(12-20-40)
The man who
bought Joseph was a governor. He took Joseph to his wife and said, “Look after
this boy properly. He seems to me from a good family; if he proves himself
worthy of our attention we may adopt him as our son or he may be beneficial to
us in some other way.” The governor treated Joseph with kindness. In spite of
his young age, Joseph worked so diligently and honestly that he was able to win
his master’s admiration for himself. Aziz (the governor) became his mentor and
opened the doors of knowledge for him. In
this manner, God gave knowledge and wisdom to Joseph and established him in a
powerful Egyptian house, where he got the best education and training.
Egyptian
civilization was one of the most powerful and important civilizations of
Joseph’s time. It was a cradle of science, art and knowledge. Aziz, who bought Joseph from the slave-market,
was the governor at that time, and his house was the
center of information. Joseph learned the technique of deciphering data and
drawing correct conclusions from it in this house. Moreover, he was very diligent: instead of
wasting his time in useless activities, he occupied himself in acquiring
knowledge.
With the help and guidance of the governor, he
quickly learned all the useful skills. His character was one thing which
distinguished him from the youth of his age. He led a very pious and clean life; he was always
loyal and grateful to Aziz, who made it possible for him to acquire knowledge
and learn the prevailing method of administration. In Cannon, Joseph was a
shepherd-boy, and it was not possible for him to learn the cultural manners of
a civilized nation. In Egypt, he
acquired the best knowledge which he could not gain in Cannon.
Joseph’s
physical development was as astonishing as his mental achievements. He turned
out to be a charming youth, with bewitching beauty and graceful enchanting
manners. Aziz’s wife wanted to seduce
him and tried everything in her power to attract him. Joseph remained firm on the path of
virtue. Aziz’s wife was frustrated by the
lack of a positive response. One day, she closed all the doors and made a
sexual advance towards Joseph. Joseph did not relent; he refused her bluntly
and told her, “You cannot pull me down from the high place which God has
granted me. I shall always remain
conscious of his laws.” Aziz’s wife was
a perfect coquette; she was completely in the grip of her passions. Without
taking any notice of what Joseph was saying, she tried to manhandle him. In the scuffle, they both ran for the door,
each trying to reach it before the other.
In her madness of passion, she tried to stop the running Joseph but was
only able to tear his shirt from behind.
When they
reached the door Aziz was standing there.
She quickly changed her position after seeing him and said to her
husband, “What do you think should be the punishment of the person who attacks
your wife in your absence? Imprisonment or a more severe punishment than that?”
Joseph said,
“She is telling a lie; she was trying to seduce me. I ran to escape her trap.”
This
unexpected event changed the usual course of things. Aziz was devastated with the shock. All the members of his and his wife’s clan
came to see them. Joseph and Aziz’s wife
both stuck to their points of view. This state of affairs lasted for some time,
till a member of the woman’s family, who was well known for his wisdom and
common sense, was appointed as a judge to decide the case. The wise judge declared, “Look at the shirt;
if it is torn from the front, the woman is innocent and Joseph is the culprit. If, on the other hand, the shirt is torn at
the back, Joseph is right and the woman is a liar.” Everyone agreed that it was
a fair and impartial decision. The shirt
was seen and it was torn at the back.
Aziz, who had been reluctant to pronounce the judgment up to this time, said to his wife, “This was an act of guile. Your cunning and tricks are very dangerous. You should ask Joseph to forgive you.”
Then he
turned back to Joseph and said, “Overlook this matter; women are like
this—foolish and weak.
The news of
this unsuccessful love affair between the governor’s wife and a slave spread
like wildfire in the higher society. Many
women criticized Aziz’s wife. “What type
of a woman is she? She cannot allure a mere slave,” said one woman.
Another
remarked, “I think something is wrong with her methods. The right approach
could have yielded better results.”
When this
criticism of her poor methods and failed attempt to allure a mere slave reached
Aziz’s wife, she became indignant. She
invited the ladies from the upper class who were talking about sly methods to a
party. The party was luxuriously
arranged, with abundant fruits, candy, wine, and many other nice eatables. Each
person was allotted a brocade-cushioned seat and table. On the table a knife was placed beside other
utensils.
Joseph was
called. The invited women were astounded
to see his grace and charm. They tried
all their sly methods to seduce him, but Joseph did not budge an inch. Some women hurt their hands to make it
appear that Joseph had attacked them. In
the end Aziz’s wife declared, “This is the slave-boy you were taunting me
about; if he will remain obstinate and not comply with my wishes, he cannot
work in the palaces as he has been doing.
He has only two options: one is to comply with my desires, and the other
is to leave this life of comfortable luxury and go to prison.”
Joseph prayed
to God, “Oh God save me from the guiles of these women. I will prefer prison
than what these women are asking from me.” God accepted Joseph’s prayer.
A new case
was registered against Joseph. This time
it was not one man against one woman.
The highly placed women in society were launching a complaint against a
friendless, alone man. The judges knew
the worthlessness of the case, but in order to appease the tumult and commotion
in the high circle of society, they decided against Joseph and sent him to
prison.
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