Tafsir of Maryam 19:22-23

Surah Maryam (19): Verses 22–23 (and continuation)

Fahmalathu fantabadhat bihi... (So she conceived him, and withdrew with him to a remote place.)

The First Issue: The Blowing (Nafkh)

Allah mentions the act of blowing in several verses, such as: {Then We breathed into him of Our Spirit} (At-Tahrim: 12), referring to Jesus (peace be upon him), just as He said concerning Adam (peace be upon him): {And when I have fashioned him and breathed into him of My spirit} (Al-Hijr: 29).

Allah said, "We breathed into her (feminine plural form, referring to Mary's state/womb)," because Jesus was in her belly.

There is a difference of opinion regarding the one who blew:

1. Some said it was Allah Almighty: Due to the statement {Then We breathed into him of Our Spirit}. The apparent meaning suggests the Blower is Allah, supported by the verse: {Indeed, the example of Jesus to Allah is like that of Adam. He created him from dust} (Al 'Imran: 59). The implication of this comparison is that the manner of creation should be similar, and for Adam, the Blower was Allah (from "My Spirit"). Thus, it must be the same here.
2. Others said it was Gabriel (peace be upon him): Because the apparent meaning of Gabriel's statement to her, {I am to convey to you a pure boy} (Maryam: 19), implies that the action must originate from him to bring about the pregnancy in Mary (peace be upon her). Therefore, the blowing must be attributed to him.

They further differed on the manner of this blowing:

• First Opinion (Wahb): Gabriel blew into the opening of her garment (Juyb) until the breath reached the womb.
• Second Opinion: He blew into the hem of her lower garment (Dhayl), and it reached the private parts (Farj).
• Third Opinion (As-Suddi): He took hold of the edge of her sleeve and blew into the side of her tunic (Dira'), and the breath entered her chest, causing her to conceive. (It is narrated that her sister, the wife of Zakariyya, visited her, embraced her, and upon embracing her, realized she was pregnant. Mary explained her situation, and the wife of Zakariyya said, "Indeed, what is in my belly prostrates to what is in your belly," which is the meaning of {confirming a word from Allah} (Al 'Imran: 39).)
• Fourth Opinion: The blowing was into her mouth, and it immediately reached her belly, causing conception instantly.

It becomes clear from this that there is an implied omission in the text: It was a decreed matter, so We breathed into her, and she conceived him.

The Second Issue: Her Age at Conception

It is said she conceived at the age of thirteen, and others say twenty. Some also state she had menstruated twice before conceiving. The Quran provides no evidence for any of these accounts.

The Third Issue: {Fantabadhat bihi} (And she withdrew with him)

This means she secluded herself while she was pregnant, similar to the verse {that grows with oil} (Al-Mu'minun: 20), meaning it grows with oil in it.

They differed on the reason for her seclusion:

1. First Reason (Narrated by Ath-Tha'labi in Al-'Ara'is from Wahb): When Mary conceived Jesus, she was with her cousin, Yusuf an-Najjar. They both served the mosque near Mount Zion. They were the most devout worshippers of their time. Yusuf was the first to know of her pregnancy. He was perplexed. Whenever he considered accusing her, he remembered her piety and worship, and that she had never been absent from him. Whenever he wanted to exonerate her, he saw the visible signs of pregnancy. He first said, "Something has occurred to me regarding you, and I have been keen to conceal it, but it has overcome me. I feel that speaking about it will bring relief to my heart." She replied, "Say a beautiful word." He asked, "Tell me, O Mary, does a crop grow without seed? Does a tree grow without rain? Is there a child without a male?" She replied, "Yes. Did you not know that Allah caused the crop to grow on the day He created it without seed? And this seed is derived from the crop He grew without seed. Did you not know that Allah caused the tree to grow without rain, and by His Power, He made rain the life of trees after creating each separately? Or do you say that Allah cannot cause the tree to grow unless He uses water? If so, He could not have made it grow." Yusuf said, "I do not say that, but I say Allah is capable of whatever He wills; He says 'Be,' and it is." Mary then asked, "Did you not know that Allah created Adam and his mate without a male or female?" At that point, suspicion left his heart. He took over her duties serving the mosque because weakness overcame her due to pregnancy and distress. When her time of delivery approached, Allah revealed to her to leave her people's land lest they kill her child. Yusuf carried her to the land of Egypt on his donkey. When she reached that land, labor pains overtook her, and she sought refuge at the base of a palm tree. This occurred in cold weather, and she nursed the child there.
2. Second Reason: She felt ashamed before Zakariyya and went to a distant place where Zakariyya would not know of her.
3. Third Reason: She was famous among the Children of Israel for her asceticism (due to her mother's vow, the vying of prophets for her upbringing, and Zakariyya's guardianship). Since sustenance came to her directly from Allah, she felt ashamed of this incident, given her high status, and went to a distant place unknown to Zakariyya.
4. Fourth Reason: She feared for her child if she gave birth among her people.

These reasons are plausible, but the Quran offers no proof for any of them.

The Fourth Issue: The Duration of Her Pregnancy

They differed on the duration:

1. First Opinion (Ibn 'Abbas): Nine months, like other women. The evidence is that Allah mentioned her virtues in this context; if her gestation period differed from the norm, that would have been more worthy of mention.
2. Second Opinion: Eight months. It is said that no baby born at eight months has survived except Jesus (peace be upon him).
3. Third Opinion ('Ata', Al-'Aliyah, Ad-Dahhak): Seven months.
4. Fourth Opinion: Six months.
5. Fifth Opinion: Three hours. She conceived in an hour, was formed in an hour, and gave birth in an hour.
6. Sixth Opinion (Also attributed to Ibn 'Abbas): The duration was one hour. This can be inferred in two ways:
   • Evidence 1: The sequence of words: {So she conceived him, and withdrew with him} (23), {Then the pains of childbirth drove her} (23), {Then a voice called to her from beneath her} (24). The conjunction fa (then) implies immediate succession without separation, necessitating a duration of only one hour. (The objection that seclusion in a remote place cannot happen in one hour is answered by As-Suddi’s interpretation: she went to the farthest point within her sanctuary/prayer niche.)
   • Evidence 2: Allah described Jesus by saying: {Indeed, the example of Jesus to Allah is like that of Adam. He created him from dust. Then He said to him, "Be," and he was} (Al 'Imran: 59). Thus, Jesus was created by the command "Be," which does not allow for a gestation period; such a period is only conceivable for those conceived from semen.

The Fifth Issue: {Qasiyya} (A remote place)

It means far from her people. The terms maqāsin and qaṣiyyin mean the same thing, like ʿāṣin and ʿaṣiyyin.

It was interpreted as: the farthest part of the house, beyond the mountain, or that she traveled with her cousin Yusuf (as mentioned in the previous narration).

The Sixth Issue: {Ajā’ahā} (The pains drove her)

The author of Al-Kashshāf states that Ajā’ah is derived from Jā’a (to come), but its usage shifted after derivation to mean compulsion (ilja’). You do not say, "Zayd ajā’anī to the place," as you say, "Zayd balleghanī (made me reach) and ablaghtuhu (I made him reach)."

The meaning is that the labor pains forced her to the trunk of the palm tree.

It is possible she went to the palm tree seeking ease of delivery by clinging to it, or for support and leaning, or for concealment from those she feared might gossip if they saw her—which is why Allah recounts her wishing for death.

The Seventh Issue: Reading of {Al-Makhāḍ} (Pains)

The author of Al-Kashshāf mentions that Ibn Kathir recited the word for labor pains ({Al-Makhāḍ}) with a kasra (i.e., Al-Makhīḍ). It is said: makhaḍat al-ḥāmil wa makhāḍan, referring to the child struggling in the womb.

The Eighth Issue: {Jidha’ an-nakhla} (The trunk of a palm tree)

The author of Al-Kashshāf states it was a dry palm trunk in the desert, lacking a crown, fruit, or greenery. The time was winter.

The definite article (al-) used here could be:

1. Definiteness of a common, known object: Like defining the star or the thunderbolt, implying this specific palm trunk was famous in that desert, so saying "the palm trunk" referred to that one.
2. Definiteness of the genus: Meaning, Allah guided her specifically to this type of tree. Allah guided her to the palm tree so that she might eat the fresh dates (rutab), which are most suitable for a woman who has just given birth. Furthermore, the palm tree is the least patient tree regarding cold and does not bear fruit except after pollination. If its crown is cut off, it does not bear fruit. It is as if Allah was saying: Just as a female cannot give birth without a male, the palm tree cannot bear fruit without pollination. Then, He brought forth fresh dates without pollination to indicate the permissibility of a child appearing without a male.

The Ninth Issue: Why She Wished for Death

Why did she say, {Would that I had died before this}, even though she knew Allah had sent Gabriel to her, created her son by Gabriel's blowing, and promised to make her and her son a sign for the worlds?

The answer has three aspects:

1. Wahb said: The distress of exile and the gossip of the people made her forget the glad tidings she heard from the angels about Jesus (peace be upon him).
2. It is the habit of the righteous: When afflicted by tribulation, they say such things. It is narrated that Abu Bakr looked at a bird on a tree and said, "Blessed are you, O bird! You perch on the tree, eat the fruit, and I wish I were a piece of fruit pecked by a bird." 'Umar took a straw from the ground and said, "I wish I were this straw! I wish I had never been anything!" 'Ali said on the Day of the Camel Battle, "I wish I had died twenty years before this day." Bilal said, "I wish my mother had never given birth to Bilal." Thus, it is established that the righteous say this when matters become extremely difficult.
3. To prevent sin: Perhaps she said this so that no one speaking about her would commit a sin (by slandering her), even though she was content with the good news she received.

The Tenth Issue: {Nasiyyan} (Forgotten/Negligible)

The author of Al-Kashshāf explains that nasiy refers to something that ought to be discarded and forgotten, like a menstrual rag or similar items. Similarly, dhabh (slaughter) is the name of something meant to be slaughtered, as in {And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice} (As-Saffat: 107). She wished to be something trivial that should be ignored and forgotten by custom.

• Ibn Kathir, Al-A'mash, and Hamza read it as {Nasiyan} (with fath on the sīn). Al-Farra' said they are two linguistic variants, like al-witr and al-witr (bowstring/odd number), or al-jisr and al-jisr (bridge).
• Muhammad ibn Ka'b al-Qurazi read it as {Nasiyyan} (with a hamza), meaning milk mixed with water that its owners forget due to its scarcity.
• Al-A'mash read it as {Mansiyyan} (with kasra), following the pattern of al-mughīr and al-munkhar.

And Allah knows best.

{Then a voice called to her from beneath her, "Do not grieve; your Lord has made a stream flow beneath you.} (19:24)

{And shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree; [fresh] dates will drop upon you, ripe [and ready].} (19:25)

{So eat and drink and be content. And if you see from humanity anyone, then say, "Indeed, I have vowed to the Most Merciful an abstinence [from speech], so I will not speak today to any person."} (19:26)