Ya’qûb—salutation to our prophet and to him—was one of the great inspired prophets, and most of the latter who had been sent after him were his descendants. Chronicles inform us that Esahâq had prohibited Ya’qûb to marry a wife from among the Kana’anites, but ordered him to take the daughter of his maternal uncle who dwelt at Qadâm, in Syria. Since, by the stratagem of Rufqah, the blessing destined for A’is had been diverted to him, the latter became his enemy. Therefore Ya’qûb departed on a certain night after Esahâq’s decease, and some say during the very night of it, for fear of A’is from Kana’an, by the advice of his mother, towards Qadâm, and his lordship was, after his flight from his native country, surnamed Esrâil, because he had been caused to proceed [asra] in the night [rail]. It is narrated that during the journey fatigue overwhelmed him, so that he rested himself on a stone and fell asleep on it. There he beheld in his sleep a ladder connecting heaven with the earth, and a company of angels ascending and descending by the said ladder.* On that occasion the allocution from the courts of magnificence and glory, of the exalted Sovereign, reached him in these words: ‘I am the Lord worthy to be adored, the God of thee and of thy fathers, beside whom there is no other God! I have appointed thee, and thy seed after thee, to be the heirs and governors of this holy land. I shall grant to those of you who will be virtuous, the honour and blessing of guidance; I shall bestow upon them a book and the law of prophecy. I shall guard you and protect you if you will revert to this place, and build therein an edifice, namely, the Holy House, where you and all your posterity may enjoy the favour of worshipping Me.’ When Ya’qûb awoke, he was very glad, and became certain of the blessings called down upon him by Esahâq. He then arose, and continued his journey, after the termination whereof he was received into the courts of the consanguinity of his maternal uncle.
It was, according to tradition, a year of scarcity when Ya’qûb paid a visit to his uncle Labân. The latter had a well, from which his sheep were accustomed to drink; the water of it, however, happened to decrease greatly, and on Labân’s informing Ya’qûb of this circumstance, his nephew drew a bucket-full out of it, of which he drank some, and poured the remainder again back into the well. By the power of the Lord the water then became more and more copious. When the uncle perceived this, he became fond of the society of Ya’qûb, requested him to remain with him, and his nephew agreed. After a few days had elapsed, he began to pay his addresses to Rahil [Rachel], the younger daughter of Labân; but when her father asked him about his property and the means by which the gates of necessity are dammed up, Ya’qûb replied that he possessed none of these things, but that he would engage to serve as a hired menial during a certain time in order to acquire the marriage portion which a husband settles upon his wife. To this Labân assented, and the time of servitude to procure the needful dowry for Rahil was agreed upon to last seven years.* Ya’qûb placed the finger of submission on his lucid vision, and Labân recommended him to keep the covenant agreed upon by both, but not to divulge it, lest both might be put to shame. After Ya’qûb had been taking care of the sheep during seven years, and the appointed time had expired, his uncle married him to his eldest daughter Lia [Leah]. When the wedding-night had elapsed, and the darkness of the night was exchanged for the luminous brocade of day, Ya’qûb began to reproach his uncle for having caused him to serve during seven years to marry one of his daughters, and for deceitfully giving him, after their completion, another daughter to be his wife. Labân, however, replied: ‘It is not proper to give away a younger daughter before the elder one is married; but if thou art enamoured with Rahil, serve seven years more, to enable thee to pluck fruits also from that other grove, and to quaff the wine of desire also from that other cup.’
At that time it was not unlawful to marry two sisters, and it became so only during the time of Mûsa [Moses]. Ya’qûb accordingly became a shepherd for seven years more, after the expiration whereof he obtained Rahil likewise. On that occasion Labân sent also two maid-servants to Ya’qûb’s house, one of whom was called Filha [Bilhah] and the other Zilfa [Zilpah]; the first to be a maid to Lia and the second to Rahil.
It is recorded in the ‘Jâmi Aa’zim’ that Ya’qûb begat the following six sons with Lia, namely: Rubil [Reuben], Shima’ûn [Simeon], Yahuda [Judah], Lavi [Levi], Zabâlûn [Zebulun] who is also called Azûlûn, and Yashkhar [Issachar] also named Shâkhâr and Yashkhûr. By Rahil he had Yusuf [Joseph] and Ebn Yamin [Benjamin]. Filha gave birth to Vân [Dan] and to Tha’baly [Naphtali]. Zilfa also had two sons, namely Gâd and Ashir. Their total number amounted to twelve, and the word ‘tribes’ [âsbât] in the glorious words of the Qurân alludes to them. According to the ‘Ma’arif Hasibi’ four tribes originated from Lia, namely: Rubil, Yahuda, Shima’ûn and Lavi. Rahil [as already mentioned] gave birth to Yusuf and Ebn Yamin, and each of the two bondmaids became the ancestress of three tribes.
When Ya’qûb desired to return from Qadân to Kana’an, Labân said to him: ‘If thou wilt remain here one year, it will be of advantage to thee;’ but he asked what it would be, whereon Labân continued: ‘I shall divide my sheep into two parts, one of which I mean to assign to thee, so that every male lamb born from it shall be thy property.’ Ya’qûb assented to his uncle’s request, whereon Jebrâil descended to him and said: ‘O Ya’qûb, take the leaves of such and such a tree, and disperse them in yonder valley, so that the portion of sheep under thy care may consume them, and every one of them may bring forth a male lamb.’ He acted according to this injunction, and, to the great amazement of Labân, the prediction was fulfilled; he, however, requested Ya’qûb to remain one year longer, promising to give him every male lamb born from the other portion of the sheep. The nephew again complied with his uncle’s wish; Jebrâil instructed him as before, and the same consequences again resulted. After Ya’qûb had sojourned at his uncle’s request two years longer with him, he departed with his wives, children and sheep, as well as with all his other goods and chattels, to the land of Kana’an. When on the point of starting, Lia, one of the wives of Ya’qûb, ordered one of her sons to steal the idol which Labân worshipped, and to conceal it among the luggage. Labân, however, missed his god soon after his children had left him, but as he could not immediately find it, he mounted a fleet horse, went in pursuit of them, and, after he had overtaken them, said: ‘O Ya’qûb, is this the reward for my kindness, thus to sever our connection?’ Ya’qûb being much astonished at this question, Labân continued: ‘You have stolen my god and taken him with you.’* Ya’qûb replied: ‘What is the use of a god whom a thief can steal? My God and thine is the creator of heaven and earth. Fear Him, and confess His unity, and I shall restore to thee any of thy property which I may have taken.’ Labân said: ‘I want you to restore to me my god.’ Ya’qûb replied: ‘I have not taken thy idol, nor do I know which of my companions has committed that act.’ Labân continued to expostulate: ‘I adjure thee by the alliance of consanguinity that exists between thee and me, to pray that the robber and the robbed may appear!’ Thereon the camel which carried the idol began to leap, and the idol fell to the ground together with the son of Ya’qûb. Then Ya’qûb said: ‘O uncle, believe now in God, for thy wish has been responded to very quickly.’ Labân rejoined: ‘I cannot abandon my religion, nor do I know any one better than him whom I adore.’ He thereon took possession of his idol, and returned the same way he had come. Ya’qûb made haste in his journey to Kana’an, and the more he approached it, the more he longed for it.
Distich: When the promised meeting drew near
The fire of desire burnt more brightly.
It happened that when Ya’qûb had reached the last stage of his journey to Kana’an, A’is, whom the grief of separation from his brother had overpowered, was, in order to dispel it, trying to divert himself with the chase, and had arrived suddenly in the place where the Lord Ya’qûb was encamped. When A is beheld the crowds of cattle and sheep, with a multitude of men and women, he went to see them. Ya’qûb, however, who had recognised him from a distance, concealed himself for fear of him.* He collected his followers, and harangued him thus: ‘If that man comes and asks you whose property this is, and why all these people are assembled here, you must say: “A’is, the son of Esahâq had a brother of the name of Ya’qûb, who went away, before this, into a region of Syria, and lived there for years. Now he has returned, and this property belongs to him, but in conformity with the maxim that the slave, with everything he possesses, belongs to his master, all these things belong to A’is, to whom we shall deliver them.”’ When A’is had come near, he conversed with the leader of the caravan; the children of Ya’qûb answered according to the instructions they had received, and when A’is had heard what they said, he was greatly touched, lamented, burst into tears, and exclaimed: ‘Ya’qûb is not my slave but my brother, and dear to me as my own life.’ When Ya’qûb heard these words he ran towards his brother; and A’is, who recognised him, fainted, and fell to the ground, but recovered himself after awhile. The two brothers rejoiced to see each other, and spent that night together in pleasure and amusement. In the morning, Yaqûb, with his followers and in company with A’is, went to Kana’an, where they rejoiced to see and to meet their friends. It is said that one year after this event, the Most High—w. n. b. e.— bestowed Ebn Yamin upon Ya’qûb, whose spouse, Rahil, whilst giving birth to him, was however taken to the mansion of eternity, and Lia, the aunt of the infant, undertook the care of it.
After Ya’qûb had been commanded to guide and to direct the inhabitants of Kana’an, A’is said: ‘Brother, thou hast for a long time been tried in the affliction of exile. Now it is my turn; I recommend thee to the keeping and protection of God. I depart; do thou care for this region, and neglect not to preserve the sepulchres of thy father, grandfather, and other relatives.’ Then he took leave of Ya’qûb, and travelled to the country of Rûm.
It is said that A’is begat five sons with the daughter of his uncle Esma’il, u. w. b., etc., one of whom was called Rûm; and all the Rûmis are his descendants. His complexion being very yellow, his descendants are called the sons of the yellow one*. All sovereigns are of the seed of A’is, the son of Esahâq. He lived one hundred and forty-five years, and on the same day when Ya’qûb wandered in Egypt from this frail abode to the mansion of eternity, he, likewise, was in Rûm translated from this house of misery and vexation to the imperishable kingdom.
Hemistich: Enduring and permanent is God alone!
The corpse of A’is was taken to the field of Haran, where it was interred near the sepulchres of his ancestors; but the remainder of the story of Ya’qûb will be narrated—if it pleaseth Allah—in the story of Yusuf.