Al-An'am (The Cattle): (139) And they say what is in...

There are several issues concerning this verse:

This verse addresses a fourth category of their erroneous assertions. They used to claim regarding the offspring of the Bahirah (a she-camel spared for idolatrous reasons) and the Sa'ibah (a sheep or camel dedicated to a deity):

1. What was born alive was exclusively for their males; females were forbidden from eating it.
2. What was born dead was shared between males and females.

The verse then states: "He will recompense them for what they used to describe." This implies a severe warning. "Indeed, He is Wise, All-Knowing," meaning the reprimand is delivered according to the dictates of wisdom and commensurate with their deservingness.

Ibn al-Anbari mentioned three opinions regarding the feminine form of the word khāliṣah (pure/exclusive) in the phrase: "what is in the wombs of these cattle is exclusive (khāliṣah) for our males."

1. Al-Kisā'ī's Opinion: The tā’ (final h) is not for feminization but for exaggeration in description, similar to words like rāwiyah (a great narrator), ʿallāmah (a great scholar), nasṣābah (a great genealogist), ad-dāhiyah (a calamity), and aṭ-ṭāghiyah (an oppressor). Thus, one might say, "This is khāliṣah for me" or "khāliṣ for me."

2. The Second Opinion (Related to Mā): The word mā (what) in the phrase "what is in the wombs of these cattle" refers to the fetuses (ajinnah). Since mā refers to a feminine concept (fetuses), the predicate (khāliṣah) is feminized based on the meaning. Conversely, the predicate in the subsequent phrase, "and forbidden (muḥarram)," is masculine based on the form (since mā is grammatically treated as masculine).

3. The Third Opinion (The Maṣdar): The word khāliṣah is a verbal noun (maṣdar), and the implied meaning is: "possessing exclusivity" (dhū khāliṣah), similar to saying, "Your gift is well-being (ʿāfiyah)," "The rain is mercy (raḥmah)," or "Low prices are a blessing (niʿmah)."

There are variations in the recitation of the phrase: "and if it is a dead [fetus]..."

• Ibn ʿĀmir: Recited wa an takunī (with tā’ for feminine) and maytatan (accusative/mansūb).
  • Justification: The verb is marked with the feminine sign (tā’) because the subject (the implied mā referring to the fetus) is feminine in form/meaning.

• Ibn Kathīr: Recited yakun (with yā’ for masculine) and maytatun (nominative/marfūʿ).
  • Justification: Maytatun is the subject (ism) of yakun, and the predicate is omitted (implied). The meaning is: "And if there is a dead [fetus] for them," or "And if a dead [fetus] occurs there." The verb is masculine because the dead thing (maytah) is treated as having the meaning of the dead male (mayyit). Abu ʿAlī stated that the verb is not marked with the feminine sign because the attributed subject is not truly feminine, and the verb kāna (to be) does not require a predicate here, as it means "to happen" or "to occur."

• Abū Bakr (from ʿĀṣim): Recited takunī (with tā’ for feminine) and maytatan (accusative/mansūb).
  • Justification: The meaning is: "And if the aforementioned thing is dead, the verb is feminized for this reason."

• The Rest of the Reciters: Recited yakun (with yā’ for masculine) and maytatan (accusative/mansūb).
  • Interpretation: "And if the aforementioned thing is dead, the verb is masculine because it refers back to the pronoun of what preceded it in mā fī buṭūn hādhihi al-anʿām (what is in the wombs of these cattle), which is grammatically masculine. The word maytatan is in the accusative case because the verb is attributed to the pronoun [referring back to the masculine mā]."