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qālat fa-dhālikunna lladhī lumtunnanī fīhi wa-la-qad rāwadtuhū ʿan nafsihī fa-staʿṣama wa-la-ʾin lam yafʿal mā ʾāmuruhū la-yusjananna wa-la-yakūnan mina ṣ-ṣāghirīna
She said, ‘He is the one on whose account you blamed me. Certainly, I did solicit him, but he was continent, and if he does not do what I bid him, surely he shall be imprisoned and humbled.’
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah Yusuf – Verse 32
32. “She said: ‘This is before you he about whom you did blame me! And indeed I sought to seduce him from his (pure) self, but he proved continent. And (now), if he does not do what I command him, he shall certainly be imprisoned, and will certainly be of the humiliated!’”
At this moment, the wife of the ‘Aziz turned to those women who used to criticize her for her intense love for Yusuf and said that although they had not seen him before, only getting a first glimpse of him caused them to lose their hearts. How could they possibly have blamed her, when she was exposed to looking at that beautiful face frequently day and night? She also admitted that he was innocent indicating that she was the one who did the seducing.
The verse says:
“She said: ‘This is before you he about whom you did blame me! And indeed I sought to seduce him from his (pure) self...”
Thus while she was justifying her behavior, she explicitly confessed her culpability saying that she was the one who invited him to engage in an illicit act which he had refused to do. The verse continues saying:
“…but he proved continent...”
However, without expressing her remorse, she threatened him with imprisonment and humiliation if he did not acquiesce to her demands. She said:
“…And (now), if he does not do what I command him, he shall certainly be imprisoned, and will certainly be of the humiliated!””
Highlights
1- Psychological and social conditions influence individual morality. When ‘Aziz’ wife was afraid of exposing her evil actions, she closed the doors to the room. However, when she found the Egyptian women on her side, she openly stated that:
“And indeed I sought to seduce him from his self”
The same case applies to society. When people are no longer sensitive to evildoing, it becomes easier to commit sin. It may be for this very reason that we invocate in the supplication of Kumayl: “O Allah! Forgive me for all the sins which prevent me from being chaste and break my abstinence”, for at first, committing sins is difficult for man, but as soon as the barriers are broken, it becomes easy. 2- The liar is always exposed and scandalized. The one who claimed that Yusuf wanted to seduce her yesterday, and had had evil intentions towards him, today openly confesses that she herself had had the intention of gratifying her sexual desires towards him.
3- It is true, that at times the enemy also testifies to the honesty of the person he opposes. 4- Residing in palaces paves the way for the loss of one’s chastity. (Although the ‘Aziz realized that his wife had betrayed him and he asked her to repent of her guilt, they did not become alienated from each other and he did not distance between his wife and Yusuf.)