Al-Qur'an Surah Yusuf Verse 5

Mufti Taqi Usmani

He said, “My son, do not relate your dream to your brothers, lest they should devise a plan against you. Surely, Satan is an open enemy for mankind.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

He replied, “O my dear son! Do not relate your vision to your brothers, or they will devise a plot against you. Surely Satan is a sworn enemy to humankind.

Ruwwad Translation Center

He said, “O my son, do not relate your vision to your brothers, lest they devise a plot against you, for Satan is a sworn enemy to mankind.

A. J. Arberry

He said, 'O my son, relate not thy vision to thy brothers, lest they devise against thee some guile. Surely Satan is to man a manifest enemy.

Abdul Haleem

and he replied, ‘My son, tell your brothers nothing of this dream, or they may plot to harm you––Satan is man’s sworn enemy.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

He said: O my son! recount not thine vision unto thy brethren, lest they plot a plot against thee; verily the Satan is unto man an enemy manifest.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Said (the father); "My (dear) little son! relate not thy vision to thy brothers, lest they concoct a plot against thee; for Satan is to man an avowed enemy!

Abul Ala Maududi

His father said: "My son! Do not relate your dream to your brothers lest they hatch a plot to harm you. Indeed Satan is man's open enemy.

Ahmed Ali

He said: "O son, do not narrate your dream to your brothers, or they will plot against you. Surely Satan is man's acknowledged foe.

Ahmed Raza Khan

He said, “O my child! Do not relate your dream to your brothers, for they will hatch a plot against you; indeed Satan is an open enemy towards mankind.”

Ali Quli Qarai

he said, ‘My son, do not recount your dream to your brothers, lest they should devise schemes against you. Satan is indeed man’s manifest enemy.

Ali Ünal

He (Jacob) said: "O my son! Do not relate your dream to your brothers, lest (out of envy) they devise a scheme against you. For Satan is a manifest enemy to humankind (and can incite them to do such a thing).

Amatul Rahman Omar

He said, `My dear son! relate not your vision to your brothers lest they should intrigue against you, for satan is to a human being an enemy disuniting.

English Literal

You, my son, do not relay/inform your dream on (to) your brothers, so they conspire/plot to you a plot/conspiracy , that the devil (is) to the human/mankind a clean/evident enemy.

Faridul Haque

He said, "O my child! Do not relate your dream to your brothers, for they will hatch a plot against you; indeed Satan is an open enemy towards mankind."

Hamid S. Aziz

When Joseph said to his father, "O my father! Verily, I saw (in my dream) eleven stars, and the sun, and the moon - I saw them prostrating themselves unto me!"

Hilali & Khan

He (the father) said: "O my son! Relate not your vision to your brothers, lest they arrange a plot against you. Verily! Shaitan (Satan) is to man an open enemy!

Maulana Mohammad Ali

When Joseph said to his father: O my father, I saw eleven stars and the sun and the moon -- I saw them making obeisance to me.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

He said: O my son! do not relate your vision to your brothers, lest they devise a plan against you; surely the Shaitan is an open enemy to man.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

He said: O my dear son! Tell not thy brethren of thy vision, lest they plot a plot against thee. Lo! Satan is for man an open foe.

Muhammad Sarwar

his father said, "My son, do not tell your dream to your brothers lest they plot against you; satan is the sworn enemy of man.

Qaribullah & Darwish

He said: 'O my son, say nothing of this vision to your brothers lest they should cunningly plot against you indeed, satan is the clear enemy of the human,

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

He (the father) said: "O my son! Relate not your vision to your brothers, lest they should arrange a plot against you. Verily, Shaytan is to man an open enemy!"

Wahiduddin Khan

he replied, "My son, do not relate your dream to your brothers, lest they plot evil against you -- Satan is the sworn enemy of man.

Talal Itani

He said, “O my son, do not relate your vision to your brothers, lest they plot and scheme against you. Satan is man's sworn enemy.

Tafsir jalalayn

He said, `O my son, do not relate your vision to your brothers, lest they plot against you some plot, [lest] they scheme to kill you, out of envy, knowing that the interpretation [of the dream] is that they represent the [eleven] planets, your mother, the sun and your father, the moon. Truly Satan is to man a manifest foe, [one] of evident enmity.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

Yaqub orders Yusuf to hide His Vision to avoid Shaytan's Plots

Allah tells;

قَالَ يَا بُنَيَّ لَا تَقْصُصْ رُوْيَاكَ عَلَى إِخْوَتِكَ فَيَكِيدُواْ لَكَ كَيْدًا

إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لِلِنسَانِ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ



He (the father) said;"O my son! Relate not your vision to your brothers, lest they should arrange a plot against you. Verily, Shaytan is to man an open enemy!"

Allah narrates the reply Yaqub gave his son Yusuf when he narrated to him the vision that he saw, which indicated that his brothers would be under his authority. They would be subjugated to Yusuf's authority to such an extent that they would prostrate before him in respect, honor and appreciation. Yaqub feared that if Yusuf narrated his vision to any of his brothers, they would envy him and conspire evil plots against him. This is why Yaqub said to Yusuf,
لَا تَقْصُصْ رُوْيَاكَ عَلَى إِخْوَتِكَ فَيَكِيدُواْ لَكَ كَيْدًا
(Relate not your vision to your brothers, lest they should arrange a plot against you).

This Ayah means,

"They might arrange a plot against you that causes your demise."

In the Sunnah, there is a confirmed Hadith that states,

إِذَا رَأَى أَحَدُكُمْ مَا يُحِبُّ فَلْيُحَدِّثْ بِهِ وَإِذَا رَأَى مَا يَكْرَهُ فَلْيَتَحَوَّلْ إِلَى جَنْبِهِ الاْخَرِ وَلْيَتْفُلْ عَنْ يَسَارِهِ ثَلَثًا وَلْيَسْتَعِذْ بِاللهِ مِنْ شَرِّهَا وَلَا يُحَدِّثْ بِهَا أَحَدًا فَإِنَّهَا لَنْ تَضُرَّه

If any of you saw a vision that he likes, let him narrate it. If he saw a dream that he dislikes, let him turn on his other side, blow to his left thrice, seek refuge with Allah from its evil and not tell it to anyone. Verily, it will not harm him in this case.

In another Hadith that Imam Ahmad and collectors of the Sunan collected, Mu`awiyah bin Haydah Al-Qushayri said that the Messenger of Allah said,

الرُّوْيَا عَلَى رِجْلِ طَايِرٍ مَا لَمْ تُعْبَرْ فَإِذَا عُبِرَتْ وَقَعَت

The dream is tied to a bird's leg, as long as it is not interpreted. If it is interpreted, it comes true.

Therefore, one should hide the prospects or the coming of a bounty until it comes into existence and becomes known.

The Prophet said,

اسْتَعِينُوا عَلَى قَضَاءِ الْحَوَايِجِ بِكِتْمَانِهَا فَإِنَّ كُلَّ ذِي نِعْمَةٍ مَحْسُود

Earn help for fulfilling needs by being discrete, for every owner of a blessing is envied