Why did Hz. Yusuf want to die when he was the happiest? Will you explain verse 101 of the chapter of Yusuf?

- Will you explain verse 101 of the chapter of Yusuf?

Dear Brother / Sister,

Verse 101 of the chapter of Yusuf:

"O my Lord! Thou hast indeed bestowed on me some power, and taught me something of the interpretation of dreams and events,- O Thou Creator of the heavens and the earth! Thou art my Protector in this world and in the Hereafter. Take Thou my soul (at death) as one submitting to Thy will (as a Muslim), and unite me with the righteous."

Take my soul as a Muslim!

The supplication Hz. Yusuf (Joseph) made after his dream came out to be true and after he established the strongest bridge that reflected happiness between the world and the hereafter is very meaningful, thought provoking and directive. His supplication is very short but it includes all parts of life and determines man’s place in the world. The supplication of the prophet Yusuf is summarized in two parts:

a)  He wishes his spirit to be taken as one submitting to Allah Almighty fully.

b)  He wants to be among the righteous people in the world and the hereafter.

The first sentence states that man belongs to Allah with all of his possessions, that he can maintain his being only under His shade of salvation and that he will return to Him in the end; it is indicated that it will be the biggest happiness to die with this consciousness, belief and understanding. The second sentence states that proper belief in Allah unites, integrates and develops the feelings of brotherhood, that people like that will always be needed and that man cannot live in seclusion, away from the community, in both the world and the hereafter. Thus, attention is drawn indirectly to the necessity of establishing brotherhood and friendship among believers. (see Celal Yıldırım, İlmin Işığında Asrın Kur’an Tefsiri, Anadolu Publications: 6/2991.)

The same verse is interpreted as follows in the tafs,r of Elmalılı Hamdi Yazır:

101. O Lord! You gave me some wealth and property. You taught me the knowledge of interpreting dreams. Thus, you made me enjoy the biggest boon of the world and I understood what would happen in the end. That is, I have understood that this worldly life and the incidents in it are like a dream that will take place after its interpretation. This is what I understand from the share of my knowledge You have taught me: The interpretation of this dream is also clear; life in the hereafter will definitely come after the worldly life. I have definitely found out about it. O my Lord, who created the heavens and the earth out of nothing! You are my friend in both the world and the hereafter. You are my owner, benefactor and master. Make me die as a Muslim; that is, take my spirit as a Muslim; prevent me from having another religion or belief; take my spirit as a Muslim and include me among righteous people, who are good and charitable. Unite me with the righteous people with my ancestors in the hereafter because boon will be completed only then.

It is said that when Yusuf prayed like that, Allah took his soul as clean and pure. Thereupon, the people of Egypt disagreed about where to bury him and they almost fought. Finally, they made a marble coffin, buried him in it and decided to put it on the route of the River Nile. Thus, he would give honor to everybody who used to water of the Nile. Then, the dynasty that ruled Egypt changed. Amaliqa lost power and Pharaohs took over. Sons of Israel were slaves of Pharaohs until Hz. Musa was sent as a prophet.

The Prophet (pbuh) met Hz. Adam in the first level of the heavens called the sky of the world and Hz. Yusuf in the second level on the night of Miraj. Thus, Yusuf knew the lowdown of this worldly life, whose beginning was hardship and testing and whose ending was elimination and disappearance; he did not want to go further and be the king of Egypt; on the contrary, he wanted to leave the world and attain the eternal life; therefore, he wanted to die by that supplication.

He went to the hereafter with such an ending; it was such a nice supplication and a nice final. That is the life to be accepted as a model and the purpose to be adopted by people of taqwa. It is not the treasures of this word but that nice ending. (see Elmalılı Tefsiri)

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