of Prophet Joseph above. Regarding faith and sincerity, Qur’an most important declaration is the incident of those two prisoners who asked for the interpretation of their dream. But before answering, he laid out before them the call to Tawheed (oneness of God) in a concise but very effective way. This clearly indicates that God was the most significant entity to him. And that the call to the oneness of God and giving dawah to others was the most crucial matter for him to do.
This is the biography of Joseph, the generous. Fear of God on the occasion of an invitation to sin, patience in the circumstances of oppression, kindness in response to brothers’ cruelty, and genuine attachment to Oneness of God, are the fundamental bases of goodness. Unfortunately, these fundamentals have become very weak in today’s Muslims. Moreover, most Muslims lack all those qualities essential for success, like planning, humility, justice, and confidence which are the basics of Prophet Joseph’s biography. Instead, muslims are loaded with the faults like undue emotions and haste, undue pride, betrayal, oppression, and deprivation of trust. Then how is it possible for the Muslims to be entitled to the blessings of God and attain a high position in the world?
The humiliation and disgrace that Muslims are suffering today are the results of their own shortcomings and mistakes than the conspiracies of any other nation. If muslimes start acting upon the characteristics of Prophet Joseph today, their salvation from this world and the hereafter is inevitable; especially in the context that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was like Prophet Joseph in terms of life events and character. All Prophets are brothers, but these two brothers are very close to each other in many features.
سبحان ربك رب العزه عما يصفون وسلام على المرسلين والحمد لله رب العالمين
(Glory be to your Lord: the Lord of Glory is far above what they attribute to Him.Peace be upon the Messengers and praise be to God, the Lord of all the Worlds)