Thrown in a well by his brothers, sold, tempted, imprisoned, raised to power, and then he forgave all of them.
لَا تَثْرِيبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْيَوْمَ
His story
As a boy he dreamed of eleven stars, the sun and the moon bowing to him 12:4. His brothers, jealous of their father's love, threw him into a well 12:15. He was found by travellers and sold for a few coins 12:20.
In the house of the minister of Egypt, the minister's wife tried to seduce him. He said, "I seek refuge in Allah" 12:23. When the pressure grew, he said: "My Lord, prison is dearer to me than what they call me to" 12:33. He got prison.
In prison he called his cellmates to Allah and interpreted their dreams 12:36-41. When the king finally called for him, he refused to leave until his name was cleared 12:50. He was put in charge of the storehouses of the land 12:55.
Then his brothers came to him, hungry, not knowing who he was. When they finally knew, they expected punishment. He said: "No blame upon you today. Allah will forgive you" 12:92.
When he told his father the story, he thanked Allah for taking him out of prison, and did not mention the well 12:100. He spared his brothers even that. The Prophet ﷺ met him in the third heaven and said he had been given half of all beauty Muslim 162.
Moments
- 01
The dream
As a boy, Yusuf told his father: "I saw eleven stars, and the sun and the moon. I saw them bowing down to me." Ya'qub understood and warned him: "Do not tell your brothers, or they will plot against you." The dream would take years, a well, a palace and a prison to come true.
- 02
The well
His brothers told themselves their father loved Yusuf more than them. They planned, took him out, and threw him into the bottom of a well. A caravan pulled him out and sold him for a few coins. Allah inspired him even in the well: one day you will tell them of this, while they do not realise who you are.
- 03
The door
In the house of the minister of Egypt, the minister's wife tried to seduce him and locked the doors. Yusuf said: "I seek refuge in Allah. He is my lord who gave me a good home." He ran for the door. His shirt was torn from behind, and the torn shirt became the proof of his innocence.
- 04
Prison by choice
The women of the city turned against him, and he was offered a choice: give in, or be imprisoned. He prayed: "My Lord, prison is dearer to me than what they invite me to. If You do not turn their plot away from me, I may incline towards them." He chose prison over sin, and Allah answered him.
- 05
Clearing his name
Years later the king summoned him out of prison. Yusuf would not leave until the truth was established. He sent back: "Ask him about the women who cut their hands." The truth came out, and the minister's wife confessed: "I tried to seduce him, and he is truthful." Only then did he walk out.
- 06
No blame today
His brothers stood before him in Egypt, poor and asking for help, not knowing him. When they finally recognised him and admitted, "Allah has preferred you over us, and we were wrong," Yusuf, now powerful, said: "No blame upon you today. Allah will forgive you, and He is the most merciful of the merciful."
What he did when…
A powerful woman, a locked room, a young man far from home with no one watching. Yusuf did not stay to argue with himself. He said "I seek refuge in Allah", ran for the door, and later said he would rather be in prison than give in.
His own brothers threw him into a well and let their father believe he was dead. Years later they stood before him, in his power, and the first thing he said was "no blame upon you today."
He spent years in prison for something he did not do. He did not spend them bitter. When two fellow prisoners asked him about their dreams, he first told them about Allah, kindly and clearly, and then answered them.
He rose from slave to the most powerful man in Egypt, and was reunited with his whole family. Power did not change him. He gave all the credit to Allah: "My Lord, You have given me some of the kingdom and taught me the interpretation of events... Take my soul as one who submits, and join me with the righteous."
The brothers who threw him in a well stood in front of him, in his power, needing his help. As soon as they admitted their wrong, he did not lecture them or make them pay. He said: "No blame upon you today. Allah will forgive you, and He is the most merciful of the merciful."
It started with one thought: "Yusuf and his brother are more loved by our father than we are." They let it grow, and soon they were saying: "Kill Yusuf, or throw him into some land." That one jealous thought led them to the well, and to years of lying to their own father.
At the height of his life, reunited with his family and given power over Egypt, Yusuf did not ask for more years. He prayed: "Creator of the heavens and the earth, You are my protector in this world and the next. Take my soul as one who submits, and join me with the righteous."
If your child carries this name
يوسف Yusuf
Yusuf is a beautiful name to carry. Teach the child that real beauty is in what Yusuf did: he stayed clean when no one was watching, and forgave when he could have taken revenge.
Sources on this page
Quran 12:4-6Quran 12:8-20Quran 12:8-10Quran 12:15Quran 12:23-29Quran 12:23-25Quran 12:33-35Quran 12:33Quran 12:35-42Quran 12:50-53Quran 12:89-92Quran 12:91-92Quran 12:92Quran 12:100-101Quran 12:101
Quran meanings are given in plain English, close to the Arabic. Hadith numbers follow sunnah.com.