4th. Dream:
The same surah (chapter) of the Qur’an (Yusuf)
which contains the three previous dreams, also contains a fourth dream. The King of Egypt himself saw seven fat cows,
then seven lean cows devouring the fat cows etc:
“The King said: I saw seven fatted cows which seven lean ones
devoured; and seven green ears (of wheat or corn) and seven others dry. O my nobles, tell me the meaning of this
dream, if you can interpret dreams. They
said: They are confused dreams; nor are we skilled in the interpretation of
dreams.”
(Qur’an: Yusuf:-12:43-4)
He considered the dream to be so important that he searched the
land for someone to interpret it. No one could do so. Eventually Joseph himself
had to be approached in prison to interpret the dream, which he did:
“For seven consecutive years shall you sow. But leave your entire harvest of wheat (or
corn) in the ear (the better to preserve it) except a little which you may
consume (i.e., consume the minimum amount of food for those seven years).
Then there will follow seven years of drought (and thus hardship)
which will force you to consume all but a little of the food which you stored.
Then there will come a year of abundant rain in which people
will press the grape.”
(Qur’an: Yusuf:-12: 47-49)
Using the symbolism of fat and lean cows, and ears of corn which
were full and bare, the dream prophesied that seven continuous years of drought
would follow seven continuous years of harvest
- something which experts in climatology may wish to reflect over before
concluding on the nature of contemporary climatic changes. The correct interpretation of the dream
permitted the Egyptian ruler to take appropriate action which averted a
national and, even, regional disaster.
Joseph sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam was placed in charge of all food supplies of Egypt. For seven years he diligently stored the
grain. Then, exactly as the dream had
indicated, seven years of drought
followed. This, in turn, was
followed by a year of abundant rainfall and bumper harvests. And so the dream came true. By acting in a manner appropriate to the
interpretation of the dream the King of Egypt saved his people and the entire
region from disaster.
In this modern age of stupendous scientific progress, however,
it would be considered by some to be ridiculous for affairs of State to be so
dramatically influenced by dreams.
Yet the significance of this event, narrated by no less an
authority than the Book of Allah Most High itself, is that dreams can
transcend the personal affairs of the individual dreamer to prophesy future
events and convey information of strategic national importance affecting an entire
country or region. Also there is the
important recognition that there are some dreams which can only be interpreted
by those so gifted by Allah Most High or by those who diligently pursue
the science of the interpretation of dreams within an overall context of the
enhancement of piety (taqwa). Such a man was the great psychologist of
Islam, Ibn Sireen, whose classical work, Tafseer al-Ahlam, remains the
only comprehensive work on the subject by a Muslim theoretician up to this day.
We wish to here enter a reminder to Islamic revolutionary forces
struggling around the world to restore Islam as an authentic civilization that
such a goal cannot be achieved if one ignores this vitally important and last
remaining medium (i.e., dreams) through which Allah Most High communicates with His servants.
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