Surah Yusuf 12:43-49 - Quran Translation Commentary

43. And the king said: “Verily, I saw (in a dream) seven fat cows whom seven lean ones were devouring, and seven green ears of corn and other (seven) dry. O Nobles! Explain to me my dream,” if you can interpret dreams.”

44. They said:”(These are) confused dreams, and we are not skilled in the interpretation of the confused dreams.⁷⁹

45. And one of the two who was released and at length remembered,⁸⁰ said: “I will tell you the interpretation so send me forth (to Yusuf)”.

46. “O Yusuf! O Truthful one⁸¹! Interpret to us (about the dream ) seven fat cows whom the seven lean cows were devouring, and the seven green ears of corn and the other (seven) dry, so that I may return to the people and that they may know.”⁸²

47. He said: “You shall sow (harvest) seven years continually so during this period let what you reap be left in the ear, except a little which you eat.⁸³ ”

48. Then after that will come seven hard (years) which will devour all that you have reaped for them, save a little which you have preserved.⁸⁴

49. Then after that will come a year in which the people will have the blissful rains and in which they will press (oil and Juice).”⁸⁵

Commentary

79. The insight and wisdom required to interpret the dreams of the king were the qualities which the nobles of the king lacked. When they did not understand this dream, they said that it was a jumbled and confused dream, which could not be interpreted.

There are three kinds of dreams. First the dream in which the sub-conscious mind is active and the suppressed desires express themselves in some form, or due to an upset stomach man sees frightful dreams. The second are those dreams which are seen by machinations of the devil. Such dreams cannot be interpreted but they can play a lot of mischief. In such dreams the Satan tries to persuade man to have faith in false percepts to weaken the true belief, to attract towards polytheism and grave-worshipping, and to sow the seeds of mistrust and disruption between the husband and the wife. Man should be watchful and remain alert against such dreams and should not be influenced by them.

The third kind of dreams are those which are called ‘Ruya-i-sadiqah’ or true dreams. The signs of true dreams are that a man feels its effect in his heart. Sometimes these dreams come true in such a way that their interpretation is not necessary. Whatever a man sees in his dreams, the events occur exactly like that in actual life. But many times the true dreams are seen in the form of hints and suggestions, and they have deep meanings; they can be interpreted only by a person who has the real knowledge of this kind. The events of the true dreams which are narrated in Quran and the authentic ahadith, and their interpretation given in them are very rewarding and insight-giving. (For further explanation, see Note No.85)

80. That is; The wine-server who had forgotten to mention Yusuf to the king, on this occasion when the king’s dream was being discussed, the memory of Yusuf’s ability to interpret dreams was revived.

In the Bible too the king’s dream has been narrated, and it has been related that the king summoned the magicians and the wise men to interpret his dream, but they could not help him. At that time that noble said to the king; “I remember my faults today———— A Young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard; and when we told him, he interpreted our dreams to us, giving an interpretation to each man according to his dream. And as he interpreted to us, so it came to pass;” (Gen-41:9 to 13)

81. The wine-server went to the prison with the permission of the king and addressed Yusuf as truthful one, which shows how much he was influenced by Yusuf’s character during his stay in the prison.

82. That is: People are keenly awaiting to know the interpretation of the dream, so let me know it so that I may inform them about it.

83. Yusuf expounded the interpretation of the dream, also stating the remedial measures to be taken. The direction to store the corn (to let it remain in the ears) was given so that it may remain safe from insects. The interpretation of the dream was that seven fat cows signified seven years of plentiful harvest, and seven green ears of corn signifies good harvests for seven years.

84. Seven hard years means seven years of scarce grains and adversity and seven dry and withered ears of corn means famine and scarcity, which would continue for seven years. The meaning of seven lean cows eating the seven fat cows was that the grains stored during the plenteous years would be eaten during the years of scarcity, and only that much corn would be saved which would be utilised as seeds for sowing.

85. This was an additional piece of information along with the interpretation of the dream, which was prophesied by Prophet Yusuf. It is obvious he would have been made aware of it by means of the divine revelation.

By pressing the corn farmers and traders could obtain wine as well as oil. It means after the passing of the dry and scarcity years there will come a year when there will be good rains resulting in good harvests and lots of grains and fruits.

The interpretation of the dream came to be true, as would be seen further on. Although the king was not a Muslim, yet his dream was true.

A true dream is a sign which is shown by Allah, sometimes even to Non-Muslims, so that the message of truth may be convincingly conveyed to them. Such a dream indicates or predicts an event which would occur in the future; and when the event takes place as shown in the dream, it proves that the events taking place in the world are not mere accidents but are the result of some planning and that there is an overall Ruler of the universe who enforces His scheme and His plan (fate). If the events and happenings of the world were to take place without any sort of planning, then it could not be possible for anyone to know what was going to happen in future, while actually true dreams, which are being seen by humans, give advance information about the future happenings. This is a clear proof of the fact that there is God of the universe and whatever takes place here is in accordance with His pre-planned scheme. Therefore, whoever sees a true dream, whether a Muslim or a Non-Muslim, does not see a mere dream but he sees Allah’s argument which needs no further proof.