Tafseer of Mary · Maryam · 19:52
And We called him from the side of the mount at [his] right and brought him near, confiding [to him].
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
Allah, exalted be His remembrance, says: We called out to Mūsā from the side of the mountain. By الأيْمَنِ (the right) He means: the right hand of Mūsā, for the mountain has neither a right nor a left side — this is like saying: he stood to the right of the qibla and to the left of it.
Nearly the same as what we have said about this was said by the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl).
Mention of who said that:
Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His word مِنْ جَانِبِ الطُّورِ الأيْمَنِ: he said: the right side of the mountain. We have already explained the meaning of al-Ṭūr and the disagreements about it, and indicated what is the correct view, in what preceded, in a manner that makes repeating it here unnecessary.
His word وَقَرَّبْنَاهُ نَجِيًّا (and We brought him near as a confidant): Allah, exalted be His praise, says: We made him draw near as one who speaks in confidence (munājī), as one says: so-and-so is the drinking companion (nadīm) of so-and-so and his boon-companion (munādimuh), and the sitting companion (jalīs) of so-and-so and his fellow-sitter (mujālisuh). It has been transmitted that Allah, exalted be His praise, brought him so close to Himself that he heard the scratching of the pen.
Mention of who said that:
Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Yaḥyā related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ ibn al-Sāʾib, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: وَقَرَّبْنَاهُ نَجِيًّا: he said: he was brought near until he heard the scratching of the pen.
Muḥammad ibn Manṣūr al-Ṭūsī related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Abī Bakr related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ — I think on the authority of Mujāhid — concerning His word وَقَرَّبْنَاهُ نَجِيًّا: he said: between the fourth heaven — or he said: the seventh — and the throne (al-ʿarsh) there were seventy thousand veils: a veil of light, a veil of darkness, a veil of light, a veil of darkness; and Mūsā kept being brought nearer until there was only a single veil between him and Him, and he heard the scratching of the pen. قَالَ رَبِّ أَرِنِي أَنْظُرْ إِلَيْكَ (he said: Lord, show me Yourself that I may look upon You).
ʿAlī ibn Sahl related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Abī Jaʿfar, on the authority of al-Rabīʿ, on the authority of Abī al-ʿĀliya: he said: He brought him near until he heard the scratching of the pen.
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ, on the authority of Maysara: وَقَرَّبْنَاهُ نَجِيًّا: he said: he was brought near until he heard the scratching of the pen upon the Preserved Tablet (al-Lawḥ). And Shuʿba said: Jibrāʾīl, peace be upon him, set him behind upon his back.
And Qatāda said concerning this, as al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā transmitted to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His word وَقَرَّبْنَاهُ نَجِيًّا: he said: he was raised up by his sincerity.
