The Light of the Holy Qur'an Interpretation of Sura Maryam (mary)

Commentary : Verse 87

87- لاَّ يَمْلِكُونَ الشَّفَاعَةَ إِلاَّ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ عِندَ الرَّحْمَنِ عَهْداً

  1. " They shall not own any intercession, save he who has taken a promise with the Beneficent (Allah)."

Commentary:

On the Day of Resurrection, the wicked people are not able to intercede any one, and also none my intercede them. On the contrary, the believers will intercede each other and their intercession will be accepted. The verse says:

" They shall not own any intercession, save he who has taken a promise with the Beneficent (Allah)."

The Qur'an introduces some conditions for intercession and it is not so that every body can take everything or everybody he desires as his intercessor. In Hereafter, the infidels will try their best and ask refuge from everybody, but they will be refused and they will receive negative responds from them.

The objective meaning of the Arabic term /'ahd/ (promise), mentioned in the verse, may be the same promise of servitude unto Allah and separation from Satan which the Qur'an refers to, where it says: "Did I not charge you, O children of Adam! that you should not worship the Satan? Surely he is your open enemy", "And that you should worship Me, this is the Straight Path."(1) And in another occasion it says: "…shall no intercession avail except of him whom the

1- Sura Yasin, No. 36, verses 60 and 61

Beneficent (Allah) allows and whose word He is pleased with."(1)

The Qur'anic term /'ahd/ has been rendered into several meanings in the Islamic literatures, including the following:

  1. Promise to the mastership of Amir-ul-Mu'mineen Ali-ibn-Abitalib (a.s.) and the immaculate Imams after him.(2)

  2. Making testament at the time of death, that a mortal gathers others around him and says that he is charged to believe that 'there is no god but Allah', 'Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah', and the rightfulness of Paradise and Hell.(3)

  3. Engagement and protection to the statutory prayers.(4)

1- Sura Taha, No. 20, verse 109 2- The Commentary of Al-Mizan, Safi, Burhan, Nur-uth-Thaqalayn 3- Majma'-ul-Bayan 4- The Commentary of Al-Mizan

Commentary : Verse 88

88- وَقَالُوا اتَّخَذَ الرَّحْمَنُ وَلَداً

89- لَّقَدْ جِئْتُمْ شَيْئاً إِدّاً

  1. " And they say: 'The Beneficent (Allah) has taken (unto Himself) a son'."

  2. " Indeed you have put forth something hideous!"

Commentary:

This verse refers to many groups of people in relation to their belief, including the followings:

A. Polytheists: those who believed in angels as God's daughters. The Qur'an says: "…and (for Himself) taken daughters from among the angels…"(1)

B. The Jews: those who imagined Ezra ('Uzayr) as God's son. The Qur'an says: "And the Jews say: 'Ezra is the son of God'…"(2)

C. The Christians: those who considered Messiah as God's Child. The Qur'an says: "…and the Christians say: 'The Messiah is the son of God'. …"(3)

Therefore, at the end of this discussion, the Qur'an points to one the subdivisions of polytheism, i.e., the belief in the existence of offspring for Allah, and emphasizes on this statement with the utmost emphasis. It says:

" And they say: 'The Beneficent (Allah) has taken (unto Himself) a son'."

1- Sura Al-'Isra', No. 17, verse 40 2- Sura At-Taubah, No. 9, verse 30 3- Ibid

Not only the Christians believed that Jesus (a.s.) was the real child of Allah, but also the Jews believed like that about Ezra, and polytheists had such an idea about the angels and believed in angels as Allah's daughters.

Then, the Qur'an, with a beating tone, says:

" Indeed you have put forth something hideous!"

However, the Arabic term /'idd/ originally means an ugly noise which is usually heard from a camel as a result of the sharp turning sound in its throat. Then it has been applied for the ugly and horrible deeds.

Commentary : Verse 90.91.92

90- تَكَادُ السَّمَاوَاتُ يَتَفَطَّرْنَ مِنْهُ وَتَنشَقُّ الاَرْضُ وَتَخِرُّ الْجِبَالُ هَدّاً

91- أَن دَعَوْا لِلرَّحْمَنِ وَلَدا

92- وَمَا يَنبَغِى لِلرَّحْمنِ أَن يَتَّخِذَ وَلَداً

  1. " At it the skies are about to burst, and the earth to split asunder, and the mountains to fall down crashing."

  2. " That they attributed a son to the Beneficent (Allah)."

  3. " When it is not worthy of the Beneficent (Allah) that He should take (to Himself) a son."

Commentary:

The Arabic term /hadd/ means 'to fall down'.

Since the attribution of polytheism is a disagreeable attribution which contrasts to the principle of theism, it seems that the whole world of existence, which has been founded on the basis of theism, sinks into a horror and anxiety because of this undue attribution.

Therefore, the Qur'an announces:

" At it the skies are about to burst, and the earth to split asunder, and the mountains to fall down crashing."

The horrible effect of this statement, that Allah has a child, is so great that it causes the mountains to fall down.

Again, for a more emphasis, and stating the importance of the matter, the Qur'an says:

" That they attributed a son to the Beneficent (Allah)."

In fact, they have never known Allah; else they would have known that it is not consonant with the majesty of the Most Gracious that He should beget a son. The verse says:

" When it is not worthy of the Beneficent (Allah) that He should take (to Himself) a son."

A person may desire to have one or some children for one of the following things:

It is either for the sake that the one needs to have reproduction for the duration of his seed; or he seeks for an assistant; or he is afraid of loneliness. But none of these concepts is meaningful about Allah. Neither His Power is limited; nor His life ends; nor any weakness or feebleness befalls Him, nor He feels loneliness and need.