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Chapter 5: Regarding the Occultation of Prophet Yusuf

Chapter 5: Regarding the Occultation (Ghaibat) of Prophet Yusuf (a.s.)

The period of the occultation of Prophet Yusuf (a.s.) was that of twenty years. During this time he never applied oil to his hair, did not use Kohl and perfume and didn’t touch a woman till the time the Almighty Allah once more gathered the scattered family of Yaqoob and brought together Yusuf, his brothers, his father and maternal aunt. Of these twenty years he was in the well for three days and in the prison for some years. And for the remaining years he was the ruler. He was in Egypt while Yaqoob (a.s.) was in Palestine and the distance between them was only nine days of travel.

He passed through various circumstances during the period of his occultation. Sometimes his brothers united to eliminate him and later changed the plan and decided to throw him down the well. Then they sold him as a slave for a minor sum of money. After that he was involved in the deceit and plot of the wife of the Egyptian king. Then he was forced to live in imprisonment for some years. After that he became the ruler of Egypt and in this way the Almighty Allah reunited his family and fulfilled the vision he had seen.

1 - Narrated to us Muhammad bin Ali Majilaway (r.a.) that: Narrated to us Muhammad bin Yahya al-Attar Husain bin Hasan bin Aban, from Muhammad bin Uramiya from Ahmad bin Hasan al-Muthanna from Hasan al-Wasiti from Hisham bin Saalim from Abi Abdullah (a.s.) that he said:

“A Bedouin came to Prophet Yusuf (a.s.) to purchase rations from him and the latter sold it. When the transaction was over Prophet Yusuf (a.s.) asked, “Where do you live?” He said, “At such and such place.” The narrator says: Yusuf said: So you halt at such and such desert and call out: O Yaqoob! O Yaqoob! And a tall and handsome man will come to you. You tell him that you met a person in Egypt who has conveyed salutations to him. He would say: This trust of yours will not be wasted with Allah, the Mighty and Sublime. The narrator says: Thus that Bedouin reached to the place.

He told his servants to take care of his camel. Then he began to call out: O Yaqoob! O Yaqoob! A tall and handsome man emerged walking with the support of a wall. The Bedouin asked if he was Yaqoob. When he replied in the positive he conveyed to him all that Prophet Yusuf (a.s.) had said. Yaqoob (a.s.) fell down in a swoon and when he regained consciousness he said, “O Bedouin, do you have wish from Allah?”

The man said, “I am an affluent person and my wife is the daughter of my paternal uncle. But I don’t have a son from her. I request you to pray that I may have a son. The narrator says that Yaqoob (a.s.) performed ablution, prayed two units of prayer and then supplicated to Allah, the Mighty and Sublime. This man’s wife gave birth to twins, four times.

Thus Yaqoob (a.s.) knew that Yusuf was alive and comfortable and that the Almighty Allah will bring him out after his occultation. He used to say the same thing to his sons:

    إِنِّي أَعْلَمُ مِنَ اللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

I know from Allah what you do not know?1

His family members and relatives used to criticize him for remembering Yusuf (a.s.). Till the time he perceived the fragrance of Yusuf (a.s.) he said:

    وَلَمَّا فَصَلَتِ الْعِيرُ قَالَ أَبُوهُمْ إِنِّي لَأَجِدُ رِيحَ يُوسُفَ- لَوْلَا أَنْ تُفَنِّدُونِ قَالُوا تَاللَّهِ إِنَّكَ لَفِي ضَلَالِكَ الْقَدِيمِ فَلَمَّا أَنْ جَاءَ الْبَشِيرُ أَلْقَاهُ عَلَىٰ وَجْهِهِ فَارْتَدَّ بَصِيرًا- قَالَ أَلَمْ أَقُلْ لَكُمْ إِنِّي أَعْلَمُ مِنَ اللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

Most surely I perceive the fragrance of Yusuf, unless you pronounce me to be weak in judgment. They said: By Allah, you are most surely in your old error. So when the bearer of good news came he cast it on his face, so forthwith he regained his sight. He said: Did I not say to you that I know from Allah what you do not know?2

2 - Narrated to us Muhammad bin Ali Majilaway (r.a.) that: Narrated to us Muhammad bin Yahya al-Attar who said: Narrated to us Husain bin Hasan bin Aban, from Muhammad bin Uramiya from Muhammad bin Ismail bin Bazee from Ismail Sarraj from Bashir bin Ja’far from Mufaddal - (perhaps) al-Jofi - from Abi Abdullah (a.s.) that he said:

“Do you know what the garment of Yusuf was? ‘No,’ replied I. He said, “When fire was lit for (burning) Ibrahim (a.s.) Jibraeel brought a garment of Paradise for him and dressed him in it. That garment protected him from heat and cold and when his death approached, he made it into an arm band and tied it to Ishaq; Ishaq in turn tied it to Yaqoob and when Yusuf was born Yaqoob tied it on him.

And it was tied to his arm till those circumstances befell him. Thus when Yusuf removed it from the arm band in Egypt, Yaqoob perceived its fragrance and it is about the same thing that Allah quotes him saying:

    أَبُوهُمْ إِنِّي لَأَجِدُ رِيحَ يُوسُفَ- لَوْلَا أَنْ تُفَنِّدُونِ

“Most surely I perceive the fragrance of Yusuf, unless you pronounce me to be weak in judgment.”3

It is the same garment that had come down from Paradise.”

I said: May I be sacrificed on you, whom did this garment reach after him? He replied, “To the one deserving of it. And the garment is with our Qaim, when he would reappear. Then he said: All knowledge or things inherited by every prophet have reached to [the progeny of] Muhammad (S).”

It is narrated that when the Qaim reappears he will reappear wearing the shirt of Yusuf (a.s.) and will also have the staff of Musa (a.s.) and the ring of Prophet Sulaiman (a.s.).

And what proves that Yaqoob (a.s.) was aware that Yusuf was alive and had disappeared as a divine test is that when the other sons returned in the evening weeping and wailing he asked them, “Why are you crying and wailing? And why don’t I see my dear Yusuf among you?

    قَالُوا يَا أَبَانَا إِنَّا ذَهَبْنَا نَسْتَبِقُ وَتَرَكْنَا يُوسُفَ عِنْدَ مَتَاعِنَا فَأَكَلَهُ الذِّئْبُ- وَمَا أَنْتَ بِمُؤْمِنٍ لَنَا وَلَوْ كُنَّا صَادِقِينَ

They said: O our father! surely we went off racing and left Yusuf by our goods, so the wolf devoured him, and you will not believe us though we are truthful.4

This is his shirt that we have brought back for you. Yaqoob (a.s.) told them to throw the shirt to him and they handed it over to Yaqoob (a.s.). He rubbed it on his face and immediately became unconscious. After regaining consciousness he told his sons, “O my sons, do you think that the wolf has eaten up my dear Yusuf?” When they replied in the positive he said, “Then tell me why I cannot perceive the smell of Yusuf’s flesh? And why do I find his shirt undamaged? Even if you grant that the shirt is open from below, did the wolf not need to tear it in order to reach to the shoulders and neck of Yusuf?

It is only an allegation on the wolf and indeed my son is oppressed. Nay, your souls have made the matter light for you, but patience is good and Allah is He Whose help is sought for against what you describe. That night Yaqoob (a.s.) kept away from them and he did not speak to them. He began to recite an elegy for Yusuf (a.s.) and said again and again: O my dear Yusuf whom I preferred over all my sons; he has been taken away from me! O my dear Yusuf! Of all my children I had hope only in him.

And he is snatched from me. O my dear Yusuf! I used to make him sleep on my right and left arm. He is taken away from me. O my dear Yusuf! By whom I filled the emptiness of my loneliness. He is taken away from me. O my dear Yusuf! On whom have you left me or where shall I search for you? O my dear Yusuf! If only I had been with you, so that I could have also borne what you had to bear.

O my dear Yusuf! If only I had known on which mountain they have abandoned you or in which river they have thrown you. O my dear Yusuf! If only I had been with you and had suffered the same calamities that you had to suffer.”

Among the points proving that Yaqoob (a.s.) was aware that Yusuf (a.s.) was alive and in occultation is that he said:

    أَمْرًا- فَصَبْرٌ جَمِيلٌ- عَسَى اللَّهُ أَنْ يَأْتِيَنِي بِهِمْ جَمِيعًا

…maybe Allah will bring them all together to me…5

And he said:

    يَا بَنِيَّ اذْهَبُوا فَتَحَسَّسُوا مِنْ يُوسُفَ وَأَخِيهِ وَلَا تَيْأَسُوا مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ- إِنَّهُ لَا يَيْأَسُ مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْكَافِرُونَ

O my sons! Go and inquire respecting Yusuf and his brother, and despair not of Allah’s mercy; surely none despairs of Allah’s mercy except the unbelieving people.6

Imam Ja’far Sadiq (a.s.) said: Prophet Yaqoob (a.s.) asked the Angel of death: Tell me whether you capture the souls together or you capture each of them separately? He replied: Separately. Then Yaqoob (a.s.) asked: Is the soul of Yusuf there among the souls that you have captured? “No,” said the angel. Thus after this Yaqoob (a.s.) told his sons, “O my sons, go out and search for Yusuf and his brother.’

Thus the condition of the people of our time who know about the Master of the Time living in concealment and those who have his recognition is the same as the condition of Yaqoob (a.s.) regarding Prophet Yusuf and his concealment. And those who are ignorant and foolish, they behave in the same way as did the family members and relatives of Yaqoob (a.s.). They were so ignorant about Yusuf and his occultation that they used to tell their father: “By Allah, you are most surely in your old error.”

And the saying of Yaqoob when the bringer of good news rubbed the shirt of Yusuf on his face and he regained his eyesight that: “Did I not say to you that I know from Allah what you do not know?” This proves that he knew that Yusuf was alive and that he had to go into occultation by way of test.

3 - Narrated to us my father; and Muhammad bin Hasan - may Allah be pleased with them - they said: Narrated to us Abdullah bin Ja’far al-Himyari from Ahmad bin Hilal Isa from Abdur Rahman bin Abi Najran from Fadala bin Ayyub from Sadeer who said: I heard Aba Abdullah (a.s.) say:

“The Qaim is also having a similarity to Prophet Yusuf (a.s.).” The narrator says: I said: Perhaps you want to tell us about him or his occultation. He told me: “In this Ummah, the opponents who resemble swine, don’t oppose that Yusuf’s brothers were among the children of prophets but they sold away Yusuf while all of them were his brothers and he was also a brother to them, yet when they met they could not recognize him till Yusuf introduced himself and said: “I am Yusuf and this is my brother.”

Thus how can this Ummah deny if the Almighty Allah wants to keep His Proof concealed from them in a period of time? And one day Yusuf became the king of Egypt and the distance between him and his father was only of 18 days’ travel. When Allah, the Blessed and the High wanted that his status and value be recognized, by Allah, the people of his house covered this distance in nine days after getting the glad news. Thus how can this Ummah deny that Allah, the Mighty and Sublime can do with His Proof the same as what He had done with Yusuf? His Proof should walk among them, pass by them in the markets and sit among them and they could not recognize him. Until Allah, the Mighty and Sublime permits the Divine Proof to introduce himself as He had permitted Yusuf (a.s.) to do so when he said:

    قَالَ هَلْ عَلِمْتُمْ مَا فَعَلْتُمْ بِيُوسُفَ وَأَخِيهِ إِذْ أَنْتُمْ جَاهِلُونَ قَالُوا أَإِنَّكَ لَأَنْتَ يُوسُفُ قَالَ أَنَا يُوسُفُ وَهَٰذَا أَخِي

Do you know how you treated Yusuf and his brother when you were ignorant? They said: Are you indeed Yusuf? He said: I am Yusuf and this is my brother.7

Notes

1. Surah Yusuf 12:96

2. Surah Yusuf 12:94-96

3. Surah Yusuf 12:94

4. Surah Yusuf 12:17

5. Surah Yusuf 12:83

6. Surah Yusuf 12:87

7. Surah Yusuf 12:89-90

Chapter 6: Regarding the Occultation of Prophet Musa

Chapter 6: Regarding the Occultation (Ghaibat) of Prophet Musa (a.s.)

As regards the occultation of Prophet Musa (a.s.) it is mentioned:

1 -Narrated to us Husain bin Ahmad bin Idrees (r.a.) that he said: Narrated to us my father: Narrated to us Abu Saeed Sahl bin Ziyad Aadami ar-Razi that he said: Narrated to us Muhammad bin Aadam an-Nasai from his father Aadam bin Abi Iyaas that he said: Narrated to us Mubarak bin Fadala from Saeed bin Jubair from Chief of the worshippers, Ali bin Husain from his father, the Chief of the Martyrs, Husain bin Ali from his father, the Chief of the Successors, the Leader of the Believers Ali Ibne Abi Talib (a.s.) that he said: The Messenger of Allah (S) said:

“When his death approached Yusuf (a.s.) called his followers and family members. After praise and glorification of Allah he informed them that they would be involved in hardships and calamities in which their males should be killed and the bellies of their pregnant women should be cut open and their children should be slaughtered. Till finally the Almighty Allah will give victory to truth through one who will reappear from the descendants of Laavi bin Yaqoob (a.s.). He shall be a wheat-complexioned and well-built man. And he told them about his characteristics.

Then he advised them to remain attached to him. After that both, occultation and severities befell the people of Bani Israel and they waited for the advent of the Qaim for four hundred years. Finally they were given the glad tidings of his birth and they witnessed the signs of the advent and the trials and calamities intensified upon them. They were attacked with sticks and stones. So they called for that thinker and scholar whose words used to give them comfort. At that time he had also gone into seclusion.

So they wrote to him reminding him that when they faced hard times they used to get comfort from his words. So he took them to the desert and told them about the Qaim of the time that his advent was near. It was a moonlit night. At the same time Musa (a.s.) began to move toward them. At that time he was a young man. He had emerged from the house of Firon and there was expression of his purity. So he left his companions and moved toward these people. He was riding a mule at that time and had covered himself with a green silken sheet. When the learned man saw him, he recognized him at once through the foretold signs. He arose from his place and fell down on his feet and kissed his feet as a respect and said, “Praise be to Allah Who did not give me death till I could meet you. When the followers understood that it is the same in whose anticipation they had been, they fell down in prostration to thank Allah, the Mighty and Sublime. Musa (a.s.) did not say anything other than, “I am sure the Almighty Allah will release you from your difficulties very soon,”

After that he disappeared. Later Musa (a.s.) went to Madayn and stayed with Shuaib (a.s.). Thus his second occultation was more severe upon his followers than the first and it lasted for a fifty odd years. During this time they were subjected to further severities and the learned man also remained in concealment. Again they sent a message to him that they had no peace and patience when he was away from them. So again he came out in a desert and assured and consoled them. He said that Allah has revealed to him that they shall be free from this trouble within forty years.

They all said in unison: Praise be to Allah. Allah said to him, “Tell them that Allah has decreased for them ten years from these 40 years as they had uttered ‘Praise be to Allah’. The people said: All the bounties are from Allah alone. So Allah, the Mighty and Sublime sent revelation that: “I have fixed the period of deliverance as twenty years. They said, “Goodness is from none except Allah.” Allah, the Mighty and Sublime revealed, “I have reduced it to ten years.” They said, “None but Allah can remove bad times and hardships.” So Allah sent revelation: Tell them not to wait anymore.

I have permitted that the means of your deliverance should reach you immediately. They were in the same position when Musa (a.s.) appeared to them astride a donkey. The learned man wanted to tell the followers what they were seeing. Musa (a.s.) arrived, stood before them and greeted them. The learned man asked, “What is your name?” “I am Musa (a.s.),” he replied. He asked, “Whose son are you?” Musa (a.s.) said, “I am the son of Imran.” The man asked, “Whose son was he?”

“He was the son of Qahath bin Laavi bin Yaqoob,” replied Musa (a.s.). He asked, “What have you come with?” Musa (a.s.) replied, “I have come with messengership from Allah, the Mighty and Sublime. The learned man stood up and kissed his hands with respect. Musa (a.s.) sat down among them, consoled them and after teaching them some religious commands dispersed them. Between this incident and their deliverance through the drowning of Firon there was a period of forty years.”

2 - Narrated to us my father, and Muhammad bin Hasan bin Ahmad bin Walid -may Allah be pleased with them -they said: Narrated to us Saad bin Abdullah: and Abdullah bin Ja’far Himyari; and Muhammad bin Yahya al-Attar and Ahmad bin Idrees that they all said: Narrated to us Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Isa from Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Abi Nasr al-Bizanti from Aban bin Uthman from Muhammad al-Halabi from Abi Abdullah (a.s.) that he said:

“At the time of his death Yusuf bin Yaqoob (a.s.) assembled the descendants of Yaqoob (a.s.) who were eighty men. Then he said: These Copts will dominate you and put you to great trouble. One who will save you from them will be a descendant of Laavi bin Yaqoob, whose name will be Musa bin Imran. He shall be a tall young man and will have curly hair. He would be wheat complexioned.

Thus every man of Bani Israel began to name his child Imran. And all those who were named Imran began to name their sons Musa.”

Aban bin Uthman mentions from Abil Husain from Abi Baseer from Abi Ja’far (a.s.) that he said:

“Musa (a.s.) did not reappear till before him appeared forty false claimants from Bani Israel each of whom claimed to be Musa Ibne Imran.

Information reached Firon that people are restless for him and that they are in anticipation of the advent of this young man. The soothsayers and magicians of Firon also informed him that that boy would destroy his kingdom and his religion and that he would be born in Bani Israel that year. So Firon appointed the mid¬wives to examine the pregnant women of Bani Israel and said: Every child born this year should be killed.

A midwife was also appointed on the mother of Musa (a.s.). When the Bani Israel saw this they said: When our male children are killed and our women are left alive, we shall be destroyed and our generations would become extinct. So let us decide not to have sexual relationships with our women. But Musa’s father, Imran told them: “No, let us continue it, Allah’s command will come to pass even if the polytheists are averse to it. O Allah I am not with one who has made it unlawful and I shall not consider it unlawful.

Anyone else may abstain from it by I shall not abstain from it.” So he established relations with Musa’s mother and she became pregnant. Firon appointed a midwife to keep a watch on her with express instructions that if Musa’s mother stands up she must also stand up and if she sat down she must also sit down. Gradually the midwife became fond of her. Once she asked why she was becoming pale and thin. She said not to inquire her condition, “Because when my son is born, he will be killed.” The midwife told her not to worry. “I will keep your son hidden from others.” But Musa’s mother did not believe her. When Musa (a.s.) was born, his mother was uneasy. The midwife consoled her.

She wrapped the child in a cloth and hid him in a room and came out at the door to the sentries of Firon standing outside and asked them to go away and said that except for this bloody lump of meat nothing has come out. So the sentries went away from there. Then Musa’s mother suckled him but she was worried, what if they heard him crying and came to know the truth? Allah revealed to her to make a wooden box for a child, place him in it, close the box and cast it on the Nile. She did as Allah commanded.

When she cast the wooden casket into the water, the casket returned to her. She pushed it again but it came back. At last the wind pushed it far into the river. She became so sad for her child that she wanted to cry out aloud but Allah gave her patience.

The Imam said: Firon’s wife was a righteous lady of faith and she also belonged to the Bani Israel tribe. She said to Firon: “These are the days of spring. Put a tent for me on the bank of River Nile, so that I can enjoy sitting there.”

Firon complied with her request and that casket approached her floating on the river. She asked her maidservants, “Can you see what I see?” They said, “By Allah! We can see something floating on the water.”

When the wooden basket reached her. She stood up from her place and asked her maids to pull it out. They pulled the basket out of the water and opened it. She found a pretty, cute baby boy in it. Seeing the infant she became very anxious. She held him in her arms and said that she would adopt him as her son.

The maidservants also agreed and said, “Yes madam. By Allah, you have no children and the king is also without an heir. The child is very handsome and attractive. Adopt him.” Aasiya went to her husband and showed him the charming baby boy from the river. “I want to adopt him. So do not kill him,” she said. Firon asked her from where she got him. She said that she did not know whose child it was. “He was floating in a casket, and I pulled him out from the river.” Firon was satisfied with the explanation and accepted him.

When people heard that Firon has adopted a son, they sent their wives to suckle the child but Musa (a.s.) did not suck. Then Aasiya asked Firon to arrange for a wet-nurse for the baby. Many nurses tried but Musa (a.s.) did not suck their milk. Musa’s mother also came to know about this. She asked her daughter to ascertain this matter. The sister of Musa (a.s.) came to the door of Firon and asked whether they needed a wet nurse for a child. She said that there was a good woman staying nearby.

She would feed the baby and look after him. The servants informed Aasiya. She ordered them to bring the girl to her. Musa’s sister came to her. She asked that girl which community she belonged to? She said, “She belonged to the family of Bani Israel.” Aasiya told her to go away. The maidservants insisted upon her to call that woman and see if the child sucks from her or not. Aasiya said, “Even if the child accepts, Firon might be unhappy. She said the child and the nurse both belong to Bani Israel; Firon will not allow her. Her maidservants said, “Let us first see if the child sucks.”

Aasiya told the girl to call the wet-nurse; Musa’s sister ran to her mother. She came and took the child and he began to suck. Aasiya told Firon that she has found a wet-nurse for a child. Firon asked which community she belonged to? His wife said that she was from Bani Israel. Firon said, “How can it be? The child and the nurse both belong to Bani Israel.” Aasiya asked him why he was afraid of the child? “Now he is our son,” she said. “He will grow up in our care.” By arguing and discussing she convinced him.

In this way Musa grew among the dynasty of Firon. Musa’s mother, sister and the mid-wife kept it secret till the time his mother expired and the midwife also passed away. Thus he continued to grow and the people of Bani Israel didn’t know about it. The Imam says: The people of Bani Israel used to search and inquire about him and automatically the information about him used to be concealed.

Firon learnt that those people were looking for Musa (a.s.) and seeking information regarding him. So he dispatched his agents to them and subjected them to further torture and separated them. Then he prohibited them to ask about Musa (a.s.). Once the people of Bani Israel gathered on a moonlit night and went to a learned man. They said: “We used to obtain solace from some things but how long can we bear these troubles?” He said, “By Allah, you will remain in this condition till Allah sents a young man from the descendants of Laavi bin Yaqoob (a.s.).

His name will be Musa bin Imran (a.s.). He will be strong, tall, brave and curly haired.” While they sat discussing this, all of a sudden Musa (a.s.) came to them on a mule and stopped before them. This old man raised his head and recognized him through the signs and characteristics. He asked, “May Allah bless you, what is your name?” “Musa,” replied Musa (a.s.). He asked, “Who is your father?” Musa (a.s.) said, “I am the son of Imran.” The learned man arose and kissed Musa’s hands. People fell at the feet of Musa (a.s.) and began to kiss them. Musa (a.s.) and the people recognized each other and Musa made them his followers.

Musa (a.s.) stayed there for a few days and moved to another city. There he saw two men quarrelling. One was the believer of Allah and other was a Copt from Firon’s community. The believer screamed for help. Musa (a.s.) hit the Copt on his chest and he fell down dead. Allah gave him the natural power of strength and terror. The news spread that Musa (a.s.) has killed an Egyptian.

Musa (a.s.) passed the night in fear. In the morning a believer of Musa (a.s.) came running and asked for help as he had some dispute with another man. Musa (a.s.) said, “Indeed, he is on the wrong.” Musa (a.s.) was angry on this man. He said, “O, Musa (a.s.) if you want to kill me. Kill me as you killed a man yesterday.” He said, “Musa (a.s.) you are supposed to be a superior being on the earth, but you can’t rectify the people?” Another man came running and informed that the Egyptians were talking about him and wanted to kill him. “O, Musa! I am your true believer and request you to go away from this city.”

So Musa (a.s.) left the city without any support. He passed through the desert and reached Madayn. He rested under a tree. There was a well and the people came there to draw water. Suddenly he saw two girls with their animals who had came to draw water for their animals and they stood aside. Musa (a.s.) asked them for the reason for coming there. They said, “Our father is an old man and we are weaker.

We cannot oppose them so we are waiting until they draw water and go away. Then we will water our animals.” Musa (a.s.) felt pity on them. He took their bucket and asked them to bring their animals near the well. He drew water for them. The girls returned home early. Musa (a.s.) again sat under a tree and prayed to Allah. He had nothing to eat and was very hungry.

When the girls reached home, their father Shuaib (a.s.) asked them how they returned early. The girls said that a nice man drew water for them. Shuaib (a.s.) asked one of his daughters to call him. She came to Musa (a.s.) modestly and said that her father has called him to reward him for the favor he has done to them by pulling out water for their animals.

Musa (a.s.) told her to walk behind and give him directions because the sons of Yaqoob (a.s.) never glance at the back of ladies. Musa (a.s.) came to Shuaib (a.s.) greeted him and then explained his condition. Shuaib (a.s.) consoled him and said that he was now safe from the unjust people. Then one of the daughters asked her father: Employ him, because if you do it you would have employed a strong and an honest worker. Shuaib (a.s.) said to Musa: I want to marry one of my daughters to you with the condition that you work for me for eight years and if you complete ten it would be favor from you.

According to traditions, Musa (a.s.) completed ten years in his employment because apostles of Allah do not take anything without favor. After completing the period Musa (a.s.) took his family and set out towards Jerusalem. One night he lost his way. At that time he saw a fire at a distance. He told his wife: Wait here. I have seen fire at a distance. I’ll go and see if I can get some of it for you or get some direction to find the way. When he reached the fire, he saw a green tree lit up as on fire.

When he neared, it moved away from its place. Musa (a.s.) turned in fear but the tree moved near Musa (a.s.) and he heard a voice from the right side of the valley. “O, Musa! I am Allah, the Creator of the worlds. Cast your staff on the ground.” Musa (a.s.) cast his staff down. When he saw that the staff was undulating like a python he was shocked and he began to run away without looking behind. It changed into a serpent whose fangs were calling and flames were leaping out of its mouth.

So Musa (a.s.) fled from there but his Lord asked him to return. Musa (a.s.) came back and was shivering all over. Musa (a.s.) asked, “O Allah! Is it Your voice that I hear?” “Yes, do not be afraid,” replied the Lord. Musa (a.s.) came back. He stepped on the tail of the serpent and put his hand into his mouth, it changed into its original form. Allah told him: Remove your shoes as you are in the sacred valley.

It is narrated that he was ordered to remove them, as they were from the carrion of a donkey.

According to another tradition ‘take off your shoes’ means give up your two fears: One that your family members will be lost and another of Firon.

After that Allah, the Mighty and Sublime sent him to Firon and his people with two signs: The first was a luminous hand and second his staff. It is narrated from Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (a.s.) that he told his companions: You should be such that you are more hopeful for something about which you don’t have hope. Musa (a.s.) went to get fire for his wife and he returned as a Messenger Prophet.

Thus Allah reformed the condition of His servant and Prophet in a single night. He shall do the same in the case of His second Qaim; that is the twelfth of the Imams. And He shall reform his affairs in a single night as He reformed the affair of His Prophet Musa (a.s.) and brought him out from confusion and occultation into the light of deliverance and reappearance.

3 - Narrated to us my father (r.a.) that: Narrated to us Saad bin Abdullah: Narrated to us Moalla bin Muhammad al-Basri from Muhammad bin Jumhur and others from Abdullah bin Sinan from Abi Abdullah (a.s.) that he said:

“In the Qaim there is resemblance to Musa bin Imran. I asked: What is the resemblance to Musa bin Imran? He replied: Secret birth and occultation from his people. I asked: How long was Musa in occultation from his family and followers? He replied: For twenty-eight years.”

4 - And narrated to us Abul Abbas Muhammad bin Ibrahim bin Ishaq al-Mukattaib (r.a.) that he said: Narrated to us Husain bin Ibrahim bin Abdullah bin Mansur that he said: Narrated to us Muhammad bin Harun al-Hashmi that he said: Narrated to us Ahmad bin Isa that: Narrated to us Abul Husain Ahmad bin Sulaiman Ruhawi that: Narrated to us Muawiyah bin Hisham from Ibrahim bin Muhammad bin Hanifiyyah from his father Muhammad from his father Amirul Momineen Ali Ibne Abi Talib (a.s.) that he said: The Messenger of Allah (S) said:

“The Mahdi is from us, Ahlul Bayt. Allah will reform his affair on a single night. And in another version: Allah will bring reform for him in a single night.”

5 - Narrated to us my father; and Muhammad bin Hasan - may Allah be pleased with them - they said: Narrated to us Abdullah bin Ja’far al-Himyari from Muhammad bin Isa from Sulaiman bin Dawood from Abi Baseer that he said: I heard Abu Ja’far (a.s.) say:

“In the master of this affair there are four points of similarity with four prophets. Resemblance with Musa, resemblance with Isa, resemblance with Yusuf and resemblance with Muhammad (peace be on them all). The resemblance with Musa is that he shall be fearing and awaiting, the resemblance with Yusuf is imprisonment, the resemblance with Isa is that it would be said regarding him that he has died while he would not be so and the resemblance with Muhammad is armed uprising.”