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qāla rabbi s-sijnu ʾaḥabbu ʾilayya mimmā yadʿūnanī ʾilayhi wa-ʾillā taṣrif ʿannī kaydahunna ʾaṣbu ʾilayhinna wa-ʾakun mina l-jāhilīna
He said, ‘My Lord! The prison is dearer to me than to what they invite me. If You do not turn away their schemes from me, I will incline towards them and become one of the senseless.’
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah Yusuf – Verse 33
33. “He said: ‘My Lord! The prison is dearer to me than that to which they invite me; and if You turn not their guile from me, I may incline towards them and become of the ignorant ones’.”
Interestingly, some commentators have narrated an astonishing subject and have said that some of the Egyptian women in the gathering supported the wife of the ‘Aziz and, giving right to her, defended her behavior. They surrounded Yusuf and every one of them tried in her own way to persuade him to submit to the desires of the wife of ‘Aziz or to her own, in other words, they all had the same intentions as Zulaykha had. It is in the face of this overwhelming temptation that Yusuf cries out to his Lord that he would welcome a life prison than the corruption to which those women were inviting him.
In a tradition attributed to Abu Hamzah al Thumali, it is narrated that Imam Ali-ibn-il-Hussein (as) said that as soon as those women had parted company with Zulaykha, each one of them sent someone in private to Yusuf and requested an audience with him. Yusuf had been surrounded by a series of difficulties from all sides. However, being already prepared for any mishap that might befall, he turned to Allah immediately without entering into any relationship with these passionate, promiscuous women and sought His help.
The verse says:
“He said: ‘My Lord! The prison is dearer to me than that to which they invite me;...”
He was in the prime of his youth, and naturally, the lower aspect of his soul could have inclined towards them and he would have found himself among the ignorant. But, since he knew that in all cases, especially at the time of crises, there is no way to safety except relying on Allah, he trusted in Allah and asked Him help by saying:
“…and if You turn not their guile from me, I may incline towards them and become of the ignorant ones’.”
Points to Remember
1. Men of Allah prefer all the difficulties that come with a life of honor to a sinful life of luxury.
2. By seeking assistance from the Almighty, man can distance himself from any kind of sin and temptation under any kind of circumstance.
3. Hardship and suffering cannot provide man with the justification to commit sin.
4. Man’s character depends on his soul and not on his body. If man’s soul is free and he is in prison, it can be like a paradise for him. And if his soul is under pressure, even a palace may become a prison for him.
5. To please people at the expense of displeasing Allah is manifest ignorance.
6. As was said, the wife of ‘Aziz and the other women employed various means to achieve their objectives. They showed intense love and desire, total submission and later profuse promises of great rewards, finally, when all of that failed, they started threatening Yusuf with imprisonment.
This is the usual methodology that all dictators and despots resort to throughout the ages. It has even been experimented many times that they usually at first show excessive moderation and leniency towards men of Allah to make them acquiesce to their designs, putting on a smiling face on one occasion, and, on the other, when they fail to achieve their objectives in this way, they resort to the cruelest of threats sometimes at the end of the same sitting that they had with together.
It never occurs to them that they show contradictions and double standards in their behavior, illustrating an abhorring lack of integrity which deserves the utmost humiliation and kinds of censure. The reason for this is obvious. They are only after their own objectives, and the means are not important for them, because for them, the ends justify the means. The weak and foolish, in this course, may submit themselves sooner or later to these attempts and thus get caught in their trap forever.
But the men of Allah, who are enlightened by the light of faith, easily pass through all these trials showing their steadfastness and irreconcilability with evil. They go as far as courting their death, for victory is the ultimate aim. Victory here does not only mean their own victory but it also denotes the victory of their school of thought based on principle rather than caprice.
7. There are always some people like the whimsical and promiscuous women of Egypt who regard themselves as innocent and clean when they are not principal players on the scene always pretending to be more virtuous and innocent than some others.
They would think the wife of the ‘Aziz to be vulgar and seductive. But, as soon as the tables are turned, they immediately lose their hearts and prove that whatever virtues they had claimed had been utterly meaningless. Whereas Zulaykha had fallen in love with Yusuf after frequent meetings with him and after some years of life, these women fell into the very same situation, in the same meeting and after one glance at him, cutting their own hands with knives instead of the fruit they were supposed to cut.
8. When we are facing the attacks of powerful evil forces, and we find ourselves teetering on the edge of the abyss of destruction, we must turn to Allah for protection. We must seek His support, for if His assistance is not there, nothing can be done for us.
This is the lesson which the great Yusuf, the infallible one, has taught us. It is he who says to Allah if their evil plots are not averted from him, he would tend to incline towards them, and he would be left alone in his plight and will be no more. It is holy Allah Who is the Protector, not one’s abilities, powers, or mere virtues. This state of absolute dependence on Allah (s.w.t.) does not only provide man with a power and perseverance which is unlimited, but it also makes it possible for him to enjoy the hidden Divine favors as well, favors which are impossible to explain and can be only witnessed and accepted. Such people are they who are sheltered by Allah both in this world and the Hereafter.
In one tradition, the Prophet of Islam (S) says that there are seven groups that will be sheltered by Allah on the Day when there will be no shade except His:
1. A just pioneer and leader.
2. A young man who has been trained in servitude unto Allah from the beginning of his life.
3. He whose heart is attached to mosques and places where Allah is worshipped and whenever he leaves those places, he ceaselessly thinks of the time when he can return thereto.
4. Those who work together in obeying Allah, and when they depart from one another, the spiritual bond of their unity remains firm.
5. Those who when they hear Allah’s name mentioned, have tears in their eyes because of their sense of responsibility before Allah or for fear of their sins.
6. The man who says that he is in awe of Allah when he is invited to consort with a beautiful woman and he refuses to commit sin.
7. A man who assists those who are in need and provides charity for them in such a way that his left hand does not know what his right hand has done.
Some Narrations Regarding Fear of Allah
1. The Prophet of Allah (S) said:
"He who stops committing sins for the fear of Allah, He, the High, provides him with satisfaction on the Day of Judgment.” 1
2. Once Zayd ibn Suhan asked Amir-ul-Mu’minin (as):
“Which man is superior with Allah, the Almighty, the Glorious?” He answered: “He who is more in awe of Allah, more aware of piety and morality, and is less inclined to worldliness.” 2
3. The Messenger of Allah (S) said:
“The highest ranking man before Allah is he who is the most in awe of Allah.” 3
4. Amir-ul-Mu’minin (as) said:
“How fortunate is he who finds it necessary to be Allah fearing and obeys Allah both in private and in public.” 4
5. The Prophet of Allah (S) said:
"How fortunate are those whose fear of Allah prevents them from fearing others.” 5
Some Narrations Regarding Treason
1. The Prophet of Allah (S) said:
“The believer accepts all inherent traits and characteristics, except treason and lying.” 6 .
2. Amir-ul-Mu’minin (as) said:
“Abstain from betraying others which is the most heinous of sins, and truly, a traitor will be caught in the torment and torture of the Fire because of his own treachery.” 7
3. The Messenger of Allah (S) said:
“There are four characteristics, when each of which appears in a house it causes for the destruction of that house, and blessings do not make headway in that house because of those circumstances. They are; treason, theft, drinking alcoholic beverages, and fornication (or adultery).” 8
4. Amir-ul-Mu’minin (as) said:
“The ultimate in betrayal is betraying a friend and breaking vows and promises.” 9
5. Imam Baqir (as) said:
“It is certain that a true believer never betrays (anyone).” 10
Footnotes