In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. The story of Maryam, daughter of ‘Imran, peace be upon her.
The prayer of the wife of ‘Imran for her daughter, Maryam.
When the wife of ‘Imran gave birth and realized the gender of her child,
which had come contrary to her desire and wish,
she did not sit there lamenting her fortune, becoming depressed, or despairing.
Rather, she took immediate, practical steps in her life and the life of her newborn.
For the matter could not brook delay.
Lamenting and grieving change nothing of reality.
So, she began first by naming her, saying:
"My Lord, I have delivered her, a female."
“And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! I have named her Mary, and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.” (3:36)
"And the male is not like the female."
"And I have named her Maryam."
Scholars have derived from her action the permissibility of naming a newborn at the time of birth.
As Ibn ‘Atiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
In her saying, "And I have named her Maryam,"
is the Sunnah of naming children near the time of birth.
Similar to this is the saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him:
"A child was born to me tonight, and I have named him after my forefather, Ibrahim."
Just as in her haste to take this step,
there is evidence of her contentment with the gender of the child.
Abu Zahrah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
She chose the name while content with what she had been given.
Then, the wife of ‘Imran moved to the most important means of raising offspring:
seeking Allah’s help for their righteousness and praying for them.
So she said:
“And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! I have named her Mary, and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.” (3:36)
Following the example of the father of the prophets, Ibrahim the Friend of Allah, peace be upon him,
who prayed for his offspring in many instances that Allah has recounted to us.
He said:
“Our Lord! And make us submissive unto Thee and of our seed a nation submissive unto Thee, and show us our ways of worship, and relent toward us. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Relenting, the Merciful.” (2:128)
“Our Lord! And make us submissive unto Thee and of our seed a nation submissive unto Thee, and show us our ways of worship, and relent toward us. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Relenting, the Merciful.” (2:128)
And he said:
"My Lord, make this city secure and keep me and my sons away from worshipping idols."
And he said:
“Our Lord! Lo! I have settled some of my posterity in an uncultivable valley near unto Thy holy House, our Lord! that they may establish proper worship; so incline some hearts of men that they may yearn toward them, and provide Thou them with fruits in order that they may be thankful.” (14:37)
"Our Lord, that they may establish prayer."
“Our Lord! Lo! I have settled some of my posterity in an uncultivable valley near unto Thy holy House, our Lord! that they may establish proper worship; so incline some hearts of men that they may yearn toward them, and provide Thou them with fruits in order that they may be thankful.” (14:37)
And he said:
“My Lord! Make me to establish proper worship, and some of my posterity (also); our Lord! and accept my prayer.” (14:40)
"Our Lord, and accept my supplication."
This is the character of the righteous servants of Allah:
seeking Allah’s help in raising their offspring,
and not relying on themselves, their knowledge, or their experience, as some imagine.
Allah the Exalted says:
“And who say: Our Lord! Vouchsafe us comfort of our wives and of our offspring, and make us patterns for (all) those who ward off (evil).” (25:74)
"And make us an example for the righteous."
"Those will be awarded the Chamber for what they patiently endured."
“They will be awarded the high place forasmuch as they were steadfast, and they will meet therein with welcome and the ward of peace,” (25:75)
The wife of ‘Imran feared for her daughter from the temptation of Satan for her and her offspring.
So she sought refuge for her and her offspring with Allah from Satan, the accursed.
Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
She sought refuge for her with Allah the Almighty from the evil of Satan, and she sought refuge for her offspring.
And Abu Zahrah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
The meaning of seeking refuge (i‘adhah)
is to be in a sanctuary from Allah the Exalted that protects her from Satan.
This is because seeking refuge is a form of taking shelter.
So the meaning of "I seek refuge in Allah" is "I take shelter in Him and take Him as a protector."
And the meaning of "I have sought refuge for her with Allah from Satan" is:
"I have made Allah the Exalted a protector for her against him."
This seeking of refuge was a prayer to Allah the Exalted.
Thus, this supplication was another act of worship.
And so, the birth of Maryam—and her pregnancy before it—was accompanied
by continuous, successive, and overlapping acts of worship,
and a supplication that indicates the sincerity of the soul,
and the submission of one’s face to Allah the Exalted.
And today, O Muslim sister,
the means of Satan to lead the children of Adam astray have multiplied,
to the point that we have begun to buy the very tools of Satan
with which he leads our daughters astray, using our own money,
and we leave them in their hands.
They cling to them more than they cling to the remembrance of Allah and prayer.
These are the mobile phones connected to the internet.
So, have you sought refuge for your daughter from their evil?
And have you been sincere in praying for her in the unseen?
That Allah may protect her from the plots of the devils among mankind and jinn?
Here is a beautiful point in the words of the wife of ‘Imran:
“And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! I have named her Mary, and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast.” (3:36)
I would like to point it out.
It is that the wife of ‘Imran
was a mother according to the natural disposition (fitrah) upon which Allah created people,
thinking of her daughter’s interest and her future.
And among her daughter’s interests are marriage and having children.
Therefore, the wife of ‘Imran prayed for her daughter Maryam
for the result that every young woman desires:
righteous offspring.
Because of this way of thinking,
she would not delay her daughter’s marriage if the right man came,
under the pretext of completing her studies,
obtaining a degree, and securing a future,
as is the case with some selfish mothers
in this day and age,
who think only of their own personal interests,
even at the expense of shattering their daughter’s psyche.
This selfish mother does not care
about what her daughter suffers due to her desire for marriage,
because she is satisfied with her own husband,
so she does not feel her daughter’s suffering.
This selfish mother
loves to boast among women about her daughter’s studies,
even if it is at the expense of her mental health and misery.
This selfish mother
dictates to her daughter the specialization she wants,
not what her daughter wants.
This selfish mother
puts her own interest before her daughter’s interest.
She does not raise her to be prepared for married life,
nor does she encourage her to do so.
Rather, she makes marriage hateful to her,
and makes studies and work seem attractive to her,
either to boast about her,
or to benefit from her money,
even if that leads to the corruption of her married life
should it happen in the future.
This selfish mother
does not care where her daughter studies,
whether it is in a place where men and women mix or not.
She does not care whether the specialization her daughter studies is suitable for her femininity or not.
She does not care about the future workplace for this specialization,
whether it is pleasing to Allah or not.
Because this selfish mother
does not observe the law of Allah in raising her daughter,
but rather cares about boasting of her daughter in women’s gatherings
and in front of the family.
As for the wife of ‘Imran,
she was the complete opposite of all that.
And that is why the result of her prayer was:
“And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.” (3:37)
"And He caused her to grow in a good manner."
"And He put her in the care of Zakariyya."
“And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.” (3:37)
He said, "O Maryam, from where is this [coming] to you?"
“And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.” (3:37)
“And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zachariah her guardian. Whenever Zachariah went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: O Mary! Whence cometh unto thee this (food)? She answered: It is from Allah. Allah giveth without stint to whom He will.” (3:37)
Ibn Jarir al-Tabari, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Its meaning is:
Her Lord caused her to grow, through His provision and sustenance, in a good manner.
Until she reached maturity,
and became a complete, fully-grown woman.
And Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Our Lord informs us that He accepted her from her mother as a dedication,
and that He caused her to grow in a good manner.
Meaning: He gave her a beautiful form and a delightful appearance,
and facilitated for her the causes of acceptance,
and paired her with the righteous among His servants,
so she could learn knowledge, goodness, and religion from them.
And al-Sa‘di, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Meaning: He raised her with a wondrous upbringing—religious, moral, and refined—
through which her conditions were perfected,
and through which her words and deeds were made righteous,
and her perfection grew within her.
And al-Tahir Ibn ‘Ashur, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
The meaning of "And He caused her to grow in a good manner"
is that He raised her with a righteous upbringing,
both in character and in the purity of her inner self.
So He likened her upbringing and youth to the growth of a fresh plant.
So, do you wish for your daughter that Allah causes her to grow in a good manner?
And have you taken the steps to achieve that?
I ask Allah to cause your daughter and the daughters of the righteous men and women to grow in a good manner,
and to make their hearts righteous.
We will continue in a future meeting, if Allah wills.
And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
The story of Maryam, daughter of ‘Imran.