In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. The story of Maryam, daughter of ‘Imran, peace be upon her.
The annunciation of Maryam regarding ‘Isa, peace be upon them both.
When Maryam, peace be upon her, devoted herself to the worship of her Lord in her sanctuary in Bayt al-Maqdis,
And distanced herself from the preoccupations of the world and from people,
Finding comfort in her solitude through intimate supplication to Allah,
Allah sent the angels to her to bring her the glad tidings of her pregnancy with ‘Isa, peace be upon him,
A sign from the signs of Allah for all the worlds.
Allah the Exalted says:
“(And remember) when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).” (3:45)
“(And remember) when the angels said: O Mary! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near (unto Allah).” (3:45)
Ibn Jarir al-Tabari, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
"Glad tidings" (tabshir) is informing a person of news that pleases them.
And Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
This is an annunciation from the angels to Maryam, peace be upon her,
That there would come from her a great son of high standing.
There is no doubt that every married young woman
Rejoices when she discovers she is pregnant,
Or is given the glad tidings of pregnancy by a specialist physician.
This is in accordance with the maternal instinct with which women were created.
This instinct is found only in women;
It is not found in men,
Nor can a man know or experience it,
Because Allah said:
﴾And the male is not like the female.﴿
It is inconceivable for a man to conceive and give birth,
Because Allah did not create him for this.
Therefore, what those who have deviated from the natural order (fitrah) claim regarding absolute equality between men and women
Is belied by the very nature that no rational person can deny.
But how did the angels bring Maryam the glad tidings of pregnancy?
And did she rejoice at this news as every young woman rejoices when told she will have her first child?
Maryam was in her solitude, worshipping Allah in her sanctuary, far from people,
When she was startled by the entry of a man of perfect form.
She feared for herself.
Allah the Exalted says:
“And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she had withdrawn from her people to a chamber looking East,” (19:16)
“And had chosen seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our Spirit and it assumed for her the likeness of a perfect man.” (19:17)
﴾Then We sent to her Our Angel [Jibril], and he appeared before her as a man in all respects.﴿
“And had chosen seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our Spirit and it assumed for her the likeness of a perfect man.” (19:17)
“She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the Beneficent One from thee, if thou art Allah-fearing.” (19:18)
Her first reaction was
To seek refuge in Allah from this man who had entered upon her in her solitude,
And to remind him to fear Allah and keep his distance from her.
Tahir Ibn ‘Ashur, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Because she thought he was a human who had hidden himself to solicit her for himself.
So she hastened to seek refuge from him before he could speak to her,
Taking the initiative to reject what she imagined to be his intent,
Which is the most likely assumption in such a situation.
This behavior of hers is in accordance with the nature of a chaste, pure young woman
Who does not feel secure when a strange man enters upon her in seclusion,
For there is no third party between them except the Shaytan.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"No man should be alone with a woman, for the Shaytan will be the third among them."
Narrated by al-Tirmidhi.
Mulla ‘Ali al-Qari, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
The meaning is that the Shaytan is with them,
Stirring the desire of each until he casts them into adultery.
And al-Shawkani, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Regarding his saying:
"No man should be alone with a woman, for the Shaytan will be the third among them,"
The reason for this is
That a man desires a woman due to the natural inclination toward her
And the sexual desire instilled within him.
Likewise, the woman desires the man for the same reason.
Thus, the Shaytan finds a way to incite the desire of each for the other,
And the sin occurs.
As for what is said today,
That a woman who is confident in herself need not fear sitting with young men,
Or mingling with them in universities or workplaces,
It is a statement whose falsehood is known to the one who speaks it before the one who hears it.
Indeed, the young woman who does not feel alarm when alone with a strange man, as Maryam, peace be upon her, did,
Is a woman ignorant of the danger of being alone with a strange man,
Or she is infatuated with this stranger,
Or the Shaytan has seduced her and made the forbidden appear attractive to her.
As for Maryam, peace be upon her,
She took the initiative to remind the man of Allah and the fear of Allah,
For she had no other recourse but that.
“She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the Beneficent One from thee, if thou art Allah-fearing.” (19:18)
Ibn Jarir al-Tabari, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
She meant: "I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you, that you might take from me what He has forbidden you,"
"If you are one who fears Him, observing His prohibitions and avoiding His sins."
Because whoever is God-fearing (taqi) before Allah,
He will avoid such things.
And Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Meaning: "If you fear Allah," as a reminder to him of Allah.
This is the prescribed way of repelling [evil]: to start with the easiest, then the next easiest.
So she first frightened him with Allah the Almighty.
When Jibril saw this alarm from her,
He reassured her heart by saying:
“He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless son.” (19:19)
Al-Sa‘di, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
When Jibril saw her terror and fear,
“He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless son.” (19:19)
Meaning: "My function and task is only to execute the message of my Lord regarding you."
“He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless son.” (19:19)
This is a great annunciation of a son and his purity (zaka'),
For purity necessitates being cleansed of blameworthy traits
And being characterized by praiseworthy ones.
But Maryam, peace be upon her,
Did not rejoice at the angels' annunciation of her pregnancy with ‘Isa, peace be upon him;
Rather, she was utterly astonished by this news.
So she said:
“She said: How can I have a son when no mortal hath touched me, neither have I been unchaste?” (19:20)
Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Meaning: Maryam was astonished by this,
And said:
﴾How can I have a boy?﴿
Meaning: In what manner can this boy come from me,
When I have no husband,
And immorality is inconceivable for me?
That is why she said:
“She said: How can I have a son when no mortal hath touched me, neither have I been unchaste?” (19:20)
And the "unchaste woman" (baghi) is the adulteress.
Maryam’s astonishment, peace be upon her, was appropriate within the natural order of life,
Which is that a woman’s pregnancy only occurs through contact with a man who cohabits with her,
Whether lawfully or unlawfully.
But Allah the Almighty
Made Maryam’s pregnancy a sign from His signs for all the worlds.
We shall continue in a future meeting, if Allah wills.
And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
The story of Maryam, daughter of ‘Imran.