Ramadhan Day 12 / Juzz 12 - A Sociology Lesson From Surah Yusuf

Ramadhan Day 12 / Juz 12

"[Of these stories mention] when Joseph said to his father, "O my father, indeed I have seen [in a dream] eleven stars and the sun and the moon; I saw them prostrating to me." [12:4]

Allah begins Surah Yusuf by revealing to us the dream Yusuf (عليه السلام) had. Where he saw the sun, moon and 11 stars bowing down to him.

There are a couple of ways we can interpret this beautiful verse.The first interpretation is that the sun represents the mother, the moon represents the father, and the 11 stars represents the brothers. The second interpretation, however, is that the sun represents the father, the moon represents the mother and the 11 stars represent the brothers.

If we take the second interpretation and study it deeper, there are some sociology lessons we can learn.

First let's look at the sun, when the sun Is out how do we feel? Warm. Protected. Safe. Do we feel scared? No. Now compare this to the father. When the father is at home, don't we feel safe? Do we not feel warmth?

Now if we look to the moon, isn't it soft and serene? If we compare this to the mother doesn't she bring peace to the home? And, usually, isn't the mom the soft one, the one the kids take refuge in?

And where are the stars when the moon is out? They are twinkling around the moon. Similarly, the children are usually found surrounding the mother.

Now the moon takes its light from the sun. What we can learn from this is that the mother and father both compliment each other and work together as a team, one giving support to the other.

And what happens if the sun and the moon, instead of complimenting each other's roles, start clashing instead? What happens when they cross paths? You have an eclipse! In the case of the mother and father, a social eclipse.

And when an eclipse happens the stars disappear. Similarly, when a social eclipse happens, the children suffer the most!

How amazing is this Qur'an?