Transliteration:( Wa lammaa fasalatil 'eeru qaala aboohum innee la ajidu reeha Yoosufa law laaa an tufannidoon )
200. These words were spoken by Hazrat Yaqoob (on whom he peace) to his grandsons and other family members for all his sons at that time were in Egypt.Â
From this emerges a few issues:
1. A special sweet fragrance had emanated from the blessed body of Hazrat Yusuf (on whom be peace).
2. Prophets through Divine powers see, hear, and smell things from far and near. Observe, Hazrat Yaqoob (on whom be peace) was smelling this fragrance from his son's shirt although he is hundreds of miles away. Likewise, Hazrat Sulaiman (on whom be peace) could hear the footsteps of an ant from miles.
3. There is no fixed time for the apperance of the qualities of the blessed Prophets. This is like the glow of lightning, sometimes they appear, sometimes they remain concealed.
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The tafsir of Surah Yusuf verse 94 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Yusuf ayat 93 which provides the complete commentary from verse 93 through 95.
(12:94) And as the caravan set out (from Egypt), their father said (in Canaan): “Indeed I smell the fragrance of Joseph.[66] I say so although you may think that I am doting.”
66. This is an instance of the extraordinary powers the Prophets possess. Prophet Jacob perceived in Canaan the smell of Prophet Joseph’s shirt from such a distant place as Egypt as soon as the caravan started on the journey. At the same time it also shows, by contrast, that these powers of the Prophets are not inherent or personal characteristics but are bestowed on them by Allah as and when He wills. That is why Prophet Jacob could not perceive the smell of the clothes of Prophet Joseph as long as Allah did not will it, when he had been living in Egypt.
In this connection, it should also be noted that in contrast to the Quran which represents Prophet Jacob as a great Prophet who was able to perceive the smell of Prophet Joseph from such a long distance, the Bible represents him as an ordinary uncultured father. According to Genesis 45: 26-27, when they told him, saying: Joseph is yet alive and he is governor over all the land of Egypt, Jacob’s heart fainted, for he believed them not, and only when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived.
[616]- To those present with him, either some of his sons or other relatives.
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