It was read: 'by my beard.' The famous reading is: 'with a kasra.' This is the language of the people of Hijaz. Moses, peace be upon him, was a man of iron, created with severity, roughness, and rigidity in everything. He was intensely angry for Allah and for His religion. He could not restrain himself when he saw his people worshiping a calf besides Allah after they had witnessed the great signs. He threw down the tablets of the Torah when his mind was overwhelmed by great astonishment, out of anger for Allah and out of disdain and zeal. He was harsh with his brother and successor regarding his people. He approached him like an aggressive enemy, grasping his hair - and he had a full head of hair - and the hair of his face, pulling him towards himself. This means: if I had fought some of them with others, they would have scattered and perished. So I delayed you to be the one who saves yourself, to remedy the situation with your opinion, and I feared your reproach for neglecting what you commanded me regarding gathering the people and protecting the masses. I had no choice but to follow your command and act according to its requirements.