Sūrat Maryam
سورۃ مریم
Sūrat Maryam (19): Revealed entirely in Mecca, containing ninety-eight (98) verses and six (rāk'ūʿ) sections.
كهيعص
Kāf Hā Yāʾ ʿAyn Ṣād
These are the ḥurūf muqaṭṭaʿāt (detached letters, the abbreviated opening letters of the Qurʾān). They belong to the category of mutashābihāt (ambiguous verses), and their full meaning is known only to those whom Allah (Exalted is He) has specially privileged with that knowledge.
ذِكْرُ رَحْمَتِ رَبِّكَ عَبْدَهُ زَكَرِيَّا
Dhikru raḥmati Rabbika ʿabdahu Zakariyyā
"A remembrance of the mercy of your Lord toward His servant Zakariyyā." — Maryam 19:2
Translation: This is a recounting of the mercy your Lord showed to His servant Zakariyyā (upon him be peace).
Commentary: The Sūra opens with an affirmation of divine mercy (raḥma). Before the story of Zakariyyā is told in full, the Qurʾān frames it as a "remembrance of mercy" — signalling that the entire passage is a lesson in the boundlessness of Allah's care for those who turn to Him in sincerity. Zakariyyā (upon him be peace) was an aged prophet, his bones weakened, his hair whitened by old age, his wife barren. In this condition of apparent hopelessness, he made a secret, intimate supplication.
إِذْ نَادَىٰ رَبَّهُ نِدَاءً خَفِيًّا
Idh nādā Rabbahu nidāʾan khafiyyā
"When he called upon his Lord in secret supplication." — Maryam 19:3
Translation: When he called out to his Lord with a concealed, intimate call.
Commentary: The supplication was khafī — hidden, secret, inward. The author notes that the most accepted supplication is one in which the heart and tongue act together, in hushed intimacy between servant and Lord. Public ostentation in supplication is foreign to the ethos of the prophets.
قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّي وَهَنَ الْعَظْمُ مِنِّي وَاشْتَعَلَ الرَّأْسُ شَيْبًا وَلَمْ أَكُن بِدُعَائِكَ رَبِّ شَقِيًّا
Qāla Rabbi innī wahana al-ʿaẓmu minnī wa-shtaʿala al-raʾsu shayban wa-lam akun bi-duʿāʾika Rabbi shaqiyyā
"He said: My Lord! My bones have grown weak and my head is aflame with whiteness, yet I have never been disappointed in my prayer to You, O my Lord." — Maryam 19:4
Translation: He said: O my Lord! My bones have become feeble and weak, and my head has blazed white with old age. Yet I have never, O my Lord, been disappointed in my prayer to You.
Commentary: Zakariyyā (upon him be peace) presents three causes that might discourage supplication — physical decline, old age, and the barrenness of his wife — but then immediately affirms that none of them have ever rendered his prayer to Allah fruitless. This is the believer's confidence in the liberality of Allah's response. He is not complaining; he is building his petition upon a record of answered prayer.
وَإِنِّي خِفْتُ الْمَوَالِيَ مِن وَرَائِي وَكَانَتِ امْرَأَتِي عَاقِرًا فَهَبْ لِي مِن لَّدُنكَ وَلِيًّا
Wa-innī khiftu al-mawāliya min warāʾī wa-kānat imraʾatī ʿāqiran fa-hab lī min ladunka waliyyā
"And I fear what my kinsmen will do after me, and my wife is barren — so grant me from Your presence an heir." — Maryam 19:5
Translation: And I fear what the inheritors will do after me, and my wife is barren; so grant me from Your own presence a guardian and heir.
Commentary: The fear is spiritual: Zakariyyā (upon him be peace) feared that without a pious successor, the heritage of prophethood and the guardianship of the sacred tradition would pass into unworthy hands. His concern was not for worldly property but for the continuation of divine guidance among the Children of Israel.
يَرِثُنِي وَيَرِثُ مِنْ آلِ يَعْقُوبَ وَاجْعَلْهُ رَبِّ رَضِيًّا
Yarithunī wa-yarith min āli Yaʿqūba wa-jʿalhu Rabbi raḍiyyā
"To inherit from me and from the House of Yaʿqūb — and make him, O Lord, well-pleasing." — Maryam 19:6
Translation: Who shall inherit from me and inherit from the lineage of Yaʿqūb (upon him be peace) — and make him, O my Lord, one who is well-pleasing.
Commentary: The inheritance Zakariyyā (upon him be peace) sought was an inheritance of prophethood, knowledge, and piety — not merely a material estate. He prayed that this child would be raḍī: accepted, beloved, well-pleasing to his Lord. The author notes that this quality — raḍī — means one whose every act accords with Allah's will, one whose conduct is free of everything that displeases his Lord.
يَا زَكَرِيَّا إِنَّا نُبَشِّرُكَ بِغُلَامٍ اسْمُهُ يَحْيَىٰ لَمْ نَجْعَل لَّهُ مِن قَبْلُ سَمِيًّا
Yā Zakariyyā innā nubashshiruka bi-ghulāmin ismuhu Yaḥyā lam najʿal lahu min qablu samiyyā
"O Zakariyyā! We give you glad tidings of a boy whose name shall be Yaḥyā — We have not given this name to anyone before him." — Maryam 19:7
Translation: O Zakariyyā! We give you the glad tidings of a son whose name shall be Yaḥyā. We have not appointed this name for anyone before him.
Commentary: The name Yaḥyā — "he shall live" — was divinely designated and unprecedented in that lineage. The author notes that uniqueness of name here also signals uniqueness of spiritual rank and mission: Yaḥyā (upon him be peace) would occupy a singular place among the prophets as a harbinger of ʿĪsā (upon him be peace).
قَالَ رَبِّ أَنَّىٰ يَكُونُ لِي غُلَامٌ وَكَانَتِ امْرَأَتِي عَاقِرًا وَقَدْ بَلَغْتُ مِنَ الْكِبَرِ عِتِيًّا
Qāla Rabbi annā yakūnu lī ghulāmun wa-kānat imraʾatī ʿāqiran wa-qad balaghtu min al-kibari ʿitiyyā
"He said: My Lord! How shall I have a boy when my wife is barren, and I have reached an extreme state of old age?" — Maryam 19:8
Translation: He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when my wife is barren and I have grown utterly decrepit with old age?
Commentary: This is not doubt (shakk) but the wonder of one who seeks to understand the kayfiyyat — the manner — of divine action. The prophets sometimes ask "how?" out of a desire for further clarity, not because they disbelieve in the divine power. Allah (Exalted is He) replied:
قَالَ كَذَٰلِكَ قَالَ رَبُّكَ هُوَ عَلَيَّ هَيِّنٌ وَقَدْ خَلَقْتُكَ مِن قَبْلُ وَلَمْ تَكُ شَيْئًا
Qāla kadhālika qāla Rabbuka huwa ʿalayya hayyinun wa-qad khalaqtuka min qablu wa-lam taku shay'ā
"He said: Thus it shall be; your Lord has said: It is easy for Me, for I created you before, when you were nothing at all." — Maryam 19:9
Translation: He said: Thus it shall be — your Lord has said: This is easy for Me; I already created you before, when you were nothing whatsoever.
Commentary: The divine response frames the miracle within the frame of the greater miracle of creation itself. Every human being was once non-existent — an utter nothing — and Allah (Exalted is He) brought him into being from that absolute nothingness. Against that backdrop, giving a child to an aged couple is a small matter indeed. He who created from absolute non-existence can create from any diminished set of means.
Commentary (continued): After receiving the news, Zakariyyā (upon him be peace) asked for a confirming sign. He was told that as a sign of the fulfilment of the promise, he would be unable to speak to people for three consecutive nights (and days), though he himself would be sound and well. He then emerged from his prayer chamber and gestured to the people to glorify Allah morning and evening — and so they did.
Yaḥyā (upon him be peace) was born. Allah (Exalted is He) addressed him:
يَا يَحْيَىٰ خُذِ الْكِتَابَ بِقُوَّةٍ وَآتَيْنَاهُ الْحُكْمَ صَبِيًّا
Yā Yaḥyā khudh al-kitāba bi-quwwatin wa-ātaynāhu al-ḥukma ṣabiyyā
"O Yaḥyā! Take hold of the Book with strength — and We gave him wisdom while yet a child." — Maryam 19:12
Translation: O Yaḥyā! Seize the Book with full force and vigour — and We bestowed upon him wisdom and sound judgement while he was still a young child.
Commentary: The command to seize the Book "with strength" means: engage with it in earnest, commit to it wholly, act upon it with diligence, and do not treat it lightly or lazily. The gift of ḥukm (wisdom and sound judgement) at the age of childhood is a divine grace that marks his prophetic singularity.
وَحَنَانًا مِّن لَّدُنَّا وَزَكَاةً وَكَانَ تَقِيًّا
Wa-ḥanānan min ladunnā wa-zakātan wa-kāna taqiyyā
"And tenderness from Us, and purity — and he was full of piety." — Maryam 19:13
Translation: And We endowed him with overflowing tenderness from Our presence, and with purity of heart — and he was deeply God-fearing.
وَبَرًّا بِوَالِدَيْهِ وَلَمْ يَكُن جَبَّارًا عَصِيًّا
Wa-barran bi-wālidayhi wa-lam yakun jabbāran ʿaṣiyyā
"And dutiful toward his parents — he was not overbearing or disobedient." — Maryam 19:14
Translation: And he was devoted and deeply kind to his parents — neither domineering nor disobedient.
Commentary: The character of Yaḥyā (upon him be peace) is sketched in four qualities: wisdom from childhood, tenderness (ḥanān), purity (zakāt), and piety (taqwā). To these are added devoted filial obedience — so complete that he was neither harsh nor self-willed toward his parents. The author addresses contemporary readers: Companions! Reflect on the relation of children to parents in our own time. How many children today, when they attain position and wealth, forget the parents whose prayers, sleepless nights, and self-sacrifice brought them to that station? The example of Yaḥyā is a rebuke to such ingratitude.
وَسَلَامٌ عَلَيْهِ يَوْمَ وُلِدَ وَيَوْمَ يَمُوتُ وَيَوْمَ يُبْعَثُ حَيًّا
Wa-salāmun ʿalayhi yawma wulida wa-yawma yamūtu wa-yawma yubʿathu ḥayyā
"And peace be upon him — on the day he was born, on the day he dies, and on the day he is raised alive." — Maryam 19:15
Translation: And peace be upon him on the day of his birth, on the day of his death, and on the day when he shall be raised alive.
Commentary: The three moments — birth, death, and resurrection — are the three great existential thresholds of every human soul. On all three, divine peace (salām) was decreed for Yaḥyā (upon him be peace). The salām here is the definitive article-bearing salām — it is the name of Allah, signifying His protection, His peace, and His blessing over these three thresholds. The author notes that all such formulations in the Qurʾān (salāmun ʿalā Mūsā wa-Hārūn, salāmun ʿalā Ilyāsīn) carry the definite article, making the word a divine attribute-name — so disputes about the definite article here are unnecessary. The section on Yaḥyā now concludes, and the text moves to Maryam and ʿĪsā (upon them both be peace).
The author addresses parents directly: See what a child like Yaḥyā, whose parents' prayers were sincere and constant, became. And compare with children of today who, given every advantage, show not the slightest acknowledgement of the debt they owe. In this world there is no deficiency in those who have the love of parents; rather, deficiency lies in the children. In parents lies the treasure; in children, the loss. (— attributed to the author, Ḥaḍrat Ṣiddīqī [may Allah have mercy on him])
Now the Sūra turns to the story of Maryam (upon her be peace):
وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ مَرْيَمَ إِذِ انتَبَذَتْ مِنْ أَهْلِهَا مَكَانًا شَرْقِيًّا
Wa-dhkur fī al-kitābi Maryama idh intabadhat min ahlihā makānan sharqiyyā
"And mention in the Book — Maryam — when she withdrew from her family to a place in the east." — Maryam 19:16
Translation: And recount in the Book the story of Maryam — when she withdrew from her people to a place facing east.
Commentary: Maryam (upon her be peace) was among the most distinguished women of the Children of Israel. While other worshippers were in their devotions in the community, she chose total seclusion (khalwat), withdrawing to an eastern chamber of the sanctuary for spiritual retreat and contemplation. The direction "east" — the direction of light and sunrise — has for centuries been associated in Islamic spiritual writing with spiritual orientation and radiance.
Commentary (continued): The author enters a discussion here on the station of khalwat (spiritual seclusion) in taṣawwuf and on the doctrine of ʿālam al-mithāl (the Imaginal Realm). He explains: when external senses are set aside — eyes closed, ears closed, mouth sealed — and all attention gathered to a single point, the soul in its luminous essence begins to make contact with the realities of the Imaginal Realm, where spiritual forms manifest to the inner vision. The rule is: the more one sets aside the demands of the body (lawāzim-i basharī), the more freely the Imaginal realm may be entered. The author cautions: this experience in itself is neither the goal nor the exclusive privilege of the mystic — it is a possibility within the human constitution that certain people of spiritual attainment reach through sincere and sustained practice. He warns, however, against claiming that this constitutes real vision of Allah in His essence; Allah is beyond all form and image. He also warns that some non-Muslim practitioners reach a degree of the Imaginal Realm, but this is qualitatively different from the kashf (spiritual disclosure) of the true gnostic who knows Allah's reality.
The angel Jibrīl (upon him be peace) then appeared before Maryam in the form of a perfectly proportioned young man:
فَأَرْسَلْنَا إِلَيْهَا رُوحَنَا فَتَمَثَّلَ لَهَا بَشَرًا سَوِيًّا
Fa-arsalnā ilayhā rūḥanā fa-tamaththala lahā basharan sawiyyā
"We sent to her Our spirit, and he took the form before her of a well-proportioned human being." — Maryam 19:17
Translation: So We sent to her Our spirit [Jibrīl], who appeared before her in the form of a perfectly formed and upright human being.
Commentary: The spirit sent here is Jibrīl (upon him be peace). The Qurʾān calls him rūḥanā (Our spirit) to indicate the purity, sublimity, and divine appointment of his station. All creation is permeated with spirit; everything in existence glorifies Allah — wa-in min shay'in illā yusabbiḥu wa-lākin lā tafqahūna tasbīḥahum — but the spirit of Jibrīl has a special rank among all created spirits. He appeared in human form so that Maryam would be able to receive the divine address; angels in their essential nature are of an order too subtle for ordinary human apprehension.
قَالَتْ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِالرَّحْمَٰنِ مِنكَ إِن كُنتَ تَقِيًّا
Qālat innī aʿūdhu bil-Raḥmāni minka in kunta taqiyyā
"She said: I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you, if you are God-fearing." — Maryam 19:18
Translation: She said: I seek refuge with the Most Merciful from you — if you indeed fear Allah.
Commentary: Maryam's first response was one of spiritual protection: she invoked the name of al-Raḥmān (the Most Merciful) as her shield against any possible harm from this unknown visitor. Her immediate recourse to divine refuge is itself a model of faith — in the face of fear, the believer turns first to Allah.
قَالَ إِنَّمَا أَنَا رَسُولُ رَبِّكِ لِأَهَبَ لَكِ غُلَامًا زَكِيًّا
Qāla innamā anā rasūlu Rabbiki li-ahaba laki ghulāman zakiyyā
"He said: I am only the messenger of your Lord — to bestow upon you a pure boy." — Maryam 19:19
Translation: He said: I am none other than a messenger from your Lord, sent to give you the gift of a pure and holy son.
Commentary: The author pauses here for an important discussion on the nature of shirk (associationism) and its limits. He says: the word of certain people who call others mushrikūn (polytheists) is all too common on the tongue today. What truly constitutes shirk? Shirk occurs when a created being is ascribed the essential divine attributes (ṣifāt khāṣṣa) that belong only to Allah's being in itself (bāl-dhāt) — above all, istighnāʾ al-dhāt (absolute self-sufficiency), and existence and attributes subsisting in the being itself without any external cause. When a Muslim says "so-and-so did this by the blessing of such-and-such a saint" and means that Allah (Exalted is He) caused it to be — with the saint as a blessed means granted by Allah — that is no shirk. It is figurative attribution (majāz), which occurs abundantly in the Qurʾān itself. The proper test is: does one's heart ultimately refer all power and sovereignty to Allah? If yes, the statement is permissible attribution through secondary cause. Only when one believes that the created being acts independently of Allah — possessing power in its own right (bāl-dhāt) — does the boundary of shirk approach. The author insists that labelling a fellow Muslim a mushrik without clear and unambiguous evidence is itself a serious transgression.
قَالَتْ أَنَّىٰ يَكُونُ لِي غُلَامٌ وَلَمْ يَمْسَسْنِي بَشَرٌ وَلَمْ أَكُ بَغِيًّا
Qālat annā yakūnu lī ghulāmun wa-lam yamsasnī basharun wa-lam aku baghiyyā
"She said: How shall I have a boy when no human being has touched me, and I have never been unchaste?" — Maryam 19:20
Translation: She said: How can I have a son when no man has touched me, and I have never been a woman of immoral conduct?
قَالَ كَذَٰلِكِ قَالَ رَبُّكِ هُوَ عَلَيَّ هَيِّنٌ وَلِنَجْعَلَهُ آيَةً لِّلنَّاسِ وَرَحْمَةً مِّنَّا وَكَانَ أَمْرًا مَّقْضِيًّا
Qāla kadhāliki qāla Rabbuki huwa ʿalayya hayyinun wa-li-najʿalahu āyatan lil-nāsi wa-raḥmatan minnā wa-kāna amran maḍiyyā
"He said: Thus it shall be — your Lord has said: It is easy for Me. And so that We may make him a sign for people and a mercy from Us. And it is a matter already decreed." — Maryam 19:21
Translation: He said: Thus it is — your Lord has said: This is easy for Me. We shall make him a sign for all people, and a mercy from Us. It is an affair already ordained.
Commentary: Companions! Those who deny miracles and seek to confine divine power within the laws of natural causation they themselves have observed — and who therefore say that the birth of ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) must have had a human father, citing some supposed passage in the Gospel — have placed the Qurʾān in an impossible position, for the Qurʾān explicitly negates any fatherhood. The one who created Ādam (upon him be peace) without any father, from dust, certainly can create ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) without a father. You need not trouble yourselves with such arguments. We affirm what Allah and His Messengerﷺhave affirmed. Divine power (qudrat) is not constrained by the ordinary order of causes. Allah brings into being by His word Kun — "Be!" — and it is.
After receiving the spirit, Maryam (upon her be peace) withdrew to a distant place (makān qaṣiyyā), carried the child in her womb, and eventually the birth-pangs brought her to the foot of a date-palm tree:
فَأَجَاءَهَا الْمَخَاضُ إِلَىٰ جِذْعِ النَّخْلَةِ قَالَتْ يَا لَيْتَنِي مِتُّ قَبْلَ هَٰذَا وَكُنتُ نَسْيًا مَّنسِيًّا
Fa-ajāʾahā al-makhāḍu ilā jidhʿi al-nakhlati qālat yā laytanī mittu qabla hādhā wa-kuntu nasyan mansiyyā
"The birth-pangs drove her to the trunk of a date-palm tree. She said: Would that I had died before this, and been a thing utterly forgotten!" — Maryam 19:23
Translation: The pangs of labour brought her to the trunk of a date-palm tree. She said: Would that I had died before this moment and become a thing utterly forgotten and erased!
Commentary: Her cry was not despair at Allah's decree, but the expression of a pure soul's pain at the thought of the slander and false accusation that this miraculous birth would bring from uncomprehending people. She feared the harm that the ignorant would do with what Allah had given her as an honour.
فَنَادَاهَا مِن تَحْتِهَا أَلَّا تَحْزَنِي قَدْ جَعَلَ رَبُّكِ تَحْتَكِ سَرِيًّا
Fa-nādāhā min taḥtihā allā taḥzanī qad jaʿala Rabbuki taḥtaki sariyyā
"Then he called out to her from below her: Grieve not, for your Lord has made a stream beneath you." — Maryam 19:24
Translation: Then Jibrīl called out to her from below: Do not grieve — your Lord has made a flowing stream beneath you.
وَهُزِّي إِلَيْكِ بِجِذْعِ النَّخْلَةِ تُسَاقِطْ عَلَيْكِ رُطَبًا جَنِيًّا
Wa-huzzī ilayki bi-jidhʿi al-nakhlati tusāqiṭ ʿalayki ruṭaban janiyyā
"And shake the trunk of the date-palm toward you — it will drop fresh ripe dates upon you." — Maryam 19:25
Translation: And pull the trunk of the date-palm toward yourself — it will drop fresh, newly-ripened dates upon you.
فَكُلِي وَاشْرَبِي وَقَرِّي عَيْنًا فَإِمَّا تَرَيِنَّ مِنَ الْبَشَرِ أَحَدًا فَقُولِي إِنِّي نَذَرْتُ لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ صَوْمًا فَلَنْ أُكَلِّمَ الْيَوْمَ إِنسِيًّا
Fa-kulī wa-ishrabī wa-qarrī ʿaynan fa-immā tarayinna min al-bashari aḥadan fa-qūlī innī nadhartu lil-Raḥmāni ṣawman fa-lan ukallima al-yawma insiyyā
"So eat and drink, and let your eyes be comforted. And if you see any human being, say: I have vowed a fast to the Most Merciful, so I shall not speak to any human being today." — Maryam 19:26
Translation: So eat and drink and be of good cheer. And if you encounter any person, say: I have vowed a fast of silence to the Most Merciful — I shall speak to no one today.
Commentary: Divine provision was sent down to her in her moment of need: a stream of fresh water and fresh dates — nourishment and refreshment in her weakness. And she was given the instruction to remain silent, pointing to the infant to answer on her behalf. The author remarks: Companions! Some people have a fierce longing to speak — they find silence oppressive. If someone is in iʿtikāf (spiritual retreat) and resolves to observe silence, people around him become irritated as if something terrible is occurring. The easiest thing to say is that such silence is a bidʿa (innovation), whereas true bidʿa is harmful innovation in creedal and legal matters — not voluntary silence adopted for spiritual discipline.
Then Maryam returned to her people carrying the infant. They reproached her:
فَأَتَتْ بِهِ قَوْمَهَا تَحْمِلُهُ قَالُوا يَا مَرْيَمُ لَقَدْ جِئْتِ شَيْئًا فَرِيًّا
Fa-atat bihi qawmahā taḥmiluhu qālū yā Maryamu laqad jiʾti shayʾan fariyyā
"She brought him to her people, carrying him. They said: O Maryam! You have brought something monstrous!" — Maryam 19:27
Translation: She came to her people with him in her arms. They said: O Maryam! You have committed something unheard-of and outrageous!
يَا أُخْتَ هَارُونَ مَا كَانَ أَبُوكِ امْرَأَ سَوْءٍ وَمَا كَانَتْ أُمُّكِ بَغِيًّا
Yā ukhta Hārūna mā kāna abūki imra'a saw'in wa-mā kānat ummuki baghiyyā
"O sister of Hārūn! Your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste!" — Maryam 19:28
Translation: O sister of Hārūn! Your father was not an evil man, nor was your mother a woman of immorality!
Commentary: The "sister of Hārūn" here refers to a lineage connection — Hārūn was a pious ancestor in her tribe, and she was called "sister" in the sense of a descendant of that lineage. The people were asserting: you come from a respectable family — how could you do this?
In response, Maryam pointed to the infant. The people were astonished:
فَأَشَارَتْ إِلَيْهِ قَالُوا كَيْفَ نُكَلِّمُ مَن كَانَ فِي الْمَهْدِ صَبِيًّا
Fa-ashārat ilayhi qālū kayfa nukallimu man kāna fī al-mahdi ṣabiyyā
"She pointed to him. They said: How shall we speak to one who is an infant in the cradle?" — Maryam 19:29
Translation: She gestured toward the child. They said: How can we speak to one who lies in the cradle as a mere infant?
Then the infant ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) spoke:
قَالَ إِنِّي عَبْدُ اللَّهِ آتَانِيَ الْكِتَابَ وَجَعَلَنِي نَبِيًّا
Qāla innī ʿabdu Allāhi ātāniya al-kitāba wa-jaʿalanī nabiyyā
"He said: I am the servant of Allah — He has given me the Book and made me a Prophet." — Maryam 19:30
Translation: He said: I am a servant of Allah — He has given me the Book and appointed me a Prophet.
Commentary: The very first words of ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) from the cradle are a declaration of servitude to Allah: innī ʿabdu Allāh — "I am the servant of Allah." This is the decisive Qurʾānic refutation of those who ascribe divinity to him. A servant (ʿabd) cannot be the Lord (Rabb). The author observes: the blood of Maryam's sacred purity, her weeping mutajahhin in the womb, was itself a sign of bondship to Allah — and the Creator (al-Khāliq) cannot be associated with the characteristics of the created. Allah has no need of a son or a partner. All beings are dependent on Him; He is dependent on none.
وَجَعَلَنِي مُبَارَكًا أَيْنَ مَا كُنتُ وَأَوْصَانِي بِالصَّلَاةِ وَالزَّكَاةِ مَا دُمْتُ حَيًّا
Wa-jaʿalanī mubārakan ayna mā kuntu wa-awṣānī bil-ṣalāti wal-zakāti mā dumtu ḥayyā
"And He has made me blessed wherever I may be, and has enjoined upon me prayer and almsgiving as long as I live." — Maryam 19:31
Translation: He has made me a source of blessing wherever I may be, and has charged me with prayer and almsgiving for as long as I live.
وَبَرًّا بِوَالِدَتِي وَلَمْ يَجْعَلْنِي جَبَّارًا شَقِيًّا
Wa-barran bi-wālidatī wa-lam yajʿalnī jabbāran shaqiyyā
"And dutiful toward my mother — He has not made me overbearing or wretched." — Maryam 19:32
Translation: And He has made me devoted to my mother — He has not made me arrogant or wretched.
Commentary: ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) speaks of ṣalāt, zakāt, and birr bi'l-wālidat — prayer, almsgiving, and filial devotion — as his divinely assigned duties and character. These are the three pillars of piety in his message, as they are in the message of every Prophet: worship of Allah, generosity to the needy, and honouring one's parents.
وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَيَّ يَوْمَ وُلِدتُّ وَيَوْمَ أَمُوتُ وَيَوْمَ أُبْعَثُ حَيًّا
Wa'l-salāmu ʿalayya yawma wulidtu wa-yawma amūtu wa-yawma ubʿathu ḥayyā
"And peace be upon me on the day I was born, on the day I die, and on the day I am raised alive." — Maryam 19:33
Translation: And peace be upon me on the day I was born, on the day I shall die, and on the day I shall be raised alive.
Commentary: The precise parallel with the salutation upon Yaḥyā (upon him be peace) in verse 15 is deliberate. The same divine peace salām — encompassing safety, mercy, and honour — is decreed for ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) at the three great thresholds of existence.
ذَٰلِكَ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ قَوْلَ الْحَقِّ الَّذِي فِيهِ يَمْتَرُونَ
Dhālika ʿĪsā ibnu Maryama qawla al-ḥaqqi alladhī fīhi yamtarūn
"Such is ʿĪsā son of Maryam — the word of truth about which they dispute." — Maryam 19:34
Translation: Such is ʿĪsā, the son of Maryam — the word of truth concerning which people wrangle and dispute.
مَا كَانَ لِلَّهِ أَن يَتَّخِذَ مِن وَلَدٍ سُبْحَانَهُ إِذَا قَضَىٰ أَمْرًا فَإِنَّمَا يَقُولُ لَهُ كُن فَيَكُونُ
Mā kāna lillāhi an yattakhidha min waladin subḥānahu idhā qaḍā amran fa-innamā yaqūlu lahu kun fa-yakūn
"It does not befit Allah to take a son. Glory be to Him! When He decrees a matter, He only says to it: Be! — and it is." — Maryam 19:35
Translation: It is not possible nor fitting that Allah should take a son — exalted be He above that! When He decrees a matter, He merely says to it: "Be!" — and it comes to be.
Commentary: The mode of divine creation is the divine command kun — "Be!" — which is not a sound or a letter in the human sense, but the expression of divine will and power that brings being out of non-being. The author devotes a passage here to the discussion of aʿyān thābita (immutable essences in divine knowledge) and aʿyān khārija (existences in the outer world). He explains: Allah knows all existents eternally in His knowledge before they appear in the world of external reality. When He wills their manifestation, they transition from the realm of divine knowledge (ʿilm) to the realm of sensory existence (shahāda). This is the meaning of kun fa-yakūn. The created being had no existence of its own — it was in the treasury of divine knowledge; then by divine will it was clothed in outward being.
وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ رَبِّي وَرَبُّكُمْ فَاعْبُدُوهُ هَٰذَا صِرَاطٌ مُّسْتَقِيمٌ
Wa-inna Allāha Rabbī wa-Rabbukum fa-ʿbudūhu hādhā ṣirāṭun mustaqīm
"And verily Allah is my Lord and your Lord — so worship Him. This is the straight path." — Maryam 19:36
Translation: Verily, Allah is my Lord and your Lord — so worship Him. This is the straight and upright path.
Commentary: ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) himself declared: Allahu Rabbī wa-Rabbukum — "Allah is my Lord and your Lord." He placed himself in the position of a worshipper (ʿābid), not that of a deity. This verse is the clearest possible statement of the Qurʾānic position on the nature of ʿĪsā: he is a prophet and servant of Allah, and his entire call was to the worship of the One God. The divergence of the sects (al-aḥzāb) after him — some declaring him God, some son of God, some the third of three — is a deviation that the Qurʾān explicitly condemns.
فَاخْتَلَفَ الْأَحْزَابُ مِن بَيْنِهِمْ فَوَيْلٌ لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِن مَّشْهَدِ يَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ
Fa-khtalafia al-aḥzābu min baynihim fa-waylun lil-ladhīna kafarū min mashhadi yawmin ʿaẓīm
"But the parties fell into disagreement among themselves — woe then to the disbelievers at the witnessing of a momentous day!" — Maryam 19:37
Translation: The factions fell into dispute among themselves — then woe to those who disbelieved when they witness the Day of the great reckoning!
أَسْمِعْ بِهِمْ وَأَبْصِرْ يَوْمَ يَأْتُونَنَا لَٰكِنِ الظَّالِمُونَ الْيَوْمَ فِي ضَلَالٍ مُّبِينٍ
Asmiʿ bihim wa-abṣir yawma ya'tūnanā lākini al-ẓālimūna al-yawma fī ḍalālin mubīn
"How sharp of hearing and sight they will be on the Day they come before Us! But the wrongdoers today are in manifest error." — Maryam 19:38
Translation: How well they shall hear and see on the Day they present themselves before Us! But the wrongdoers today are in plain and manifest misguidance.
Commentary: On the Day of Resurrection, all the faculties that were dulled or clouded in this world — hearing closed to the truth, sight curtained from the signs of Allah — will suddenly be opened to the full sharpness of perception. But this clarity will come too late, when deeds can no longer be amended. The wrongdoers today are in ḍalāl mubīn — open misguidance — though they feel quite confident in their position.
وَأَنذِرْهُمْ يَوْمَ الْحَسْرَةِ إِذْ قُضِيَ الْأَمْرُ وَهُمْ فِي غَفْلَةٍ وَهُمْ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ
Wa-andhirhum yawma al-ḥasrati idh quḍiya al-amru wa-hum fī ghaflatin wa-hum lā yuʾminūn
"And warn them of the Day of Regret, when the matter shall be decided — while they are heedless and do not believe." — Maryam 19:39
Translation: And warn them of the Day of Remorse — when the affair shall be settled, while they are in a state of heedlessness and disbelief.
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَرِثُ الْأَرْضَ وَمَن عَلَيْهَا وَإِلَيْنَا يُرْجَعُونَ
Innā naḥnu narithu al-arḍa wa-man ʿalayhā wa-ilaynā yurjaʿūn
"We shall inherit the earth and all who are upon it — and to Us they shall be returned." — Maryam 19:40
Translation: We shall be the inheritors of the earth and all those upon it — and to Us shall all be returned.
Commentary: The question of ownership resolves itself at the end of time: neither rulers, nor nations, nor any human institution will hold the earth in the end. Allah (Exalted is He) alone inherits it — meaning that all apparent ownership expires and the earth and its peoples return to their true Owner. This is also a reminder of the transience of all earthly dominion and the certainty of the final return.
The author reflects here on divine power: in the story just told, Allah (Exalted is He) created ʿĪsā (upon him be peace) without a father, just as He created Ādam (upon him be peace) without any parents at all. Some people have raised doubts about the miraculous birth, citing a supposed reference in the Gospel to ʿĪsā having a father named Yūsuf the carpenter — but this is irrelevant to the Qurʾānic statement, which is definitive and explicit. The author urges: do not let such arguments disturb you; refer all things back to what Allah and His Messengerﷺhave affirmed. The mother's role is now concluded, and he notes with gentle irony the story of a mother who heard the injunction about the mother's rights and asks about her son's obligations — while the son, far away, has long since forgotten the prayers that earned him his position.
Now the Sūra moves to the account of Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace) and his father:
وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ إِنَّهُ كَانَ صِدِّيقًا نَّبِيًّا
Wa-dhkur fī al-kitābi Ibrāhīma innahu kāna ṣiddīqan nabiyyā
"And mention in the Book — Ibrāhīm. He was a man of great truthfulness, a Prophet." — Maryam 19:41
Translation: And recount in the Book the story of Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace). He was a man of profound truthfulness (ṣiddīq) and a Prophet.
Commentary: The title ṣiddīq denotes one whose inner state and outer expression are in complete alignment — one who never allows falsehood to enter either his heart or his tongue. Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace) was among the greatest of the Prophets and the forefather of the prophetic line that includes Mūsā, ʿĪsā, and Muḥammadﷺ. The author notes that it was the custom of the Prophet Muḥammadﷺto acknowledge Ibrāhīm as his ancestor:«هَذَا مِنْ بَقِيَّةِ آبَائِي»— "This is from the legacy of my forefathers" — as reported in the Ḥadīth concerning the sajda verse, where the Prophetﷺsaid to the Companion ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with him) that the practice of prostrating among those who prostrated was part of his prophetic inheritance. To be born in the lineage of prophets and the line of those who worship Allah is the highest station of nobility.
إِذْ قَالَ لِأَبِيهِ يَا أَبَتِ لِمَ تَعْبُدُ مَا لَا يَسْمَعُ وَلَا يُبْصِرُ وَلَا يُغْنِي عَنكَ شَيْئًا
Idh qāla li-abīhi yā abati lima taʿbudu mā lā yasmaʿu wa-lā yubṣiru wa-lā yughnī ʿanka shayʾā
"When he said to his father: O my father! Why do you worship what neither hears nor sees nor avails you in the least?" — Maryam 19:42
Translation: When he said to his father: O my father! Why do you worship that which neither hears nor sees, and can do nothing whatsoever for you?
Commentary: Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace) addressed his father — who was Āzar, an idol-carver and idol-worshipper — with the utmost tenderness. The repeated use of yā abati ("O my dear father") signals the delicacy and respect with which he delivered his message. He did not denounce, humiliate, or abandon; he appealed to the reason and heart of his father with filial affection. This is the model of daʿwa (inviting to the truth) within the family: gentle, patient, loving, though firm in its message.
يَا أَبَتِ إِنِّي قَدْ جَاءَنِي مِنَ الْعِلْمِ مَا لَمْ يَأْتِكَ فَاتَّبِعْنِي أَهْدِكَ صِرَاطًا سَوِيًّا
Yā abati innī qad jāʾanī min al-ʿilmi mā lam ya'tika fa-ittabiʿnī ahdika ṣirāṭan sawiyyā
"O my father! Knowledge has come to me that has not come to you — so follow me, and I shall guide you to the straight and even path." — Maryam 19:43
Translation: O my dear father! Knowledge has reached me that has not reached you. Follow me, and I shall guide you to the straight and even path.
Commentary: Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace) does not say "I am better than you" or "you are foolish." He says: "knowledge has come to me that has not come to you" — attributing the difference to divine grace, not to any inherent superiority of his own. Then he offers to guide his father, not to condemn him. This is the prophetic way.
يَا أَبَتِ لَا تَعْبُدِ الشَّيْطَانَ إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ كَانَ لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ عَصِيًّا
Yā abati lā taʿbudi al-shayṭāna inna al-shayṭāna kāna lil-Raḥmāni ʿaṣiyyā
"O my father! Do not worship Shayṭān — for Shayṭān was disobedient to the Most Merciful." — Maryam 19:44
Translation: O my dear father! Do not serve Shayṭān — for Shayṭān has ever been in rebellion against the Most Merciful.
يَا أَبَتِ إِنِّي أَخَافُ أَن يَمَسَّكَ عَذَابٌ مِّنَ الرَّحْمَٰنِ فَتَكُونَ لِلشَّيْطَانِ وَلِيًّا
Yā abati innī akhāfu an yamassaka ʿadhābun min al-Raḥmāni fa-takūna lil-shayṭāni waliyyā
"O my father! I fear that a punishment from the Most Merciful may touch you, and you would then become a companion of Shayṭān." — Maryam 19:45
Translation: O my dear father! I fear that a punishment from the All-Merciful might reach you, and that you might then become a companion of Shayṭān in ruin.
Commentary (continued): The father's response was harsh. He said: Are you rejecting my gods, O Ibrāhīm? If you do not stop, I shall stone you. Leave me for a long while.
قَالَ أَرَاغِبٌ أَنتَ عَنْ آلِهَتِي يَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ لَئِن لَّمْ تَنتَهِ لَأَرْجُمَنَّكَ وَاهْجُرْنِي مَلِيًّا
Qāla a-rāghibun anta ʿan ālihatī yā Ibrāhīmu la'in lam tantahi la-arjumannaka wa-hjurnī maliyyā
"He said: Do you turn away from my gods, O Ibrāhīm? If you do not desist, I will certainly stone you. Leave me for a long time." — Maryam 19:46
Translation: His father said: Are you turning away from my gods, O Ibrāhīm? If you do not stop, I will have you stoned. Depart from me for a long while.
Commentary: Against this threat, Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace) responded with peace and a promise of intercession. He did not return violence for violence; he offered compassion:
قَالَ سَلَامٌ عَلَيْكَ سَأَسْتَغْفِرُ لَكَ رَبِّي إِنَّهُ كَانَ بِي حَفِيًّا
Qāla salāmun ʿalayka sa-astaghfiru laka Rabbī innahu kāna bī ḥafiyyā
"He said: Peace be upon you — I shall ask forgiveness for you from my Lord. He has ever been most gracious to me." — Maryam 19:47
Translation: He said: Peace be upon you — I shall pray to my Lord to forgive you. He has always been most gracious and attentive to me.
Commentary: Salāmun ʿalayk — not a greeting of departure but a declaration of non-enmity and love. Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace) was leaving behind his father's idols and his father's house, but he was not leaving behind his concern for his father's soul. He promised to seek forgiveness for him from his Lord, in whose gracious attentiveness (ḥifāwa) to him he had complete trust. Later, when it became clear that his father had died as a disbeliever and was an enemy of Allah, Ibrāhīm was instructed to cease seeking forgiveness for him — and he complied.
وَأَعْتَزِلُكُمْ وَمَا تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَأَدْعُو رَبِّي عَسَىٰ أَلَّا أَكُونَ بِدُعَاءِ رَبِّي شَقِيًّا
Wa-aʿtazilukum wa-mā tadʿūna min dūni Allāhi wa-adʿū Rabbī ʿasā allā akūna bi-duʿāʾi Rabbī shaqiyyā
"And I shall withdraw from you and from what you call upon besides Allah — and I shall call upon my Lord, hopeful that I shall not be disappointed in my prayer to my Lord." — Maryam 19:48
Translation: I shall withdraw from you and from what you worship beside Allah — and I shall call upon my Lord. I hope that by my prayer to my Lord I shall not be among the disappointed.
فَلَمَّا اعْتَزَلَهُمْ وَمَا يَعْبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَهَبْنَا لَهُ إِسْحَاقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ وَكُلًّا جَعَلْنَا نَبِيًّا
Fa-lammā ʿtazalahum wa-mā yaʿbudūna min dūni Allāhi wahabnā lahu Isḥāqa wa-Yaʿqūba wa-kullan jaʿalnā nabiyyā
"And when he had withdrawn from them and from what they worshipped beside Allah, We gave him Isḥāq and Yaʿqūb, and each We made a Prophet." — Maryam 19:49
Translation: When he had separated himself from them and from all they worshipped beside Allah, We granted him Isḥāq and Yaʿqūb (upon them both be peace) — and each of them We appointed as a Prophet.
Commentary: The divine pattern is unmistakable: the more sincerely one severs attachment to what is other than Allah — the more totally one breaks with the pull of other-than-God — the more fully Allah opens His mercy, protection, and bounty. Ibrāhīm's complete relinquishment of his family's idols was met with the gift of a prophetic lineage stretching through Isḥāq and Yaʿqūb (upon them all be peace) to the whole of the Israelite tradition, and ultimately — through another line — to the Prophet Muḥammadﷺ.
Companions! Look closely at this verse. As long as love of what is other than Allah sits in the heart alongside the love of Allah — as long as hope is divided between Allah and other-than-Allah — no true elevation will come. The heart that is claimed by two cannot be wholly claimed by One. One heart, one beloved — when there is one heart, the friend too is one. (— the author's verse)
Two swords cannot be sheathed in one scabbard. Two loves cannot both reign in one heart without conflict. So long as tawhīd — true oneness — has not been achieved in desire, in love, and in reliance, the soul will be restless. But when you are fully Allah's, all will be fully yours.
وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُم مِّن رَّحْمَتِنَا وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُمْ لِسَانَ صِدْقٍ عَلِيًّا
Wa-wahabnā lahum min raḥmatinā wa-jaʿalnā lahum lisāna ṣidqin ʿaliyyā
"And We bestowed upon them of Our mercy, and gave them a lofty and truthful tongue of renown." — Maryam 19:50
Translation: We showered Our mercy upon them and gave them a high and truthful tongue of lasting praise.
وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ مُوسَىٰ إِنَّهُ كَانَ مُخْلَصًا وَكَانَ رَسُولًا نَّبِيًّا
Wa-dhkur fī al-kitābi Mūsā innahu kāna mukhlaṣan wa-kāna rasūlan nabiyyā
"And mention in the Book — Mūsā. He was sincerely devoted, and was a Messenger and a Prophet." — Maryam 19:51
Translation: And recount in the Book the account of Mūsā (upon him be peace). He was sincerely pure and devoted, and he was both a Messenger (rasūl) and a Prophet (nabī).
Commentary: Mukhlāṣ — purified, chosen and set apart by Allah for His service — indicates that Mūsā (upon him be peace) was specially elected and refined by divine grace. He combined the station of nabī (one who receives revelation) with that of rasūl (one sent with a specific message and law).
وَنَادَيْنَاهُ مِن جَانِبِ الطُّورِ الْأَيْمَنِ وَقَرَّبْنَاهُ نَجِيًّا
Wa-nādaynāhu min jānibi al-Ṭūri al-aymani wa-qarrabnāhu najiyyā
"And We called out to him from the right side of the Mount, and drew him near in intimate discourse." — Maryam 19:52
Translation: We called out to him from the right flank of Mount Ṭūr, and drew him near as one admitted to intimate divine discourse (munājāt).
Commentary: Najī — one admitted to intimate private conversation. Mūsā (upon him be peace) was not only called from afar; he was brought near to the divine presence in a mode of intimate, direct address beyond the ordinary prophetic channels. The author pauses here for a reflection on the nature of divine manifestation and proximity. He says: at each station of the spiritual path, the divine reveals Itself to the heart in a manner suited to that heart's capacity. Sometimes manifestation comes in forms perceived through the imagination; sometimes through light; sometimes through sound without direction. Allah (Exalted is He) is beyond form, time, and place — but the spiritual forms through which He is perceived are veils between the divine names and attributes on one side, and the creature's capacity on the other. The Ṭūr mountain here was not the dwelling of Allah, but the place of a divine address suited to Mūsā's receptivity at that moment. The seeker should know: every barrier of human preoccupation, every veiling thought, makes the heart less receptive; and every moment of genuine, gathered attention brings it closer. One who thinks of a beloved night and day will one day find that beloved's image present — not in the celestial world but in the subtle world of the heart's vision.
وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُ مِن رَّحْمَتِنَا أَخَاهُ هَارُونَ نَبِيًّا
Wa-wahabnā lahu min raḥmatinā akhāhu Hārūna nabiyyā
"And We granted him — from Our mercy — his brother Hārūn as a Prophet." — Maryam 19:53
Translation: And We bestowed upon him — from Our mercy — his brother Hārūn (upon him be peace) as a Prophet, as a companion in his mission.
وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ إِسْمَاعِيلَ إِنَّهُ كَانَ صَادِقَ الْوَعْدِ وَكَانَ رَسُولًا نَّبِيًّا
Wa-dhkur fī al-kitābi Ismāʿīla innahu kāna ṣādiqa al-waʿdi wa-kāna rasūlan nabiyyā
"And mention in the Book — Ismāʿīl. He was faithful to his promise, and was a Messenger and a Prophet." — Maryam 19:54
Translation: And recount in the Book the story of Ismāʿīl (upon him be peace). He was faithful and true to his word, and was both a Messenger and a Prophet.
Commentary: The quality singled out for Ismāʿīl (upon him be peace) is ṣidq al-waʿd — faithfulness in fulfilling promises. He was, above all, the one who honoured his word completely. The author remarks: a promise (waʿd) made sincerely between two Muslims is binding in the fullest moral sense. Vow-breaking (kulf al-waʿd) is mentioned here in contrast to its model of fulfilment. In our time, the word "politics" has become a synonym for breaking promises when convenient. But in the Prophetic ethic, the one who gives his word and then returns to find circumstances changed should still honour it — unless he is compelled by genuine necessity.
وَكَانَ يَأْمُرُ أَهْلَهُ بِالصَّلَاةِ وَالزَّكَاةِ وَكَانَ عِندَ رَبِّهِ مَرْضِيًّا
Wa-kāna ya'muru ahlahu bil-ṣalāti wal-zakāti wa-kāna ʿinda Rabbihi marḍiyyā
"And he used to enjoin upon his family prayer and almsgiving — and he was well-pleasing in the sight of his Lord." — Maryam 19:55
Translation: He used to enjoin upon his family the observance of prayer and almsgiving — and he was fully approved and well-pleasing in the sight of his Lord.
Commentary: Marḍī — approved, pleasing, fully accepted. The author notes: this quality means that every act he performed was in conformity with divine pleasure; he never knowingly did what his Lord disliked. This is the highest praise: not just that he did certain excellent deeds, but that his entire life was oriented toward divine approval.
وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ إِدْرِيسَ إِنَّهُ كَانَ صِدِّيقًا نَّبِيًّا
Wa-dhkur fī al-kitābi Idrīsa innahu kāna ṣiddīqan nabiyyā
"And mention in the Book — Idrīs. He was a man of truthfulness, a Prophet." — Maryam 19:56
Translation: And recount in the Book the account of Idrīs (upon him be peace). He was a man of great truthfulness and a Prophet.
وَرَفَعْنَاهُ مَكَانًا عَلِيًّا
Wa-rafaʿnāhu makānan ʿaliyyā
"And We raised him to a lofty station." — Maryam 19:57
Translation: And We elevated him to an exalted and lofty station.
Commentary: The nature of the elevation of Idrīs (upon him be peace) — maqān ʿalī — is a matter of exegetical discussion. The predominant view is that he was elevated to a high celestial realm while still alive, an extraordinary divine distinction. His qualities are summarised as truthfulness and prophethood.
أُولَٰئِكَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِم مِّنَ النَّبِيِّينَ مِن ذُرِّيَّةِ آدَمَ وَمِمَّنْ حَمَلْنَا مَعَ نُوحٍ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّةِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَإِسْرَائِيلَ وَمِمَّنْ هَدَيْنَا وَاجْتَبَيْنَا إِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُ الرَّحْمَٰنِ خَرُّوا سُجَّدًا وَبُكِيًّا
Ulāʾika alladhīna anʿama Allāhu ʿalayhim min al-nabiyyīna min dhurriyyati Ādama wa-mim-man ḥamalnā maʿa Nūḥin wa-min dhurriyyati Ibrāhīma wa-Isrāʾīla wa-mim-man hadaynā wa-jtabaynā idhā tutlā ʿalayhim āyātu al-Raḥmāni kharrū sujjadan wa-bukiyyā
"Those are the ones Allah has blessed from among the Prophets — from the descendants of Ādam, and from those We carried with Nūḥ, and from the descendants of Ibrāhīm and Isrāʾīl, and from those We have guided and chosen. When the verses of the Most Merciful were recited to them, they would fall down in prostration and weeping." — Maryam 19:58
Translation: These are the ones whom Allah graced with His favour from among the Prophets — from the offspring of Ādam, from those We preserved with Nūḥ, from the descendants of Ibrāhīm and Isrāʾīl (Yaʿqūb), and from those We guided and singled out for Our election. When the verses of the Most Merciful were recited before them, they would fall prostrate, weeping.
Commentary: A prostration of recitation (sajdat al-tilāwa) is recommended at this verse. The author notes: mark well — it is the mark of those who are beloved of Allah that when the divine verses are recited in their hearing, they break down in prostrate weeping. In the present age, one witnesses the opposite: hearts hardened, eyes dry, even mockery at mention of divine matters. The quality of weeping (bukī) during recitation of the Qurʾān is a sign of living faith, and its absence may be a sign of heedlessness. Let those who hear this verse examine their own hearts.
فَخَلَفَ مِن بَعْدِهِمْ خَلْفٌ أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَاتَّبَعُوا الشَّهَوَاتِ فَسَوْفَ يَلْقَوْنَ غَيًّا
Fa-khalafa min baʿdihim khalfun aḍāʿū al-ṣalāta wa-ittabaʿū al-shahawāti fa-sawfa yalqawna ghiyyā
"Then after them there succeeded generations who squandered prayer and followed desires — they shall encounter ruin." — Maryam 19:59
Translation: After them, degenerate successors arose who wasted and neglected prayer and followed the promptings of desire — they shall soon meet with the terrible consequence of their heedlessness.
Commentary: Ghayy — misguidance leading to ruin. The two cardinal signs of the degenerate generation are spelled out: neglecting prayer (iḍāʿat al-ṣalāt) and pursuing desires (ittibāʿ al-shahawāt). Prayer is the pillar of the religion; whoever lets it fall has let the building fall. And desire without governance leads the soul from one degradation to another. The author addresses the contemporary scene: look at the state of prayer today. Is the prayer column standing? Look at the licentiousness that has been given the name of freedom and progress. These verses were revealed fourteen centuries ago — and they describe our age with painful precision.
The author addresses the communal dimension: those who celebrate the festivals of non-Muslims, court the approval of non-Muslim rulers, and feel pride in imitating non-Muslim ways — while their own brothers are humiliated and marginalised — should ask themselves: has prayer's column risen or fallen in their houses? And know that the door of Allah's mercy is not yet closed.
إِلَّا مَن تَابَ وَآمَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَالِحًا فَأُولَٰئِكَ يَدْخُلُونَ الْجَنَّةَ وَلَا يُظْلَمُونَ شَيْئًا
Illā man tāba wa-āmana wa-ʿamila ṣāliḥan fa-ulāʾika yadkhulūna al-jannata wa-lā yuẓlamūna shayʾā
"Except those who repent, believe, and do righteous deeds — those shall enter Paradise and not be wronged in the least." — Maryam 19:60
Translation: Except those who repent, believe, and perform righteous works — those shall enter the Garden and shall not be wronged in any way.
Commentary: Repentance (tawba) is the gate that remains open. Whatever the accumulation of negligence and transgression, the one who turns sincerely to Allah in faith and righteous action is included in this promise of Garden-entry. The door of mercy is not closed; the verse is an invitation.
جَنَّاتِ عَدْنٍ الَّتِي وَعَدَ الرَّحْمَٰنُ عِبَادَهُ بِالْغَيْبِ إِنَّهُ كَانَ وَعْدُهُ مَأْتِيًّا
Jannāti ʿadnin allatī waʿada al-Raḥmānu ʿibādahu bil-ghaybi innahu kāna waʿduhu maʾtiyyā
"Gardens of Eden, which the Most Merciful has promised to His servants unseen — His promise shall most certainly come to pass." — Maryam 19:61
Translation: The Gardens of Eden, which the Most Merciful has promised His servants without their having yet witnessed it — His promise shall most surely be fulfilled.
Commentary: Bil-ghayb — the servants accept the promise through faith in the unseen; they have not seen the Garden, yet they believe in it with certainty. Allah's promise (waʿd) is described as ma'tiyy — one that is destined to arrive, that shall most certainly come. The believer's confidence in the future world rests not on personal experience but on the guaranteed word of the One who does not break His promises.
لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ فِيهَا لَغْوًا إِلَّا سَلَامًا وَلَهُمْ رِزْقُهُمْ فِيهَا بُكْرَةً وَعَشِيًّا
Lā yasmaʿūna fīhā laghwan illā salāman wa-lahum rizquhum fīhā bukratan wa-ʿashiyyā
"They shall hear therein no idle talk — only peace. And their sustenance awaits them morning and evening." — Maryam 19:62
Translation: They shall hear no vain or idle speech therein — only peace. And their provision will reach them morning and evening.
تِلْكَ الْجَنَّةُ الَّتِي نُورِثُ مِنْ عِبَادِنَا مَن كَانَ تَقِيًّا
Tilka al-jannatu allatī nūrithu min ʿibādinā man kāna taqiyyā
"That is the Garden which We shall bequeath to those of Our servants who are God-fearing." — Maryam 19:63
Translation: Such is the Garden that We shall cause to be inherited by those among Our servants who are possessed of true God-consciousness (taqwā).
Now comes the verse in which the angels address the Prophetﷺ:
وَمَا نَتَنَزَّلُ إِلَّا بِأَمْرِ رَبِّكَ لَهُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِينَا وَمَا خَلْفَنَا وَمَا بَيْنَ ذَٰلِكَ وَمَا كَانَ رَبُّكَ نَسِيًّا
Wa-mā natanazzalu illā bi-amri Rabbika lahu mā bayna aydīnā wa-mā khalfanā wa-mā bayna dhālika wa-mā kāna Rabbuka nasiyyā
"We descend not except by the command of your Lord — to Him belongs what is before us and what is behind us and what is between that — and your Lord is never forgetful." — Maryam 19:64
Translation: We descend only by the command of your Lord. To Him belongs all that lies before us and behind us and all that is between — and your Lord is never forgetful.
Commentary: The angels — particularly Jibrīl (upon him be peace) — descend with revelation only by Allah's command; they have no independent initiative. Everything in time and existence belongs to Him. The Prophetﷺis here reassured that whatever delay occurs in the revelation coming down is not neglect (nisyān) on the part of Allah; it is the wisdom of the appointed time. Your Lord is not forgetful — a statement of comfort and trust to the Beloved of Allahﷺ.
رَّبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا فَاعْبُدْهُ وَاصْطَبِرْ لِعِبَادَتِهِ هَلْ تَعْلَمُ لَهُ سَمِيًّا
Rabbu al-samāwāti wa'l-arḍi wa-mā baynahumā fa-ʿbudhū wa-ṣṭabir li-ʿibādatihi hal taʿlamu lahu samiyyā
"Lord of the heavens and the earth and all between them — so worship Him and be steadfast in His worship. Do you know of any who shares His name?" — Maryam 19:65
Translation: Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them — therefore worship Him and persevere steadfastly in that worship. Do you know of any being who shares His name or resembles Him in any way?
Commentary: Allāhu Jalla Jalāluhu wa-ʿamma Nawāluhu — Glory be to Allah, transcendent in His majesty, all-encompassing in His bounty. The verse poses a rhetorical challenge: name anyone who resembles Allah, whose name equals His, whose reality approaches His. There is none. The name Allāh — as the author notes — is the proper name of the divine being: it denotes the divine dhāt (essence) itself. Al-Raḥmān and other divine names are Names (asmāʾ), which point to both essence and attributes. And all names together — essence, attributes, names — together constitute the one Reality of Allah (Exalted is He). Keep this in mind: the Name of any created being, however many thousands of times it may be invoked, is the name of one dependent being. But repeating the names of Allah is the invocation (dhikr) of the One who is independent by His own being.
وَيَقُولُ الْإِنسَانُ أَإِذَا مَا مِتُّ لَسَوْفَ أُخْرَجُ حَيًّا
Wa-yaqūlu al-insānu a-idhā mā mittu la-sawfa ukhraju ḥayyā
"And man says: When I am dead, shall I then surely be brought out alive?" — Maryam 19:66
Translation: And man says: When I die, will I really be brought forth again alive?
أَوَلَا يَذْكُرُ الْإِنسَانُ أَنَّا خَلَقْنَاهُ مِن قَبْلُ وَلَمْ يَكُ شَيْئًا
A-wa-lā yadhkuru al-insānu annā khalaqnāhu min qablu wa-lam yaku shayʾā
"Does man not remember that We created him before, when he was nothing at all?" — Maryam 19:67
Translation: Does man not call to mind that We created him before, when he was absolutely nothing?
Commentary: The argument for resurrection is the argument from creation. The one who brought a non-existent being into existence from nothing can certainly return it to existence after death. Death is only the dissolution of one mode of being, not the annihilation of the soul. And the same divine power that originated the soul can restore it.
فَوَرَبِّكَ لَنَحْشُرَنَّهُمْ وَالشَّيَاطِينَ ثُمَّ لَنُحْضِرَنَّهُمْ حَوْلَ جَهَنَّمَ جِثِيًّا
Fa-wa-Rabbika la-naḥshurannahum wa'l-shayāṭīna thumma la-nuḥḍirannahum ḥawla Jahannama jithiyyā
"By your Lord, We shall assemble them and the devils together, then We shall certainly bring them to their knees around Hell." — Maryam 19:68
Translation: By your Lord — We shall surely gather them together along with the devils, then We shall most certainly bring them, kneeling, into the presence of Hell.
ثُمَّ لَنَنزِعَنَّ مِن كُلِّ شِيعَةٍ أَيُّهُمْ أَشَدُّ عَلَى الرَّحْمَٰنِ عِتِيًّا
Thumma la-nanzaʿanna min kulli shīʿatin ayyuhum ashaddu ʿalā al-Raḥmāni ʿitiyyā
"Then We shall single out from every group those who were most transgressive against the Most Merciful." — Maryam 19:69
Translation: Then We shall drag out from every faction those who were most boldly defiant and transgressive against the Most Merciful.
Commentary: The gathering on the Day of Resurrection will include all — including the devils (shayāṭīn) who led humanity astray. Then from each group of wrongdoers, the most extreme in their defiance against Allah will be selected first for the severest chastisement. The justice of the divine reckoning is perfectly calibrated.
Companions! Allah's majesty is so exalted, and the servanthood of the creature is so complete — what must be the fate of those who mock and defy? The Prophetﷺurged: Thumma la-naḥnu aʿlamu bil-ladhīna hum awlā bihā ṣiliyyā — We well know who is most deserving of the fire of Hell. This is not a threat to silence — it is a call to accountability.
ثُمَّ لَنَحْنُ أَعْلَمُ بِالَّذِينَ هُمْ أَوْلَىٰ بِهَا صِلِيًّا
Thumma la-naḥnu aʿlamu bil-ladhīna hum awlā bihā ṣiliyyā
"And surely We know best those who most deserve to burn therein." — Maryam 19:70
Translation: And We know best who is most deserving of entering it to burn.
وَإِن مِّنكُمْ إِلَّا وَارِدُهَا كَانَ عَلَىٰ رَبِّكَ حَتْمًا مَّقْضِيًّا
Wa-in minkum illā wāriduhā kāna ʿalā Rabbika ḥatman maḍiyyā
"And there is not one of you but shall pass over it — that is a decree settled and determined with your Lord." — Maryam 19:71
Translation: There is not one of you who will not pass over it — this is a settled and inescapable decree from your Lord.
Commentary: Wārid — passing over. The classical commentators explain: everyone will pass over the bridge (ṣirāṭ) that spans Hell. The righteous will cross swiftly and safely; the wrongdoers will fall into it. The "passing over" is not a punishment for the faithful but the path of the crossing — after which they are delivered to Paradise.
ثُمَّ نُنَجِّي الَّذِينَ اتَّقَوا وَنَذَرُ الظَّالِمِينَ فِيهَا جِثِيًّا
Thumma nunajjī alladhīna attaqaw wa-nadharu al-ẓālimīna fīhā jithiyyā
"Then We shall save those who were God-fearing, and leave the wrongdoers in it, kneeling." — Maryam 19:72
Translation: Then We shall rescue those who were truly God-fearing, and leave the wrongdoers in it, fallen to their knees.
وَإِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُنَا بَيِّنَاتٍ قَالَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَيُّ الْفَرِيقَيْنِ خَيْرٌ مَّقَامًا وَأَحْسَنُ نَدِيًّا
Wa-idhā tutlā ʿalayhim āyātunā bayyinātin qāla alladhīna kafarū lil-ladhīna āmanū ayyul-farīqayni khayrun maqāman wa-aḥsanu nadiyyā
"And when Our clear verses are recited to them, the disbelievers say to the believers: Which of the two groups is better in station and more impressive in assembly?" — Maryam 19:73
Translation: When Our clear verses are recited to them, the disbelievers say to the believers: Which of the two of us has the more impressive station and the finer assembly?
Commentary: This is the perennial argument of the worldly against the faithful: look at our wealth, our power, our status — then look at you. The disbelievers use outward success as a counter-argument against the divine message. The Qurʾān's answer comes immediately:
وَكَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا قَبْلَهُم مِّن قَرْنٍ هُمْ أَحْسَنُ أَثَاثًا وَرِئْيًا
Wa-kam ahlaknā qablahum min qarnin hum aḥsanu athāthan wa-riʾyyā
"How many a generation We destroyed before them — far finer in furnishings and outward appearance!" — Maryam 19:74
Translation: How many a generation before them did We destroy — generations far more magnificent in their furnishings and outward splendour!
Commentary: Worldly prosperity is no argument for truth, and poverty is no argument against it. Generations that far surpassed the Quraysh in wealth, power, and cultural brilliance are now dust — precisely because they turned their backs on divine guidance. The question is not who has a finer gathering today, but who shall stand on the Day when all gathers are broken.
قُلْ مَن كَانَ فِي الضَّلَالَةِ فَلْيَمْدُدْ لَهُ الرَّحْمَٰنُ مَدًّا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا رَأَوْا مَا يُوعَدُونَ إِمَّا الْعَذَابَ وَإِمَّا السَّاعَةَ فَسَيَعْلَمُونَ مَنْ هُوَ شَرٌّ مَّكَانًا وَأَضْعَفُ جُندًا
Qul man kāna fī al-ḍalālati fal-yamdud lahu al-Raḥmānu maddā ḥattā idhā ra'aw mā yūʿadūna immā al-ʿadhāba wa-immā al-sāʿata fa-sayaʿlamūna man huwa sharrun makānan wa-aḍʿafu jundā
"Say: Whoever is in misguidance, the Most Merciful will extend a length of rope for him — until, when they see what they have been promised, whether the punishment or the Hour, they shall know who is worse in station and weaker in forces." — Maryam 19:75
Translation: Say: Whoever is in misguidance — the Most Merciful will let him go on for a while longer. Until, when they see what they have been promised — whether it be punishment or the Hour of Reckoning — they shall know then who was worse in station and weaker in all support.
وَيَزِيدُ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ اهْتَدَوْا هُدًى وَالْبَاقِيَاتُ الصَّالِحَاتُ خَيْرٌ عِندَ رَبِّكَ ثَوَابًا وَخَيْرٌ مَّرَدًّا
Wa-yazīdu Allāhu alladhīna ihtadaw hudā wa'l-bāqiyātu al-ṣāliḥātu khayrun ʿinda Rabbika thawāban wa-khayrun maraddā
"And Allah increases in guidance those who are guided — and the enduring righteous deeds are better in reward with your Lord, and better in eventual return." — Maryam 19:76
Translation: Allah increases in guidance those who are already guided — and the enduring good deeds (al-bāqiyāt al-ṣāliḥāt) are far better in reward before your Lord, and far better in their ultimate outcome.
Commentary: Al-bāqiyāt al-ṣāliḥāt — the enduringly righteous deeds. These are the deeds whose reward does not expire: prayer, remembrance of Allah, sincere charity, righteous character, love and service in the path of Allah. Their worldly appearance may be modest, but their permanence in divine reckoning surpasses all outward splendour. The author notes: the final measure is not how grand something looks today, but what remains of it before the Lord on the Day when all else has passed away.
أَفَرَأَيْتَ الَّذِي كَفَرَ بِآيَاتِنَا وَقَالَ لَأُوتَيَنَّ مَالًا وَوَلَدًا
A-fa-ra'ayta alladhī kafara bi-āyātinā wa-qāla la-ūtayanna mālan wa-waladā
"Have you seen him who disbelieves in Our verses and says: I shall surely be given wealth and children?" — Maryam 19:77
Translation: Have you considered the one who rejects Our signs and yet claims: I shall certainly be given wealth and offspring?
Commentary: This passage was revealed about one of those who rejected the divine message and yet boasted of the material prosperity that would come to him. He seemed to think that worldly success was a sign of divine favour that would continue into the next world. The Qurʾān dismantles this logic:
أَطَّلَعَ الْغَيْبَ أَمِ اتَّخَذَ عِندَ الرَّحْمَٰنِ عَهْدًا
A-ṭṭalaʿa al-ghayba am ittakhadha ʿinda al-Raḥmāni ʿahdā
"Has he accessed the unseen? Or has he taken a covenant with the Most Merciful?" — Maryam 19:78
Translation: Has he received knowledge of the unseen? Or has he made a binding covenant with the Most Merciful?
كَلَّا سَنَكْتُبُ مَا يَقُولُ وَنَمُدُّ لَهُ مِنَ الْعَذَابِ مَدًّا
Kallā sa-naktub mā yaqūlu wa-namudd lahu min al-ʿadhābi maddā
"By no means! We shall record what he says and shall prolong the punishment for him." — Maryam 19:79
Translation: By no means! We shall record his utterances and We shall heap punishment upon punishment for him.
وَنَرِثُهُ مَا يَقُولُ وَيَأْتِينَا فَرْدًا
Wa-narithuhu mā yaqūlu wa-ya'tīnā fardā
"And We shall inherit from him what he speaks of, and he shall come before Us alone." — Maryam 19:80
Translation: And We shall inherit from him all that he boasts of, and he shall come before Us utterly alone.
Commentary: The boaster of wealth and progeny will arrive before his Lord on the Day of Reckoning stripped of everything: alone, without wealth, without children, without any protection. Fardā — solitary, utterly isolated. The things he used to boast of will have been bequeathed to others or dissolved into dust; he shall have nothing.
وَاتَّخَذُوا مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ آلِهَةً لِّيَكُونُوا لَهُمْ عِزًّا
Wa-ittakhadhū min dūni Allāhi ālihatan li-yakūnū lahum ʿizzā
"And they have taken gods besides Allah, hoping that they might be a source of might for them." — Maryam 19:81
Translation: They took deities besides Allah, hoping that these would provide them with power and glory.
كَلَّا سَيَكْفُرُونَ بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدًّا
Kallā sa-yakfurūna bi-ʿibādatihim wa-yakūnūna ʿalayhim ḍiddā
"By no means! They shall deny their worship of them and shall become their adversaries." — Maryam 19:82
Translation: By no means! On that Day, those false deities shall renounce and deny the worship their devotees rendered to them, and shall turn as adversaries against them.
Commentary: On the Day of Reckoning, every false object of worship — every idol, every deified person, every false authority — will disown its worshippers and stand against them in testimony. The one who worshipped them will find them turned into accusers. Such is the bitter end of placing hope and devotion in anything other than Allah.
أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّا أَرْسَلْنَا الشَّيَاطِينَ عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ تَؤُزُّهُمْ أَزًّا
A-lam tara annā arsalnā al-shayāṭīna ʿalā al-kāfirīna ta'uzzuhum azzā
"Do you not see that We have sent the devils against the disbelievers, to stir them up and incite them?" — Maryam 19:83
Translation: Do you not see that We have let loose the devils upon the disbelievers, who excite and incite them with full intensity?
فَلَا تَعْجَلْ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّمَا نَعُدُّ لَهُمْ عَدًّا
Fa-lā taʿjal ʿalayhim innamā naʿuddu lahum ʿaddā
"So do not be impatient regarding them — We are only counting out for them a numbered time." — Maryam 19:84
Translation: So do not hasten concerning them — We are simply counting their days, one by one.
Commentary: The Prophetﷺis counselled to patience: the disbelievers' days are numbered. Every breath they take, every day they persist in their defiance, is recorded and counted. The reckoning is inexorably approaching. The believer who calls to Allah must have the patience of the one who knows that the full account will be settled.
يَوْمَ نَحْشُرُ الْمُتَّقِينَ إِلَى الرَّحْمَٰنِ وَفْدًا
Yawma naḥshuru al-muttaqīna ilā al-Raḥmāni wafdā
"On the day We shall gather the God-fearing to the Most Merciful as honoured guests." — Maryam 19:85
Translation: On the Day when We shall muster the God-fearing before the Most Merciful as an honoured delegation.
وَنَسُوقُ الْمُجْرِمِينَ إِلَىٰ جَهَنَّمَ وِرْدًا
Wa-nasūqu al-mujrimīna ilā Jahannama wirdā
"And We shall drive the sinners to Hell as a thirsty herd." — Maryam 19:86
Translation: And We shall herd the sinners toward Hell, driving them like thirsty cattle to the watering-place.
Commentary: The contrast is complete: the God-fearing arrive before the All-Merciful as wafd — honoured envoys and guests, welcomed with dignity; the sinners are driven (masūq) to Hell as wird — like a herd driven to water. One is the approach of honour; the other is the forced march of disgrace.
Commentary (continued): The author reflects: those who claim that Allah (Exalted is He) has a son — walad — are ascribing to Him an attribute of dependency and need. The divine being is entirely self-sufficient (ghanī bi'l-dhāt). A child arises from a need for continuity, for comfort in old age, for succession after death. Allah (Exalted is He) is free of all such needs. He does not age, does not die, does not require succession. The relationship between the Creator and the created cannot be mapped onto the relationship between parent and child — for the Creator has existence in His own being (wujūd bāl-dhāt), while the created has existence only by His giving (wujūd bāl-ʿaraḍ). There is no proportion or similarity between them in the realm of being.
لَا يَمْلِكُونَ الشَّفَاعَةَ إِلَّا مَنِ اتَّخَذَ عِندَ الرَّحْمَٰنِ عَهْدًا
Lā yamlikūna al-shafāʿata illā man ittakhadha ʿinda al-Raḥmāni ʿahdā
"They possess no power of intercession — except for the one who has taken a covenant with the Most Merciful." — Maryam 19:87
Translation: None shall possess the power of intercession on that Day — except for one who has made a binding covenant with the Most Merciful.
Commentary: Intercession (shafāʿa) on the Day of Judgment is real and affirmed by the Qurʾān and the Ḥadīth — but it is conditional upon Allah's permission and belongs only to those whom Allah specifically authorises. The ʿahd (covenant) here refers to sincere faith and the fulfilment of its demands. The author notes: We do not deny intercession; we affirm it in its proper form, as something that belongs to those whom Allah authorises, foremost among them the Prophet Muḥammadﷺ.
The text here refers to the famous declaration of the disbelievers:
وَقَالُوا اتَّخَذَ الرَّحْمَٰنُ وَلَدًا
Wa-qālū ittakhadha al-Raḥmānu waladā
"And they say: The Most Merciful has taken a son." — Maryam 19:88
Translation: And they have said: The Most Merciful has taken a son.
لَّقَدْ جِئْتُمْ شَيْئًا إِدًّا
Laqad jiʾtum shayʾan iddā
"You have certainly brought a monstrous thing." — Maryam 19:89
Translation: You have brought forth something most monstrous and grave.
تَكَادُ السَّمَاوَاتُ يَتَفَطَّرْنَ مِنْهُ وَتَنشَقُّ الْأَرْضُ وَتَخِرُّ الْجِبَالُ هَدًّا
Takādu al-samāwātu yatafattarna minhu wa-tanshaqqu al-arḍu wa-takhirru al-jibālu haddā
"The heavens are almost rent asunder at it, the earth is split open, and the mountains collapse in ruin." — Maryam 19:90
Translation: The heavens are on the verge of being torn apart at this claim, the earth of being split open, and the mountains of crumbling entirely into rubble.
Commentary: The cosmic scale of the offence is expressed in these verses: the claim that Allah has a son is so fundamentally opposed to the nature of the divine being that it is as if the structure of the created universe cannot sustain its utterance. The heavens, the earth, and the mountains — the greatest of material realities — shudder and nearly rupture at this blasphemy.
أَن دَعَوْا لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ وَلَدًا
An daʿaw lil-Raḥmāni waladā
"That they attributed a son to the Most Merciful." — Maryam 19:91
Translation: — that they attributed a son to the Most Merciful.
وَمَا يَنبَغِي لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ أَن يَتَّخِذَ وَلَدًا
Wa-mā yanbaghī lil-Raḥmāni an yattakhidha waladā
"It is not fitting for the Most Merciful to take a son." — Maryam 19:92
Translation: It is not fitting — it is not possible — for the Most Merciful to take a son.
إِن كُلُّ مَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ إِلَّا آتِي الرَّحْمَٰنِ عَبْدًا
In kullu man fī al-samāwāti wa'l-arḍi illā ātī al-Raḥmāni ʿabdā
"There is no one in the heavens and the earth but shall come to the Most Merciful as a servant." — Maryam 19:93
Translation: Every single being in the heavens and the earth will come before the Most Merciful — in nothing other than the state of a servant (ʿabd).
Commentary: The universal servitude of all creation — angels, humans, jinn, and all other creatures — is affirmed: every being will present itself before Allah in the condition of a ʿabd (servant, bonded worshipper). None comes as a partner, none as a son, none as an equal. All stand in total dependence.
لَّقَدْ أَحْصَاهُمْ وَعَدَّهُمْ عَدًّا
Laqad aḥṣāhum wa-ʿaddahum ʿaddā
"He has surely encompassed them and counted them — a precise count." — Maryam 19:94
Translation: He has taken full account of all of them and counted them with a precise and complete enumeration.
وَكُلُّهُمْ آتِيهِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ فَرْدًا
Wa-kulluhum ātīhi yawma al-qiyāmati fardā
"And every one of them shall come to Him on the Day of Resurrection — alone." — Maryam 19:95
Translation: And every single one of them shall come before Him on the Day of Resurrection — utterly alone.
Commentary: Fardā — alone. All the companionship, wealth, family, faction, and following that constituted a person's world will have dissolved. Each soul will stand before its Creator in absolute solitude, with nothing but its own account of deeds.
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ سَيَجْعَلُ لَهُمُ الرَّحْمَٰنُ وُدًّا
Inna alladhīna āmanū wa-ʿamilū al-ṣāliḥāti sa-yajʿalu lahumu al-Raḥmānu wuddā
"Verily, those who believe and do righteous deeds — the Most Merciful shall place love for them in hearts." — Maryam 19:96
Translation: Those who have faith and do righteous works — the Most Merciful shall plant love (wudd) for them in the hearts of others.
Commentary: Wudd — deep and genuine love. This is one of the most beautiful promises of the Qurʾān: the believer who lives in faith and righteousness will be the object of true love — not manufactured or forced, but real love placed by Allah in human hearts. The author spends time here on the nature of love (maḥabba) in the cosmos: the universe is knit together by the threads of love and attraction — at the level of atoms, of elements, of living creatures, of human beings, and of the spiritual realms. Love is Allah's own quality (ṣifa), manifesting in creation. The love of the saint and the beloved of Allah flows from the love that Allah has placed for them in the hearts of His creation.
The love of the mystics is organised through stages and stations: in matter, attraction and bonding; in the elements, affinity and combination; in plants, growth and yearning for sunlight; in animals, attachment and companionship; among the young, play and enthusiasm; among the mature, passion; among the elderly, tenderness; among strangers, longing; among the wealthy, charity; among the downtrodden, patience; among rulers, majesty; among the people of adab, dignity; among the wayfarers, rapture; among those who have arrived, self-extinction in the Beloved.
Commentary (continued): The Sūrat Maryam now concludes with its final verses, addressed to the Prophetﷺ:
فَإِنَّمَا يَسَّرْنَاهُ بِلِسَانِكَ لِتُبَشِّرَ بِهِ الْمُتَّقِينَ وَتُنذِرَ بِهِ قَوْمًا لُّدًّا
Fa-innamā yassarnāhu bi-lisānika li-tubashshira bihi al-muttaqīna wa-tundhira bihi qawman luddā
"We have made it easy in your tongue, so that you may give good tidings thereby to the God-fearing, and warn thereby a stubborn and contentious people." — Maryam 19:97
Translation: We have made this Qurʾān easy in your tongue, so that you may thereby bring glad tidings to the God-fearing, and warn with it a people given to obstinate contentiousness.
Commentary: The Qurʾān was revealed in Arabic through the tongue of the Prophetﷺfor two purposes: to bring joy (bushrā) to those who fear Allah, and to serve as a warning (indhār) to those who argue and wrangle. The contrast between muttaqīn (the God-fearing, who receive the glad tidings joyfully) and qawm ludd (a contentious people who resist every warning) marks the two audiences of the divine message.
وَكَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا قَبْلَهُم مِّن قَرْنٍ هَلْ تُحِسُّ مِنْهُم مِّنْ أَحَدٍ أَوْ تَسْمَعُ لَهُمْ رِكْزًا
Wa-kam ahlaknā qablahum min qarnin hal tuḥissu minhum min aḥadin aw tasmaʿu lahum rikzā
"And how many a generation before them We destroyed! Do you perceive any one of them now, or hear even the faintest whisper of them?" — Maryam 19:98
Translation: How many a generation before them have We destroyed! Can you perceive even a single one of them now, or hear so much as the faintest murmur of them?
Commentary: The Sūrat Maryam closes with this haunting image: where are all those once-mighty civilisations that rejected the Prophets? Gone — not a whisper remains of them. The message is addressed equally to the contemporary disbeliever and to the contemporary believer: do not be deluded by the appearance of worldly permanence. Empires vanish; voices are silenced; the most confident of disbelievers are swallowed by the earth and forgotten. Rikz — a faint far-off sound, the last echo. Not even that remains.
With the conclusion of Sūrat Maryam, the text's running headers shift to Sūrat Ṭā Hā.
Sūrat Ṭā Hā
Sūrat Ṭā Hā (20): Revealed in Mecca, containing one hundred and thirty-five (135) verses and eight (8) sections.
طه
Ṭā Hā
These are ḥurūf muqaṭṭaʿāt (abbreviated opening letters). Their full meaning belongs to the divine knowledge.
مَا أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْقُرْآنَ لِتَشْقَىٰ
Mā anzalnā ʿalayka al-Qurʾāna li-tashqā
"We have not sent down this Qurʾān to you that you should be distressed." — Ṭā Hā 20:2
Translation: We have not sent down this Qurʾān upon you to cause you hardship.
Commentary: The Prophetﷺ, out of the intensity of his concern for the guidance of his people and the weight of his vigils and devotions, was exerting himself beyond measure. Allah (Exalted is He) addresses him with boundless tenderness: the Qurʾān was not sent to exhaust you, O Belovedﷺ. It is a mercy and a facilitation, not a burden.
إِلَّا تَذْكِرَةً لِّمَن يَخْشَىٰ
Illā tadhkiratan li-man yakhshā
"But only as a reminder to whoever fears." — Ṭā Hā 20:3
Translation: It is only a reminder for those who fear Allah.
تَنزِيلًا مِّمَّنْ خَلَقَ الْأَرْضَ وَالسَّمَاوَاتِ الْعُلَى
Tanzīlan mimman khalaqa al-arḍa wa'l-samāwāti al-ʿulā
"A revelation from the One who created the earth and the high heavens." — Ṭā Hā 20:4
Translation: A revelation sent down from the One who created the earth and the lofty heavens.
الرَّحْمَٰنُ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ اسْتَوَىٰ
Al-Raḥmānu ʿalā al-ʿarshi istawā
"The Most Merciful — upon the Throne He is established." — Ṭā Hā 20:5
Translation: The Most Merciful — He is established upon the Throne.
Commentary: Istiwāʾ ʿalā al-ʿarsh — the establishment of Allah upon the Throne — is among the attributes of Allah that the Ahl al-Sunna affirm without asking "how" (bi-lā kayf), without likening to created things (bi-lā tashbīh), and without negating (bi-lā taʿṭīl). The Throne (ʿarsh) in Arabic idiom carries the sense of sovereignty and kingship — just as it is said of any ruler that his dominion and authority are "established" (mustaqirr). It is an expression of the completeness of Allah's absolute sovereignty over all creation, from the highest reaches to the lowest. The Throne is the summit of created things; and Allah's sovereignty is established over the whole of creation — above, below, and all that is between. The author cautions against two errors: those who confine Allah's presence to the Throne alone (as if He were "up there" and not also present in His knowledge and care throughout all existence), and those who misuse the concept to deny divine transcendence altogether. The right path is the one the imams of Ahl al-Sunna traversed: affirmation with transcendence, ithbāt with tanzīh.
لَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا وَمَا تَحْتَ الثَّرَىٰ
Lahu mā fī al-samāwāti wa-mā fī al-arḍi wa-mā baynahumā wa-mā taḥta al-tharā
"To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth and all that is between them, and all that is beneath the soil." — Ṭā Hā 20:6
Translation: To Him belongs all that is in the heavens, all that is in the earth, all that is between them, and all that lies beneath the deepest soil.
Commentary: The complete ownership of Allah extends in all directions and through all layers: above, below, within. Tharā — the deepest, moisture-laden soil far beneath the surface. Nothing in creation lies outside His possession and care.
وَإِن تَجْهَرْ بِالْقَوْلِ فَإِنَّهُ يَعْلَمُ السِّرَّ وَأَخْفَى
Wa-in tajhar bil-qawli fa-innahu yaʿlamu al-sirra wa-akhfā
"And if you speak aloud — He knows the secret and what is even more hidden." — Ṭā Hā 20:7
Translation: And whether or not you speak aloud — He knows the secret and what is yet more hidden than the secret.
اللَّهُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ لَهُ الْأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَىٰ
Allāhu lā ilāha illā huwa lahu al-asmāʾu al-ḥusnā
"Allah — there is no god but He. His are the Most Beautiful Names." — Ṭā Hā 20:8
Translation: Allah — there is no deity worthy of worship but He. To Him belong the Most Beautiful Names.
Commentary: The relationship between the divine dhāt (essence), ṣifāt (attributes), and asmāʾ (names) is outlined here. Allah is the proper name of the divine essence itself. Al-Raḥmān is a name that indicates both essence and attribute. All the Beautiful Names (al-asmāʾ al-ḥusnā) are modes of addressing the one divine reality. The author advises: the one who repeats a Name of Allah with presence of heart and full attention — the soul will begin to find the Name orienting it toward its source. Yā Razzāqu — O Sustainer — opens the heart to the reality of divine provision; Yā Muṣawwiru — O Fashioner — opens it to the reality of divine artistry. Repeat the Names; the more one releases the lawāzim basharī (the demands of the bodily self), the more the soul aligns with the celestial realities, and the Imaginal realm becomes more accessible and the divine presence more palpable.
وَهَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ مُوسَىٰ
Wa-hal atāka ḥadīthu Mūsā
"And has the story of Mūsā reached you?" — Ṭā Hā 20:9
Translation: And has the narrative of Mūsā (upon him be peace) come to you?
Commentary: The Sūra now unfolds the detailed story of Mūsā (upon him be peace) — beginning with the night of the sacred fire on Mount Ṭūr and continuing through his prophetic mission to Pharaoh. The author introduces it with a reflection on the spiritual dimensions of the event: Mūsā's mind was focused on one point — fire to warm his family — and in that focused state, uncluttered by scattered thoughts, the divine disclosure came to him. This is the principle: when a person's attention is gathered to a single point, the heart becomes a polished mirror in which divine realities reflect. The spiritual wayfarer (sālik) aims to reach this state of gathered attention (jam'iyya) through sustained practice.
إِذْ رَأَىٰ نَارًا فَقَالَ لِأَهْلِهِ امْكُثُوا إِنِّي آنَسْتُ نَارًا لَّعَلِّي آتِيكُم مِّنْهَا بِقَبَسٍ أَوْ أَجِدُ عَلَى النَّارِ هُدًى
Idh ra'ā nāran fa-qāla li-ahlihī umkuthū innī ānastu nāran laʿallī ātīkum minhā bi-qabasin aw ajidu ʿalā al-nāri hudā
"When he saw a fire, and said to his family: Stay here — I have perceived a fire; perhaps I can bring you a burning brand from it, or find guidance at the fire." — Ṭā Hā 20:10
Translation: When he caught sight of a fire and said to his family: Wait here — I have perceived a fire. Perhaps I shall bring you a live coal from it, or find at the fire some direction.
فَلَمَّا أَتَاهَا نُودِيَ يَا مُوسَىٰ
Fa-lammā atāhā nūdiya Yā Mūsā
"When he came to it, he was called: O Mūsā!" — Ṭā Hā 20:11
Translation: When he arrived at it, a voice called out: O Mūsā!
إِنِّي أَنَا رَبُّكَ فَاخْلَعْ نَعْلَيْكَ إِنَّكَ بِالْوَادِ الْمُقَدَّسِ طُوًى
Innī anā Rabbuka fa-khlaʿ naʿlayka innaka bil-wādi al-muqaddasi Ṭuwā
"I am your Lord — remove your sandals, for you are in the sacred valley of Ṭuwā." — Ṭā Hā 20:12
Translation: I am your Lord — take off your sandals, for you are in the sacred valley of Ṭuwā.
Commentary: The command to remove the sandals is understood by the scholars to be both a physical act of reverence in a sacred space and a spiritual symbol of removing the attachments of this world. The author notes: just as the physical world requires cleanliness and decorum when approaching sacred places — hence the rule that one prays in a clean place — the spiritual world requires the removal of the "sandals" of worldly preoccupation when approaching the divine presence. Mūsā (upon him be peace) stood on the sacred ground of divine address; his heart and body both needed to be prepared for that encounter.
وَأَنَا اخْتَرْتُكَ فَاسْتَمِعْ لِمَا يُوحَىٰ
Wa-ana ikhtartuka fa-stamiʿ li-mā yūḥā
"And I have chosen you — so listen to what is being revealed." — Ṭā Hā 20:13
Translation: And I have singled you out for My choice — so give full attention to what is being revealed to you.
Commentary: The word of divine election — ikhtartuka (I have chosen you) — was heard in the sacred valley by Mūsā (upon him be peace). The author says: a great sage once said that when the angel called out "O Mūsā!" — actually the angel's voice was carrying the divine summons, and the angel thereby became a vehicle of the divine voice. In reality, Allah (Exalted is He) has no need of a vehicle; but as a mercy to the human heart, divine address comes through the channels suited to human reception.
إِنَّنِي أَنَا اللَّهُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا أَنَا فَاعْبُدْنِي وَأَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ لِذِكْرِي
Innanī anā Allāhu lā ilāha illā anā fa-ʿbudnī wa-aqim al-ṣalāta li-dhikrī
"Verily, I am Allah — there is no god but I. So worship Me, and establish the prayer for My remembrance." — Ṭā Hā 20:14
Translation: Verily, I am Allah — there is no god but I. Therefore worship Me, and establish the prayer as a means of My remembrance.
إِنَّ السَّاعَةَ آتِيَةٌ أَكَادُ أُخْفِيهَا لِتُجْزَىٰ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ بِمَا تَسْعَىٰ
Inna al-sāʿata ātiyatun akādu ukhfīhā li-tujzā kullu nafsin bi-mā tasʿā
"Verily, the Hour is coming — I nearly conceal it — so that every soul may be recompensed for what it strives." — Ṭā Hā 20:15
Translation: Verily, the Hour is coming — I almost keep it entirely hidden — so that every soul may be recompensed for exactly what it has striven toward.
Commentary: The concealment of the exact time of the Hour is part of the divine wisdom: if it were known, people would reform only at the last moment and not from genuine sincerity. The uncertainty is the spur to constant readiness and constant accountability.
فَلَا يَصُدَّنَّكَ عَنْهَا مَن لَّا يُؤْمِنُ بِهَا وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ فَتَرْدَىٰ
Fa-lā yaṣuddannaka ʿanhā man lā yuʾminu bihā wa-ittabaʿa hawāhu fa-tardā
"So do not let anyone who does not believe in it and follows his desire divert you from it, lest you perish." — Ṭā Hā 20:16
Translation: Let not those who do not believe in it, who follow their desires, turn you away from it — lest you be ruined.
وَمَا تِلْكَ بِيَمِينِكَ يَا مُوسَىٰ
Wa-mā tilka bi-yamīnika yā Mūsā
"And what is that in your right hand, O Mūsā?" — Ṭā Hā 20:17
قَالَ هِيَ عَصَايَ أَتَوَكَّأُ عَلَيْهَا وَأَهُشُّ بِهَا عَلَىٰ غَنَمِي وَلِيَ فِيهَا مَآرِبُ أُخْرَىٰ
Qāla hiya ʿaṣāya atawakkaʾu ʿalayhā wa-ahushshu bihā ʿalā ghanamī wa-liya fīhā maāribu ukhrā
"He said: It is my staff — I lean on it, and I shake down leaves with it for my sheep, and I have other uses for it." — Ṭā Hā 20:18
Translation: He said: It is my staff. I lean upon it, and I use it to knock down leaves for my flock, and it serves me for various other needs.
Commentary: The question "What is that in your right hand?" was not asked because Allah (Exalted is He) needed information. It was a divine engagement, drawing Mūsā's attention to the instrument that would become the sign of his prophethood — and at the same time allowing him to express his ordinary human relationship with this humble object before its transformation. The staff was a part of his daily life as a shepherd; it would shortly become a manifestation of divine power.
قَالَ أَلْقِهَا يَا مُوسَىٰ
Qāla alqihā yā Mūsā
"He said: Cast it down, O Mūsā!" — Ṭā Hā 20:19
Translation: He said: Throw it down, O Mūsā!
فَأَلْقَاهَا فَإِذَا هِيَ حَيَّةٌ تَسْعَىٰ
Fa-alqāhā fa-idhā hiya ḥayyatun tasʿā
"So he threw it down, and immediately it was a serpent, moving swiftly." — Ṭā Hā 20:20
Translation: He threw it down — and at once it was a living serpent, moving rapidly.
وَاضْمُمْ يَدَكَ إِلَىٰ جَنَاحِكَ تَخْرُجْ بَيْضَاءَ مِنْ غَيْرِ سُوءٍ آيَةً أُخْرَىٰ
Wa-ḍmum yadaka ilā janāḥika takhruj bayḍāʾa min ghayri sūʾin āyatan ukhrā
"And press your hand against your side — it will come out white and unblemished, as another sign." — Ṭā Hā 20:22
Translation: And draw your hand to your side — it will emerge radiant white, without any affliction: another sign.
لِنُرِيَكَ مِنْ آيَاتِنَا الْكُبْرَىٰ
Li-nuriyaka min āyātinā al-kubrā
"That We may show you some of Our greatest signs." — Ṭā Hā 20:23
Translation: That We may show you some of Our greatest and most awe-inspiring signs.
اذْهَبْ إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّهُ طَغَىٰ
Idhab ilā Firʿawna innahu ṭaghā
"Go to Pharaoh — for he has transgressed all bounds." — Ṭā Hā 20:24
Translation: Go to Pharaoh — for he has exceeded all limits in his tyranny and arrogance.
Commentary: At this point, Mūsā (upon him be peace) was dispatched on his prophetic mission. He at once made a supplication to his Lord, asking for the opening of his chest, the easing of his task, the loosening of a knot in his tongue, and the appointment of his brother Hārūn (upon him be peace) as a partner and aide. This supplication — the famous Duʿāʾ Mūsā — is one of the finest models of the prophetic prayer. Mūsā asked not just for himself but for a companion in his work; he acknowledged his own limitations and sought divine reinforcement. The author remarks: this is the way of the truly great — not to pretend to self-sufficiency, but to acknowledge need and seek assistance through the proper divine channels.
قَالَ رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي
Qāla Rabbi ishraḥ lī ṣadrī
"He said: My Lord! Open for me my chest." — Ṭā Hā 20:25
Translation: He said: O my Lord! Expand and open my chest [to receive the mission].
وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي
Wa-yassir lī amrī
"And ease for me my task." — Ṭā Hā 20:26
Translation: And make my task easy for me.
وَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِّن لِّسَانِي
Wa-ḥlul ʿuqdatan min lisānī
"And untie the knot in my tongue." — Ṭā Hā 20:27
Translation: And loosen the knot in my tongue.
يَفْقَهُوا قَوْلِي
Yafqahū qawlī
"That they may understand my speech." — Ṭā Hā 20:28
Translation: So that people may understand and grasp my speech.
وَاجْعَل لِّي وَزِيرًا مِّنْ أَهْلِي
Wa-jʿal lī wazīran min ahlī
"And appoint for me a minister from my own family." — Ṭā Hā 20:29
Translation: And appoint for me a helper and deputy from my own family.
هَارُونَ أَخِي
Hārūna akhī
"Hārūn — my brother." — Ṭā Hā 20:30
Translation: Hārūn (upon him be peace) — my own brother.
اشْدُدْ بِهِ أَزْرِي وَأَشْرِكْهُ فِي أَمْرِي
Ushdud bihi azrī wa-ashrikhu fī amrī
"Strengthen through him my back, and make him a partner in my affair." — Ṭā Hā 20:31–32
Translation: Strengthen my back through him, and let him share in my task.
Commentary: The supplication of Mūsā (upon him be peace) is a model of how the believer approaches Allah in need: honestly, with full acknowledgement of personal limitation, with specific requests, and with gratitude for past blessings. The author notes: how blessed it is to be born into the lineage of those who prostrate — to have one's very being shaped by the worship of Allah across generations. When the Prophetﷺwould be carried in the loins of his forefathers through the ranks of those who prostrate (wa-taqallubaka fī al-sājidīn), this was a mark of the extraordinary honour conferred upon the chosen lineage.
Commentary (continued): The author then recounts the divine response to Mūsā's supplication: his prayer was granted in full. Allah then reminded Mūsā (upon him be peace) of the earlier mercies shown to him at his birth — how he was placed in the chest and cast into the river, how the river brought the chest to the bank, where Pharaoh's household would pick him up; how a love was placed by Allah in the heart of Pharaoh's household for this child; how his own mother was returned to him; and how his sister went to the palace and offered to find a wet-nurse.
The author pauses here for an eloquent reflection on the Prophet Muḥammad'sﷺbirthday (mawlid). He says: Allah (Exalted is He) Himself describes and honours the birth-narrative of Mūsā (upon him be peace) in these beautiful verses. What then of the birth-narrative of the greatest of all Prophets, the Beloved of Allahﷺ? The author cites hadith evidence for the celebration and acknowledgement of the Prophet'sﷺbirthday:
On the day of ʿĀshūrāʾ, when the Prophetﷺfound the Jews fasting, he asked why. They said: This is the day on which Mūsā (upon him be peace) was saved from Pharaoh. The Prophetﷺsaid:«نَحْنُ أَحَقُّ بِمُوسَى مِنْكُمْ»— "We have a greater right to Mūsā than you do" — and he himself fasted that day. If the Prophetﷺcelebrated the deliverance of Mūsā, how much more should the believers celebrate the birth of the Prophet Muḥammadﷺhimself!
The Ḥadīth further records the gathering described by Abū al-Dardāʾ (may Allah be pleased with him): he was in the company of the Prophetﷺand they visited the house of Abū ʿĀmir al-Anṣārī (may Allah be pleased with him). There, Abū ʿĀmir was gathering his children and those of the neighbourhood around him, telling them of the circumstances of the birth of the Prophetﷺ— "that blessed day! that blessed day!" — and the Prophetﷺentered, heard them, and said:«الله فتح لكم أبواب رحمته»— "Allah has opened for you the gates of His mercy." (Cited from al-Tanwīr fī Mawlid al-Bashīr al-Nadhīr of Imām Aḥmad ibn Abī Bakr al-Qasṭallānī [may Allah have mercy on him], and from Sabīl al-Hudā fī Mawlid al-Muṣṭafā of Imām Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūṭī [may Allah have mercy on him].)
Commentary (continued): The author also cites a narration from ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAmr (may Allah be pleased with him): he was gathered with people speaking of the birth and blessed character of the Prophetﷺ; the people were filled with joy, sending blessings and praises — and the Prophetﷺhimself arrived and said:«خُلِّفَت لَكُمْ شَفَاعَتِي»— "My intercession has been kept for you."
The author then returns to the Qurʾānic text:
وَلَقَدْ مَنَنَّا عَلَيْكَ مَرَّةً أُخْرَىٰ
Wa-laqad manannā ʿalayka marratan ukhrā
"And verily, We showed you favour yet another time." — Ṭā Hā 20:37
Translation: And verily, We bestowed Our grace upon you on yet another earlier occasion.
The verse goes on to remind Mūsā (upon him be peace) of how, in his infancy, his mother was inspired to place him in a chest and cast him into the river (yamm), how that river would cast the chest upon the bank, where he would be taken up by an enemy of Allah and an enemy of Mūsā — yet Allah placed the love of Mūsā in the hearts of those who found him. His sister followed secretly and offered to find a wet-nurse, and so Mūsā was restored to his mother's arms — to her joy and consolation.
وَاصْطَنَعْتُكَ لِنَفْسِي
Wa-ṣṭanaʿtuka li-nafsī
"And I fashioned you for Myself." — Ṭā Hā 20:41
Translation: And I have prepared and fashioned you for My own purpose.
Commentary: This is one of the most exalted statements in the Qurʾān regarding the closeness of a prophet to his Lord: li-nafsī — "for Myself." Mūsā (upon him be peace) was not fashioned for any worldly end; he was fashioned as a direct instrument of the divine will. The author reflects: what an honour to be "made for Allah" — to have one's entire being oriented toward the divine service without any admixture of worldly motive.
اذْهَبْ أَنتَ وَأَخُوكَ بِآيَاتِي وَلَا تَنِيَا فِي ذِكْرِي
Idhab anta wa-akhūka bi-āyātī wa-lā taniyā fī dhikrī
"Go, you and your brother, with My signs — and do not slacken in remembering Me." — Ṭā Hā 20:42
Translation: Go forth — you and your brother — bearing My signs, and do not grow slack in My remembrance.
Commentary: The departing command combines the mission (go with My signs) with the spiritual sustenance (do not slacken in My remembrance). Remembrance (dhikr) is the foundation of the prophetic mission; without it, the da'wa cannot stand. The author addresses those who consider themselves callers to Allah: before you begin calling others, establish the dhikr of Allah in your own heart. The call that is not sustained by inner remembrance is empty speech.
اذْهَبَا إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّهُ طَغَىٰ
Idhabā ilā Firʿawna innahu ṭaghā
"Go to Pharaoh — for he has transgressed all limits." — Ṭā Hā 20:43
Translation: Go to Pharaoh — for he has exceeded all bounds in his rebellion.
فَقُولَا لَهُ قَوْلًا لَّيِّنًا لَّعَلَّهُ يَتَذَكَّرُ أَوْ يَخْشَىٰ
Fa-qūlā lahu qawlan layyinan laʿallahu yatadhakkaru aw yakhshā
"And speak to him with gentle words — perhaps he will take heed or feel some awe." — Ṭā Hā 20:44
Translation: And speak to him with gentle, soft words — so that perhaps he may be reminded and take heed, or come to feel some awe of Allah.
Commentary: Companions! This verse is addressed to a matter of the utmost practical importance for those who call others to Allah. Some preachers today use the pulpit as a platform for declaring people kāfir with every other sentence. But notice: Allah (Exalted is He) commanded even Mūsā and Hārūn (upon them both be peace) — who were far greater in their closeness to Allah than any preacher today, and whose interlocutor was Pharaoh, the arch-tyrant of history — to speak with qaul layyīn, gentle words. How much more must we, addressing ordinary human beings, observe this principle of qaul layyīn (gentle speech)? The person who attacks others in every sermon, labelling believers as unbelievers, should reflect: if even Mūsā and Hārūn were commanded to address Pharaoh — the greatest tyrant — with gentleness, then to declare ordinary Muslims kāfir is a serious error. If the listener does not become a kāfir from your accusation, the sin of that slander returns upon the accuser. Fear Allah in this matter.
قَالَا رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا نَخَافُ أَن يَفْرُطَ عَلَيْنَا أَوْ أَن يَطْغَىٰ
Qālā rabbanā innanā nakhāfu an yafruṭa ʿalaynā aw an yaṭghā
"They both said: Our Lord, we fear that he may act precipitously against us, or exceed all bounds." — Ṭā Hā 20:45
Translation: They said: Our Lord, we fear that he may deal harshly with us or that he may transgress beyond measure.
قَالَ لَا تَخَافَا إِنَّنِي مَعَكُمَا أَسْمَعُ وَأَرَىٰ
Qāla lā takhāfā innanī maʿakumā asmaʿu wa-arā
"He said: Fear not — I am with you both; I hear and I see." — Ṭā Hā 20:46
Translation: Allah said: Do not fear. I am with you both — I hear all that is spoken and see all that transpires.
Commentary: This divine reassurance — I am with you both, I hear and I see — is the eternal comfort of every soul sent on a difficult mission in the path of Allah. The divine companionship (maʿiyyah) is not merely metaphorical: it is the living, active presence of Allah's knowledge, power, and protection accompanying His servants at every moment. Mūsā and Hārūn (upon them both be peace) were commanded to go to the mightiest tyrant of their age with nothing but the staff and the luminous hand as their credentials; their strength lay entirely in this divine companionship.
فَأْتِيَاهُ فَقُولَا إِنَّا رَسُولَا رَبِّكَ فَأَرْسِلْ مَعَنَا بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَلَا تُعَذِّبْهُمْ قَدْ جِئْنَاكَ بِآيَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّكَ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَىٰ مَنِ اتَّبَعَ الْهُدَىٰ
Fa-ʾtiyāhu fa-qūlā innā rasūlā rabbika fa-arsil maʿanā banī Isrāʾīla wa-lā tuʿadhdhibhum qad jiʾnāka bi-āyatin min rabbika wa-l-salāmu ʿalā man ittabaʿa l-hudā
"Then go to him and say: We are the messengers of your Lord — so release with us the Children of Israel and do not torment them. We have indeed come to you with a sign from your Lord. And peace be upon him who follows right guidance." — Ṭā Hā 20:47
Translation: Go to Pharaoh and say to him: We are the two messengers of your Lord. Release the Children of Israel with us and do not inflict torment upon them. We have brought you a clear sign from your Lord. And peace be upon whoever follows guidance.
Commentary: The mission is stated with clarity, dignity, and economy: we are messengers of your Lord — not petitioners, not supplicants, but ambassadors of the Most High. The demands are three: release the Children of Israel; cease their torment; and acknowledge the sign of truth. The closing formula — wa-l-salāmu ʿalā man ittabaʿa l-hudā — is a reminder that peace, in the fullest divine sense, is the exclusive property of those who follow right guidance. It carries an implicit warning: for those who reject guidance, there is no true salāma.
The author adds: those present-day critics who find fault with the very mention of the Prophet Muḥammad'sﷺbirth celebration (mīlād) should reflect on how Allah Himself, in the Qurʾān, narrates the circumstances of the birth of Mūsā (upon him be peace) and the favour He showed him —﴿وَلَقَدْ مَنَنَّا عَلَيْكَ﴾— as an expression of divine grace. To remember and narrate the circumstances of the birth of the Prophets (upon them all be peace) is Qurʾānic in spirit, not an innovation.
إِنَّا قَدْ أُوحِيَ إِلَيْنَا أَنَّ الْعَذَابَ عَلَىٰ مَن كَذَّبَ وَتَوَلَّىٰ
Innā qad ūḥiya ilaynā anna l-ʿadhāba ʿalā man kadhdhaba wa-tawallā
"For verily it has been revealed to us that punishment shall fall upon whoever denies and turns away." — Ṭā Hā 20:48
Translation: For it has been revealed to us that punishment is the lot of whoever calls the truth a lie and turns his back.
Commentary: The two prophets present their credentials: they are not speaking from their own authority but from divine revelation. The punishment announced is not theirs to impose — it belongs to Allah alone. And its condition is double: denial (takdhīb) combined with turning away (tawallī) — both the intellectual rejection and the volitional turning of the back from truth.
قَالَ فَمَن رَّبُّكُمَا يَا مُوسَىٰ
Qāla fa-man rabbukumā yā Mūsā
"He said: Then who is your Lord, O Mūsā?" — Ṭā Hā 20:49
Translation: Pharaoh said: Then who is your Lord, O Mūsā?
Commentary: This is the response of arrogance to the message of truth: not a reflection, not a trembling, but a counter-question born of pride. Pharaoh does not say I deny — he deflects with a question that implies: I do not recognise any Lord above myself. The Qurʾān will answer this question through Mūsā (upon him be peace) in the following verses, but that belongs to the next section of this commentary.
Here concludes the portion of Tafsīr-e-Ṣiddīqī (Volume 4) covering the conclusion of Sūrat al-Kahf (18) and the whole of Sūrat Maryam (19), together with the opening section of Sūrat Ṭā Hā (20) as carried over in the page range p.001–p.057.