Tafsir of Maryam 19:25-26

{تساقط} (It will drop): There are nine readings:

1. Tassāqaṭ (تَسَّاقَط): with the assimilation of the tā’.
2. Tatasāqaṭ (تَتَسَاقَط): with the manifestation of both *tā’*s.
3. Tasāqaṭ (تَسَاقَط): by dropping the second tā’.
4. Yasāqaṭ (يَسَّاقَط): with a yā’ and assimilation of the tā’.
5. Tasāqaṭ (تَسَاقَط) [variant].
6. Tasquṭ (تَسْقُط).
7. Yasquṭ (يَسْقُط).
8. Tasquṭ (تَسْقُط) [variant].
9. Yasquṭ (يَسْقُط) [variant].

The tā’ refers to the palm tree, and the yā’ refers to the trunk. Ruṭaban (fresh dates) is a tamyīz (specification) or an object, depending on the reading. Al-Mubarrad suggested it could be an object of huzzī (shake), but that is weak. The bā’ in bi-jidhʿi al-nakhlah (the trunk of the palm tree) is an intensifier, as in the verse: "And do not cast [yourselves] with your hands into destruction," or it implies: "Perform the shaking with it," as in the poet's saying: "My blade wounds their heels."

It is said: Dates are customary for a woman in postpartum confinement, as is taḥnīk (rubbing the palate of a newborn), which they say was done with ʿajwah (a type of date). It is said: There is nothing better for a woman in postpartum confinement than fresh dates, and nothing better for the sick than honey. It is also said: If her labor is difficult, there is nothing better for her than fresh dates.

From Ṭalḥah ibn Sulaymān: Jinyan (جِنِيًّا) with a kasrah on the jīm for phonetic harmony. It means: We have gathered for you two benefits in the stream and the dates: first, food and drink; second, solace for the heart, as both are miracles.

This is in the meaning of: {فَكُلِي وَاشْرَبِي وَقَرِّي عَيْنًا} (So eat and drink and be comforted): meaning, be at peace, do not grieve, and cast away what saddens and worries you. Qarrī (be comforted) is also read qirī with a kasrah, which is the dialect of Najd.

{فَإِمَّا تَرَيِنَّ} (If you see): With a hamzah (as tar’inna), according to Ibn al-Rūmī and Abū ʿAmr. This follows the dialect of those who say lab’tu (I said 'at your service') and hala’tu (I roasted), due to the affinity between the hamzah and the vowel letter in substitution.

{صَوْمًا} (A fast): Meaning silence. In the codex of ʿAbd Allāh, it is written ṣamtan (silence), and Anas ibn Mālik reported the same. It is said to mean "fasting," except that they were forbidden from speaking during their fasts. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) forbade the "fast of silence," as it was abrogated in his nation. Allah commanded her to vow a fast so she would not have to argue with people who accused her, for two reasons:

1. That Jesus (peace be upon him) would suffice her by speaking to clear her name.
2. The dislike of debating the foolish and engaging with them.

This implies that silence toward the foolish is mandatory. Among the most humiliated people is a foolish person who finds no one to match their foolishness. It is said: She informed them that she had vowed a fast by gesturing. It is said: She was permitted to do so by speech.

{إِنسِيًّا} (A human being): Meaning, I will speak to the angels, not to humans.

{فَأَتَتْ بِهِ قَوْمَهَا تَحْمِلُهُ قَالُوا يَا مَرْيَمُ لَقَدْ جِئْتِ شَيْئًا فَرِيًّا * يَا أُخْتَ هَارُونَ مَا كَانَ أَبُوكِ امْرَأَ سَوْءٍ وَمَا كَانَتْ أُمُّكِ بَغِيًّا} (Then she brought him to her people, carrying him. They said, "O Mary, you have certainly done a thing unprecedented. O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste.")