MARYUM
Who is
Maryum in the light of Quranic Guidance?
The Birth of
Mary is described in Chapter Al-Imran : 35,36
When the mother of Mary became expectant she said to Allah
(God), “I offer this child in my belly exclusively for Your service. Please accept
it from me since You know how sincerely I am saying and You hear all what we
say.”
Then when she delivered her (child,Mary), she said: “ O my Lord!
I have delivered a female child” – And Allah knew better what she delivered – “
And the male is not like female, and I have named it Maryum, and I seek refuge
with You (Allah) for her and for her offspring from Satan, the outcast.”
When the
mother of Mary gave birth to a child she was amazed that it happened to be a
girl. It was a common notion that only a boy can serve Allah in a sanctuary.
She named this child Maryum and prayed to Allah, “ I put her
and her children under the protection of Allah against the Satan the outcast.”
This scene of the birth of baby girl Maryum is further described in this Surah
also. Allah said, “Indeed this girl is not like boy”. In other words this baby
girl is going to be an extraordinary girl and very much different from a baby
boy. It is also obvious from this verse that in Islam a mother has the same
right to name her child as the father has. In other words it is not a exclusive
right for males to name the children. In fact, the rights of men and women are
exactly the same in Islam. Only their roles is differ. The roles are assigned
by Allah since He knows the best as their Creator.
Allah
further described the bringing up of this unique baby girl as follows in Chapter Al-Imran : 37
“Allah accepted this baby
girl in the best possible way and also brought her up in the best possible way
and put her in the guardianship of Zachariah. Whenever Zachariah went a
sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food (in abundance of all kinds
and all seasons). He said, “ O Mary! From where does this food come to you? “
She answered, “ It is from Allah, He gives in abundance to whom He wills.”
This was a
very inspiring experience for Zachariah (Peace be with him). He considered it
most appropriate to pray to Allah (One and Only-Who Creator, Sustainer of the
Universes), to grant him a child since
he had no offspring till this old age. He reliazed that if Allah can provide
this (baby) girl this food of all the seasons in abundance He can grant him a
child even in old age.
His Dua is described in Holy Quran:
Chapter: Al-Imran, Verse-38
Then Zachariah prayed to Allah and said, “ My Lord! Please grant
me child who is pious. You, indeed hear Dua.”
It is
interesting to add here that prophets like Zachariah (Peace be with them) and
Ibrahim (Peace be with them) asked for children even in their old age so that
these good children could carry out the work of Allah after their death.
Allah
granted this Dua of Zachariah (Peace be with him) as described in this ChapterAl-Imran: Verse : 39
The angels called to Zachariah while he was praying in the
sanctuary. Allah has given you a glad tiding of (a son whose name is) Yahya who
comes to confirm a word from Allah. Yahya will be lordly, chaste and a prophet
of righteous.
Allah is
demonstrating to the people of all generations that just as He can grant a
child to Zachariah in his extreme old age, similarly He can give a child to
Mary even though no mortal has touched her.
Zachariah (Peace be with him) said to Allah, mentioned in Chapter Al-Imran:
Verse-40-41
He said, “O Allah! How can I have a son when old age has
overtaken me and my wife is already barren?” (The angel) Answered, “So (it will
be) Allah does what He wills. “ Zachariah said, “O Allah! Please appoint a
token for me.” (The angel) said, “ The tokens for you are that you will not
speak to mankind for three days except with signals. During this time remember
Allah a lot and glorify Him in the afternoon and in the morning.”
Let us
describe Mary, Allah says in his Last Testament
Quran: Chapter-Al-Imran: Verse 42-43
And when angels said to Mary, “Allah has chosen you and made you
purified, (from disbelief) and has chosen you above the women of the mankind
and jinn. O Mary! Be obedient to your Lord, prostrate yourself and bow down
along with those who bow down in worship.”
The instruction to bow down with those who bow
down indicates that salat should preferably be done in congregation. The Angels
further said to Mary: Surah Al-Imran-45-46
(Remember) when the angels said: “O Maryum! Verily Allah has
given you a glad tiding of a Word from Him whose name is the Messiah, Jesus,
son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the hereafter, and one of those
brought near to Allah. This child will speak to mankind in his cradle and in
his manhood and he will be one of the righteous.”
Mary was
amazed, She said : Holy Quran: Al-Imran-47
She said, “ O Allah! How can I have a child when no mortal has
touched me?” He said, “So (it will be) for Allah creates what He wills.” If He
has decreed something, He says to it only: “Be” –and it is.
Hence the
birth of Jesus was simply by the word of Allah which was confirmed by Yahya
(Peace be with him), Furthermore, it was very clear that the birth of Jesus
(Peace be with him) took place when no human being ever touched Mary.
The Quran
describe in details how Mary conceived miraculously and how she handled herself
during pregnancy. In Holy Quran :Chapter- Maryum, Verse 16-26.
Holy Quran :Chapter:Maryum-27-32,
……… Jesus spoke out, “Look! I am the slave of Allah. He has
given me the Scriptures and has appointed me Prophet. He has made me blessed
wheresoever I may be, and has enjoined upon me prayer and alms giving so long
as I remain alive. Allah has made me dutiful towards her who bore me, and has
not made me arrogant, unblessed.”
