Musa (a.s.) and the Damsels in Distress

Surah al-Qasas contains the bulk of Musa’s (a.s.) life before he became a prophet. Previously, we saw how he mistakenly killed a Copt but then repented. After that incident, he fled the city because his crime was discovered and the authorities wanted to kill him. He fled towards Midian whilst seeking the guidance of Allah:

وَجاءَ رَجُلٌ مِن أَقصَى المَدينَةِ يَسعىٰ قالَ يا موسىٰ إِنَّ المَلَأَ يَأتَمِرونَ بِكَ لِيَقتُلوكَ فَاخرُج إِنّي لَكَ مِنَ النّاصِحينَ

فَخَرَجَ مِنها خائِفًا يَتَرَقَّبُ ۖ قالَ رَبِّ نَجِّني مِنَ القَومِ الظّالِمينَ

وَلَمّا تَوَجَّهَ تِلقاءَ مَديَنَ قالَ عَسىٰ رَبّي أَن يَهدِيَني سَواءَ السَّبيلِ

And a man came from the farthest end of the city, running. He said, "O Moses, indeed the eminent ones are conferring over you [intending] to kill you, so leave [the city]; indeed, I am to you of the sincere advisors." So he left it, fearful and anticipating [apprehension]. He said, "My Lord, save me from the wrongdoing people." And when he directed himself toward Madyan, he said, "Perhaps my Lord will guide me to the sound way." (Al-Qasas 28: 20-22)

Upon reaching a watering place, he saw two damsels waiting to water their flock:

وَلَمّا وَرَدَ ماءَ مَديَنَ وَجَدَ عَلَيهِ أُمَّةً مِنَ النّاسِ يَسقونَ وَوَجَدَ مِن دونِهِمُ امرَأَتَينِ تَذودانِ ۖ قالَ ما خَطبُكُما ۖ قالَتا لا نَسقي حَتّىٰ يُصدِرَ الرِّعاءُ ۖ وَأَبونا شَيخٌ كَبيرٌ

فَسَقىٰ لَهُما ثُمَّ تَوَلّىٰ إِلَى الظِّلِّ فَقالَ رَبِّ إِنّي لِما أَنزَلتَ إِلَيَّ مِن خَيرٍ فَقيرٌ

And when he came to the water [i.e., well] of Madyan, he found there a crowd of people watering [their flocks], and he found aside from them two women driving back [their flocks]. He said, "What is your circumstance?" They said, "We do not water until the shepherds dispatch [their flocks]; and our father is an old man." So he watered [their flocks] for them; then he went back to the shade and said, "My Lord, indeed I am, for whatever good You would send down to me, in need." (Al-Qasas 28: 23-24)

First, notice how throughout this ordeal, Musa (a.s.) is completely conscious of Allah, asking Him to save, guide and help him. One can almost hear the desperation in his voice in the last dua’, where he beseeches Allah, stating his dire need for any good that Allah will send down upon him. The dependence of the prophets on God and their continuous beseeching Him gives them the strength to undergo immense trials. In the same way, if Allah is constantly on our minds, we too will be able to face trials under which ordinary folk would break. God consciousness and constant remembrance of Him can make us extraordinary.

Now let us look at the Musa’s (a.s.) response to the situation at the watering area. One can only imagine how tired he must have been after travelling so far from Egypt to Madyan, yet he was cognizant of what was going on around him. He saw two young girls who seemed out of place, and so he approached them to ask them what was their problem. This is such a fascinating response. A really tired man after a long journey, who himself probably needs water to quench his thirst, decides instead to help two damsels before sitting down to rest under the shade of a tree. There so many lessons to derive from this story. The righteous and God conscious are always aware of the needs of those around them, even if they are strangers or members of the society who are usually deemed to be underserving of respect, like women. Not only that, they go out of their way even if they are in a state of desperation themselves, to do whatever they can to help others. This story is particularly important for those among us who go to extremes in our strictness with regard to mingling with the opposite sex. Musa (a.s.) did not say to himself, “Oh my god! 2 women out in the desert alone! How shameless!” or “Ya Allah, these 2 women look like they need help, but I can’t help them because they are a source of fitnah! I must lower my gaze and pretend they don’t exist lest my iman gets jeorpadized!” No, he said none of this things. He approached them, asked them what the problem was, helped them, and went to rest without any further unnecessary chat. His response to the situation is the perfect balance between unnecessary and shameless mingling on the one hand and extreme gender segregation on the other.

May Allah guide us to be an ummah of the middle path, ‘ummatan wasatan’, as exemplified by the action of Musa (a.s.) in this incident, so we may be an example for humanity. Ameen.