Prophet Shuaib; An Orator
In his youth, after killing one of the forces of pharaoh, Moses (AS) escaped Egypt. On his path, he encountered girls who were looking after some sheep. Moses (AS) helped them in watering the sheep and accompanied them to their home.
They were the daughters of Shuaib (AS). They urged their father to employ Moses (AS) and he accepted it. Shuaib (AS) then offered him to marry his daughter. After the end of the contract, Moses married one of Shuaib’s daughters.
According to some sources, Shuaib was blind, as was Yaqub (AS). Many have said that Shuaib went blind because he wept so much out of love of God.
It has been narrated from Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) that “Shuaib wept so much out of love of God that he went blind. God restored his sight. But he continued weeping so much that he went blind again. God restored his sight again until when he went blind for the fourth time, God said: O Shuaib! How long are you going to weep? If you fear the fire of hell, I have spared you and if you have a desire for paradise, I have made it permissible to you. Shuayb said: O my lord and Master! You know that I am not weeping for fear of hell or desire of paradise, rather I am weeping for Your love tied in my heart. God inspired him: For this reason I will soon appoint My Interlocutor, Moses as your servant.”
As mentioned before, Moses was Shuaib’s shepherd for ten years.
Shuaib invited people to God and to justice with reasoning, logic and wise manners. His speech was so attractive and persuasive that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) described him as the orator of the prophets.
Instead of listening to him, however, the people rejected Shuaib’s call and obstinately stood against him.
There are different views about how long Shuaib lived and where he was buried after death. Some say he lived 242 years while others believed he lived 254 or 400 years. As for his burial place, different locations in Arabia, Yemen, Palestine and Iran have been mentioned.
