By revealing this Quran to you, we hereby narrate to you the best narratives while before this you were among those unaware (of it).
TAFSEER;
Pearls
We will be narrating to you the best of all stories…”
Nahnu (the plural) occurs because of Allah and the angels. “We recite to you the stories.”
What stories? Ahsana’l-qasas. “The best of all stories.” What is a qisah?
which means to follow the footsteps in the sand .
Why does a story come from following the footsteps?
You are walking in their footsteps and following them. When I tell you the qisah, what happens to you? You are living it. Why does everybody love a story? A story is mesmerizing. A person never grows too old to listen to a story. All of us are children in this regard, and we love stories. Allah is saying, “We are going to give you the best of stories.” It is called a qisah because we are walking the walk. When we hear the story it is as if we are following their footsteps. Allah is saying, “We will give you the best of stories.”
If you read any book of how to speak and how to give an effective talk, there is always a chapter dedicated to the story.
It is human nature that stories are attractive. Stories are something that you like to listen to. Also, the lessons in stories are manifested. It is not the same as saying, “Whoever is patient, masha’Allah he has good iman.” When I show you a story, those stories remain with you, and you are affected by them more, which is human nature. Allah ‘azza wa jall is telling us stories.
Another benefit of a story is that they are ‘aqeedah (theology) in action. It is one thing to say that you put your trust in Allah, but when we hear the story of Ibrahim when he is going to be thrown into the fire and he puts his trust in Allah, it is theology shown in action. ‘Aqeedah is manifested.
Another benefit of the story is that it is the reality of what has happened in the past. We know this happened to the previous prophets, and so we sense it more.
Another benefit is that stories teach us that Allah’s Sunnah is repetitive and what has happened in the past will happen again.
There is always a lesson to be learned. The lessons of Allah and these rules of Allah are permanent. When we hear these stories, the rules are reinforced. One of the fundamental rules of the story of Yusuf is that righteousness will win in the end, and evil can never succeed in the long run. This is one of the main themes of Surah Yusuf.
Reading the stories of the prophets and reading the seerah of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) is one of the greatest ways to increase iman. Reading the stories of the sahabah brings about a sense of taqwa and iman and courage in us. Stories are a part of the Qur’an and Sunnah and part of human nature. This whole surah is a story.
Every story in the Qur’an is the best. A second meaning that has been derived is the fact that Allah has mentioned this verse in Surah Yusuf is an indication that Surah Yusuf is the best of all stories.
There are two meanings that we derive:
1) Qur’anic stories are better than all other non-Qur’anic stories, and the Qur’an re-emphasizes this; it is pretty obvious.
2) The story of Yusuf is the best of all of these stories. This is why Allah begins the surah with “nahnu naqussu ‘alayka ahsana’l-qasas.” “We are the Ones who will tell you the best of all qasas…”
“…bimaa awhaynaa ilayka…”
Bimaa means ‘because / through this revelation We have given you the Qur’an.’ In other words, ‘because We are revealing the Qur’an to you, it is Our duty to tell you the best of all stories even though before the Qur’an came down you were from the ghaafileen.’
Ghaafil means you did not have knowledge.
Ghaflah means to not have knowledge, and sometimes that ghaflah is intentional, and sometimes it is unintentional. In this case, it is unintentional.
The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) did not have access to knowledge. Allah calls the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) ghaafil because he didn’t have the knowledge, not because he did not study but because he could not have studied. Allah is saying, “Because We have revealed this Qur’an to you, it is Our duty to give you the best of stories.”
The Qur’an says:
“…though before this, you were of those who did it not know.”
Meaning that before We told you this story, you were not informed about it nor had you heard it from anyone.
REFLECTION ;
‣ The wisdom behind Alif Laam Meem is only known to Allah alone.
‣ Allah called the Quran “the Book” though it was not an actual book.
‣ The Quran is clear guidance from Allah.
‣ Allah addressed the Arabs and said to them “you may understand”.
‣ Allah favored the Arabic language over other languages.
‣ Allah only tells the best of stories.
‣ Quran is for those who reflect.
‣ The prophet of Allah did not know much of this before Allah blessed him with the
revelation.
POINTS TO NOTE;
In conclusion, these points illustrate that the Qur’an, as far as telling stories and historical narratives, has utilized the best manner to educate man. Not only the Divine stories, but all the things of Allah are also the best /ahsan/, because:
1 – He is the Best Creator.
2 – He has sent down the Best of Books.
3 – He has produced the best of features.
4 – He has the best of religions.
5 – He provides the best of rewards.
6 – And finally, having such a background, He has demanded the best of actions from man.
At any rate, the story of Yusuf is the best of stories for the following reasons:
A) It is the most relevant to our experience.
B) It deals with the struggle against one’s innermost self which is the greatest of struggles.
C) The hero of the story is Yusuf, a youth who possesses all human virtues in himself (patience, faith, piety, modesty, wisdom, trustfulness, forgiveness and kindness).
D) All persons of the story have a happy ending.
For example ,Yusuf attains a high political position,
the brothers repent,
his father regains his lost sight,
the famine stricken country is saved;
complains and envies are converted into the full gratification of love.
LESSON;
The Qur’an contains the best lessons for mankind to follow
–each story told to us by Allah tala in the Qur’an [Nuh, Nimrod, Musa, Yusuf]
–all contain a lot of lessons for us
–because history repeats itself
–human nature doesn’t change; only technology does