THE
PROPHET MUSA (AS)
Magicians Embrace Faith
The result of the confrontation was completely
unexpected for Pharaoh, the magicians and the spectators alike.
The magicians, who had been so self-assured and arrogant of their
superiority, were defeated. Furthermore, this total defeat took
place right before the eyes of the people of Egypt. The impact of
the defeat was even greater for the magicians. Their spectacle,
which was merely an illusion, they knew very well not to have been
real. They had devised tricks to deceive people into believing that
their system-and consequently Pharaoh's system-was divinely powerful.
However, Musa's miracles presented something different. They grasped
that his feat was neither illusion, nor a magician's tricks. The
staff of Musa had actually devoured their trickery. The magicians,
therefore, grasped that this was a real miracle, and a sign of the
existence of God, and an evidence of God's support to Musa. Thereupon,
they embraced faith:
The magicians threw themselves down
in prostration. They said, "We have faith in the Lord of all the
worlds, the Lord of Musa and Harun." (Qur'an, 7: 120-122)
At that moment, the whole system was turned on
its head. Pharaoh, who openly challenged Musa, being so overly confident
that he would win, was in fact defeated, with his magicians finally
believing in Musa. Pharaoh could not accept the decision of the
magicians. According to his perverted rationale, he was the sole
owner of the land-even of the people-, and thought himself entitled
to authorize whether or not people be allowed to convert to another
belief:
Pharaoh said, "Have you believed in
him before I authorised you to do so? This is just some plot you
have concocted in the city to drive its people from it." (Qur'an,
7: 123)
Deluded by his own distorted mind, Pharaoh tried
to rationalize the situation.
An obvious miracle had just occurred, and followed
by an ignominious defeat, the magicians came to have faith in the
Lord of Musa. What should have been expected of Pharaoh then was
to openly admit the occurrence of a miracle and to accept to be
rightly guided. On the contrary, however, he offered himself false
interpretations, fabricating scenarios which he himself knew were
imaginary. Thus, he convinced himself that Musa and the magicians
were conspiring to seize power over Egypt. Furthermore, he assumed
that it was Musa who had taught them magic:
".He is your chief, the one who taught
you magic." (Qur'an, 20: 71)
That is how Pharaoh witnessed the irrefutable signs
and miracles of God but resisted and denied the truth. In fact,
his behaviour was typical of all those who deny the truth. Those
people, resolved to remain in disbelief, adhere to it no matter
how incontrovertible are the signs put forth to them. They resort
to any form of delusion in order to legitimise their denial. In
every society and in every age, we will find countless disbelievers
infected with the resolute obstinacy of Pharaoh, who have denied
the existence, oneness and the righteousness of God's religion.
Nevertheless, Pharaoh knew that his obstinacy would
not save him. The defeat of his magicians and their acceptance of
faith in the Lord of Musa greatly destabilised his authority. In
one way or another, he would have to defuse the situation and re-establish
his power. For this purpose, he resorted to violence, threatening
the believing magicians with torture and death. However, already
cognisant of the truth of the message of God, the magicians turned
to God in submission. In several verses of the Qur'an, we find the
magicians expressing their resolve in their belief:
".I will cut off your hands and feet
alternately and have you crucified on palm trunks. Then you will
know for certain which of us has the harsher and longer lasting
punishment."
They said, "We will never prefer you
to the Clear Signs which have come to us nor to Him who brought
us into being. Decide on any judgement you like. Your jurisdiction
only covers the life of the earth. We have had faith in our Lord
so that He may forgive us for our mistakes and for the magic, which
you forced us to perform. God is better and longer lasting." (Qur'an,
20: 71-73)
They said, "We are returning to our
Lord. You are only avenging yourself on us because we had faith
in our Lord's Signs when they came to us. Our Lord, pour down steadfastness
upon us and take us back to You as Muslims." (Qur'an, 7: 125-126)
They said, "We do not care! We are returning
to our Lord. We remain hopeful that our Lord will forgive us our
mistakes for being the first of the believers." (Qur'an, 26: 50-51)
As is explained in the above verses, these people
of faith did not yield to the threats of Pharaoh, or submit to him,
because they grasped that if they were to be killed, they would
return to God, who is the Creator of everything. All the while,
they dearly hoped that God would forgive their indulging in denial
prior to accepting belief, and their adversarial attitude they had
adopted against the religion. Because God is the forgiver and the
merciful.
From then on, Pharaoh's rule over the people became
increasingly malicious. He sought to steer the people through his
power. Due to the oppression he meted out, no one, except for a
small group of young people from the people of Musa, followed Musa.
Only these few young people showed the courage and sincerity to
follow in the magicians' footsteps. The majority, on the other hand,
did not appreciate the power of the Almighty God, and, having no
fear of Him, rejected faith. This is conveyed in the Qur'an as follows:
No one believed in Musa, except for
a few of his people, out of fear that Pharaoh, and the elders, would
persecute them. Pharaoh was high and mighty in the land. He was
one of the profligate. (Qur'an, 10: 83)
One of those to have put her faith in Musa was
the wife of Pharaoh. This noble woman, who previously shared so
many worldly favours with Pharaoh, not only dared to leave all such
riches behind, but also to make herself the object of Pharaoh's
violence. Her choice is clearly the sign of a very profound and
sincere faith. Indeed, along with Maryam (Mary) (as), the Qur'an
refers to the wife of Pharaoh as a faithful woman whose conduct
was exemplary:
God has made an example for those who
believe: the wife of Pharaoh when she said, "My Lord, build a house
in Paradise for me in Your presence and rescue me from Pharaoh and
his deeds and rescue me from this wrongdoing people." (Qur'an, 66:
11)
The sincere devotion of Pharaoh's wife to God is
a great example for all Muslims. This true believer abandoned the
riches of this world, and acknowledged that the real life would
be in the hereafter. She preferred the blessings of the hereafter
over the benefits of this short, though deceptively dazzling life.
She prayed to God only for a house in Paradise. Without a doubt,
such a sincere prayer, filled with a spiritual devotion towards
the hereafter, is a fine example for all those who believe.

...Those who believe and do right actions will be in the
lush meadows of the Gardens. (Qur'an, 42: 22)
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A Man Of Faith
And The Palace
Despite the supernatural events and miracles they
witnessed, Pharaoh and his inner circle resisted Musa. They insisted
on denying the truth, due to their arrogance and obstinacy, and
went to such lengths as to claim that Musa was a magician who performed
a spell. Furthermore, they devised new plans to subject Musa and
his adherents to more severe torture and oppression:
We sent Musa with Our Signs and clear
authority to Pharaoh, Haman and Qarun. But they said, "A lying magician."
When he brought them the truth from Us they said, "Slaughter the
sons of those who have faith with him but let their women live."
The stratagems of the unbelievers are nothing but errors. Pharaoh
said, "Let me kill Musa and let him call upon his Lord! I am afraid
that he may change your religion and bring about corruption in the
land." Musa said, "I seek refuge in my Lord and your Lord from every
proud man who does not believe in the Day of Reckoning." (Qur'an,
40: 23-27)
Pharaoh intended to kill Musa. He was committed
to preventing the establishment of a new order in the land of Egypt
which would hinder his further enrichment. If Musa were to attain
more power, Pharaoh would not be able to rule over the Egyptian
people as he desired. That is why he tried to justify killing Musa
by suggesting that Musa's intentions were solely evil. However,
there appeared a man from the family of Pharaoh who supported Musa
and objected to Pharaoh's cruelties:
A man among Pharaoh's people who had
faith, but kept his faith concealed, said, "Are you going to kill
a man for saying 'My Lord is God' when he has brought you Clear
Signs from your Lord? If he is telling a lie, be it on his own head.
But if he is telling the truth, then some of what he is promising
you will certainly happen to you. God does not guide any unbridled
inveterate liar. My people! The kingdom is yours today, as masters
in the land, but who will help us against God's violent force, if
it comes upon us?"
Pharaoh said, "I only show you what
I see myself and I only guide you to the path of rectitude."
The man who had faith said, "My people!
I fear for you a fate like that of the factions (of old), the same
as happened to the people of Noah and 'Ad and Thamud and those who
followed after them. God does not want any injustice for His servants.
My people! I fear for you the Day of Calling Out, the Day when you
will turn your backs in flight, having no one to protect you from
God. Whoever God misguides will have no guide. Yusuf brought you
the Clear Signs before, but you never stopped doubting what he brought
to you to the extent that when he died, you said, 'God will never
send another Messenger after him' That is how God misguides those
who are unbridled and full of doubt."
Those who argue about the Signs of God
without any authority coming to them do something hateful in the
sight of God and in the sight of the people who believe. That is
how God seals up the heart of every arrogant oppressor. (Qur'an,
40: 28-35)
 
There are some of the stories of communities
that We relate you:
of them, some are standing, and some have been mown
down (by the sickle of time). (Qur'an 11:100)
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The warning from the believer in the palace did
not affect Pharaoh, whose heart was filled with arrogance and blinded
in denial. In order to render his words ineffective, he tried to
ridicule this Muslim who had warned him and all the people of Egypt.
In a derisive manner, Pharaoh turned to his assistant Haman, asking
him to build a tower:
Pharaoh said, "Haman, build me a tower
so that perhaps I may gain means of access, access to the heavens,
so that I can look on Musa's God. Truly I think he is a liar." That
is how Pharaoh's evil actions were made attractive to him and he
debarred others from the path. Pharaoh's scheming led to nothing
but ruin. (Qur'an, 40: 36-37)
Pharaoh was aiming to regain control merely by
derision. He did not grasp the importance of the message, that is,
the existence and oneness of God, communicated by Musa. Pharaoh
thought that Musa suggested God was up in the air and knew that
nothing would be seen once one ascends there. It was based on this
premise that he founded his denial of Musa.
Recognizing the error of Pharaoh's understanding,
the believer from Pharaoh's family, who had concealed his belief,
started to explain the existence of God and the hereafter to Pharaoh
and his people. He warned them against a never-ending torment. He
summoned them to the right way and pleaded them to follow him:
The man who believed said, "My people!
Follow me and I will guide you to the path of rectitude. My people!
The life of the earth is only fleeting enjoyment. It is the hereafter,
which is the abode of permanence. Whoever does an evil act will
only be repaid with its equivalent. But whoever acts rightly, male
or female, being a believer, such a person will enter Paradise,
provided for in it without any reckoning. My people! How is it that
I call you to salvation while you call me to the Fire? You call
me to reject God and to associate something with Him about which
I have no knowledge, while I call you to the Almighty, the Endlessly
Forgiving. There is no question that what you call me to has no
foundation neither in the world nor the hereafter, that our return
is to God, and that the profligate will be Companions of the Fire.
You will remember what I say to you. I consign my affair completely
to God. Truly God sees His servants."
So God safeguarded him from the evil
things they plotted and a most evil torment engulfed Pharaoh's people.
(Qur'an, 40: 38-45)
Pharaoh and his companions did not heed the warnings
of this devout believer who was from among them. Nevertheless, in
return for their denial and their arrogance, a great torment awaited
them.
The Name "Haman" In The
Qur'an
Is Also Mentioned In The Ancient Egyptian Inscriptions
Some of the information the Qur'an provides
about ancient Egypt reveals many historical facts that were
not disclosed until recently. This information also indicates
that every word in the Qur'an is used in accordance with divine
reason.
"Haman" is another person, along with Pharaoh,
whose name is mentioned in the Qur'an. In six separate verses,
Haman is referred to as one of the closest men to Pharaoh.
Surprisingly however, we never encounter
the name of Haman in that section of the Torah where the life
of Musa is related. However, there is reference to Haman in
the latter chapters of the Bible, as the counsellor of a Babylonian
king, who lived approximately 1100 years after Pharaoh, and
who was notorious for his cruelty against Jews.
Some non-Muslims, who claim the Qur'an to
be a compilation of the Bible by the Prophet Muhammad (saas),
allege the fallacy that the Prophet incorrectly copied some
of the material from the Bible into the Qur'an.
However, this claim has been proven to be
groundless, thanks to the decipherment of the Egyptian hieroglyphic
alphabet approximately 200 years ago. Through this achievement,
the name "Haman" was found in the ancient Egyptian inscriptions.
Until then, the writings and scrolls in the
ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs had remained unread. The language
of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs had remained in use for many
centuries, but with the spread of Christianity, and its ultimate
cultural influence in the 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D, brought
an end to the knowledge of it. The last example of the hieroglyphic
writing known to us was a scroll dated 394 A.D. After this
date, hieroglyphic had become an extinct language, leaving
behind no one who could speak it until the 19th century.2
The mystery of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs
was solved only in 1799, by the discovery of the Rosetta Stone,
which dated back to 196 B.C. The use of three different languages
made this stone decipherable: hieroglyphic, demotic (a simplified
form of hieroglyphics used by the ordinary literate class)
and Greek. The ancient Egyptian writings were decoded mainly
by the help of the Greek script. The transcription was completed
by a Frenchman, Jean-François Champollion, and an extinct
language, as well as the history conveyed by it, had finally
been brought to light. Thus, ancient Egyptian civilization,
representing an entirely different religion and social life,
was resurrected.3
Thanks to the decoding of hieroglyphic, we
also attained an essential piece of information related to
our subject: the name of "Haman" was indeed mentioned in the
Egyptian texts. This name was inscribed on a monument displayed
today in the Hof Museum of Vienna. The inscription also stressed
the nearness of Haman to Pharaoh.4
In the "Dictionary of Personal Names of the
New Kingdom," a dictionary based on the information gathered
from a complete collection of scrolls, Haman is mentioned
as "the chief of workers in the stone-quarries."5
Unlike the claims of its opponents, Haman
was a person that had lived in Egypt at the time of Musa,
just as was indicated in the Qur'an. Again, as mentioned in
the Qur'an, he was a man close to Pharaoh who was responsible
for construction projects.
Similarly, the verse conveying how Pharaoh
asked Haman to build a tower is also in compliance with evidence
in this archaeological finding:
Pharaoh said, "Council, I do not
know of any other god for you apart from Me. Haman, kindle
a fire for me over the clay and build me a lofty tower so
that perhaps I may be able to climb up to Musa's god! I consider
him a blatant liar." (Qur'an, 28: 38)
In conclusion, the existence of the name
of Haman in the ancient Egyptian scrolls not only rendered
these fabricated claims totally unfounded, but also reinforced
the fact that the Qur'an is the infallible word of God. Miraculously,
the Qur'an reveals to us a piece of historical information
which had been otherwise impossible to attain or resolve during
the time of the Prophet.
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2-"Hieroglyph,"
Britannica Online.
3- "Hieroglyph," Britannica Online.
4- Maurice Bucaille, Musa and Pharaoh:The
Hebrews inEgypt, pp. 192-193.
5- Hermann Ranke, Die Ägyptischen Personennamen,
Verzeichnis der Namen, Verlag Von J J Augustin in Glückstadt,
Band I (1935).
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