Author: Abdul Hai Lay'yan
The Divine Education Model in the Family of the Prophets (part 71)
Lesson Eighteenth: Suspicion is justified when there are indications.
Bad suspicion, when supported by clues and signs, is neither prohibited nor unlawful. Just as Prophet Ya‘qub (PBUH), when his sons asked him to send Yusuf (PBUH) with them and he strongly resisted, said: إِنِّی لَیَحْزُنُنِی أَن تَذْهَبُوا بِهِ، وَأَخَافُ أَن یَأْكُلَهُ الذِّئْبُ وَأَنتُمْ عَنْهُ غَافِلُونَ [1] Translation: He said: “It grieves me that you should take him away, and I fear that a wolf may eat him while you are heedless of him.”
Then, when they came to him claiming that “the wolf had eaten him,” he said to them: بَلْ سَوَّلَتْ لَكُمْ أَنفُسُكُمْ أَمْرًا [2] Translation: He said: “Rather, your souls have enticed you to something [evil].”
And when they again asked him to take their brother Binyamin with them to Egypt, he said to them: هَلْ آمَنُكُمْ عَلَیْهِ إِلَّا كَمَا أَمِنتُكُمْ عَلَى أَخِیهِ مِن قَبْلُ [3] Translation: Yaqub recalled the past, and said: “Should I trust you with him in any way other than how I trusted you with his brother (Yusuf) before?! No, I do not consider you trustworthy and I will not entrust my son to you. The Protector and Guardian is only Allah and Allah is the Best of guardians, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy. He is sufficient for me and for my son.”
At that time, although they had not been negligent this time, their past behavior caused their father to say this and to hold such a suspicion about them; and this suspicion was without sin and without any legal prohibition.
Lesson Nineteenth: Foresight and caution before the occurrence of calamity give a person strength and tranquility at the time of its occurrence.
Caution, foresight, and vigilance give strength and consolation to the human soul when a calamity occurs. The advice of Prophet Ya‘qub (PBUH) to his sons created tranquility in his heart and placed him in a state where, if something were to happen to his sons, he would not fall into intense regret and grief accompanied by despair; especially since there was no negligence or shortcoming on his part. When a person fulfills his duty, bearing calamity becomes easier for him.
This is exactly what happened when Ya‘qub (PBUH) heard the news of Binyamin being detained as a slave and that his eldest son had also remained in Egypt until his father permitted his return or Allah decreed another matter concerning him. At that moment, he said: “فَصَبْرٌ جَمِیلٌ عَسَى اللَّهُ أَنْ یأْتِینِی بِهِمْ جَمِیعًا إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْعَلِیمُ الْحَكِیمُ. [4] Translation: “Beautiful patience” (a patience whose beauty is not tainted by panic or agitation, whose reward is not diminished by ingratitude or thanklessness, and which is not turned into sin). It is hoped that Allah will return all of them to me. Indeed, He is All-Knowing (of my state and theirs) and Possessor of perfect wisdom (and His actions are based on measure and purpose).
However, these events reminded him of Yusuf (PBUH), and his grief flared up again. His family reproached him for the continuation of this sorrow. In response, he said: “إِنَّمَا أَشْكُو بَثِّی وَحُزْنِی إِلَى اللَّهِ” [5] Translation: “I only complain of my anguish and my sorrow to Allah that is, I present my distress and grief solely to Allah, I lament only before His presence, and I seek the resolution of my difficulty from Him and I know from Allah things that you do not know.
This statement contains the deepest meanings of faith, steadfastness, and perseverance in the face of trials; trials that often disable human reason or push a person to the brink of collapse. Yaqub (PBUH) is saying: “I present my great sorrow only to Allah; to that Merciful Lord who is able to remove my grief. I do not complain to servants who have neither power nor ability before the events of time.”
In the end, we see Prophet Yaqub (PBUH) as a believer filled with hope and optimism, when he advises his sons: “یَا بَنِی اذْهَبُوا فَتَحَسَّسُوا مِنْ یُوسُفَ وَأَخِیهِ وَلَا تَیأَسُوا مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ ۖ إِنَّهُ لَا یَیأَسُ مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْكَافِرُونَ [6] ” Translation: “O my sons! Go and search for Yusuf and his brother, and do not despair of the mercy of Allah; for none despairs of the mercy of Allah except the disbelieving people.”
In this verse, Prophet Yaqub (PBUH) portrays the psychology of the believer: the believer never despairs of divine mercy, because despair is ingratitude for the blessing of life and its Creator. Despair paralyzes human will and renders a person incapable of continuing the path, whereas faith is the opposite of despair; faith means hope in the mercy of Allah. [7]
Although Prophet Yaqub (PBUH) relied upon Allah, he nevertheless employed the apparent means and left no room for “blind luck” or “mere coincidence.”
The method of the believer is to use ordinary and possible means as though success depends entirely upon them, and then to place trust in Allah; for nothing remains firm without Allah. If a person exerts the utmost effort in fulfilling his duty and still fails, Allah does not blame him for the failure; and often such an outcome occurs only by a divine decree in which the person is excused.
It frequently happens that a person prepares the means of success well, then higher assistance from Allah arrives and multiplies that success; like a ship which, when guided by a skilled captain and aided by favorable currents and winds, reaches its destination in far less than the usual time. [8]
To be continued…
References:
- Surah Yusuf, verse 13.
- Surah Yusuf, verse 18.
- Surah Yusuf, verse 64.
- Surah Yusuf, verse 83.
- Surah Yusuf, verse 86.
- Surah Yusuf, verse 87.
- Afif Abdul-Fattah Tabbarah, With the Prophets in the Noble Quran, pages 188–189.
- Jamil, Ahmad Abdul-Ghani, The Migration of the Messenger and His Companions in the Quran and the Sunnah, pages 210–211.
