RECORD OF NIMRUD’S ATTEMPTED ASCENTS TO HEAVEN, AND OF HIS FOLLY BECOMING NOTORIOUS TO THE INHABITANTS OF THE WORLD.
What follows is mostly based upon the narrative of Muhammad Bin Jarir Tabari, which Hâfez Abru has abridged (may the mercy of Allah be on both of them). The gist of the history is, that when Nimrud had witnessed the extinction of the pile of fire, and had beheld the roses produced therein by the benign Creator, he aspired to ascend to heaven, that the Mighty Avenger might cause him to participate in some of the evidences of that power which he had seen displayed in favour of the friend of the Merciful One. He consulted intelligent men on this point, but they informed him that ascension to the contignations of heaven would be impossible without the aid of Borâq.130 Nimrud was, however, obstinate in his purpose, and spent many years in erecting a tower, which was so high that the bird of imagination could not reach its summit. When it was completed he ascended to the pinnacle of the spire, but the aspect of the heavens remained precisely the same as from the surface of the earth. This astonished and perplexed him. The next day the tower fell, and such a fearful noise struck the ears of the inhabitants of Babel that most of them fainted from the effects thereof; and when they had recovered their senses they forgot their own language, so that every tribe spoke a different idiom, and seventy-two tongues became current among them. The confusion of languages having taken place in that city, it was surnamed Babel.
When the tower had crumbled to pieces, Nimrud desisted not from his intention, but swore an oath that he would not abandon it before he had seen the God of heaven. He accordingly fed four eaglets for two years on meat, and gave them wine to drink, so that they attained a degree of strength and development beyond which it was impossible to rear them. Then he ordered a cage to be made sufficiently large to contain two persons; he got it also provided with two doors, the one above and the other below. On the four corners of this box four sticks were fixed, on each of which a piece of meat was suspended by a rope, and the eagles were kept fasting until they became extremely hungry, whereon he took a seat in the cage with one of his friends. When the eagles perceived the meat above their heads they desired to get hold thereof, and consequently bore the cage aloft, flying towards the upper regions. When they had thus progressed during one day and one night, Nimrud opened the door above and contemplated the sky, which appeared to him the same as when he had beheld it from our terrestrial domicile. He then opened the nether door and perceived that the whole earth resembled a sea of water, and the mountains appeared to his eyes like ants. They continued one day and one night more in the upper regions, and then, opening the door above, they saw the heavens in the same state as before; but on looking through the lower door they perceived nothing but darkness, which so frightened Nimrud that he ordered his companion to turn the pieces of meat in the contrary direction and downward; whereon the eagles soared to the lower regions, but their flying was accompanied by such dreadful sounds that they imagined some great calamity was descending upon them from heaven; even the earth itself began to quake from the dreadful noise, and the mountains were nearly collapsing. When Nimrud had again reached the earth he became weary, and ashamed of his adventure. According to the opinion of Tabari, the King of kings—whose magnificence be glorified —sent an angel in the shape of a man for the purpose of advising Nimrud, after four hundred years of his reign had elapsed, saying: ‘O impotent servant, give up these deeds, for they are much disliked; confess the unity of the Creator, and attempt no further temerity like this. Repent of the evil acts thou hast committed; for thou hast thrown Ebrahim, the prophet of God, into the fire, and hast exiled him from his native country. Other wicked acts have likewise originated from thee, after which thou hast attempted to ascend to heaven.
Distich: Hadst thou dealt well on earth
Thou hadst gained heaven also.
Notwithstanding thy unrighteous deeds, the Almighty— w. n. b. e.—had granted thee four hundred years of dominion. Therefore fear the Lord, whose power and army are immense; whereas all the countries and troops which thou possessest thou enjoyest only from Him. If He chooseth, He will this moment annihilate thee by means of the smallest of His creatures.’ To all this Nimrud replied: ‘I do not think there is any king besides me. If the King of Heaven has any troops, tell him to send them, that I may fight them.’ The angel rejoined: ‘Bring forth thy army, for the hosts of God expect a reply.’ Thereupon Nimrud asked for a respite of three days to get his army ready. This was granted, and after the expiration thereof he had collected his troops, marched out of the city at the head of an innumerable army, and, having arranged it in battle array, was intent upon war. Ebrahim then made his appearance opposite to the army of Nimrud, who asked: ‘Where is thy army?’ Ebrahim replied: ‘The God of the universe will send it this moment.’ During this conversation such a number of dreadful gnats settled upon the army of Nimrud that the light of the sun was hidden from the eyes of the beholders. These insects commenced to bite the heads and faces of the soldiers; every one of them was engaged with his own person; all of them, nevertheless, united in their flight. Nimrud returned home confused and astounded, when the Lord of Grandeur— whose magnificence be glorified—again despatched the same angel in the shape of a man to Nimrud, to admonish him, saying: ‘O impotent slave! thou hast seen how the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—has by means of the smallest of His creatures put thy army to flight. Fear at least, and believe in the glorious and exalted Lord; because, if thou refusest, He will annihilate thee.’ Nimrud, however, would not be warned by these words, and therefore the Eternal Sovereign ordered one of the smallest and most despicable of gnats to settle on his lower lip and to bite it. A pustule arose on the spot; the insect, however, returned and bit him on the upper lip also, which likewise began to swell and to give him pain. Then the insect ascended into the chamber of his brains, and commenced to eat them. Thus he became afflicted with a tremendous headache in consequence of his rebellious disposition; neither would the insect relent in its labour of voracity until the head was struck with something, whereon the pain abated a little; by degrees, however, it increased to such an extent that iron hammers were kept ready and placed before Nimrud on the ground, and everyone who entered the assembly was, before he kissed the earth [to salute the king], obliged to take up one of these iron hammers and strike him on the head as long as he could bear it; and whoever performed this service the most satisfactorily was honoured by the king and obtained great favours, until he was at last, after forty years of suffering, delivered of this transitory life, and was grasped by the chastisement of futurity.
RECORD OF THE DEPARTURE OF EBRAHIM, U. W. B., ETC.
The author of the “Târikh-uz-zamân” has narrated that when the Lord Ebrahim was delivered from the fire of Nimrud a number of the inhabitants of Babel, such as Lôt, the son of Harân, Sûil, the son of Bajûr, and Sarah, the daughter of Ebrahim’s uncle, u. w. b., etc., had believed in his words, a disturbance arose in the kingdom of Nimrud, the number of Musalmâns increased, and the tenets of Ebrahim, having found their way among the people, gradually settled in their hearts. Nimrud therefore called Ebrahim secretly, and said to him: ‘By means of thy mission this religion which thou hast introduced has brought confusion into the affairs of my government, and excited the imaginations of my subjects. Arise, therefore, and leave this country with thy companions and adherents; because thy Nourisher, having undertaken to protect thee, and pledged himself to further thy prosperity, will be a help and defence to thee.’ Ebrahim obeyed this injunction, and departed from the country of Babel to Syria; some, however, assert that he did so without Nimrud’s knowledge, and by an inspiration from heaven.
Ebn Jûzi states that Ebrahim’s flight took place after Nimrud’s death, and herein the two traditions differ. When Ebrahim resolved to travel he started with his cousin Lôt, the son of Harân, with his female cousin Sarah, who was one of the most intelligent women of that period, whose father’s name was likewise Harân, and with other company from his native country. After travelling for some time he arrived in the district of Harân, where he remained for several days, and married Sarah; thence he travelled with her to Egypt for fear of the King of Harân, who was an idolater. On that occasion the prophet Lôt separated from his cousin, on account of a revelation which he had received from the Eternal Sovereign, and on account of Ebrahim’s advice. He went towards the Mutafakât,131 and this story will—if it pleaseth Allah—be narrated by-and-by.
After Ebrahim had stayed several days in Egypt the following rumour about him was spread: A foreigner has arrived in this city,132 and has a beautiful wife, the like of whom has not been seen. These words having found their way to the ears of Sanân, the son of A’vân, Governor of Egypt, he called Ebrahim, and asked him how the woman he had brought was related to him. Ebrahim feared that in case he acknowledged her to be his wife the king might either kill or order him to divorce her. Therefore he said: ‘She is my sister,’133 meaning in the Faith. The Governor of Egypt sent a confidential person with Ebrahim, who conveyed her into the assembly, where she was asked what Ebrahim was to her; but by his advice she replied: ‘He is my brother.’ Hereupon that accursed one lost the reins of self-possession, and intended to stretch out his hand to her; but Sarah prayed that both of them might become immovable. [This request having been granted,] he said: ‘O woman, what hast thou done to me so that my hands are withered?’ Sarah answered: ‘This is a sign of the power of God.’ Hereon the king began to implore her to beseech the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—again to bring back his hands to their former state, promising that he would not touch her. Sarah accordingly lifted her hands in prayer to the mansion of Omnipotence, and her request was granted. He could, however, after all, not restrain himself, and extended his hands thrice after Sarah, and thrice they were made immovable; but at the request of the king, and by the intercession of Sarah, they were again restored to their former state by the Lord of Glory. At last the king presented Sarah with a female slave, saying: ‘This is thy reward’;134 wherefore this slave was called Hâjar [Hagar]. Then he sent Sarah back to Ebrahim, in company of one of his officers, and ordered Ebrahim to leave his country. When Sarah met her husband she narrated the whole affair to him; but he was already acquainted therewith, because the Lord of Magnificence had removed all the veils [of secrecy] from before him, and he had been enabled to see everything. Then he necessarily departed from Egypt and journeyed to the country of Filisteen, which is situated in the province of Damascus, in a place where there was neither water nor cultivation. He accordingly dug a well there, the water of which flowed up to the surface of the soil; but as he had spent all the food he had brought, and there was a great distance between him and any inhabited locality, he took a bag in order to go out in search of wheat, went away, and left his companions alone. Neither had he any money wherewith to purchase food; therefore he became much perplexed in the desert, and knew not what to do. At last he bethought himself, and filled his bag with gravel and sand, thinking that Sarah and Hâjar would be pacified on beholding a full bag. When he had returned home he fell asleep for shame, whereon Sarah and Hâjar examined the bag, which they found to be full of wheat; then they ground some of it in a handmill and baked bread. When Ebrahim awoke they called him to eat. He asked what he was to eat, and Sarah apprised him that they had baked bread of the wheat he had brought. He was astonished at this news, praised the Benefactor, preserved some of the wheat for consumption, and sowed the remainder in a field. This story is also narrated in a different way; but as the substance of both traditions is the same, the second has not been inserted here.
When the Gracious Bestower of favours, whose government extends over all beings, had caused the water to flow plentifully from the [above-mentioned] well for the benefit of Ebrahim, many thirsty Arabs heard the news, so that a great multitude of them assembled around the well from the surrounding country, and founded a city, which is to this day called Ebrahimabâd. Some time afterwards, however, the inhabitants of that region extricated their necks from under the dominion of Ebrahim, and resisted him. Therefore he was grieved in his mind, and going out from their midst, settled in a place named Qasat, which is situated between Ramlah and Amliah. After Ebrahim had departed, the water in the well decreased, his antagonists repented of what they had done, followed, met, and requested him pressingly to return to the country, but he refused. After they had been thus disappointed they informed him of the scarcity of water in the well, whereon he gave them seven arrows to place over it, in order to cause the water to flow out as usual. He also warned them that a woman who had her courses upon her should not take water from the well with her own hands. The people returned, acted according to his advice, and the water began to flow as before, continuing to do so for a long time, until a menstruous female acted contrary to the injunction, and immersed her hands into the water, which immediately became stationary, and no longer ascended to the surface, so that people were obliged to make use of a rope for drawing it. After Ebrahim had settled in Qasat he never changed his habitation until he walked into the gardens of eternity.
Let it not remain unknown that what has been narrated concerning the departure of Ebrahim is mostly according to the words of Muhammad Bin Jarir Tabari; but Qitby, in his ‘Ma’arif,’ narrates it as follows: When Ebrahim started with his adherents on the journey to Harân he travelled towards the Ardan,135 after crossing which he arrived in a town, the capital of a tyrant named Sarûg, whose superabundance of folly and meanness induced him to make attempts on Sarah’s chastity. The latter was, however, protected by her guardian angel, and as a reparation for his boldness, the tyrant presented Sarah with a Coptic girl of the name of Hâjar. Ebrahim departed from that place, and travelled to Egypt, but as his world-adorning mind could not habituate itself to dwell there, he again returned to Syria and passed through the same town. Meanwhile, however, the Omnipotent Accommodator had removed Sarûg from the dignity of reigning over that country, the government of which thereon fell into the hands of Ebrahim, who became extremely rich in all sorts of property; one half of which he gave to his cousin Lôt, u. w. b., etc., and the other he kept for the use of himself and of his family. By divine command Lôt went to the country of the Mutafakât; Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.—then selected the place called the ‘field of Harân,’ at present known by the name of ‘Qasat Halil,’ for his habitation, and dwelt there.
RECORD OF THE PROPHET LÔT, HIS GOING TO THE MUTAFAKÂT,
AND OF THAT WHICH HAPPENED TO HIS PEOPLE.
Since all historians have narrated the story of the prophet Lôt going to the Mutafakât, in connection with the narrative of Ebrahim, and the propriety of this proceeding is evident to all intelligent and discerning minds, the writer of these lines, who is a gleaner from their granary, follows the same method, and says: The majority of chroniclers agree that the Mutafakât were five towns in the vicinity of the Ardan136 in Syria, and a few have maintained that they were in the land of Kermân. The first opinion, however, is the most correct. The names of those places are given by historians in various ways, but the languid mind [of the modest author of this work] has fixed on the following; namely, Sodôm, A’dôm, Assoâim, Adhôma, and Zha’r. Each of these towns contained one hundred thousand warriors and more, who, according to some opinions, were idolaters, committed wicked acts, sodomy, highway robbery, and the like. It is said that the first who walked on the unaccustomed path were the inhabitants of the Mutafakât; the origin of this wickedness being that Eblis entered the garden of one of the inhabitants in human form and began to destroy it. The owner of the garden intended to catch him, but he fled, and when the man came out of the garden Eblis continued his work again, until his wicked purpose was accomplished; and the man’s efforts to get rid of him remained fruitless. One day Eblis asked him: ‘Wantest thou me to leave the garden?’ He replied: ‘What is the use of these words? I wish thou hadst never entered it.’ Eblis continued: ‘There is no advantage until thou bringest my soul under thy subjection.’ To this the owner of the garden agreed. He even considered himself under obligations, and committed the obscene act. When Eblis had departed from that garden he went to another, making his former proceeding the occasion of seduction. Thus he went successively to all the gardens, until his crime became common among the inhabitants.
It is narrated, after Ebn A’bbâs, that dearth and scarcity arose in some portions of Syria, whereon the people went to the Mutafakât, because abundant and cheap provisions were obtainable there. The inhabitants of that region were therefore so pestered by strangers that they assembled one day to consult in what way they might get rid of them. Then Eblis suddenly made his appearance in their assembly, and hinted at the wicked act which he had taught the owners of the gardens. The citizens followed his instructions, whereon all the strangers fled from the country, and it became a usage in that town to deal thus with every stranger who entered it. In course of time the ungodliness and obscenity of that town had augmented to such a degree that Lôt—u. w. b., etc.—was sent to guide the people to the true way. He took one of their females to be his wife, forbade the people to commit acts of wickedness, and, lastly, invited them to acknowledge the unity of the Lord of Glory, to accept the Law, to believe in his mission, and admonished them to keep in mind his promise and threats. He preached to them and advised them; they, however, did not believe his words or listen to his admonitions, but conspired to injure him, girded their loins of diligence to do so, and said: ‘Verily the punishment of God will fall on us, if thou be one of the righteous.’ Then Lôt once more harangued them as follows: ‘O my people, be mindful of God, w. n. b. e., and fear His displeasure, because the chastisement of the Lord—whose magnificence be glorified—will be great and excruciating!’ The people became excited at the words of Lôt, began to use insulting language, raised the standard of enmity upon their breasts, and determined in their unhallowed minds to expel and drive him away. At that time Lôt disregarded their impertinent machinations, continued to perform the duties of his mission, and, imitating the example of his august uncle Ebrahim, considered it his duty to entertain strangers. Accordingly, he always kept the door of hospitality open, until those wretches attempted to injure his guests by persecuting everyone who went to his house, and preventing him from enjoying Lôt’s kindliness. They never left the path of aberration and unrighteousness, wherefore Lôt elevated the hands of petition towards the palace of the Victorious Sovereign, saying: ‘O Lord, deliver me and my family from their wicked doings!’ The word ‘family’ here used means the daughters of Lôt and their daughters, because none except these were adorned with the nobility of religion. The Lord of Unity responded to Lôt’s prayer, and sent Jebrâil with a company of superior angels to destroy and exterminate that nation. These angelic personages were necessarily all handsome, beardless youths; they first alighted at the house of Ebrahim, brought him the glad tidings of the future birth of Esahâq—which will, if it pleaseth Allah, be narrated by-and-by—and of the deliverance of Lôt from the hypocrites.
When the great angels were proceeding from the house of the Lord Ebrahim towards the Mutafakât, they arrived near the outskirts of the town in which Lôt dwelt, where they met his daughters, with whom they entered his house. One of these ladies entered the habitation first, and apprised her father of the approach of several guests, who, she said, were the most beautiful youths she had ever seen. Afterwards the angels also came and greeted Lôt, u. w. b., etc., but when he beheld their beauteous physiognomies he was much distressed, and concluded that on this day of trial it would be necessary to conceal them from the people. Accordingly he locked the door of his house and prohibited ingress and egress into or from it to his followers, lest the news of these guests being in the house might become public. His unbelieving wife, however, watched her opportunity, and informed the rakes of the presence and of the superior beauty of the guests, in consequence whereof the chiefs of the people sent ten individuals to Lôt, who told the latter that, despite the prohibition to harbour strangers, he had just now several in his house, and that he must deliver them of his own free will, or that else they would act in conformity with the orders they had received, and would take them by force. When these ten men had delivered their message to Lôt, he replied that he would give his own daughters in marriage to the people, that they ought to fear God, and not put him to shame before these guests. Then the messengers went back and reported the answer of Lôt to the people, but they soon returned and informed him that they had no wish for his daughters, and that he was fully aware of their desires. Then Lôt told them that if they knew he could offer resistance, they would not have dared to speak words of this kind. After that two of these men wanted to carry off Jebrâil; he, however, breathed a wind upon them that struck them with blindness,137 and when they returned to their people they said that the guests of Lôt were sorcerers, because they had made two of their friends blind. The people again sent persons to Lôt, with the message that he had hitherto dwelt among them in the manner he liked best, but that as he had at present brought sorcerers to his house to strike their companions with blindness, he was forthwith ordered to leave their city, or else the people would come that very night and blind him with his adherents. At these words the Lord Lôt became very sorry, and imagined that the angels might really be sorcerers. Therefore he said to them: ‘Ye are iniquitous.’ When the angels perceived that Lôt had been intimidated by the threats of the idolaters, and had manifested a bad opinion about their own selves, they informed him of the reason of their coming and their persons, stating that they were the ambassadors of the Omnipotent Nourisher, and sent to destroy this rebellious and sinful race. They likewise quieted the fears of Lôt concerning the threats of the infidels, whereon he became joyful and anxious for the extirpation of those evildoers. Jebrâil then informed him that the predestined time for their chastisement was morning, and that it was near. Lôt accordingly packed up his baggage, and departed from the town by the command of the angels and the aid of Jebrâil, in the middle of the night, with his family, which amounted to ten, and according to the tradition of Muhammad Bin Jarir Tabari, to twelve or fourteen persons. When the morning dawned they had passed out of the Mutafakât and were travelling to the abode of Ebrahim; some of them, however, hastened towards Safar, which is also called the tribe Safira, because the inhabitants of that locality had not committed wicked acts, and were therefore spared the chastisement. When the true morn dawned Jebrâil spread out his blessed wing, and, fixing his feathers in the earth, uprooted the four towns of the Mutafakât from their places, lifting them towards the sky with all their inhabitants and cattle, to such a height that the crowing of their cocks and the barking of their dogs was heard by the angels. Then he turned them all upside down according to the verse, ‘And when our mandate arrived, we turned those cities upside down.’138 It is related in the ‘Jâmi’ ao’zim’ that scholars and philosophers believe sulphurous matter to have ascended from the earth, and that a heavy smoke descended from the skies. These two substances having met in mid-air and filled it, the atmosphere began to move like the waves of the ocean, enveloped the country with its inhabitants, and a general conflagration ensued, which burnt everything. The earth also quaked so that everything fell to pieces, and praised be He who made this chastisement an example to the beholders!
Let it not be hidden to the minds of the noble and the perfect, which are world-embracing mirrors, that whatever has been recorded in these pages concerning the arrival of the angels in the house of Lôt, and the coming of messengers from the people, was written according to the tradition of Muhammad Bin Jarir Tabari and Hâfez Abru. But in some histories, the statements of which are here quoted separately, it is recorded that when Jebrâil arrived at the Mutafakât, they met Lôt outside the city in a field, and saluted him. Lôt thought them to be men, and spent a day with them; but when the evening set in and the stay of the angels had become protracted, he would not invite them to his house on account of his wicked fellow-townsmen, who had prohibited him to entertain strangers. He was sorry for the circumstance, and interrogated the angels whether they had any knowledge of those evil-doers, and of the degree of wickedness they had reached; he also told the celestial messengers that, in his opinion, nowhere more depraved people than these were in existence. Hereon Jebrâil said to the angels: ‘This is the first wickedness of which we have heard about these people.’ Lôt put their minds at ease, they walked together, and when they arrived at the gate of the town, he repeated his former declaration, and Jebrâil said, ‘This is the second.’ When they reached the door of Lôt’s house he again uttered the same words, and Jebrâil said, ‘This is the third.’ Lôt then entered the house, told his wife to prepare a repast, and not to inform anyone of the presence of the guests, whom he had brought to the house by way of hospitality. That woman, however, left the house secretly and gave the news to the people, at the same time describing the persons and qualities of the guests. The infidel fornicators then went to Lôt’s dwelling, the porch of which became full of them. When Lôt saw this he sent Jebrâil into the house and stood himself at the door to keep off the intruders. Some have related that Lôt had twelve daughters, whom he offered in his confusion to the infidels, invited them to marry the girls, and to let go the strangers. They, however, replied: ‘Thou knowest verily that we want not thy daughters; and thou art aware of what we want.’139 At last the people prevailed and entered that part of the house in which Jebrâil was, and intended to drag him out; but he breathed a wind upon them, which immediately struck them with blindness. Hereon the infidels accused the angels of sorcery, and threatened Lôt, but departed from his house. Lôt was so frightened by the menaces of the people, that he likewise imagined the angels to be sorcerers; but when they beheld his terror they reassured him, saying: ‘Fear not; we are the messengers of thy Lord. They shall not injure thee.’ The angels also informed him of what was to come, whereat he was highly rejoiced. When a portion of the night had elapsed, Jebrâil seated Lôt with his adherents on his own wings, and conveyed them out of the city towards the town of Safar, but the people of Lôt were annihilated by the act of Jebrâil, as has been already described.
It is related in all chronicles and histories, as well as confirmed by the word of God in the Qurân, that when Lôt departed from the ungodly people, Jebrâil enjoined him that during the journey no one was to cast a glance towards the Mutafakât, as God had said: ‘Walk away with thy family during a part of the night, and let none of you look about, except thy wife, for the same thing will happen to her which will happen to them. Indeed, their punishment is for the morning. Is not the morning near?’140 Lôt and his followers acted according to the mandate, travelled, and looked not about like his wife, who cast every now and then a glance to the rear at the Mutafakât, on account of the amity and kinship that subsisted between her and the infidels and their religion. When she was thus wistfully looking back to see what would take place with the people, a burning rock struck her head, and she went the same way with her clansmen, all of whom, either travelling just then or engaged abroad in some business, met the same fate and were despatched to hell. Allah—whose name be blessed—has said: ‘And we rained upon them stones of baked clay, one following another, and being marked from the Lord; and they are not far distant from those who act unjustly.’141 It is related that one of their number was in the sanctuary of Mekkah, when a stone was suddenly coming towards him, but the angels exclaimed: ‘O stone, injure him not, because in the sanctuary of the Lord he is protected from every affliction.’ That stone returned, and remained stationary in mid-air until the said obdurate individual came out from the sanctuary, when it fell on his head and killed him. Let us fly for refuge to Allah from his wrath!
According to the most correct tradition, Lôt joined the Lord Ebrahim without delay and dwelt with him. When seven years had elapsed after the destruction of the people, he was received to the propinquity of the mercy of God on Wednesday, the second day of the month Rabi’ the first. ‘We belong to Allah, and to him we return.’142
LÔT’S NAME, PERSONAL APPEARANCE, LAW, MIRACLES,
LENGTH OF MISSION, AND SEPULTURE.
His complexion was green,143 he was of a middling stature, had black eyes, a symmetrical body, long legs and arms. He was called Lôt because Ebrahim loved him, and commentators say: He was called Lôt because his love was fixed in Ebrahim’s heart—namely, connected therewith.144 From this we gather that his lordship was originally called by another name unknown to us.
His law was conformable to that of Ebrahim. He was extremely pious, liberal, patient and hospitable. He cultivated the soil and was an agriculturist. One of his miracles was that he produced rain without clouds; and another, that he slept on a stone, upon which he left an impression of his blessed body; certain persons who had seen this stone became his followers. The time during which he was engaged in his mission amounted, according to one tradition, to twenty, and according to another, to thirty-seven years; nor is the length of his life known. His tomb is in the vicinity of the sepulchres of Ebrahim, Sarah, and Esahâq; the blessings of Allah be upon them all!
RECORD OF THE BIRTH OF THE LORD ESMA’IL, U. W. B., ETC., AND HIS SOJOURN IN THE SANCTUARY—MAY ALLAH ENNOBLE IT.
When the Lord and Gracious Bestower of abundant benefits had given to Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.—plenty of cattle, fields, houses and property of all kinds, he besought the Almighty, that after vouchsafing him His boundless grace and His unlimited favour, by conferring upon him all the blessings of this, and the promises of the next world, He would grant him a son, who might become the heir of the prophetic dignity and apostolic office, and that by inviting the inhabitants of the world to accept the law and to follow the straight path, he might become the cause of their guidance. Sarah also, who was by divine predestination destitute of the qualities required for child-bearing, did not know how Ebrahim’s desire for a son might be gratified, until at last she gave him Hâjar, with the hope that the latter might bear him a son.145 Hâjar was very beautiful and young; and as soon as she had been honoured by the society and intimacy of Ebrahim, her pure nature became immediately impregnated with the cause, which was to give birth to the Lord Esma’il, who was accordingly born as soon as the time of her pregnancy had elapsed,146 and proved to be an infant the like of which in amenity and beauty had never been seen before; nor had Dame Nature ever cherished such a child in her lap. He was called Ashmuil in Hebrew, but his name was, after being much used, turned into Esma’il. Ebrahim loved him much, and kept him nearly always in his arms or on his back. Sarah became on account of this circumstance so jealous of Hâjar that she swore she would cut off three of Hâjar’s limbs. When the latter became aware of this intention, she girded her loins for flight and absconded. Ebrahim then interceded for her with Sarah, whom he requested to pierce her ears, and to cut off a piece from her concealed member, so that the oath might not be broken. Sarah agreed to this proposal, and after Hâjar had been produced, she acted according to Ebrahim’s advice, and for this reason the piercing of the ears of females and circumcision have become a law. After Hâjar had thus been punished Sarah was still dissatisfied, and jealous of her and of Esma’il to such a degree that she requested Ebrahim to convey both of them to a deserted place, without any houses or cultivated fields, and to abandon them there, solitary and alone. Ebrahim was under many obligations to Sarah, and could not refuse her; he was, moreover, ordered by the inscrutable Lord to comply with the wish of Sarah. He therefore mounted a steed, fleet as lightning, seated Hâjar and Esma’il on a quadruped, and travelled by the direction and in the company of Jebrâil towards Mekkah. When they had, after completing the journey, arrived in the locality of Zemzem, Jebrâil said to Ebrahim that it was the command of Allah to leave the mother with her infant in that place. Ebrahim accordingly obeyed the injunction of Jebrâil, and abandoned them in the shade of a tree which the Almighty and Absolute Master had produced by His power in an arid spot, and had caused to become green. At that time the tribe of A’mâlekites was dwelling outside the sanctuary, because in the identical locality of that noble place there were no habitations. In fine, Ebrahim stayed during three days and nights with them. The spot was extremely dry and rocky, without any buildings; the exsiccated, hot atmosphere was a result of its soil, and the aridity thereof was caused by mines of sulphurous red earth, so that it would be said that the burned territory had assumed the colour of red rubies. When Ebrahim was about to depart, Hâjar began to implore him, saying: ‘I am a weak woman, my child is an infant, and the desert is frightful. To whom dost thou leave us? Wilt thou abandon me? Where art thou going?’ Ebrahim was touched by these words, and said: ‘I commit you to the divine favour, which is pledged for your preservation, and by His grace you will both be saved.’ Then Hâjar said: ‘I resign myself to the will of God, and I trust in Him.’
Ebrahim departed from the place, and when he arrived at the heights of Mekkah he cast a glance towards Hâjar and Esma’il, but knowing them to be uncomfortable without bread or water in the boundless desert, he exclaimed: ‘O Lord, I have caused my seed to dwell in an uncultivated valley near Thy holy house,’ meaning in the locality of the house, because at that time the house of the Ka’bah did not yet exist. Ebrahim lamented much, his eyes were full of water, and he turned his face towards Syria with a depressed mind. When Hâjar and Esma’il had spent all their food and drink, thirst pressed them sorely; the mother had no milk to suckle the child, and became impatient when she contemplated the helpless state of her infant; therefore she ascended Mount Safa to see whether she could discover some inhabited place. Thus she stood on the mountain for some time, but perceived no help. She came down, gathered up her skirts, and walking with all possible speed, passed the Vâdi, and went up Mount Marva, where she also stopped, but found no trace of water or cultivation. This she repeated seven times, in the same way as pilgrims do at present. Every time, however, she had a look at her darling, to see whether some wild beast was approaching him. At last she heard a voice from the direction of Mount Safa, but could perceive nothing. The next time a voice struck her ears from the region of Marva, towards which she proceeded, but could see nothing. After that she heard in the place where Esma’il was the roaring of savage beasts, but when she arrived near him she saw that a delicious fountain of water had sprung up by his side. Besides this, however, also another tradition exists concerning the origin of the water Zemzem.147
It is related that when the mother with her son drank of that water they were delivered of the pangs of thirst and hunger. Hâjar wished to obtain more water and to fill her leather bottle, but Jebrâil replied that there was no need of filling it, because this water would always remain there. It is related that Hâjar took out the gravel and the mud from the fountain to make the water more abundant, and she heaped both these substances up around the well:
Distich: Where a trace of His foot is, there with our eyes
We take up the dust until water flows out.
On this occasion she heard a voice over her head, telling her not to fear the decrease of the water, because the abundance of the Almighty Donor had produced this fountain for the benefit of her son, and it would never disappear. She was then informed that God—w. n. b. e.—would ennoble her pious son with the dignity of a prophet, and graciously allow him to build in this country, in company with his father, the Friend of the Merciful One, a house, which people from all parts of the world would visit and circumambulate as pilgrims, and likewise drink of this water. Hâjar was delighted at this news, and it is related of his lordship, the refuge and seal of prophets [i.e. Muhammad], that he said: ‘The mercy of Allah be upon the mother of Esma’il; if she had left it, the Zemzem would be a spring,’ meaning thereby that instead of being a well it would be a rivulet.
RECORD OF THE ARRIVAL OF THE TRIBE OF JORHAM AT THE HOLY SANCTUARY, AND THEIR TAKING CARE OF ESMA’IL, U. W. B., ETC.
The tribe of Jorham were relatives of Ebrahim, and dwelt in the country of Yemen. They were trading and journeying by the way of Mekkah to Syria. After the well of Zemzem had been found, some of them were travelling, and arrived at the holy sanctuary, where they perceived some birds flitting hither and thither near the water, and others flying towards it. This appeared unusual to them, and they sent two men to examine the locality, who, when they arrived, perceived a woman with a child sitting near the well. The Arabs were rejoiced at this sight, and asked Hâjar who they were, and whether they belonged to the genii, or to the human race. She said that the Almighty—w. n. b. e.— had produced the water for her benefit, and for that of her child. Those two men drank of the Zemzem water, which they found sweet and delicious. Then they again asked, for the sake of obtaining certainty, whether any other person had a right to this water besides her and her child. After obtaining a negative reply to their question, wherewith they felt satisfied, they also received permission for their tribe to come to the water, and returned to them with all the needed information. Accordingly, all of them went to Yemen, whence they brought their families, adherents, and cattle, in the company of another tribe of their relatives of the name Qatôra, and after duly performing the journey they all arrived. The prince of the Beni Jorham was called Masâs, the son of O’mar, and the name of the chief of the Qatôra tribe was Samôa’, the son of A’amer. Masâs encamped on the heights and Samôa’ in the lower parts of that country, and having erected buildings in that noble land, they gladly provided for Hâjar and Esma’il, who were much comforted by intercourse with the tribe of Jorham, among whom Esma’il grew up, and from whom he learnt the Arabic language.
Jebrâil informed Ebrahim concerning the affairs of Hâjar and Esma’il. Ebrahim was in the habit of visiting them once a year; he mounted Borâq, rode to Mekkah, saw his relatives, and again returned after a few moments. When Esma’il had attained his fifteenth year, Hâjar, who was highly respected, departed this life, and with the consent of her son, the Beni Jorham performed the funeral ceremonies, burying her according to her own wish in the great city of Mekkah in the vicinity of the Hijar.148 Esma’il was so melancholy on account of the loss of his mother that he intended to leave the country. His friends and acquaintances, however, dissuaded him, and for the purpose of removing the discomfort of solitude, they married him to one of the noblest maidens of the tribe of Jorham. He became also much addicted to riding and hunting, so that he always roamed about in the mountains and deserts. The Friend of the Merciful [i.e. Ebrahim] happened one day to arrive in Mekkah, where he inquired about the circumstances of Hâjar and Esma’il, whereon he was informed of the decease of the former and the marriage of the latter. He then hastened to Esma’il’s house, whose wife informed him that her husband had gone to the chase. Being unacquainted with Ebrahim, she showed him no civilities, so that he supposed her to be void of the ornaments of courtesy; accordingly he took leave and returned to Syria, but before doing so he requested her to tell Esma’il when he came back that a man who looked thus and thus had been there, and that he had asked her to tell Esma’il that the threshold of his house was not proper, and that he ought to change it. When Esma’il returned home at the time of evening prayers his heedless spouse informed him of what had taken place. He replied: ‘That man is my father, and the threshold of the house art thou, the changing whereof implies divorce from thee.’ Accordingly, he divorced her, and espoused another maiden of the tribe, adorned with good manners. When Ebrahim visited the sanctuary the next time and came to Mekkah he inquired at his son’s house, who again happened to be hunting. His wife, however, hastened to wait upon Ebrahim, and dished up of whatever was ready, at the same time offering her best excuses. Sarah not having given permission to Ebrahim to alight when visiting his son, he ate food, mounted as he was upon Borâq. Esma’il’s wife had washed his blessed face, and begged to be allowed also to wash the hair of his lordship. Ebrahim complied with her request, placed one of his feet on a raised stone, which was in the house of Esma’il, kept the other in the stirrup, and the mark of his noble foot remained on the stone. This time he spoke otherwise than on the former occasion, and told his son’s spouse to convey to him the message that the threshold of his house was very convenient, and that he ought by no means to neglect or to change it. After the departure of his lordship Esma’il returned from the chase, and his wife informed him of what had taken place, whereupon he replied: ‘This is good news for thee, my beloved companion and spouse; for that old man is my father, the Friend of the Merciful One, who has recommended me to keep and cherish thee. I hear and obey God and His friend; therefore, I shall, according to all my powers, endeavour to please thee and to conform myself to all thy wishes.’ Esma’il diligently cherished his spouse during his whole life, and never desired to marry another. Some of the events of his lordship’s life will—if it pleaseth Allah— be narrated in the record of his mission.
RECORD OF THE BIRTH OF THE LORD ESAHÂQ [ISAAC] BY THE POWER OF THE INSCRUTABLE CREATOR DURING THE OLD AGE OF THE LORD EBRAHIM AND LADY SARAH.
After the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—had bestowed Esma’il upon Ebrahim, Hâjar became exalted and vainglorious on account of this great gift, whilst Sarah was very anxious to have a son by whom the nobleness of her race might be perpetuated. When Jebrâil had been deputed with the angels for the extirpation of the people of Lôt, they first stopped at Ebrahim’s house as has been mentioned before. All the guests were handsome-looking young men, and as Ebrahim thought they were really human beings, he roasted a calf and offered it to them. They asked how they could eat thereof, as they had not paid for it. Ebrahim replied: ‘When you begin the meal say, “In the name of Allah,” and when you finish it say, “Praise be to Allah,” and its price will be paid.’ Then Jebrâil said to the other angels: ‘The Lord of Glory—w. n. b. e.—has not selected Ebrahim without a cause to wear the robe of prophecy.’ They abstained, however, from eating, despite Ebrahim’s invitation. At that time it was also the custom to consider anyone who would not partake of food offered to him as an enemy who wished evil to the host. Therefore Ebrahim was distressed, but they reassured him, saying: ‘Be not afraid, for we are angels, who have been ordered to chastise the people of Lôt.’
On that occasion, when the angels were sitting in the habitation of Ebrahim, Sarah was standing behind the curtain, according to the word of God: ‘And his wife was standing by, and she laughed; then we promised to her Esahâq and after him Yaqûb.’149 Some have said that here the words ‘she laughed’ mean that her courses had come upon her. Most expounders, however, take the expression in its natural meaning, although they differ as to the cause of the laughter. One opinion is that when the angels refused to eat Sarah laughed, saying: ‘These are indeed strange guests for whom we have prepared roast meat, but they do not eat.’ Another opinion is that she laughed for joy when she heard of the punishment in store for the people of Lôt; and according to a third, she laughed from astonishment when she was informed that she would bear a son, because she and her husband were old; accordingly she said: ‘Alas! shall I bear a son, who am old; this my husband being also advanced in years? Verily, this would be a wonderful thing.’150 The angels said: ‘Dost thou wonder that the All-powerful One, who has by His perfect omnipotence and infinite wisdom created Adam the pure from dark loam without the interference of parents, should produce a gentle infant from the womb of an old woman?’ When seven days had elapsed Sarah became pregnant with Esahâq, and after the completion of the requisite time the propitious star of his prophecy arose from the orient of glory.
Some have asserted that Ebrahim was one hundred, and Sarah ninety, years of age at the time of Esahâq’s birth, and Muhammad Bin Almansûr Al-Nishapuri relates in the ‘Qasas’ that during the night of Esahâq’s birth one thousand stars assembled in the sky in the sight of Ebrahim, who became astonished at their union, asked Jebrâil, and received the answer that it implied that one thousand prophets would originate from the loins of this infant. Then Ebrahim besought the Almighty Nourisher that, since such a favour was in store for Esahâq, He would likewise allow Esma’il to participate in some favour. Then the allocution reached him that a prophet would arise from the seed of Esma’il, who would be the supreme ornament and diadem of all the prophets, and whose intercession would be needed by the nations of ancient and modern times. Ebrahim thanked the Almighty, and said: ‘Praise be to Allah, who has given me Esahâq and Esma’il in my old age, for my Lord has heard my prayer.’ Others have narrated that Ebrahim was, in his ninetieth year, divinely inspired to introduce the law of circumcision, and that he circumcised Esma’il in the thirteenth, but Esahâq in the first year of his age. Others state that Esma’il was only five years older than Esahâq, and others fourteen years. When these two august sons were grown up, Ebrahim was commanded to sacrifice one of them.
RECORD OF EBRAHIM’S SACRIFICING HIS SON ESMA’IL.
Theological and secular scholars differ whether Esma’il or Esahâq was sacrificed. Many of the companions and followers, such as the Commander of the Faithful and victorious lion of God, A’li, the son of Abu Tâleb, may Allah ennoble his face, and O’mar, the son of Khettâb, u. w. b., etc.; and among the followers, Ka’b-ullâkhbâr, and Sa’id, the son of Jabir, Masrûq, Ab-uzzib, Sa’d, etc., mentioned that it was the sacrifice of Esahâq. But another galaxy of noble companions, such as A’bdullah, A’bbâs, Abu Hasiwa, O’mar, A’am, Abulfazeel, the son of A’amar, and Omm Solmah,151 u. w. b.; and among the Emâms of guidance, Ja’fer, the son of Muhammad-ussâdiq, Sa’id, the son of Masib, Yusuf, the son of Mahrân, and Mujâhed, asserted that it was the sacrifice of the lord Esma’il. Each of these two parties has adduced arguments to support its assertions, which are, however, too lengthy to be recorded in this book. The author has examined the claims of both sides, and has concluded those to be in the right who maintain that Esma’il’s sacrifice is meant, therefore he has turned the reins of the pleasantly-trotting pen in the direction of the plain of their words, and hereby records that Ebrahim had made a vow that, in case the Lord of Glory should grant him a son, he would sacrifice him ‘to approach God’ [with a thankoffering?]. After Ebrahim had made the vow, Esahâq and Esma’il were born, but he forgot his vow till one night, when he was fast asleep, he dreamt that a man said to him: ‘The command of Allah has gone forth that thou sacrifice thy son.’ When Ebrahim awoke, he meditated whether this dream had been sent by the Merciful One or by Satan; the second and third night, however, it was repeated in the same manner, and at last he heard in his sleep these words: ‘O Ebrahim! Satan invites thee not to obey the Almighty Nourisher; but do thou what thou art commanded.’ When it was morning the lord Ebrahim said to Hâjar: ‘Comb the boy’s hair, anoint it with oil, and dress him in a new robe!’ Hâjar acted according to Ebrahim’s command, and also told Esma’il to take a rope with a knife for the purpose of bringing wood from the mountain-gorge, to which Ebrahim afterwards proceeded, Esma’il following in his rear. On the road Satan met them in the guise of an old man, and asked Ebrahim where he was going. The latter replied that he had some business in the mountain-pass. Thereon Eblis said: ‘By Allah! Satan has decoyed thee to sacrifice Esma’il.’ Ebrahim, however, recognised him, and said: ‘Be gone from me, O enemy of Allah, because I am fulfilling the command of the Omnipotent Nourisher.’ Satan being thus disappointed with Ebrahim, went to Esma’il, and said: ‘Knowest thou where thy father is leading thee, and hast thou ever seen a parent sacrificing his own son?’ The boy replied: ‘My father does what the Lord has commanded, and I obey him.’ When the evil one saw that he could effect nothing with Esma’il, he went to Hâjar, and said: ‘Knowest thou where Ebrahim is taking thy son?’ She rejoined: ‘To bring wood to the house.’ The accursed one continued: ‘Thou art mistaken; he leads him away to sacrifice him.’ Hâjar replied: ‘He is more compassionate than to deal thus with his son.’ Eblis said: ‘He imagines that he is doing this business by the command of God.’ Hâjar replied: ‘We submit entirely to the will of the Almighty.’ Eblis retired, confused and disgraced, but a guardian-angel preserved Ebrahim and his family from the vexations of Satan.
When Ebrahim had entered the mountain-pass he said: ‘O my son, verily I saw in a dream that I should offer thee as a sacrifice; what thinkest thou I should do?’ He answered: ‘O my father! do what thou art commanded; thou shalt find me, if it pleaseth Allah, a patient person.’152 He afterwards also said to his father: ‘Do not tie my hands, lest I struggle when thou slayest me, and my robe would be bespattered with blood. It is a hard thing to die. Sharpen also thy knife on a stone, that I may be delivered quickly. Lay me on my face, for fear that on beholding it, the chain of paternal commiseration might by its motion induce thee to delay the execution of the command of the Inscrutable Lord, and thereby to soil the skirts of innocence with the impurity of guilt. Present my dress to Hâjar, that she may be consoled by smelling its odour.’ Then Ebrahim said: ‘My God, to whom gratitude and thanks are due, Thou hast vouchsafed to bestow upon me a son in my old age, and now Thou commandest me to afflict myself with separation from him, and to sacrifice him. If this be Thy wish, who am I that I shall refuse to obey?’ By the prayers of Ebrahim the angels of the upper and the nether world were moved to tears, and when Ebrahim had, after whetting the knife on a stone, placed it to the throat of Esma’il, the more efforts he made to sever the same, the less it would cut.
Distich: If the sword of the universe springs forth,
It cannot cut one vein unless God wills it.
His lordship sharpened the knife thrice and drew it across the throat of his son, but the knife recoiled every time, and did not cut, whereat Ebrahim was much astonished, until the exclamation reached him from the invisible world: ‘O Ebrahim, thou hast indeed brought the dream to pass.’ The same voice then again admonished him to look in his rear, and to sacrifice that which he would see, because it would be the redemption of his son. Ebrahim then looked back, and perceived a ram arriving from the mountain. Some say that it was a sheep, which had grazed forty years in the meadows of paradise, whilst others assert that this sheep was the one sacrificed by Habil, and which the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—had allowed to fatten in paradise. In fine, Ebrahim left Esma’il thus tied, and went in pursuit of the sheep. The ram had, however, fled; but his lordship ran after it, and at each of the three gravel-heaps, which are surnamed the first, the second, and the large one, he threw seven pieces of gravel towards the sheep, overtook it, and, carrying it to Mina,153 which is the place of sacrifice near Mekkah, slaughtered it there. Meanwhile Jebrâil untied the hands and feet of Esma’il, and informed him if he had any request to make to the Supreme Ruler and Granter, that now was the opportune time and the fit season in which his prayer would be answered. Accordingly, Esma’il raised his hands towards the mansion of abundance, and said: ‘O Lord! pardon all Thy servants who are believers and acknowledge Thy unity.’ When the friend of the merciful [i.e. Ebrahim] turned towards his son, and perceived that Jebrâil had untied his hands and feet, and had understood his prayer, he said: ‘My son, thou art strengthened by the help of God and seconded by divine grace.’ Then the following allocution reached them from above: ‘O Ebrahim! the most truthful of speakers, and Esma’il, the most patient of the patient, you have fully answered our expectations in that wherewith we have tried you and tempted you, and you have been patient in that wherewith we have afflicted you! We shall make you of high degree in the garden of A’den, and we have in both worlds bestowed upon you the tongue of truth; for we thus reward the righteous. O Ebrahim! thou among all beings art My friend; and O Esma’il! thou of all creatures art My pure one.’ Thereupon the august father and his excellent son thanked and praised their Almighty Nourisher.
We read in the history of Tabari that when the Friend of the Merciful One heard the verse, ‘O Ebrahim! indeed thou hast verified the dream,’ etc., he so trembled from awe of the Bestower of favours that the knife fell from his hands. Then Jebrâil, who held the sheep which he had brought from paradise by the ear, exclaimed: ‘Allah is the greatest!’ and Ebrahim, who had perceived that ram, said: ‘No God but Allah,’ and ‘Allah is the greatest.’ Then he said to his son: ‘Lift thy head, because God— w. n. b. e.—has delivered thee.’ The boy got up, saw Jebrâil with the ram, and said, ‘Allah is the greatest,’ and ‘Praise be to Allah.’
It is related in the ‘Manâhuj-uttâlebeen,’ wherein Sâduq Âl Muhammad says: When the Almighty—w. n. b. pr.— prohibited Ebrahim from sacrificing Esma’il, He said: ‘I have preserved him from the knife, because he is the bearer of the light of Muhammad, the seal of prophets.’154 On that occasion the Creator raised the veil [of futurity] and showed Ebrahim the high degrees and stations of his lordship the best of men [Muhammad], and of his family, saying: ‘These are the children of Esma’il.’ Ebrahim then beheld Husain, the son of A’li, and seeing the exalted dignity, asked: ‘O Lord, to whom of the family of Muhammad is this station due?’ The Almighty said: ‘This is Husain, the descendant of Esma’il, and the son of the daughter of the last of the prophets [i.e. Muhammad].’ Ebrahim continued: ‘O Lord, I love Husain more than Esma’il.’ The Omnipotent Lord—w. n. b. e.—rejoined: ‘We have received [the murder of] him as a ransom for Esma’il.’ According to the assertion of Sâduq, Husain was the great sacrifice and the ransom for Esma’il—may the bl. of Allah be on both of them—and not the ram. This has become a well-established tenet, since a sheep is by no means worthy to be called by the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—in His Holy Word ‘the great sacrifice’; and here the tradition from the ‘Manâhuj-uttâlebeen’ ends, which the author of this book has faithfully transcribed.
From the preceding narrative it is evident that the first individual who was engaged in founding and building the Ka’bah, was the Lord Adam the pure, after whose decease Sheth was occupied with the construction thereof, and the inhabitants of the world were in the habit of circumambulating it, and of performing the ceremonies of pilgrimage, as Adam had taught his children. When the epoch of Nûh’s deluge had drawn near, angels descended by the mandate of the Omniscient Sovereign, took up the black stone, and all the others which Adam and Nûh had brought from the mountains, and again took them into their own keeping.
According to another tradition, it is said that when the father of mankind had been expelled from the paradise of promise he had become extremely melancholy, and thus addressed the incomparable Sovereign: ‘My God! since I no longer hear the voices of the angels, I feel very sad and depressed.’ Then the divine reply arrived from the Lord of Lords: ‘O Adam, we have sent down a house from heaven to earth, which the inhabitants of the world will constantly visit, in the same manner as the various classes of angels circumambulate always the glorious throne. Now thou must proceed to the holy sanctuary, so that the closet of thy heart, being freed from sorrow, may obtain perfect familiarity with the sacred apartment.’
Distich: Unless thy heart be emptied of strangers,155
Thou wilt not see thy house filled with friends.
Adam accordingly proceeded to Mekkah, under the guidance of an angel, and as each step of his lordship consisted of fifty Farsakhs,156 he performed the journey in a very short time, attained his object, and beheld a house made of the rubies of paradise, having two doors of green emeralds, one of which faced the west and the other the east. The Lord of Glory also sent an angel to teach Adam the customs and ceremonies of the pilgrimage, after the completion of which angels appeared to him, saying: ‘O Adam, thy pilgrimage has been accepted by the forgiving Sovereign.’ According to some traditions, however, this house was raised to heaven during the deluge of [the time of] Nûh, and when the waters subsided, the place in which it had been looked red like talc, and the people who came from various regions of the world to that sacred spot offered prayers to the Supreme Donor of all good gifts, and were apprised of the responses to their requests. Thus the place remained until the time of Ebrahim, when the Omnipotent willed that the house should again be erected, and the honour of having performed this work was to belong to the family of Ebrahim. Jebrâil was commanded to accompany him from Syria to Mekkah, in order to build with his son Esma’il the edifice of the Ka’bah, and to invite the inhabitants of the world to go on pilgrimage to the house of Allah. When the desire of building the Ka’bah had become firmly established in his mind, he started with the greatest pleasure from Syria to Mekkah:
Distich: Love for the Ka’bah so excites my heart
That the thistles of the desert look like silk.
When he had completed his journey and arrived in the sacred locality, he perceived Esma’il sitting at the foot of a mountain engaged in cutting arrows, whereon the exalted father informed his excellent son of the mandate, and the latter cheerfully complied. There are various traditions current about the manner in which Ebrahim learnt how long and broad the house was to be, most of which are recorded in the ‘Rauzat-ullâhbâb,’ and the author of the present work has extracted that from it which concerns Ebrahim, namely, that Jebrâil had informed him concerning the position and qualities of this incomparable place, whereon he set about with his son Esma’il to build the house of the Ka’bah. Esma’il brought the earth and stones while Ebrahim was building. When the foundations had risen to some height from the soil, and Ebrahim was unable to reach the wall [without a scaffold], he found a stone upon which he stepped, and thus lifted the others up to the wall with ease; the marks of his blessed feet have become impressed upon it, and that stone is to this day called the ‘Place of Ebrahim.’ It is related that when the building had been raised to the height of the black stone, the angels, who had carried it off at the time of the deluge to the mountain Abuqbis, now brought it back, and Ebrahim fixed it in its proper place. It is narrated in histories that the black stone was milk-white when brought down from paradise, but had, from the touch of idolaters and sinners, gradually become black and dark like their hearts. Some have said that when the foundations of the house had risen to the spot of the black stone, Ebrahim said to Esma’il: ‘Bring me a good stone for a sign to men.’ He obeyed, but not meeting with his father’s approbation, went in search of another and better stone, when the allocution was heard from the direction of Mount Abuqbis: ‘O Ebrahim, thou hast a deposit with me; take it.’ Thereupon Ebrahim took the black stone and fixed it in its place. When Esma’il returned from looking for a stone, he perceived the said black stone, and asked his father who had brought it. His father replied: ‘He who has not left either thee or me without stones.’ When the edifice was completed, Ebrahim and Esma’il thanked and praised God, and after having finished their prayers, they said, ‘O God, we confess Thee to be the most wise, and the hearer of prayers.’ Jebrâil then descended, informed them of the acceptance of their prayers, taught them the ceremonies of the pilgrimage, as well as of the things to be done at A’rafat, such as the running, the throwing of stones, and the sacrifice, as they are practised also in our days.
After the father and the son had circumambulated the house of Allah and performed the ceremonies, Ebrahim appointed Esma’il to the government of the noble region and gave him instructions how to maintain it. When he was about to return to his native country, he ascended to the top of Mount A’rafat and looked towards Syria. He looked also at the country surrounding Mekkah, his blessed mind being occupied with thinking about Esma’il and his glorious descendants, whose future existence was revealed to him by his prophetic light. He considered how arid, stony, and sandy that district was, the very mountains appearing to his enlightened gaze to be barren, without water or grass. All this was different from Syria, with its pleasant trees, delicious fruits, good climate, excellent water, and population of numerous tribes of the sons of men. When the Lord Ebrahim had weighed all these circumstances he was greatly moved, and raising his hands in prayer to the mansion of omnipotence, he craved that Esma’il and his seed may enjoy affluence. When he had completed his devotions he betook himself to the sanctuary to make himself quite happy, and was again reminded by a heavenly allocution to invite the inhabitants of the world to visit the house, so that the honour of building it, as also that of inviting all mankind to it, should belong to him. Hereon Ebrahim also asked, ‘How far will my voice reach?’ and the allocution came, ‘Do thou invite, and I shall bring the invitation to pass.’ Ebrahim returned to his place, which became large and high like a mountain. He first turned his face towards Yemen, and exclaimed in a loud voice: ‘Allah—w. n. b. e.—has by his bounty and grace ordered me to build a house for you, and invites you to go on pilgrimage thereto, and to circumambulate it. Obey the command of Allah quickly, that your pilgrimage may be accepted, that your endeavours may be approved, and your transgressions forgiven.’ Then he turned towards the east, and to all the points of the horizon, repeating the same invitation, which was answered from every direction in the words, ‘We await your behests!’ and it was repeated on all sides. It is narrated after Ebn A’bbâs, that all who gave this reply, and even those who reposed as yet in the wombs of their mothers and in the loins of their fathers did, and will share in the blessings resulting from a pilgrimage to the Ka’bah; those, on the other hand, who will remain deprived and excluded from them are the persons who thought proper on that occasion to keep the seal of silence on their mouths, and did not speak. O Lord! cause us to go on pilgrimage to Thy house, and to that of Muhammad, u. w. b., etc.
When his lordship the Friend of the Merciful had ceased to call the inhabitants of the world to visit that holy country, he made Esma’il his successor in the noble city of Mekkah and returned to Syria. The next year, when the season of the pilgrimage had approached, Ebrahim, Sarah, and Esahâq came to the city of Mekkah, where they performed the visitation, circumambulation, and the ceremonies connected with them. On that occasion Esma’il acted as host and servant, and obliged Sarah so that she was highly pleased. Afterwards these three persons again returned to Syria with their followers, but Esahâq came every year to Mekkah at the time of the pilgrimage, renewing his covenant of amity with Esma’il, and after he had performed the ceremonies, again returned to wait upon his parents. When one hundred and twenty, but according to another tradition one hundred and thirty, years of Sarah’s life had elapsed, the bird of her victorious spirit soared to the rose-garden of the Most Holy One, and the ‘Field of Haran,’ which had become the property of Ebrahim, was distinguished by becoming the place of her sepulture.
RECORD OF SOME EVENTS IN EBRAHIM’S—U. W. B., ETC.—LIFE
AND OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF HIS DEATH.
Historians have related that after Sarah’s decease, Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.—married a Kana’anitish woman, by whom he begat six sons, and they in their turn became the fathers of a numerous progeny scattered over the whole world. None of the sons of the Friend of the Merciful were adorned with the dignity of prophecy except Esma’il and Esahâq. It is said—and the responsibility rests with the chroniclers—that in conformity with the will of the Eternal, the cattle and sheep of the refuge of amity had augmented to such a degree, that four thousand dogs were required to protect his sheep from wolves. On the termination of the one hundred and fiftieth year of his noble life the traces of old age began to manifest themselves, and his noble moustache became gray, which had happened to no man before him. On this account his lordship became very melancholy, and said: ‘O Lord, increase my dignity.’ It is related that his lordship prayed to the Creator of life and death not to cut the thread of his existence with the scissors of fate until he himself made the request. His petition was heard, and when the time of his decease had approached, and his departure had become necessary, the angel of death entered his noble assembly in the guise of a decrepit old man. Ebrahim placed food before him in the usual way, but, whilst eating, the hand of the angel trembled, and he sometimes threw the morsel which he had taken up behind his ear, sometimes he moved it to his nose, and sometimes to his mouth. Ebrahim then asked, ‘Old man, what art thou doing?’ The angel of death replied, ‘All this is on account of old age;’ and to Ebrahim’s inquiry concerning it he replied, ‘I think I am two years older than thyself.’ Whereon Ebrahim continued: ‘Verily the difference between thy age and mine may be no more than two years, after the expiration whereof my debility and weakness will be like unto thine.’ To this remark the angel of death assented, and Ebrahim, who became much depressed, replied: ‘My God! receive back the deposit of the life wherewith thou hast entrusted me; for it is of no use to me in connection with feebleness and decrepitude,’ and the angel of death having been ordered to take hold of his soul, conveyed it to the eternal world.
Some have related that when the Almighty—w. n. b. e. —had completed all the spiritual and physical blessings which He had conferred upon Ebrahim, and the exuberance of favours and virtues bestowed upon him had reached their termination, the grasper of souls was sent to him and commanded to take his pure spirit with his own consent, or else to return to his place. The angel of death made, according to the mandate he had received, his appearance in the assembly of Ebrahim, and explained his errand. Hereon Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.—asked for a little respite; engaged in the performance of a few religious and secular duties, attendance to which is considered indispensable by all intelligent persons; and lastly, he appointed Esahâq to be his successor in the country of Syria. When the time of the respite had expired, the destroyer of pleasures girded up his loins of service and executed his office of life-abandoner, or rather life-taker. In some histories it is related that when the angel of death had been ordered to snatch away the soul of Ebrahim, u. w. b., etc., and had visited him for the purpose, his lordship said: ‘O A’zrayil, didst thou ever see one friend command that the life of his friend be taken?’ Hereupon A’zrayil hastened to the celestial regions and reported the words of Ebrahim at the mansion of Omnipotence, from which he received the mandate to return the following reply to Ebrahim: ‘Hast thou ever seen a friend who is loath to meet and to see a friend?’ A’zrayil conveyed the message of his lord to Ebrahim, who now in his turn requested him immediately to carry out the orders he had received. The angel of death accordingly took hold of his pure spirit, and his amber-body was interred in the ‘Field of Haran’ by the side of Sarah; and Haran is in the country of Syria.
RECORD OF MISCELLANEOUS AFFAIRS, AND EXPLANATION OF THE LAWS AND CUSTOMS THAT WERE INSTITUTED ON EARTH BY EBRAHIM.
It is related that towards the end of the life of Ebrahim he prayed to the Almighty to show him how He resuscitated the dead. The divine allocution then arrived, asking him whether he believed this or not; to which he replied that he believed it, but that he wished to satisfy his heart. Thereupon he was commanded by the Eternal One to kill four birds of any species he liked, to cut them into pieces, to mix all the parts together, to divide them into four portions, to place each of them separately on the top of a mountain, and then to call them, when they would all come towards him.157 Ebrahim did as he was bid, and saw all the pieces ascending into the air, and at his will they became birds by the power of God, flew to the heads which his lordship held in his hand, and united with them. When Ebrahim beheld this miracle the exclamation reached him: ‘To-morrow I shall, through the voice of Esrafil, convoke the inhabitants of the world from the four quarters of the universe, and shall resuscitate them, as I have to-day resuscitated these four birds from the mountains;’ and ‘He is able to do what He likes.’ Some of the Sûfis, however, have explained the blessed verse that descended with reference to this miracle according to another tradition, the narrative of which, however, does not enter into the plan of this work.
It is said that one day Ebrahim went out for the purpose of looking out for a guest, because his laudable custom was not to eat without one. After searching much he found an old man, and brought him to the house. Finding, however, that he was of a different religion, he sent him away without giving him anything to eat. When the poor man had gone away a reproving allocution was addressed to Ebrahim from the palace of the Bestower of grace and favour: ‘O Ebrahim, this rebellious servant was, despite his disobedience and sinfulness, never excluded during his life from the banquet of benefits; but this day, when one meal was expected of thee, thou hast driven him away from thy house hungry and disappointed.’
Distich: I nourished him for a hundred years,
And thou art tired of him in one day.
Ebrahim was so touched by this admonition that he went with great haste in pursuit of the old man, whom he found at last, and brought him back to his house with many excuses; whereon the guest asked his host why he had first repelled and then recalled him. When Ebrahim had informed the old man about the whole matter he exclaimed: ‘Praised be Allah, who blames His friend for the sake of his enemy.’ Then the idolater repudiated his superstitions, made his profession of the orthodox religion, became one of the really saved, and a true believer, as Shekh Sa’di says:
Distich: How couldst thou exclude friends,
Who regardest even enemies?
Chroniclers have recorded that the book which was revealed to Ebrahim contained morality and philosophy. One of the sayings contained in it is as follows: ‘O powerful and arrogant king! I have not sent thee to accumulate riches, but I have sent thee to spare me the complaints of the oppressed; for I shall not reject them, even when they come from infidels.’ Therefore many philosophers have maintained it to be incumbent upon judges personally to investigate the affairs of the oppressed, on pain of incurring the highest displeasure [of God]. But as it is impossible to inquire personally into all transactions and cases, intelligent men who are endowed with good qualities and free from prohibited desires, who cannot be bribed by promises of dignity, money, or female beauty, nor biased by flattery, should be appointed to investigate and decide all cases with justice and equity. Faithful and trustworthy inquirers ought to be secretly despatched to all parts of the country for the purpose of bringing cases to the notice of their superiors, since it is quite possible that wronged and suffering poor persons may be hindered by various obstacles from putting forward their complaints; therefore many advantages are connected with the institution of informers, the details whereof would, however, only prolong this recital.
In the same book also the following maxims are laid down, namely: A wise man ought to be in his full senses when sitting in judgment; he ought to be acquainted with his own tongue, and know how to restrain it. A wise man, while he retains the full power of his intellect, must reserve four hours for as many special purposes: one hour he must keep for his Omnipotent Nourisher, one hour he is to devote to meditation on the works of the Inscrutable Creator, one to the secret examination of his own conscience, and the fourth hour he must spend in eating and drinking licit things. He must consider his words as a species of acts, and must speak as little as he possibly can. A prudent man ought to procure three things: (1) provisions for the journey to the next world; (2) provisions for the present world; and (3) licit pleasures.
It has been recorded above that the first man who had gray hairs in his moustache was Ebrahim, the reason of which was that the Inscrutable Omnipotent One, having bestowed Esahâq upon him in his old age, the Kana’anites used to say that it was very strange on the part of Ebrahim and Sarah to treat a stranger as their own son, and to bring him up as such. Therefore the Inscrutable Creator made Esahâq resemble Ebrahim perfectly, in order to remove the suspicions of the people. After his moustache had grown he could not be distinguished from his father; hence the wisdom of the Almighty considered it expedient to change the hairs of Ebrahim’s noble moustache to a white hue, that the people might be enabled to distinguish the father from the son. It is related that an individual addressed the lord of prophecy [i.e. Muhammad] by the title of ‘the best of created beings,’ but he replied that this was the epithet of Ebrahim. It is related in another tradition that the words, ‘We have a better right to doubt than Ebrahim,’ have been uttered in consequence of the words of God, w. n. b. e. When Ebrahim said, ‘Lord, show me how Thou makest alive the dead,’ He said, ‘Believest thou not?’ He said, ‘Yes; but to set my heart at ease.’158
EXTERNAL DESCRIPTION OF EBRAHIM; THE PLACE OF HIS BIRTH; THE MEANING OF HIS NAME; MENTION OF HIS TITLE AND SURNAME; HIS TRADE, AND THE LENGTH OF HIS MISSION.
His august complexion was white and red; he was full grown; his eyes were dark gray, and his breast was broad. Some say his birthplace was in the district of Sûs, which is in the region of Ahvâr; others say it was within the limits of Sakar; and, again, others aver that he was born in the country of Haran; but the most correct opinion is that he was born in the kingdom of Babel, in a place named Kûli. It is related that at his lordship’s birth twenty-seven years of Azar’s life had elapsed. It is also said that when his birth approached, his mother went away from that region, and gave birth to her infant in the bed of a large river which had become exsiccated, and having wrapped Ebrahim in swaddling-clothes, she left him there. When she returned from that place she informed his father of what had happened; whereon he went to the spot, and having arranged a subterraneous apartment near the river and closed it with a stone for fear of wild beasts, then, leaving an aperture for air, he deposited his son in it and went away. The mother of the child constantly visited the cave until the boy grew up. Vaqidi states that when Azar became aware of the pregnancy of Ebrahim’s mother he conveyed her to a place between Kufah and Bosrah called Varka, where they stayed, and Ebrahim was born, and did not return to his country until he was grown up. According to another tradition, his noble birth took place in a cavern. The most correct account is that which has been recorded above; but Allah is most wise!
The etymological meaning of the word ‘Ebrahim’ is contained in the words Ab râhum—‘compassionate father’; his surname is ‘the Friend of the Merciful’ and ‘the Friend of Allah’; his title is ‘the father of guests’ and ‘the father of prophets’; he is also called ‘the father of Muhammad.’
The Lord Muhammad the elect—u. w. b., etc.—says: Ebrahim was circumcised with a hatchet when he was eighty years old; the following tradition is, however, the reverse of the above opinion, which has been taken from various historians; but possibly they were not acquainted therewith: it is said by some that his lordship was even older at the time of his circumcision. Several scholars assert that Qadûm is the name of a place in Syria, others, again, say that Qadûm means a hatchet wherewith his lordship, the asylum of friendship, circumcised himself in his eightieth year, and this ordinance of that exalted prophet will subsist till the end of the world. Another of the customs which his lordship introduced is the wearing of trousers, since the revelation was addressed to him by the Almighty, w. n. b. e.: ‘Thou art the one of My people whom I love most; it is not fit that the ground should see thy hidden parts whilst thou art praying;’ accordingly Ebrahim made himself trousers. It is also generally known that the laws of hospitality have been invented by him, and he always ate his dinner and supper in the company of guests. In the blessed locality of his sepulture the convivial ordinances will subsist till the day of the resurrection, and the tongues of all bless and praise him, because in those primeval days he directed persons who wandered thirsty in the desert of exclusion to the fountain-head of knowledge. In the prime of his youth and in the strength of his manhood he determined to establish the worship of the Creator in the world, convinced disputants, and overcame conquerers. The Almighty—w. n. b. e.—absolves him in the blessed Qurân from the pretensions of the Jews and of the Christians, testifying to his sincerity and to his resignation to the will of Allah.159 At the age of thirty or of twenty-seven years, he invited Nimrud and his followers to the orthodox religion, and was thrown into the fire. He was the first who chose flight for the sake of the religion of the Lord and Benefactor, and is the first individual who will in paradise be invested with ornaments. He is the Emâm of mankind according to the word of God, w. n. b. e.: ‘I have appointed thee to be an Emâm [i.e. leader] of men.’160 Ebrahim established the custom of fighting with swords, of dividing booty, of cutting the hair of the lip, picking the teeth, gargling the throat, pulling out the hair of the armpits, shaving the hair of the pudenda, cutting nails, purification by water, inviting guests, feeding the poor, finding and obtaining inherited property, etc. The chief of created beings [i.e. Muhammad]—upon whom be the most excellent blessings—has, notwithstanding his perfect nobleness of mind and high dignity, been commanded to follow him, in the verse: ‘Follow then the orthodox religion of Ebrahim.’161 The perfections of his lordship the Friend of the Merciful were numerous, and his customs and habits many; but to this day each of his good acts has become an ordinance practised and believed by those who profess the religion of Muhammad, u. w. b., etc., and the musk-dropping reed, having been unable to enumerate all his laudable qualities, here closes their abridged recital.
Having always been engaged in agriculture, his occupation may be said to have been farming. He also made strenuous efforts to build towns, and to colonize districts, many of which attained a flourishing condition during the lifetime of his lordship and of his pure descendants. The learned say that the duration of his blessed life was one hundred and seventy-five years. Qitby says he lived two hundred years, but Masu’di states, in his ‘Akhbâr-uz-zamân,’ that his life amounted to one hundred and ninety-five years. Muhammad Bin Fahr-ud-din Banagiti gives him one hundred and twenty-three, and others one hundred and twenty-nine years, but the most current tradition is that of Emâm Masu’di. It is recorded in the ‘Rauzat-ullâhbâb’ that he expired suddenly. It is stated in the ‘Jâmi’ Aa’zim’ that he departed from this painful and contemptible abode to the blessed mansions of paradise on a Friday, the 9th of Muharram, after having kept to his bed twenty days. May the benediction of Allah be upon him, as well as upon all the prophets and messengers of divine tidings.
RECORD OF ESMA’IL, U. W. B., ETC.; WITH AN EXPLANATION
OF HIS AFFAIRS AND OF HIS MISSION.
As has already been said, his blessed birth took place in Syria, but he was in his infancy exiled to Mekkah, where he grew up and attained maturity. He learned equitation and archery in the tribe of Jorham that lived in the vicinity; he had been presented by this tribe with seven sheep, which increased by the favour of the Lord and sender of blessings to such numbers that the calculators of the world were unable to find out their amount. Masu’di relates in the ‘Akhbâr-uz-zamân’ that the first people who were inclined to associate with Esma’il and came to the Zemzem well, were the tribe of A’mâlek, after whom the Jorhamites arrived from the country of Yemen, and established themselves in Mekkah. As the story of Esma’il’s marriage and of Ebrahim’s coming to visit him has been related above, it need not be repeated in this place; but as the recital has also been narrated in a more eloquent manner, and is now before the author, unfolded in a trustworthy chronicle, it has strong claims to a place in this work; accordingly, the double-tongued reed proceeds to jot it down, and says that after the completion of the house of God, and Ebrahim’s return, Esma’il became very rich in cattle and sheep, the people agreed with each other and gave him A’mra, the daughter of Aa’d Bin Asama of the tribe of A’mâlek, for a wife. Some time after Ebrahim had separated from Esma’il he again wished to see him, and, mounting Borâq, sped to the sanctuary, but before leaving Syria his wife Sarah had, on account of the great jealousy to which she was subject, requested her husband not to alight in Esma’il’s house. He agreed, and after taking leave of her and performing the journey, he reached the noble city of Mekkah, arrived at the door of Esma’il’s habitation; but not finding his son at home, he saw a female coming out of the house, who proved, on inquiry, to be Esma’il’s spouse, and to the question how they fared, A’mra replied: ‘As God willeth,’ without adding an epithet of gratitude to the name of the universal Benefactor. After that Ebrahim asked where Esma’il was, but she replied: ‘What asketh thou about a man who is not in the house?’ and to the question when her husband would return, A’mra rejoined that she knew not. To all his inquiries she returned proud answers, and never asked Ebrahim to alight, nor did she make use of any civilities. Therefore Ebrahim said to her: ‘When thy husband returns, give him my salutation, and say: Thy father advises thee to change thy threshold.’ A’mra complied. And when Esma’il arrived at home, some time after his father’s departure, he smelt the odour of his presence, and saw the marks of the hoofs of Borâq; he asked his spouse whether anyone had been there in his absence, and she informed him that an aged man, looking so-and-so, had come to the house, and she told him the message he had entrusted her with. Esma’il then said that this was his own father, and added: ‘As he was not pleased with thee, he advised me to divorce thee.’ Accordingly, Esma’il separated himself from her, and married Saida, the daughter of Masâs Bin O’mar the Jorhamite. When Ebrahim came the next time to Mekkah, he hastened to pay a visit to his son, but the latter happened to be engaged in the chase as on the former occasion, and on meeting his wife, Ebrahim accosted her with the question: ‘Who art thou?’ She replied: ‘I am the daughter of Masâs Bin O’mar, and the wife of Esma’il.’ Ebrahim further asked, ‘How do you do?’ She continued: ‘Praise be to Allah, we spend our life in comfort and happiness.’ Ebrahim asked, ‘What kind of a man is thy husband?’ She continued: ‘The best of consorts.’ After this Saida requested Ebrahim to alight to enable her to perform the duties of hospitality; but on his reply that he had no power to do so, she said that, as his hair was entangled, he should kindly allow her to wash it and to anoint it. Ebrahim agreed, whereon Saida placed a stone under his right foot, but kept the other in his stirrup till she had washed one half of his hair, then Saida moved the stone to the other side to enable him to place his left foot on it until she had washed the other side of his blessed head; the mark, however, of his blessed foot remained impressed on the stone. Some commentators assert that the said spot is the Place of Ebrahim.162 When Saida had finished washing Ebrahim’s head, she put some cheese on a dish and held it with both her hands until he had, mounted as he was, consumed the cheese. Then he told Saida to inform her husband on his return that Ebrahim had said: ‘The threshold of thy house is good, and fail not to keep it.’ When the Friend of the Merciful was about to return, he asked Saida whether they had any bread in the house, but she replied that she knew not what bread was, and to the question whether she had any fruit or dates she gave the same reply. Then Ebrahim began to weep, and said: ‘O Lord, I have caused my seed to dwell in an uncultivated country, near Thy holy house,’ as far as the words ‘and give them fruits.’163 It is said that there was no necessity to mark the place, because the words ‘near Thy holy house’ point it out sufficiently. Ebrahim had uttered the above words by way of helplessness, after he had finished building the Ka’bah, as appears from the context of the recital.
In short, after Ebrahim had returned to Syria, Esma’il arrived at night in his house, and smelt the odour of his beloved father as well as of Borâq. He asked his wife whether anyone had come to the house during the day, and she said: ‘Yes, an old man has honoured it with his presence, the like of which in nobility I have never seen before; he possessed the dignity of kings, the aspect of the pious and the light of the prophets. Look at the marks of his feet which have remained on this stone.’ Hereon Esma’il assembled his children, and said, ‘This is the place of your father;’ all his followers likewise wept, and kissed that stone with the greatest reverence.
Historians have recorded that by the blessing of Ebrahim’s prayer the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—commanded Jebrâil and Mikâil to take up the localities of Tayif and of Ramlah, and to set them down near Mekkah, to enable the children of Esma’il to live in comfort and abundance, because in those two places victuals and fruits are very plentiful. Allah—w. n. b. e.—has said: ‘Remember Esma’il in the book, for he was a righteous man, who kept his promise; a messenger [i.e. apostle] and a prophet.’164 Kalbi, who is one of the most trustworthy expounders, has said that Esma’il was so true to his promises, that on a certain occasion when he had said that he would stop in a certain place to wait for the arrival of a man, the latter had forgotten it and never went there until a whole year elapsed, when he found Esma’il still present in the locality. Some say that Esma’il had waited for him three days, when he at last made his appearance; the best words, however, are nearest to the truth, and Allah is most wise!
It is related that after the decease of his father Esma’il went to Syria, for the purpose of visiting the tomb of his parent; he also took possession of his inheritance, and was likewise honoured with the dignity of a prophet. The Almighty—w. n. b. e.—sent him to convert a community of Pharaonites who had emigrated from Egypt and were settled in the country of Yemen. Esma’il went among them, and was inviting that sinful and rebellious tribe during a long series of years to accept the orthodox religion of Ebrahim, but those obstinate wretches refused to partake of the greatest felicity, and having remained wandering in the desert of deception and perdition, they never reached the fountain-head of guidance and favour.
It is said that Esma’il had twelve sons, the oldest of whom was called Thâbut; and of all his children only the last mentioned and Qidâr continued to dwell around the sanctuary; the remainder dispersed all over Arabia, where they settled and begat a numerous progeny, who conquered their antagonists wherever they met them. It is related that when old age and debility had overtaken Esma’il, he appointed Qidâr to be his successor, and was a short time afterwards taken up from this dreary abode of our world, into the gardens of the paradise of promise.
HIS PERSONAL DESCRIPTION, TRADE, SURNAME, TITLES,
MIRACLES, AND LENGTH OF MISSION.
He greatly resembled his father Ebrahim, u. w. b., etc., was faithful, always keeping his promises, and very patient. He was an arrow-maker and good archer. It is related that one day the prophet of God—u. w. b., etc.—fell in with a company of the Beni Aslam who were at that time engaged in shooting arrows; on that occasion his lordship said: ‘Shoot, ye sons of Esma’il; for your father Esma’il was a good archer.’ He was also very fond of hunting. He is surnamed ‘the father of the Arabs,’ and his title is Aghrâq utthara, concerning the explanation whereof the author of these pages is dumb, for want of a knowledge of its meaning.
He worked numerous miracles, one of which was that a sheep, having had dry nipples for many years, was brought to his lordship, who rubbed his hand with a benediction upon them, whereon the milk began to flow abundantly. Another miracle was that on a certain occasion a guest came to his house, but there was no food, and he put a little of Zemzem water into a vessel, covered its top, and prayed over it, whereon several kinds of food issued from the said vessel, whereby the faith in his prophetship was increased.
His life lasted according to some traditions one hundred and thirty years, but according to the most current one he lived one hundred and thirty-seven years, during ninety of which he was contemporaneous with his father. The duration of his mission amounted to about forty-seven, and according to others to fifty, years. His mission began, according to the most correct tradition, before the decease of Ebrahim; this, however, is contrary to the words of Tabari; but Allah is most wise! His blessed sepulchre is in the Hijar,165 near the tomb of Hâjar; but some say that it is between the Rakan [buttress] and the Mukâm [Place of Abraham].
RECORD OF THE ORIGIN OF IDOLATRY AMONG THE CHILDREN
OF ESMA’IL, U. W. B., ETC.
There are books full of accounts about the increase of the descendants of Esma’il, in course of time to such an extent that the city of Mekkah could no longer contain them. Consequently some of them left the sanctuary for the purpose of settling in various parts of Arabia, and every individual who intended to depart took one stone from the sanctuary, deposited it in a clean place wherever he settled, and circumambulated it as he would have done in a pilgrimage in the house of Allah. This custom was practised to such a degree that at last the people took up any stone which appeared to be handsome, placed it in a proper spot, visited and circumambulated it. At last the book of Ebrahim fell into oblivion among them, and they, having been misled and seduced by Satan, began to worship statues, imagining idolatry to be a very laudable religion. Despite of this abominable custom, they acted in some instances according to the law of Ebrahim, performed the ceremonies of the pilgrimage in the usual way, and considered it necessary and incumbent upon themselves to magnify the sanctuary of the Lord, and to honour the house of the Ka’bah.
Some people are of opinion that idolatry originated in the following manner: There was a man called Asâf, and a woman whose name was Nâila, both belonging to the tribe of Jorham. On a certain occasion both were overpowered by lust, and committed adultery with each other in the very house of the Ka’bah, but the mighty Lord and powerful Avenger instantly changed them into a stone whilst in the very act. Then the inhabitants of Mekkah bore the two bodies of stone out of the Ka’bah, and, as a warning to the people, they erected the body of Asâf on the top of mount Safâ, and that of Nâila at Marva. In course of time the descendants of the Lord Esma’il abandoned the religion of Ebrahim, and began to worship the two statues. The first man who altered the orthodox faith of the Friend of the Merciful, and invited the people to worship Asâf and Nâila, was A’mru Bin Lahi Khozaa’i; it is recorded in some books that he brought a statue of Hobal from Syria, erected it on a mountain near Mekkah, and advised the inhabitants to adore it. The record of Hobal, which was the chief idol of the Qoraish, will—if it pleaseth Allah—be inserted in the second section of this work. After A’mru had introduced his abominations, idolatry became current among the Arabs, so that the tribe Zu-A’ineen worshipped Manah,166 whose statue they placed in a house near the seashore. This idol was also worshipped by the tribe Ansâr during the time of ignorance [i.e. before Muhammad]. For U’zza, which was one of the principal idols, they built a house at Nakhlah; the Beni Khozaa’ and the Qoraish went on pilgrimages to it in the same way as to the Ka’bah, to obtain worldly and eternal grandeur. The Thaqeef, who were of the noblest among the Arabs, also girded their loins of obedience to Lât,167 which idol they considered to be the means for attaining their desires, and idolatry flourished among the Arabs until the propitious standard of Muhammad was raised.
RECORD OF THE MISSION OF ESAHÂQ, THE SON OF EBRAHIM:
PEACE BE UPON BOTH OF THEM.
It has been related that when Ebrahim—u. w. b., etc.— settled in Filisteen, he sent Esahâq to the land of Kana’an. Esahâq obtained his mission during his father’s lifetime, engaged in directing and guiding the people, married Rufqah [Rebecca], the daughter of his uncle, who gave birth to twins, namely: A’is [Esau] and Ya’qûb, the latter being called by this name because, when A’is was born, Ya’qûb was found to have laid hold of A’is’s heel [a’qub].168 Both these sons were growing up in the bosom of the instruction of their parents, but the favourite of Esahâq was A’is, and that of Rufqah was Ya’qûb. Esahâq became in his old age afflicted with weak eyes, and was unable to distinguish external objects. One day he told his son A’is, who was very fond of hunting, that he desired to have some game, and that A’is ought to kill, roast, and bring him some, whereon he would beseech the Almighty to confer upon him some blessings and felicity. A’is then took his bow and arrows, and hastened to the desert and mountain. Rufqah, being aware of what was taking place, called Ya’qûb, because she loved him greatly, and said: ‘Esahâq has spoken to thy brother thus and thus, therefore thou must immediately take a kid which we have been feeding for some time, kill it, roast it, and place it before Ebrahim.’ A’is being very hirsute, Rufqah instructed her favourite son to put the goatskin on his arm, so that when conversing with his father he might, by imitating the voice of A’is, be mistaken for him. He obeyed his beloved mother, and waited on his father with the roasted kid. After placing his hand on Ya’qûb’s arm and hearing him speak, Esahâq said: ‘It is strange that, touching the arm of A’is, I hear the voice of Ya’qûb.’ Thereon Esahâq ate the roast kid, was much pleased therewith, and exclaimed: ‘May Allah bless thy children, and grant them prophecy and the book!’ Historians inform us that seventy thousand individuals of the seed of Ya’qûb were honoured by the noble dignity of prophecy. When A’is had returned from the chase, and had prepared food from his game, he brought it to his father, saying: ‘I have brought thee what thou hast asked for.’ Thereon Esahâq became aware that a trick had been played upon him, and said to A’is: ‘The consequence of my prayer will benefit Ya’qûb and his descendants; now, however, I beseech the Lord and Granter of requests greatly to increase thy seed, and to produce therefrom mighty potentates and great sovereigns, and one of thy offspring will beget a very patient prophet.’ This last promise has been recorded by the traditions of those who consider Ayûb [Job] to have been a descendant of A’is.
After the just-mentioned event the flames of envy and rancour blazed up in the breast of A’is. Therefore he invited one day Ya’qûb to his house for dinner. The latter consented, and after the repast had been finished A’is presented Ya’qûb with horses, camels, sheep, etc.; but when they took leave of each other and embraced, he bit his throat, intending to kill him. The omnipotent Lord of Glory, however, softened the teeth of A’is, so that they became like wax, and when the latter perceived the futility of his efforts he exclaimed: ‘I ask pardon from God, and repent of [the sins] which I committed against Him.’ He also said: ‘O brother, now I know that the blessing, in which thou hast forestalled me, was given by the permission of God, w. n. b. e. Return now, under the guardianship and peace of God, for the advantages of the blessing are thine.’ Ya’qûb accordingly returned safe and sound to his habitation. But that which has been recorded in the histories of Tabari and of Hâfez Abru and others concerning Ya’qûb’s visit to his maternal uncle, and his meeting his brother A’is after the return of the latter and departure to the country of Rûm,169, shall be narrated according to the above-named authorities in the story of Ya’qûb. After Esahâq had been a prophet for many years, he was attacked by a malady that lasted but a few days, whereon he responded to the call of the Almighty, and being received into the propinquity of the mercy of the Lord of Glory, he exchanged this abode of darkness for the mansion of life.
HIS PERSONAL DESCRIPTION, MIRACLES, AND TOMB.
He was of a full stature, had black eyes, and the hue of his blessed countenance inclined to a green colour. He was prayerful, pious, kind, and merciful. He performed numerous miracles, one of which was that he placed his blessed hand upon the back of a sheep and pronounced a benediction, whereon, by the power of the Omnipotent—w. n. b. e.— seventy sheep were born from that one ewe. The duration of his life amounted to one hundred and eighty years according to one tradition, and to one hundred and sixty according to another. It is also said that he lived one hundred and twenty years. The first statement, however, is the most correct. When he departed this life A’is performed the funeral rites, and buried his blessed body in the place at present known by the name of ‘Qasat Halil,’ near the sepulchre of both his parents.
STORY OF YA’QÛB [JACOB], THE ESRÂIL OF GOD, W. N. B. E.
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.170 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.171 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.’172 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.173 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 one174. 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.
RECORD OF THE STORY OF YUSUF [JOSEPH] THE VERACIOUS.
SALUTATION TO OUR PROPHET AND TO HIM.
God—w. n. b. e.—has said: ‘Verily in Yusuf and his brethren there are signs to those who ask.’175 The story of Yusuf is a wonderful narrative and a strange tradition. Its beginning is affection and love, its middle desire and longing, its end chastity, mercy and pardon; every one of its words is based on moral axioms, and every chapter contains an application of them. As the learned and the excellent of ancient and of modern times, according to the various sources from which they drew their information, and, according to their respective abilities, have derived high enjoyment from this recital, and have gathered fruits from this tree, due notice of them has been taken, and reference to their writings has been made in the elaboration of the present narrative; and this poor, unskilled, and inexperienced individual [i.e. the author] having followed the attendants of the excellent and the company of the eloquent, considers himself, according to the proverb, that ‘he who resembles people, is one of them’ to belong to their number; he has appealed to their pure spirits to aid his aspirations, and having selected their ways and followed their laws, he proceeds according to the suggestions of his mind, and, by the assistance of his natural abilities, to begin the recital of this exquisite story and sublime narrative, hoping and expecting it to meet with the approbation and praise which, as must be confessed without dissimulation, are the Qiblah of authors, to which the aspirations of the eloquent are directed, although this is not meritorious in the sight of Allah.
RECORD OF YUSUF’S DREAM AND BEGINNING OF HIS
AFFAIRS.
His lordship, Yusuf the veracious, was assuredly and most certainly one of the great seers, and the greatest of perfect prophets. The genealogy of his father is derived from the nursery of the friend [i.e. Ebrahim], and his precious gem originated from the mine of Esrâil [meaning that Joseph was the son of Jacob].
It is related that the Most High—w. n. b. e.—divided beauty into ten parts, one of which fell to the lot of all the inhabitants of the world, and the nine others constituted the light of the pulchritude, and the robe of perfection of Yusuf. Astronomers say—and upon them the responsibility rests—that the propitious horoscope of his lordship was Cancer, the sun was in the ascendant, Mercury in the second, Saturn and the moon in the ninth, Mars in the eleventh, Jupiter and Venus in the twelfth [degree or mansion?]; wherefore he became incomparably beautiful and pleasing. The learned differ about his blessed name, many of them asserting that it is foreign [i.e. not Arabic]; a few others again say that it is Arabic, and derived from ‘asuf,’ which means grief - stricken, and also a slave. Maybe Yusuf was called by this name because he bore the yoke of servitude and tasted the venom of grief; the author of this work, however, says, that although the name Yusuf may also be derived from ‘asif,’ it is not necessarily an Arabic word, as some assert, since Arabic scholars consider Nûh to be a foreign word, although derived from ‘nûha,’ which is Arabic; but Allah—w. n. b. e.—knows best.
The details of Yusuf’s affairs begin as follows: He was one night sleeping by the side of Ya’qûb’s couch, and the flower of his beauty was reposing in the rose-grove of his father’s proximity, when he suddenly awoke, trembled like a rose-leaf which the zephyr shakes, and quaked like a drop of quicksilver parched by the sun. Ya’qûb perceived this, and said: ‘My son, what is the matter? and what has happened to thee?’ Yusuf replied: ‘I have just dreamt a dream, the calamitous forebodings of which have frightened me: I beheld myself on the top of a high mountain, around which there were many rivulets, abundant verdure, numerous trees, countless flowers, such as various kinds of anemones, jessamines, and fragrant plants; and I beheld in my dream the sun, moon, and eleven stars suddenly descending from the heavens and worshipping me.’176 Yaqûb knew that the lofty mountain was the similitude of the seat of Yusuf’s heaven-embracing prosperity which he would one day attain; the limpid brooks were the waters of his good fortune meandering into the river of his dignity; the pleasant gardens were the meadows of his felicity, from which the roses of his desires would blossom every moment, when the throne of sempiternal happiness would be adorned by the presence of his beloved son, when the eleven tribes of Esrâil, prefigured by the eleven stars who are the luminaries of the heaven of glory, and of the spheres of prophecy, would lay down the foreheads of their submission before him upon the ground, and the sun and moon as representatives of two exalted individuals, who are a noble couple, will agree with the eleven tribes [in their submission]. Ya’qûb was, nevertheless, apprehensive of the accidents of time and of the adversities that might befall Yusuf during the lapse of months and years. He prohibited him from revealing the dream to his brothers, because he knew that if they became aware of what was in store for him in the womb of futurity, they would, at the instigation of Satan, machinate evil against him. The Most Glorious has said: ‘My son, divulge not thy vision to thy brethren, lest they plot a plot against thee; for Satan is an evident enemy to man.’177 After he had given this advice to his son, he consoled him, saying: ‘My son, the boundless Giver will soon invest thee with the ennobling robe of His choice, will make thee a confidant of His mysteries, will plentifully shower His favours upon thee and thy family, and will promote thee to the high station of thy fathers and ancestors.’ The brethren of Yusuf, nevertheless, became sometime afterwards aware of his dream; their envy augmented and the flames of their malevolence were kindled against him. They all congregated near Rubil, who was the most distinguished among them on account of the correctness of his judgment, and informed him that the son of Rahil had dreamt a strange dream, in consequence whereof he had averted their father’s affection from themselves. Rubil was astonished at their recital, and said: ‘I consider not his face as the face of a liar. As the indications of prosperity have appeared upon the forehead of his circumstances, what wonder is there that the plant of his felicity is beginning to grow by the river-side of his hopes, and that the crescent of his beauty is becoming a full moon in the firmament of [impending] magnificence?’ On account of this reply of Rubil, and of Yusuf’s dream, most of his brethren were so astonished and disconcerted that they remained sleepless both night and day. After the expiration of one year he again dreamt a dream, in which he perceived water dripping from the tips of his august fingers, ascending into the skies and coming down upon the heads of his brethren in the form of rain. When he told this to his father, Ya’qûb knew that this was a metaphor of a time of dearth, during which the five-branched sea of the hands of Yusuf’s beneficence would water the thirsty meadows of the hopes of his brothers with the floods of his benefits and obligations; but keeping the interpretation of this dream in abeyance, he enjoined his son to keep it likewise secret. When, nevertheless, the brothers of Yusuf had become aware also of this second dream, and perceived the increase of affection between the father and the son; their feelings of envy prevailed, and they harboured evil designs against him.
It is recorded in several histories that when Rahil departed this life, whilst giving birth to Ebn Yamin, Yusuf was two years old. Ya’qûb had a sister, to whom the care and rearing of Yusuf was transferred, and as he was the handsomest, not only of the sons of Ya’qûb, but of all the inhabitants of the world, his father loved him so much, that he could not bear to be separated from him one moment; therefore, the sister was requested to surrender the child. But, as she loved Yusuf more than her brother Ya’qûb, she tried to retain him for some time, by making use of various subterfuges; when, however, at last, these became of no avail, and the importunities of Ya’qûb had passed all bounds, she invented a stratagem, by which she attained her object: Esahâq had inherited a belt from Ebrahim, which had lapsed in course of time to Ya’qûb’s sister. With the said belt that intelligent woman girded Yusuf under his clothes when she surrendered him to his father, in consequence whereof, her nephew became very uneasy. She also informed Ya’qûb of the loss of the belt, which could nowhere be found, until it was at last discovered on the naked body of Yusuf the veracious. Therefore she did not allow Ya’qûb to take the august child away, since, according to the orthodox religion of Ebrahim, it was optional with the owner of the property to retain the thief in his service during the space of one year; and according to another tradition, the thief could not be liberated from the fetters of servitude as long as the owner of the stolen property was alive. When the aunt of Yusuf surrendered the deposit of life to the grasper of souls, Ya’qûb cherished him so that he was envied by his brothers, since he had given him the cane which Ebrahim had received from paradise along with the belt and robe which the Bestower of all good gifts had, from the treasury of excellence, presented to Esahâq. Another reason of their ill-will was that, on a certain occasion, when Yusuf awoke from his sleep, he told his sister that he had had a strange dream, and on her inquiry, he replied: ‘I dreamt that I was gathering wood with my brothers, and each of us put his faggots in a separate heap. I perceived that the heaps of my brothers were black, but mine was white; at the same time also I saw that their heaps worshipped mine. A man also arrived there, whose head, so to say, touched the sky, and his feet the earth; he held a balance in his hand, saluted and complimented me, weighed the portions of all my brothers in one, and my wood in the other scale, but found the latter to preponderate; whereupon my brothers adored me.’ When Ya’qûb had heard this dream, he knew the interpretation thereof, and became exceedingly sad on account of the cunning and treachery of Yusuf’s brothers. Another reason for their envy was, that one year after this vision, Yusuf again had a dream, in which a voice said to him: ‘Arise, and fix thy staff in the ground;’ and after having done so, he beheld his brothers likewise sticking their staffs into the earth around his staff, whereon Yusuf beheld his staff growing skyward and budding forth branches, which were so bright that they illuminated the interval between the East and the West; then fruits rained from these branches of the tree upon the heads of Yusuf’s brothers, which they were eating whilst they worshipped him. When Yusuf awoke, he saw his father and brothers sitting around him; he then revealed his dream, which greatly pained his father, because he knew that his brothers were conscious of its meaning, and feared that from excess of envy they might injure him. Some time after this he again dreamt, during the night of a Friday; and this dream —which ripened the evil intentions of his brothers unto maturity—is contained in the following verse of the glorious Qurân: ‘I saw eleven stars, and the sun and the moon. I saw them make obeisance unto me.’178 The meaning of it has been already recorded above. In short, when the brothers heard of all these visions, and beheld the augmentation of intimacy between Yusuf and his honourable father, they fell a prey to envy and hatred, strained their whole minds how to injure him, and after they had determined to throw him into the well of misery, they fancied that this act would become the cause of the increase of their own importance and dignity. They accordingly requested Ya’qûb to allow them to take Yusuf along with themselves for the purpose of seeing the desert; Ya’qûb, however, refused their demand, and placed the hand of denial upon the breast of the request of his sons. It is said that the cause of Ya’qûb’s not complying was, that he had one night dreamt that the earth was weeping; therefore he drew Yusuf to his own side, saying: ‘O, noblest of the oppressed! Come to my side, because thine own family has injured thee;’ whereupon the earth swallowed him, and Yusuf disappeared.
After the design of the sons of Ya’qub had been impeded and frustrated, they left their father sad and depressed, but going aside, they attempted to concoct a new plan. On this occasion the deceitful Eblis made his appearance among them in the guise of an old man, asked them for the cause of their sorrow, and endeavoured to show himself a faithful adviser. The brothers said to him: ‘Old man, it is a long time since we were at a loss what to do, and we spend our lives in misery and sadness. Our intention is to remove our youngest brother from the sight of his father, so that in his absence we may, for a season, follow our own pleasure. The wish cherished by us of taking Yusuf to the desert, and of inventing a stratagem concerning him, has been nullified by our father’s refusal.’ Satan replied: ‘Bide your time, and reiterate your demand at the proper moment; when the spring arrives, with the season of roses and of pleasure, then make your brother first anxious to roam and to wander about. Play and gambol in his presence, so that he may himself request his father, and your intention will certainly be gratified.’ The brothers of Yusuf approved of this plan, and after duly thanking the old man, the assembly dispersed. They took hold of the skirts of patience, and waited until the sovereign of luminaries [i.e. the sun] walked into the house of his culmination. Then they paid a visit to Yusuf, and began the conversation with words like the following:
| Verses: | Come to the garden, for it is pleasant like the face of a belle. Spring has pitched its tent outside, for it is time to encamp. Now as in the meadow the tulip rises from the ground, It is incumbent upon him who is of this world To live merrily in this brief life during the season of flowers, For this is thy purpose, and life is short. Laugh at the times, as the cloud wept, For roses smile because the dawn weeps. |
‘Now, Yusuf, comply with the wishes of thy brothers, and play in the fields instead of pining in the prison-house of thy father. This is a time for pleasure and sight-seeing in the world. Peace of mind and consolation of the heart are attained by looking at flowers, and contemplating the vernal season.’ They cajoled him so long with enticing invitations, that Yusuf’s inclinations were biased to visit the desert and to behold its plants and flowers. Some philosophers have likewise said: ‘Who is not touched by the spring and by flowers, by music and its harmonious accents, has corrupted humours and needs medicine.’ When Yusuf had assented to the wishes of his brothers, all of them went to Ya’qûb to ask for permission, saying: ‘O excellent father, allow Yusuf to enjoy himself according to the prosperity of his august destiny, to accompany us to the desert, and to spend this day with us in the arena of pleasure, to pasture the sheep for an hour, to race the horses for awhile, to pass some time in eating, to amuse himself with sports; and we shall take good care of him.’ When they had thus again brought their desire to the notice of Ya’qûb he replied: ‘I am now so attached to this child, that if you take him away I do not know what effect the inroad of grief and melancholy will make upon my weak and faint heart. I moreover fear lest a wolf devour him without your knowledge.’ Some expounders state, that before the long night of separation had begun, Ya’qûb had a dream in which he beheld himself sitting on the top of a mountain, and Yusuf walking at the foot of it, when all at once several wolves made their appearance from various quarters with the intention of destroying him; but when Ya’qûb hastened down from the mountain to deliver his son, he perceived that the ground had opened and swallowed Yusuf. After the sons had listened to the excuse of their kind father, they said: ‘Excellent parent, how could a wolf attempt to display any boldness in the recess of the sanctuary, and how could a dog venture to attack ten men, strong like elephants, valiant like lions, and furious like tigers?’
206RECORD OF YUSUF’S REQUEST AND HIS FATHER’S COMPLIANCE THEREWITH. HIS DEPARTURE WITH HIS BRETHREN, AND THEIR THROWING HIM INTO THE WELL, AND NARRATIVE OF SOME EVENTS WHICH HAPPENED AFTER THAT DREADFUL INCIDENT.
Whilst the conversation between Ya’qûb and the [future] fathers of the tribes was being protracted to extreme lengths, Yusuf entered his father’s assembly, and after uniting his prayers to those of his brothers, and promising to return speedily, Ya’qûb still desired to refuse him, but Yusuf began suddenly to weep and to be much distressed; thereon his father’s heart was so touched that he consented to let him go, on condition that his brothers would return in his company; so that Ya’qûb made his sons happy by complying with their desires. They left their father, and returned to their houses so full of joy that they were the whole night counting the stars with their eyes, until the sun rose, and the moon set in the deep well of the West. When the herald of morning invited them to separate, the sons of Ya’qûb hastened to wait upon him, and assured him that they would keep the promise exacted from them. The old man called Yusuf, contemplated his august person for awhile, and wept for an hour on account of the approaching separation from his fortune-boding physiognomy, and after having expended the sorrow of his mind upon his symmetrical stature, he dressed him in a robe of white wool, placed the turban of the prophet Esahâq on his head, with the cloak of Sheth on his back, gave him the sandals of Adam the pure, and the staff of Nûh the confident. Thus he surrendered him to his brothers, and escorted him for awhile.
It is said that near the gate of the town there was a high tree under which friends were in the habit of taking leave of each other. When Ya’qûb had reached this spot with his sons, he halted, took Yusuf into his arms, and bidding him farewell in a very touching manner, he said to Yahuda: ‘I entrust Yusuf to thy care, hoping that thou wilt guard him and not fail to watch over him.’ The cause of the subsequent separation of Ya’qûb from Yusuf during many years was, because he had recommended his son to another than the Sovereign Guardian, in accordance with the traditions, in which we read that God—w. n. b. e. —sent a revelation to Ya’qûb, of the following purport: ‘Knowest thou why I have separated thee from Yusuf?’ He said: ‘No, my Lord.’ God—w. n. b. e.—continued: ‘Because thou hast feared the wolf, and hast not feared Me; hast looked at the heedlessness of Yusuf’s brothers, and hast not considered the prayers due to Me, and hast selected another, instead of Me, to guard him.’
After Ya’qûb had recommended his darling son to Yahuda, he turned to Yusuf and said: ‘My son, listen to my injunctions, for we may be separated longer than thou expectest. Forget not thy father, and laugh not with anyone until thou hast again seen my face, because thy father will not smile before he has again beheld thy pleasant countenance.’ After these words Ya’qûb wept bitterly, shedding abundant tears. Then he once more embraced Yusuf, and recommended him to the protection of God. Fariâbi has related in the ‘Noâdir-ul-qasas’ that after Yusuf had walked several paces with his brethren, Ya’qûb uttered an exclamation of grief, and fainted. When his sons perceived this, they returned and assembled around him. After recovering he again took Yusuf into his arms and once more inhaled the perfume of love from the fresh rose-leaves of his beauty, fetched a deep sigh from his grief-stricken breast, and said: ‘This is the odour of separation’; and supporting his head on the shoulder of the apple of his eye, he wept so much that Yusuf’s robe was moistened.
Distich: Would that I had lived in Nûh’s time ‘
I might have bemoaned severance from the Friend.
After this scene, Ya’qûb left Yusuf in the company of his brothers, and deplored the separation from his beloved son in the following strains:
Verses: How could my heart stand up in the ranks of love
Since thy departure has broken the army of my heart?
The cypress of my heart trembles like a willow
From the fear of thy separation, O cypress-heart!
Thou art that auspicious, high-soaring Homâi.179— From love to thee the dove of the heart lowers its flight.
When the brothers departed with Yusuf, they vied with each other in showing him civilities, but as soon as they were out of the sight of their father, they folded up the carpet of friendliness and began to insult him. Sometimes they struck his cheeks, and at others they made him run before themselves with all his might. When Yusuf was drowned in perspiration from the excessive heat, and drops of sweat were trickling down his beauteous cheeks, he became overpowered with the feebleness engendered by thirst, turned the face of weakness and of helplessness towards his brethren, and asked them for some water, but as they had strewed the dust of hardheartedness into the eyes of kindness, they refused. Then he asked for a little food, because he had become very hungry, but they listened not, and when Yusuf’s lamentations and restlessness exceeded all bounds, one of his brothers said, ‘Well, dreamer of false dreams!’ Another thus addressed him: ‘Ask aid from the fixed and the moving stars, which were on that night [of thy dream] alert in thy service, that they may protect thee?’ It is related that Ya’qûb had put into a drinking vessel a little water, mixed with a quantity of milk, and had entrusted it to Shima’ûn, who was to give it to Yusuf when he felt thirsty. The latter asked the former for some water, but Shima’ûn spilled it all on the ground, and severing the relations of consanguinity replied: ‘Why complainest thou so much of thirst? This moment I shall with the scissors of vengeance cut through the strings of thy life!’ When Yusuf heard this news of death, he began to tremble like a slender cord suspended in a well and commenced to pray thus: ‘O helper of those who implore Thee, have mercy upon my weak and helpless condition, and deliver me from the vortex of destruction!’ Then he turned his blessed face to Rubil and said: ‘O brother, thou art more kind and humane than all my other brothers, and I hope thou wilt quench the flames of my thirst with a drop of water.’ Rubil, however, gave him a repulsive answer, and poured an insalubrious beverage into the throat of his soul. When Yusuf had despaired of Rubil, and perceived his brothers’ intentions of slaying him, he stretched forth his hands towards the skirts of Yahuda’s mercy, and said: ‘O brother, my father has entrusted me to thy care, and has confided in thy kindness. Say what is my sin, and what is my offence.’ His brother replied: ‘O Yusuf, thy existence itself is a sin, which cannot be counterbalanced by another sin.’ Yusuf’s unhappy position, nevertheless, moved the vein of Yahuda’s fraternity, and the lion [of Yahuda’s affection] raised the fangs of [Yusuf’s] defence. Yahuda was a man whose hair bristled up on his body like thistles whenever his face was reddened by the fire of anger, and every time his voice of thunder was heard, pregnant women were, in consequence of their fright, suddenly delivered of their children. When he discovered the evil intentions of his brothers towards Yusuf, he resisted them, and exclaimed: ‘O Yusuf, be at ease, and discard thy apprehensions; for as long as one spark of life remains in me, no one shall attempt thy life.’ Thereupon the brothers withdrew the hand of enmity into the sleeve of civility for fear of Yahuda, and consulted with him what they ought to do with Yusuf. Then Yahuda said: ‘I cannot allow Yusuf to be killed, nor agree with you in murdering him, because an unjust death is a great sin and an enormous transgression. If you like we will return and surrender him to our father.’ They continued: ‘It is impossible to take Yusuf to Ya’qûb, since he has become aware of our intention, and knows the secret of our minds, which he will reveal to his father as soon as he returns.’ After some hesitation Yahuda said: ‘It will be best to throw him into a well, where he will either surrender the deposit of his life to the requisites of fate, or some one will draw him out and take him away; so we shall at any rate attain our object without the agency of death.’ All approved of this advice, and they discovered at a distance of three Farsakhs from Kana’an a well, which was four hundred, and according to another tradition, seven hundred, cubits deep, but according to the most correct opinion its depth was seventy cubits. It is said that this well was one of the works of Sâm, the son of Nûh, and was called ‘The Well of the Good.’ When they had taken Yusuf to the well they desired to besmear his body with loam. He adjured them, by the old age of his father, and by his own youth, not to do so. His brothers, however, took no notice of his entreaties, and stripped off his robe, also tying his hands and legs. Yusuf besought them to leave him at least his garment, so that he might not be in a state of nudity in that fearful place; but they replied: ‘Tell the stars of heaven to bestow upon thee a dress of their own texture. Call upon the sun and the moon to place in this locality a diadem of glory and magnificence upon thy head.’ Yusuf only wept on hearing their jibes, and his grieved heart was roasted by the fire of sorrow:
Verses: That despite the hardheartedness of those people
It did not rain stones from heaven is wonderful.
That after this dreadful catastrophe the spheres
Still revolve, the sky is bright, and the sun shines.
Then the jealous brethren of Yusuf threw him into the well, which they covered with a heavy stone. Yusuf, however, had not yet reached the middle of the well when Jebrâil left his heavenly mansion by the command of God, approached Yusuf, and seated him on a white stone, which had risen from the water. When the reptiles of the water perceived him sitting on the stone, they said to each other: ‘Remain quiet in your places, for one of the great men of the age has become our guest.’ They accordingly did not move as long as Yusuf remained there. On that occasion Jebrâil taught Yusuf the prayer of the cup180 mentioned in histories and traditions, and enjoining him to persevere therein, he left him.
When the time drew near for the greatest luminary to conceal itself behind the dark curtains of night, Yahuda turned the attention of the brothers in another direction, and watching the opportunity, he approached the brim of the well and exclaimed: ‘O brother Yusuf, art thou alive or dead?’ The latter replied: ‘I am neither alive nor dead. Who art thou to care for a helpless one, and fearest not to be injured by my brothers?’ Yahuda answered: ‘I am thy brother. Say how thou art, and how thy time passes.’ Yusuf continued: ‘How could he be, who has lost his mother, is separated from his father, against whom his brothers harbour evil intentions; who is naked, hungry, thirsty, imprisoned, alone in a dark well, and afflicted with a hundred miseries?’ At these words Yahuda lost his self-possession, and wept bitter tears. Yusuf again called out from the well: ‘O brother, every dying person makes his will, and my last will is this: that thou mayest behold no youth without remembering my youth, nor an orphan without recollecting my helpless condition, nor a stranger without thinking of my exile.’ When Yahuda heard these words he began to moan and to weep so loudly that all the other brothers approached him, blamed him, fixed a larger stone upon the well, and went away. Hereon Yusuf grew quite helpless, and his noble mind became more contracted than the ring of the letter mim. He despaired of his life, and raising the standard of distress and petition towards the mansion of the Bestower of all good gifts, sent the messenger of lamentation up to the palace of heaven. When the painful sobs of Yusuf reached the gilded mirror of the sphere, Jebrâil was ordered to leave his station in paradise and to keep company with Yusuf for an hour. He accordingly left the celestial vaults and descended into the hexagonal area of the terrestrial world; and having shown himself to Yusuf in the depth of the well, he first placed before him the tablet of favours, and then presented him with the beverage of kindness. After that he produced the robe which Ebrahim had worn by the command of the Glorious Sovereign during [his exposure to] the fire of Nimrud, and of which Ya’qûb had made an amulet for the arm of Yusuf, out of its envelope, and adorned his blessed body therewith. He also gladdened and exhilarated the luminous mind of the Lord Yusuf in that dark well with joyful news, saying: ‘Quickly the envy manifested towards thee will abate, and soon the dark night of thy misery will be changed into days of abundant pleasure and amenity. Thou wilt lean against the throne of royalty, and thy tyrannical brothers will stand ranged as servants on the carpet of humiliation, when thou wilt rehearse to them their past acts, and they will confess their wickedness, as God has said: “Thou wilt upbraid them with these their works, and they will not know [what to reply?].”’
When the brothers had left Yusuf in the well, they returned to their tent, slaughtered a kid, besmeared Yusuf’s robe with the blood thereof, and after it had become dry they wended their way homeward. As it had been customary with the brothers always to return from hunting and roaming before sunset, and they were on this occasion tarrying after it, Ya’qûb became uneasy, and said to a bondmaid of the name of Safra: ‘Take my hand. I shall go to meet my children, and see what is the reason of their delay.’ After walking awhile Ya’qûb ascended a hill, looked forward, and despatched the courier of hope to meet the beauty of Yusuf, waiting for the apple of his eye to return, and the departed soul again to unite with the body. After a long time had elapsed in expectation, and the obscurity of night had terminated, Ya’qûb said in the height of his melancholy to Safra: ‘Girl, call my children aloud. Perhaps I may hear their voices before I meet them, and be consoled by their life-increasing answer.’ Safra therefore exclaimed: ‘O sons of Ya’qûb, your noble father is waiting here for you; make haste to come.’ The brothers heard the calls of Safra, and began to vociferate like the chanticleers of morning. They cunningly lacerated their clothes, strewed dust on their heads and shouted: ‘Alas for Yusuf! Alas for our darling!’ Ya’qûb asked: ‘What wailings and lamentations are these? What has happened?’ Safra explained what they were saying, and when he understood it he fainted.
| Verses: | What shall I do without thee to this burnt heart, And to this life, pierced by the arrow of separation? Be just. For it will be extremely difficult Without thee to keep life and heart, which are accustomed to thee. |
Meanwhile the sons arrived and beheld their father prostrated on the ground. Yahuda made haste to wait upon him, took the blessed head of Ya’qûb into his arms, and began to revile his brothers, saying: ‘How have we acted? how have we sifted the dust of cruelty and poured it on our heads by throwing our brother into the well, ruining our father, forfeiting our good characters, and burning our souls with the fire of shame? What wise persons will commit such acts, and what prudent individuals have ever perpetrated similar deeds?’ They took up their father and conveyed him to his domicile, but Ya’qûb remained all night in a state of unconsciousness. When the matutinal zephyr commenced to blow, he recovered himself a little, glanced at his children and said: ‘O my sons, where is the light of my vision, and what has become of the apple of mine eye, that he is not here?’ Hereupon all of them unanimously exclaimed: ‘O father, we were running races with each other; we left Yusuf with our baggage and a wolf has devoured him.’ When Ya’qûb heard these words he again fainted, but after some time he asked his sons: ‘My children, where are we? and why are we so confused?’ They replied: ‘Thou art in thine own domicile, and thou reposest in the place of thine own grandeur.’ He continued: ‘Where is my Yusuf?’ They rejoined: ‘He is absent.’ Ya’qûb asked: ‘If he be absent, then who is present?’
| Verses: | In my hands his two ringlets I wish. All this is nothing; only him I wish. The whole world, beauteous as his face, I wish. From the rose-bush the union of colour and odour I wish. |
Rubil now came forward from among the brothers and said: ‘May Allah reward you, with reference to Yusuf, with the best of rewards! We were shooting arrows and racing horses, and left Yusuf with our baggage, when a wolf suddenly approached that innocent one and devoured his tender body.’ Ya’qûb uttered a shout of lamentation at these words, and began to tremble like an epileptic—
Distich: What my poor unfortunate heart
Dreaded, that happened to it.
When he asked for Yusuf’s dress, which was bespattered with blood, it was given to him, and he exclaimed: ‘It must have been a strange wolf that tore him to pieces, and left his dress entire.’ Then he ordered his sons to produce the wolf. Accordingly they went to the desert, captured a wolf, smeared blood on his mouth, showed him to Ya’qûb, and said that he had killed Yusuf. Then Ya’qûb turned towards the wolf asking: ‘Hast thou devoured my darling and the apple of mine eye?’ The wolf, however, replied in elegant language as follows: ‘Salutation to thee, O prophet of Allah! God forbid that I should have perpetrated that criminal deed. As we have not even the power to approach thy sheep, and to ravage thy flocks, how could we hurt thy beloved son? The eating of the flesh of prophets and of saints is prohibited to us rapacious beasts. To hurt their excellencies is a great sin in our religion and a terrible crime.’ After that the wolf addressed the sons of Ya’qûb as follows: ‘Have you seen me devour Yusuf?’ When they witnessed the eloquence of the wolf they became apprehensive of their own ignominy, and said: ‘We have not seen thee devour him, but as we knew that a wolf had done so, and caught thee prowling about in that direction, we concluded that thou hadst committed that foolish [sic] act.’ Then the wolf kissed the ground of servitude and said: ‘O prophet of Allah, I am a stranger and come from the region of Egypt.’ Ya’qûb queried: ‘Why hast thou undertaken this journey, and undergone so much trouble and toil?’ He continued: ‘For the purpose of visiting a brother whom I have at Sana’a, I have journeyed towards that country, and have felt the pains of travel and the afflictions of exile. To-day when I reached this Vâdi thy sons captured me, tied my feet and neck, brought me to thy holy presence, and accused me of having devoured thy son.’ Ya’qûb was moved by these words, and turning to his sons said: ‘A wolf undergoes hardships and travels to Sana’a for the purpose of visiting his brother; but you have with your own hands destroyed your beloved brother, and have neglected to guard him.’ After this Ya’qûb asked the wolf: ‘Is my son dead or alive?’ The wolf rejoined: ‘Why hast thou not asked Jebrâil about this?’ Ya’qûb answered: ‘I have inquired, but have not obtained a categorical reply.’ The wolf continued: ‘If Jebrâil has not the power to reveal the state of the case, how could I be able to disclose that secret?’ After this conversation Ya’qûb added: ‘O wolf, remain thou in this neighbourhood and associate with me, that I may deplore the separation from my son, while thou bemoanest the absence of thy brother.’ The wolf then placed the face of submission upon the ground of humility, and said: ‘O prophet of Allah, to be in thy service is felicity, but I have children who cannot live without me.’ Therefore Ya’qûb dismissed the wolf, who departed and turned his face towards Egypt.
The author of the ‘Al-lutâif’ has stated that when the wolf left Ya’qûb, he ascended a hill, and exclaimed: ‘O ye who are of the same race with me, woe be unto you if you have destroyed the son of Ya’qûb! Woe upon you who have injured one of the inspired prophets! Should you, however, be innocent of this suspicion, hasten quickly to the mansion of Ya’qûb, excuse yourselves, and cleanse the area of your circumstances from the dust of this crime.’ The chronicler informs us that several thousand wolves assembled around the house of Ya’qûb, raising their voices in lamentation and wailing. He then came out, whereon all the wolves became silent, fell at the feet of his lordship, placing their heads upon the ground, and saying with the tongue of the circumstances:181 ‘God forbid that we should have hurt thy beloved darling, or that we should in any way have injured him. Neither could such a thing happen, since our lives depend upon the blessing of thine existence, and our subsistence is connected with the benefits of thy liberality.’ Ya’qûb accepted their excuses, and turning towards his sons said: ‘Your evil disposition has induced you to perpetrate a strange act, and has decoyed your minds to undertake an extraordinary business.’ Then suddenly looking towards the valley, he exclaimed: ‘O Yusuf! O my child! O my darling! O thou apple of my eye! Into what well have they thrown thee? in what sea have they drowned thee? With what sword have they killed thee, and in what land have they buried thee?’
| Verses: | Thou hast left, but thy image has not left my heart; Thy love has not abandoned my saddened heart; That life which now passes is bitterness— Alas, was not spent when we were united. |
During this lamentation and wailing Jebrâil descended and said: ‘O prophet of Allah, thou hast moved to tears the dwellers in the upper regions, and thou hast caused those who abide in the sublimest place to moan. Affairs are managed with patience, and haste soon terminates.’ Ya’qûb replied: ‘O brother, hereafter I shall fly to the refuge of patience, and shall beseech the Lord of it to grant me endurance. Because patience is best, and God will assist us against what they machinate.’
| Verses: | Be patient, O my heart, in the pain of inward grief. For all thou knowest, it may become of use to thee. Knowest thou that it affects no one but thee? There is hope that one day it will have done with thee. |
In short, Yusuf is said to have remained three days and nights at the bottom of the well, during which time Jebrâil came every day to give him the consolations of the invisible world, and informed him of future hopes, which pacified Yusuf till time elapsed and his delivery took place. By a lucky accident, or, rather, good fortune, a company of merchants were travelling from Madayn182 to Egypt. Their chief was Mâlek, the son of Za’r, of the tribe of Khoza’a. They happened, however, to lose their way, and the director of fate turned the bridle of their caravan on that occasion towards that well, and the guide of the reins of destiny moved their intention towards that source of felicity [sic]. When they arrived near the well, Mâlek ordered the people to alight and to encamp there, so as to prevent the necessity of suffering from thirst. After they had reposed in the place and spent the night, Mâlek Bin Za’r sent two slaves to the well for the purpose of drawing water. The name of one of them is said to have been Basheer, and historians agree that the other was called Bashar. When Basheer lowered the bucket, Yusuf thought that his brothers had come to draw him out of the well, and to overturn the noble building of his existence. At that moment Jebrâil informed Yusuf of the command of the Lord of Glory—whose name be magnified—saying: ‘O Yusuf, sun of meeting. Arise and take thy seat in this bucket, because we have made a caravan go astray for thy sake. Be of good cheer. This caravan has been put to some trouble and affliction for the purpose of delivering thee.’ Then, by the command of the Most Wise Sovereign, that full moon entered the mansion of the bucket,183 attached himself to the strong cable of divine grace, and Jebrâil assisted Basheer, who drew the bucket up with ease. When the slave perceived Yusuf he was in an ecstasy of joy, and exclaimed: ‘This is good news. Here is a youth.’
| Distich: | See! One day the parrot of my soul towards his lips Went, by the odour of a pistachio, but found sugar. |
It is said that the brothers of Yusuf had kept a man near the well, to see whether the earth would give forth the pledge entrusted to it, to observe whether it would reveal the secret confided to it, and to inform them so as to enable them to take the necessary steps. When the watchman perceived what was taking place he went in all haste and informed the brothers that Yusuf was being rescued. The sons of Ya’qûb no sooner heard this news than they jumped up like maniacs, performed the journey in the twinkling of an eye, arrived near the well, quarreled with the people of the caravan, and said: ‘This is our fugitive slave; it is several days since he fled and was lost. We could not get any news about him, though we searched much.’ The people of the caravan replied: ‘God forbid that this man should be a slave! This jewel appears to come from the mine of a noble and ancient race, and this scion is endowed with the characteristics pertaining to an exalted [genealogical] tree.’ The brothers rejoined: ‘No. He was a slave, but born in an opulent family, and the nurse of an ancient lineage has suckled him with the milk of education. It is some time since he turned the tables of his affairs against us, and drew the line of injury through the index of contents of all fidelity.’ The veracious one [i.e. Joseph] heard all these words, kept the seal of taciturnity upon his lips, and moved them not to refute their assertions. After that the brothers said to the people of the caravan: ‘We shall sell this slave with this fault. If you like to purchase him, do so, or else restore him to us.’ After the merchants had pondered over the behaviour of the sons of Ya’qûb and the silence of Yusuf, they believed the former. Moreover, when they asked Yusuf concerning the true state of the case, the veracious one shook his blessed head, and said: ‘Yes, I am a slave, and slave-born; and at any rate I consent to be a slave.’ He spoke thus because he feared that in case he should reveal the true state of the case something worse might ensue. Mâlek Bin Za’r accordingly desired to buy him, asked the brothers about his price, and they said: ‘O Mâlek, we shall not be particular with thee about the price of this slave, and we shall take whatever thou thinkest proper to give.’ Mâlek then purchased Yusuf for some uncurrent dirhems which he had in his bag. Historians, however, differ about the number of those coins, and their statements vary from ten to one hundred and twenty dirhems;184 but Allah is most wise. It is said that the brothers accepted the base coins from Mâlek and divided them amongst themselves, taking, after that, Yusuf by the hand and surrendering him to Mâlek. The purchaser also desired to possess a contract of sale of that solar face, which was accordingly written by Shima’ûn, and the clause inserted that Mâlek was to keep this slave in fetters, and not to open them before they had arrived in Egypt. On this occasion Yusuf looked with great sadness upon his brothers, and wept on account of their hard hearts; wherefore we jot down the following verses to commemorate the separation of friends:
| Verses: | We departed, and thus we mentioned not to each other The meeting which made us bloom, like roses, with each other. Alas, that we should be separated from each other! For we shall again meet each other. |
It is said that when the brothers sold Yusuf to Mâlek they said: ‘Besides the fault of running away, this slave is also addicted to stealing, and you must not neglect to watch him.’ These and similar warnings prompted Mâlek to place heavy fetters on the legs of Yusuf, and to appoint an ill-humoured slave to take care of him. Then the merchants struck the drum of departure with the sticks of travel, and Yusuf requested Mâlek to allow him, according to the usual custom, to see his sellers once more, and to take leave of them; but Mâlek replied: ‘Boy, since they have no affection or mercy towards thee, what is the use of so much regard on thy part for them?’ Yusuf replied: ‘Every one spends what he possesses.’
Distich: I cannot wish evil to anyone,
For the good and evil of this world are but transient.
By Mâlek’s permission Yusuf dragged his chain towards his brothers, whose hands and feet he kissed, after embracing each of them. Though he entreated them much, they showed no sign of compassion, and manifested no kindness of feeling. Yusuf therefore returned with a broken heart and worn-out mind to the caravan, where he was placed on a camel and carried at full speed towards Egypt. His lordship submitted to the toils of exile and to the humiliation of servitude, but deplored the separation from his father, and tears flowed from his eyes like rain. Meanwhile the caravan arrived near the sepulchres of Ya’qûb’s family, where Yusuf beheld the tomb of his mother, threw himself from the camel, and hastened to visit it. There he burst into the following strain:
| Verses: | O thou who art gone, and hast taken with thee our glory, Hast made a fire-temple of my sorrow-courting heart. I strew dust on my head and I say: Where is the breeze that will bring thine odour to me? |
The slave who guarded Yusuf perceived that he was not on the camel, but after looking for him he beheld him sitting on a heap of earth and weeping. In his folly he struck the tender face of Yusuf, and, believing the allegations of his brothers, insulted him, became impetuous and scattered salt over the recent wound. His lordship, indignant at this behaviour and incivility, turned his face towards heaven and complained to the wisest of judges and refuge of the oppressed. His petition having that very moment been stamped with the seal of response, a violent storm arose, and black clouds appeared, the compactness whereof, combined with the blowing of the winds, produced such confusion and darkness that the people of the caravan were unable to see each other, and despaired of life. When Mâlek, the son of Za’r, saw this state of affairs, he said: ‘O companions, consider well what unworthy deeds and what opprobrious acts you have committed —repent, and ask pardon, since the blackness of our crimes has influenced the atmosphere. For God does not change towards a people until they themselves change.’ The men of the caravan replied: ‘We are not aware of any of our sins which may have brought upon us this punishment.’ At last, however, the [above-mentioned] ill-fated slave came forward and said: ‘All this trouble has overtaken us on account of what I have perpetrated, and this hardship has been inflicted upon us on account of my impudence; for I have this hour struck the face of the Kana’anitish slave, who then wept, looked up to heaven, and moved his lips in prayer. Therefore this commotion of the earth and weather has taken place, as you see.’ The chief of the caravan, with all the people of it, as well as the slave, then approached the veracious one [i.e. Joseph]; they prostrated themselves at his feet and craved his pardon. Yusuf accepted their excuse, looked towards the Qiblah of prayer, and besought the Almighty—w. n. b. e.—to deliver them. The motion of the atmosphere then suddenly ceased, the bridegroom of the sun removed the veil from his face, and the weather assumed its normal state. When Mâlek had experienced this blessing he took the hand of the slave, brought him to Yusuf, whom he requested to punish the fellow according to his own pleasure. Yusuf replied: ‘What need is there of these words? I am one of those who are beneficent and forgiving, and I do not requite evildoers with anything but pardon.’ He accordingly forgave the transgression of the slave, and drew the line of oblivion over the volume of his sin. After this event the fetters were taken off from Yusuf, and he was treated not only with respect, but with awe. The caravan continued its journey, but after travelling for some time arrived in the vicinity of Egypt, and the people, happening to discover a pleasant locality, all alighted near a fountain. As Yusuf had been affected by the fatigues of the journey, and the rust of dust had settled upon the mirror of his beauty, Mâlek ordered him to enter the fountain and to wash off the impurities of the road. When Yusuf approached the fountain, Jebrâil the faithful brought the cupola beneath which Adam and Eve had sheltered themselves before their fall, and placed it over the fountain, so that Yusuf’s august body might remain protected from the sight of strangers, and preserved from the evil eye. The author of the ‘A’in-ul-ma’ani’ states that after Yusuf had remained for some time in that bath, Mâlek Bin Za’r became apprehensive of his safety, and despatched messengers to bring him information about that source of felicity and excellence. They accordingly separated in the desert; but no one could tell them where he was, concealed as he happened to be under the dome of magnificence, and veiled by the curtain of purity. Shortly afterwards, however, the people of the caravan beheld Yusuf arriving in a form, the aspect of whose beauty awed the wise; and the face of the moon appeared dark in comparison to the brightness of his countenance. Mâlek asked: ‘O Yusuf, where hast thou been, as we were unable to find thee?’ But the discriminating intellect replied: ‘How could every eye glance at the fountain of light, and how could each vision behold the figure of the soul?’
After Yusuf had rejoined the caravan, it proceeded to the city. When the rumour of that bright moon, or rather the splendour of that all-conquering sun, had shed its rays over the whole of Egypt, all the inhabitants of that country endeavoured to catch sight of the beauty of Yusuf, and desired to meet him. They accordingly paid a visit to the caravan, and everyone recited the following lines:
Verses: This city is full of good news about him,
The hearts of the inhabitants are attached to him.
We endeavour and others endeavour [to know]
Who will have the felicity to be his friend.
The author of the ‘Zubdat-ut-tovârikh’ states that the Almighty—w. n. b. pr.—had bestowed upon the world-adorning beauty of Yusuf a light, which shone to a distance of one day’s journey, and wherever his lordship went, that splendour radiated like the sun, and advanced before him one stage. On the day of his arrival in Egypt, the weather happened to be cloudy, therefore the world-illuminating countenance of the sun was invisible; and before the solar disc had opened its veil, a reflection had fallen from Yusuf’s night-like ringlets into that country. In short, when the light of his brilliant countenance began to scintillate, it illuminated the world like the intellect of the pure, of the sagacious, and of the acute. The news of Yusuf’s beauty spread over Egypt, whereon the hearts of the anxious, and the souls of the noble-minded, ascended to their lips from longing for his august arrival.
When the inhabitants issued from the city to meet the caravan, the king likewise sent his agent and confidant, who was called the A’ziz of Egypt,185 to purchase Yusuf. When the agent had met the caravan, and begun to converse with Mâlek, the latter said: ‘Wait a little till we enter the city, and rest ourselves for three days from the fatigues of the road and the toils of the journey; then we shall act according to the command of him to whom obedience is due.’ The A’ziz assented, whereon they entered the city in full pomp on the tenth of the sacred month of Muharram. After the expiration of three days a chair was erected according to the usage of the Egyptians, Yusuf was seated thereon, and a herald proclaimed: ‘Who will buy this lovely boy? Who will buy this intelligent boy?’ But Yusuf forbade him to use such words, and told him rather to shout: ‘Who will buy this sad boy? Who will buy this foreign boy?’ Intending purchasers became numerous, and enhanced the price of Yusuf every moment. The veracious one perceived this state of affairs; he tore the zone of endurance, and suspended, from the conch of his eyes, strings of pearls upon the surface of his countenance,186 and having become saddened and depressed at the spectacle of this transaction, he withdrew his head into the tunic of meditation. At that moment Jebrâil the faithful arrived, and conveyed to him the following message from the Lord of both worlds: ‘Beloved one, be not sad or of an anxious heart, for I swear by My magnificence and glory, that I shall not take thee out of this town before I have placed the mark of servitude and obedience to thee upon the foreheads of the fortunes of these persons who have at present come to look at thee to purchase thee.’ When the herald exclaimed the fourth time: ‘Who will purchase this lovely boy?’ Yusuf lost the thread of patience, and turning to him, said: ‘If thou meanest to speak the truth, say, “Who will buy the veracious one of God, the son of the Esrâil of God, the son of the sacrifice of God.”’ When the people heard these words they began to shout, and Mâlek asked: ‘What mean these words? and who is alluded to by the name of the Veracious?’ Yusuf replied: ‘The veracious one is he who is a slave and a prisoner.’ Mâlek said: ‘O Yusuf, why hast thou not informed me of this before, that both of us might have been spared this shame and insult?’ Yusuf continued: ‘I kept the true state of the case concealed, because I feared the evil intentions of my brothers, and my life was in danger.’ Mâlek asked: ‘Thou art perchance the son of that old man whom I saw in the vicinity of Kana’an when I arrived there, and who was weeping and saying, “O Lord, restore to me my son, the darling of my heart?”’ Yusuf said: ‘O Mâlek, in what state have you left that old man?’ Mâlek replied: ‘Dear friend, how can I explain the condition of a man who has been separated from one like thee?’ At these words Yusuf became sad, began to weep, and said: ‘That old man is the Esrâil of God, and my beloved father.’ Mâlek then apologised, and continued:
Verses: What remedy is there now
When dry lips and eyes are no more?
What help have I since inundation overflowed me?
‘Now that I have exposed thee for sale, I fear that I shall injure only mine own soul.’ Yusuf replied: ‘O Mâlek, be of good cheer, since compliance with fate is one of the distinguishing marks of the righteous, and one of the good qualities of the pious:
Distich: Invite either to desire, or give news of peace.
Whatever is thy wish, is my wish also.
Judgment belongs to God, and He is the best of judges.’
Let it not remain unknown to the discerning minds of the intelligent that whatever has been recorded in these pages concerning Yusuf has been taken from the book entitled ‘Jâmi’ Aa’zim,’ which contains the history of the world. In several of these narratives and traditions Muhammad Bin Jarir-ut-Tabari, Hâfez Abru, and all the other historians disagree; but as the author of this work will be excused by scholars and by critics from rehearsing various opinions with reference to this subject, he has consulted all the chief historians, and has compiled the real narrative in an abridged manner, and relates it as follows:
All chroniclers who have written about this matter agree that one day O’mar Farûq—u. w. b., etc.—was discussing the superiority of the blessed volume [i.e. Qurân] over all the other celestial books187 with a company of Jews, who maintained that the narrative of the beauteous youth of Kana’an was one of the most popular stories among them. They said that it is narrated in the Pentateuch, and asked how the Qurân could be preferable to other books, inasmuch as it is not mentioned therein? O’mar therefore brought this objection of the enemies of the Faith to the cognisance of the Prince of Prophets, upon the speculum of whose luminous mind—which was the promulgator of the verses of the Merciful [i.e. revealer of the Qurân]—the dust of vexation settled when he heard what the Jews had said. On that occasion Jebrâil the Faithful arrived, and communicated this narrative to his august ear in the words of the evident verses [of the Qurân]. Some are of opinion that when the Muhâjers188 emigrated to Madinah they were occasionally subject to melancholy on account of the calamity of exile and the misery of separation, and that they said: ‘Would to God that the Qurân contained a story which resembles the flight of the companions [of Muhammad]! so that by the perusal thereof our sorrowful minds and depressed hearts might be comforted and relieved, and it might become a subject of pleasure and of joy to those who have suffered troubles and difficulties;’ [and in consequence hereof the narrative of Joseph was incorporated in the Qurân]. There are also other opinions about the cause of the ‘Chapter of Yusuf’ being sent down [from heaven], the rehearsal of which would only protract this narrative.
At any rate, it is said that when, on account of the love which Ya’qûb bore to Yusuf, and on account of the recitals of the true dreams of that veracious one, the flames of envy were kindled in the bosoms of his brethren, they consulted about the means of removing him. They intended either to slay him or to exile him to a distant land, so as to obtain for themselves alone the love of their father. Yahuda, however, who was the most intelligent of them, but according to other opinions Shima’ûn or Rubil, would by no means agree to murder Yusuf, and said: ‘Do not kill Yusuf, but rather throw him into a well, so that the people of some caravan may take him out.’ One day the brothers had assembled in the private apartment of their father, which was his oratory, and said to him: ‘O father, how comes it that thou trustest us not more than Yusuf, though we are his well-wishers? Send him to-morrow with us to the desert, that he may enjoy himself, play, and shoot arrows. We shall take good care of him, and not lose him.’ Ya’qûb replied: ‘I shall be sorry if you take him away. I fear a wolf might devour him without your knowing anything about it.’ They replied: ‘If a wolf devours him and we surrender him, we shall be weak indeed.’ At last, however, Ya’qûb consented, whereon the brothers took away Yusuf and threw him into a well; but Yahuda, who loved him most, brought every day some food, let it down into the well, and consoled him, saying: ‘I shall request my brothers to deliver thee from this misery and trouble.’ The brothers, on the other hand, were watching for travellers to take Yusuf out of the well and to convey him to a foreign country, but he remained three days in it.
| Distich: | On the fourth day the youth of this victorious mansion, Yusuf, came up, who was in the darkness of the well. |
A caravan which had lost its way halted near that spot, and Mâlek Bin Za’r went with a slave to the well for the purpose of drawing water, and let the bucket down:
| Verses: | In the obscurity of the night, he who was like Khizar189
Letting down the water-measuring bucket. Jebrâil the Faithful said to Yusuf: Arise! Pour the clear water of mercy upon the thirsty. |
Yusuf, whose countenance resembled the moon, arose from the stone, and took his seat in the bucket, which Mâlek drew up with the assistance of his slave.
Distich: When the world-adorning moon arose,
From his soul he shouted: Good news!
Mâlek asked Yusuf, ‘Who art thou? and how hast thou fallen into this place?’ He replied: ‘I am a Kana’anite, and from an excess of envy my brothers have thrown me into this well.’ Then Mâlek ordered his slave to keep the true state of the case secret from the caravan, and to say: ‘A numerous company arrived at the well and sold us this slave. Because, if the people know the truth,’ continued Mâlek, ‘and convey the boy to Egypt and sell him, they will claim a share in the price.’ Mâlek accordingly took Yusuf to his own place, but the brothers, who were extremely watchful, ascertained what had happened, immediately approached the caravan, and said: ‘This is a slave who has fled from us.’ At last, however, they sold Yusuf to Mâlek Bin Za’r for a few uncurrent dirhems. Afterwards the caravan continued its journey, and in course of time reached Egypt. When three days had elapsed, and his lordship, the veracious one, had rested himself from the fatigues of the journey, Mâlek exposed him for sale.
There are books full of narratives relating to Qatfirnâi, who was the treasurer of the King of Egypt, and surnamed A’ziz. He had a beautiful wife in his house, whose name was Râa’il, known by the appellation of Zuleikha. Others, however, state that her name was Anka, the daughter of Banûs; but his lordship, the refuge of virtues and tribunal of theology, my lord the Qâzi A’bd-ur-rahman-ajjâmi—may Allah perfume his utterances—has strung that costly pearl [i.e. narrative] with his diamond nature in the following manner:
| Verses: | Thus spoke that discriminating orator Who had in his magazine a treasure of gems: That in the western country there was a famous king Proclaimed by the royal drum as Timûs; He had a beauteous daughter Zuleikha by name, With whom he had joy besides the whole world. |
In short, when the price of Yusuf had been driven up to a very high sum [in the auction], Zuleikha, who had been informed of the amenity and beauty of the veracious one, incited her husband to purchase Yusuf. A’ziz replied: ‘My property in cash and goods does not equal his price.’ Zuleikha continued: ‘Whatever ornaments there are on my ears and neck, and whatever is in my treasury, I shall surrender to Mâlek.’ A’ziz said: ‘In this way thy desire may be gratified, but Riân, the son of Alvalid, namely the King of Egypt, is on the point of buying him.’ When Zuleikha heard this news, she hastened on the wings of celerity to wait upon the king, and returning to the house, after she had obtained permission to purchase Yusuf, she brought forth everything she possessed, and gave it joyfully to A’ziz as the price for her [coveted] darling.
| Monostich: | If thou askest for our head, we bring it in the twinkling of an eye. |
The A’ziz of Egypt then purchased Yusuf from Mâlek Bin Za’r, who accordingly abandoned the pearl of the conch of prophecy and the gem of the mine of apostleship, but when he had become aware of his high descent and of his perfect behaviour, he fell down at his feet and offered excuses, which his lordship, the veracious one, accepted, but asked for the deed of sale, which he might use as an argument when opportunity served for putting his brothers to shame. Mâlek granted the request of Yusuf, took leave of him, and left Egypt. When the A’ziz had bought Yusuf, he enjoined Zuleikha to treat him well, and to assign to him a good place. ‘For,’ said he, ‘it is possible that he will be a gain to us, and we may adopt him for our son.’ When Zuleikha heard the injunction that she was to assign to him a good place, she thought there could be none better than her own heart, and became extremely anxious to see him:
Verses: The jewel which the brothers threw into mud
A stranger gave it a place in her heart;
They sold him for uncurrent money,
But Zuleikha received him in her bosom.
When Yusuf’s intellect became mature, the unrequited Bestower adorned him with the decorations of wisdom and knowledge, with meekness and innocence, and the banner of his good qualities was raised [i.e. his praises were sounded] by the company of the beneficent with pleasure and cheerfulness. ‘And when he had attained his age of strength, We bestowed on him wisdom and knowledge; for thus do we recompense the righteous.’190 Theologians differ in expounding the signification of the words ‘age of strength.’ Qotâda and Mujâhad allege that by the ‘age of strength’ thirty-three years are meant, which is the limit of the years of growth; from that age to forty is the stationary term, and after that the period of decay sets in, which some have likened to the state of meekness. Zohâq says it means the age of twenty years, but the most current and correct opinion of the discerning is that Yusuf the veracious —u. w. b., etc.—was seventeen years old when his brothers executed their project; and when one year had elapsed after that event, the Lord of Glory—w. n. b. pr.—distinguished him by the evidences of His unbounded favour and His infinite bounty; adorned the penetrating mind of Yusuf with the jewels of knowledge and wisdom, and with the evidences of the lights of science and learning; therefore the words ‘age of strength’ in the blessed verse mean eighteen years.
When Zuleikha had been enjoined by the A’ziz of Egypt to treat Yusuf well, she took good care to obey and to act as Qatfirnâi had commanded her. She accordingly caused seventy robes of various colours to be prepared to adorn his Tuba-like191 stature, which was so symmetrical; she also procured a gilded diadem, worthy of a mighty king, and placed it upon his noble head. She also obtained a necklace of pure gold adorned with precious stones, and threw it joyfully on his neck. The more she adorned Yusuf in the sight of the people, the more did the handmaid of love display his beauty to the heart of Zuleikha, and the handsomer Yusuf appeared, the more loving became Zuleikha’s heart:
Distich: His beauty increased day by day,
And he beguiled hearts more and more.
All the desires of Zuleikha were concentrated in the wish to keep him, who excited the jealousy of the large-eyed hûris, constantly in the house and present to her sight. Yusuf, on the other hand, always wished to roam about in the desert, so that he might obtain news of his beloved father and of the dweller in the abode of mourning. When Zuleikha discovered his inclination to move about, she appointed a legion of confidential slaves to accompany that royal cavalier, like the stirrup of his foot, wherever he might choose to proceed, and not to neglect attending upon him, even for one moment. Whenever Yusuf wandered about in the deserts and fields, and his servants ran on both sides, he used to go to the road of Kana’an, and was in the habit of addressing the matutinal breeze, and so touchingly to give vent to his longings that the breathings of the horizon were moved by them, and sometimes the fire of his anguish was burning so brightly that it was not easy to extinguish it with the water of patience. The narrator says that one day Yusuf was out according to his usual custom, and was looking towards the road to Kana’an, when all of a sudden a man riding a camel appeared, whom Yusuf immediately questioned where he was coming from. The man replied, ‘From Kana’an.’ ‘From what direction?’ ‘From the Jordan.’ ‘From what pastures?’ ‘From the pastures of the family of Ya’qûb.’ When Yusuf heard the name of his father he fainted, and lay for a long time on the ground in a state of insensibility. The Arab alighted from his camel, took Yusuf’s head in his arms, and waited until he had recovered himself. The veracious one then asked him: ‘Owner of the camel, knowest thou the Esrâil of God?’ He replied: ‘Yes.’ Yusuf continued: ‘Hast thou seen his beauty with these two narcissi,192 and hast thou with these two world-seeing eyes drawn in the collyrium of his acquaintance?’ He said: ‘Yes; he is the fruit of the tree of Esahâq, and the product of Ebrahim’s heart.’ Yusuf asked: ‘How hast thou left him?’ He said: ‘Burning and weeping; drowned in the unfathomed sea of grief and separation.’ The veracious one sent a burning groan to the top of the uppermost sphere, and said: ‘I wish Rahil had never given birth to me.’ Yusuf further queried: ‘Wilt thou convey a message from me, who have tasted the poison of absence, to that aged man who suffers affliction?’ The Arab agreed, and Yusuf continued: ‘Friend, my instructions to thee are, that when thou arrivest in the land of Kana’an, to alight in the vicinity of the habitations of the family of Ya’qûb, and so wait until one watch of the night has elapsed, till the affairs of the busy world are settled, and till Ya’qûb has finished his orisons. Then enter his oratory, relate to him how the days of separation appear long to me, and how I am tormented by the desire of seeing him, and say: “O melancholy one, this is the message of thine unhappy son. O sorrowing one, this is the message from thine exiled son.” O Arab, look well at me, and impress the aspect of my person upon thy mind. Relate all thou hast seen and heard to Ya’qûb, and inform my noble parent of all my circumstances.’
When the Arab had terminated his business he left Egypt, and after performing the journey he arrived at the domicile of Ya’qûb, and when the night had well set in he proceeded to the house of the grief of Ya’qûb to deliver his message. The latter ran out from the cottage and exclaimed: ‘Welcome! Welcome, O A’bdullah. Where art thou coming from?’
Verses: Is it [the joy of] the garden of paradise,
Or a message from the friend?
Is it the perfume of paradise,
Or a breeze from the friend?
Having heard the message, Ya’qûb fainted, and when he recovered the Arab asked a benediction for his reward. Ya’qûb accordingly raised the hands of petition and said: ‘May Allah invest thee with the robe of prosperity, and make thee one of my companions in paradise!’ Ya’qûb thereon intended to communicate the news to his family, but Jebrâil descended and said: ‘It is not proper for thee hereafter to mention anything about Yusuf, nor to reveal his secret to anyone.’ Therefore Ya’qûb withdrew his tongue into the palate of silence, and placing the seal of muteness upon his lips, he concluded henceforth to fold up the carpet of gossiping and to conceal that precious treasure in the corner of his heart. Sometimes when he slept he beheld Yusuf in his dreams, and thought that the matutinal zephyr of meeting him was wafting, and that the dark night of separation had vanished. But although his discerning mind was pacified by visions of the beauty of Yusuf, the dreams again fled from his blessed eyes, and when he opened them he did not perceive the apple of his eye. Then he shouted from grief and called for Yusuf; his solid judgment, however, instantly checked and reproved him for speaking against the command of God, and not keeping his promise. He therefore repented, and filled his pearl-dropping mouth with a handful of earth. That very moment Jebrâil descended and said: ‘The Almighty—w. n. b. pr.—swears by His glory and magnificence that for the sake of the respect thou hast manifested for His command He would resuscitate Yusuf to life again, if he were dead, in order to kindle thine eye with the lamp of his face, and to transmute thy cottage into a rose-grove by the aspect of his Tuba-like stature.’ Ya’qûb, hearing these tidings that he would again meet his lost son, began to praise and to thank God. His days, nevertheless, passed in bitterness and doubt until he heard an invisible herald exclaim:
Distich: The lost Yusuf will return, Kana’an; be not sad.
The hut of grief will become a rose-grove; be not sad.
Thereon his misery was changed to peace, and his grief to tranquillity.