The Well and the Palace: Young Yusuf's Journey Begins
Patience when wronged; Allah is always watching
The Quran calls this story "the best of stories." Not one of the best. The best. It is the only story in the Quran that is told completely from beginning to end in a single surah, like a film that starts with the opening scene and carries you all the way through to a conclusion so beautiful it will bring tears to your eyes. Tonight, we begin the first part of this extraordinary story. Tomorrow night, we will continue it.
In a green, fertile land far from Egypt, there lived a prophet named Yaqub (AS), also known as Israel, the father of twelve sons. Among these twelve brothers, there was one who shone differently. His name was Yusuf (AS), and he was still a boy, perhaps eleven or twelve years old.
One morning, young Yusuf woke up trembling with excitement. He ran to his father and said: "O my father, I saw in my dream eleven stars and the sun and the moon; I saw them prostrating to me."
Yaqub's face changed. He was a prophet himself, and he understood immediately that this dream was not ordinary. It was a vision from Allah, a sign that Yusuf would one day rise to a position of such honor that even his own family would bow before him. But Yaqub also knew something else: this dream, if shared, would be dangerous.
"O my dear son," Yaqub said gently but urgently, "do not relate your vision to your brothers, or they will plan against you a plan. Indeed, Shaytan is to man a clear enemy."
Why would brothers plan against their own brother? Because jealousy is a poison that can turn love into hatred, and closeness into cruelty. Yusuf's brothers had noticed that their father loved Yusuf and his younger brother Binyamin more than the rest of them. Whether this was true or not, the feeling had taken root in their hearts like a thorn, growing sharper each day.
"Indeed, Yusuf and his brother are more beloved to our father than we," they whispered among themselves, "even though we are a strong group. Indeed, our father is clearly in error."
The discussions grew darker. Some of the brothers said: "Kill Yusuf or cast him out to some distant land, so that your father's attention will be only for you, and you can be righteous people after that."
One of the brothers, who still had some mercy in his heart, spoke up: "Do not kill Yusuf, but if you must do something, throw him into the bottom of a well. Some caravan of travelers will pick him up."
They settled on this plan. Now they needed to get Yusuf away from their father's watchful eyes.
"O our father," they said, putting on their most innocent voices, "why do you not trust us with Yusuf? We are indeed his well-wishers. Send him with us tomorrow so he may enjoy himself and play, and we will surely guard him."
Yaqub's heart was uneasy. "It saddens me that you should take him," he said, "and I fear that a wolf may eat him while you are not paying attention."
"If a wolf should eat him while we are a strong group," they replied, "then indeed we would be losers."
And so Yaqub, against his deepest instincts, let his beloved son go with his brothers.
Imagine young Yusuf walking happily with his older brothers, excited to spend the day with them, not knowing what they were planning. Imagine his confusion when their faces changed, when their hands grabbed him, when they dragged him toward the dark mouth of an empty well. Imagine his voice calling out, his small hands reaching up, and then the fall into the cold, dark water at the bottom.
But even in that darkness, Yusuf was not alone. The Quran tells us something remarkable: as Yusuf fell into the well, Allah sent him a revelation. "You will surely inform them about this affair of theirs while they do not perceive." In his darkest moment, alone, cold, betrayed by his own family, Allah whispered to this young boy's heart: you will survive this. You will rise. And one day, you will face them again, and they will not even recognize you.
The brothers returned home that night. They had taken Yusuf's shirt and stained it with false blood, the blood of a sheep, not of their brother. They came to their father weeping.
"O our father," they cried, making their voices tremble, "we went racing and left Yusuf with our belongings, and a wolf ate him. But you would not believe us, even if we were truthful."
Yaqub took the shirt. He looked at it. And he knew. A father knows. The shirt was covered in blood, but it was not torn. If a wolf had truly attacked Yusuf, the shirt would be in shreds. The blood told one story, but the fabric told another.
Yaqub said: "Rather, your souls have enticed you to something. So patience is most beautiful. And Allah is the one sought for help against what you describe."
"Sabr jameel." Beautiful patience. Not the patience of giving up, but the patience of a heart that trusts Allah even as it breaks. Yaqub did not curse his sons. He did not collapse in despair. He held the pain inside his chest like a burning coal and said, "I will be patient, and I will ask Allah for help."
Meanwhile, Yusuf sat in the bottom of the well, a boy alone in the dark, waiting. He did not know for how long. He did not know who would come. But he had Allah's promise in his heart, and that was enough.
Then, a caravan passed by the well. A man lowered his bucket to draw water, and when he pulled it up, there, clinging to the rope, was a boy with the most beautiful face he had ever seen.
"Good news!" the man called to his companions. "Here is a boy!"
They pulled Yusuf out and, seeing his beauty and health, decided he was too valuable to simply set free. They took him with them to Egypt and sold him in the marketplace like a piece of merchandise, "for a few coins, a miserable price."
And so began Yusuf's long journey through the land of Egypt, a journey that would take him from slavery to prison to a palace, a journey we will continue tomorrow night.
In the Shia tradition, the story of Yusuf holds a special place. Just as Yusuf was wronged by those closest to him, the Ahlul Bayt (AS) were wronged by those within the Muslim community. Just as Yusuf's brothers could not stop his rise, no amount of opposition could extinguish the light of the Prophet's family. And just as Yusuf trusted in Allah through every trial, the Imams (AS) demonstrated that same sabr jameel, that same beautiful patience, through every hardship.
Imam al-Sadiq (AS) said about this surah: "Whoever recites Surah Yusuf every day or every night, Allah will raise them on the Day of Judgment with beauty like the beauty of Yusuf."
Tonight, hold this in your heart: when the world is dark and unfair, when the people who should protect you let you down, Allah does not forget you. He is with you in the well. He is with you in the darkness. And His plan for you is greater than anything you can imagine from where you stand right now.
Key Verse
Fa lamma dhahabu bihi wa ajma'u an yaj'aluhu fi ghayabatil jubb, wa awhayna ilayhi la tunabbi'annahum bi amrihim hadha wa hum la yash'urun "So when they took him and agreed to put him into the bottom of the well, We inspired to him: You will surely inform them about this affair of theirs while they do not perceive." Yusuf (12:15)
Reflection Questions
- Why do you think Yaqub told Yusuf not to share his dream with his brothers? What does this teach us about being careful with good news?
- Even in the darkest moment, when Yusuf was thrown into the well, Allah sent him comfort. Have you ever felt alone but then realized you were not?
- What does "sabr jameel" (beautiful patience) mean to you? How is it different from just waiting?