Author: Abdul Hai Lay'yan
The Divine Education Model in the Family of the Prophets (part 70)
Lesson Sixteenth: Precise planning is the foundation of every successful endeavor.
In the story of Yusuf (PBUH) regarding the king’s dream, he did not suffice merely with interpreting the vision; rather, he presented a practical and scientific plan to confront the events that the dream foretold. Allah the Exalted relates: “تَزْرَعُونَ سَبْعَ سِنِينَ دَأَبًا فَمَا حَصَدتُّمْ فَذَرُوهُ فِي سُنْبُلِهِ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا مِّمَّا تَأْكُلُونَ, ثُمَّ يَأْتِي مِنْ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ سَبْعٌ شِدَادٌ يَأْكُلْنَ مَا قَدَّمْتُمْ لَهُنَّ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا مِّمَّا تُحْصِنُونَ, ثُمَّ يَأْتِي مِنْ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ عَامٌ فِيهِ يُغَاثُ النَّاسُ وَفِيهِ يَعْصِرُونَ [1] ” Translation: He said: “You will sow for seven consecutive years; and whatever you harvest, leave it in its ears, except a little of which you eat. Then after that will come seven hard years which will consume what you stored for them, except a little of what you preserve. Then after that will come a year in which people will be given abundant rain and in which they will press [juice and oil].”)
Yusuf (PBUH) proposed a plan for storing grain in its ears in order to prevent spoilage and loss, so that the country could pass through the years of drought and hardship with stability. This action demonstrates Islam’s perspective on planning and that planning is necessary and essential, because carrying out any human activity of whatever type it may be, whether matters of peace or matters of war is not possible without planning.
Although the term “planning” is a modern expression, its concept is deeply rooted in history. Planning has accompanied human individual and social life, because Allah the Exalted created human beings with rational capacity, enabling them to foresee the future and to devise measures for preserving the human race and sustaining life through its various stages.
Every person, even without necessarily knowing the scientific meaning of planning, unconsciously plans in all his actions. The craftsman, the farmer, and the laborer all plan for their present and their future: they determine their needs and responsibilities, assess their abilities to fulfill them, benefit from past experiences, and take into account possible future conditions. Thus, planning is necessary in all aspects of life so that a person may achieve the intended goals.
Therefore, planning is part of human nature and innate disposition. The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) also relied on planning at every stage of his mission, because he believed that planning is a fundamental pillar of success in every undertaking, and without it the objective cannot be attained. Islam likewise calls us to planning and has made it a system for the lives of Muslims, because it is a necessary and unavoidable matter.
Explicit encouragement toward planning appears clearly in the following verse: «وَأَعِدُّوا لَهُم مَّا اسْتَطَعْتُم مِّن قُوَّةٍ وَمِن رِبَاطِ الْخَيْلِ تُرْهِبُونَ بِهِ عَدُوَّ اللَّهِ وَعَدُوَّكُمْ [2]. » Translation: And prepare against them whatever you are able of power and of tethered horses, by which you may terrify the enemy of Allah and your enemy.)
With such a command, planning is placed within the framework of a divine obligation upon everyone. [3]
Lesson Seventeenth: Forgiveness and pardon strengthen love among family members.
In the story of Yusuf (PBUH), there is a clear lesson concerning forgiveness, pardoning the offender, and repaying evil with goodness. The brothers of Yusuf (PBUH) committed an act against him that even an enemy would not commit against his enemy: they cast him into the depths of a well. His young age, his father’s intense love for him, and the fact that he had never harmed them did not deter them. Yet Yusuf (PBUH), when he was at the height of power and they were in utmost weakness and need, forgave all their mistakes.
When Yusuf (PBUH) recognized his brothers, he was fully capable of accusing them on any pretext and imprisoning them, or of inflicting severe punishment upon them for their former plot. However, the nobility of his soul, the purity of his nature, and the loftiness of his character restrained him from descending into revenge, to which many ordinary people often resort. Authority and power were in the hands of Yusuf (PBUH), and the lives of those who had wronged him depended on a single command from him. Yet he repaid evil with goodness: he gave them full measure of provisions, returned the price of their goods to them, and did all of this while remaining unknown to them, not revealing that he was their brother.
When Yusuf (PBUH) revealed himself to them and they realized that he was the minister of the king, at that difficult and shocking moment they recognized the magnitude of the crime they had committed against him and confessed their wrongdoing, as they said: «تَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ آثَرَكَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْنَا وَإِن كُنَّا لَخَاطِئِينَ [4] .» Translation: By Allah, Allah has certainly preferred you over us, and indeed we were sinners.)
Yusuf (PBUH) comforted them with a response filled with brotherly compassion and imbued with forgiveness and mercy: «لَا تَثْرِيبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْيَوْمَ يَغْفِرُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ [5]. » He said: Translation: “No blame will there be upon you today. May Allah forgive you.”
Then he added to his nobility by supplicating for the forgiveness of their sins and said: «وَهُوَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ [6]. » Translation: And He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.
So as to affirm the realization of divine forgiveness and mercy; for he forgave them, and Allah is more merciful than any who show mercy and more deserving to grant pardon to His servants. [7]
Yusuf’s (PBUH) forgiveness of his brothers’ wrongdoing teaches us that we too should forgive those who wrong us and respond with goodness. Educators, preachers, and sincere guides must understand this truth well and instill the spirit of forgiveness, forbearance, and kindness in return for harm in the hearts of those they nurture and guide, so that love and harmony may spread throughout society.
To be continued…
References:
- Yusuf: 47–49.
- Al-Qasas: 60.
- Jamal, Ahmad ‘Abd al-Ghani, Hijrat al-Rasul wa Sahabatihi fi al-Qur’an wa al-Sunnah, Cairo: Dar al-Wafa’, 1409 AH, pp. 210–211.
- Yusuf: 91.
- Yusuf: 92.
- Yusuf: 92.
- Muhammad Jamal al-Din ibn Muhammad al-Qasimi, Mahasin al-Ta’wil, vol. 9, p. 272.
