Anyone who studies filmmaking knows that every story needs a conflict. Think of any movie you have watched. The main premise is that there is one major conflict that gets resolved within 1-2 hours, and throughout it, mini-conflicts are sprinkled in. Imagine a movie without a conflict. It would not even feel right!

Surah or Chapter Yusuf in the Qur’an has 7 conflicts. They are:

1. The dream Prophet Yusuf (peace be upon him) sees
2. The plot of his brothers
3. Him forced into slavery
4. Seduction by the minister’s wife
5. Conflict with the women
6. Him being imprisoned
7. The king’s dream

And how do all of them get resolved?

1. Prophet Yusuf interprets the king’s dream
2. Yusuf is allowed to be free
3. The women admit their wrongs
4. The minister’s wife also confesses and the scandal gets resolved
5. He is no longer a slave and becomes the treasurer of Egypt
6. The decades-long issue with his brothers gets resolved
7. The dream of Prophet Yusuf plays out in real life

See something in the order? The conflicts get resolved in the opposite order! The definition of poetry!

Now we can ask ourselves – could one man have done this? Think of movies from Pixar for example. They take years and years to make the perfect story. And that’s by a whole team of writers and professionals!

Let’s say fine, one person managed to do it. But when was this Surah revealed? It was after the most difficult time of Prophet Muhammad’s (ﷺ) life – when Khadijah, his wife of 25 years, AND his father-figure like uncle, Abu Talib, both passed away! To take time out that year, with all the grief and social issues going on, yet still make all the intricacies, symmetry, and poetry in the Surah – does it make sense?

• This was taken from a wonderful conversation all about Surah Yusuf. This was at the 54:23 mark, but the entire talk is worth every minute –