Page 13 - The School of Yusuf (as)

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“… And he languished in prison for a number of years more.”
(Surah Yusuf, 42). According to an exegesis of this verse, Joseph
(Peace be upon him) is the patron of prisoners, and prison is a
sort of School of Joseph. (Madrasa-i Yusufiya) 1
This interpretation was offered by one of the greatest Islamic
scholars of the 20th century, Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, who de-
voted much of his life to the teaching of the morality of the Qur’an,
and because of that earned the animosity of certain circles.
Ultimately, he spent 30 years of his life in prison and exile.
The reason for Bediuzzaman referring to prison as “the school
of Yusuf” and our using this phrase as the title of this book is the
following for certain sincere Muslims, who call the people to serve
Allah alone, and to be of good character, prisons are places they are
confined to from time to time, without any wrongdoing on their
part. These places of confinement become for them classrooms
(madrasah) by which they learn self-discipline.
The reason for these schools to be referred to as the School of
Yusuf, is that, as the Qur’an reveals, Yusuf (as), known for his faith
and good character, spent many years of his life in them, despite

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