Tafseer of The Family of Imraan · Aal-i-Imraan · 3:41
He said, "My Lord, make for me a sign." He Said, "Your sign is that you will not [be able to] speak to the people for three days except by gesture. And remember your Lord much and exalt [Him with praise] in the evening and the morning."
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.
Explanation of His word: قَالَ رَبِّ اجْعَلْ لِي آيَةً ("He said: My Lord, grant me a sign").
Abū Jaʿfar said: By this He means, exalted be His praise, a report concerning Zakariyyā. Zakariyyā said: My Lord, if this call with which I was called, and the voice which I heard, is the voice of Your angels and a glad tiding from You to me, then grant me a sign — that is: a mark — that it is indeed so, so that there may fall away from me what the devil whispered to me and cast into my heart, namely that this was the voice of something other than the angels, and a glad tiding from someone other than You. As in:
7004 - Mūsā related to me, saying: ʿAmr related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī, who said: "My Lord, grant me a sign" — he said: He — that is, Zakariyyā — said: O my Lord, if this voice is from You, then grant me a sign.
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We have already demonstrated earlier the meaning of "the sign (al-āya)," and that it is the mark, in a manner that makes repetition unnecessary.
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The linguists of Arabic have differed concerning the reason why the Arabs drop its hamza, while it is their custom to hamza every "yāʾ" that comes after a quiescent (sākina) "alif."
Some of them said: Its hamza was dropped because it was originally "ayya," and the doubling (tashdīd) was burdensome to them, so they replaced it with an "alif," because of the open vowel of what preceded the doubling — as they say: "Ayma fulān, fa-akhzā-hu Allāh" (As for so-and-so, may Allah disgrace him).
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Others among them said: No, rather it is a shortened "fāʿila" form.
They were then asked and it was objected to them: Why then do the Arabs make its diminutive "uyayya" and do not say "uwayya"? They answered: That was said just as one says with "Fāṭima": "this one is Fuṭayma." It was objected to them: But they only make the diminutive of "fāʿila" into "fuʿayla" when it is a name in the meaning of so-and-so (masculine) and so-and-so (feminine); in other cases it does not belong to their diminutive practice to make "fāʿila" into "fuʿayla."
* * *
Others said: It is a "faʿla" form whose first "yāʾ" was made into an "alif," as was done with "ḥāja" (need) and "qāma" (stature).
It was objected to them: The Arabs only do that with the derivatives of triliteral words.
And whoever rejected that among their statements said: If it were as they claim, then one would say "nāya" for "nawāt" (date-stone), and "ḥāya" for "ḥayāt" (life).
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Explanation of His word: قَالَ آيَتُكَ أَلا تُكَلِّمَ النَّاسَ ثَلاثَةَ أَيَّامٍ إِلا رَمْزًا ("He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures").
Abū Jaʿfar said: So Allah punished him — according to what has been transmitted to us — for his asking for the sign, after the angels had conveyed the glad tiding to him orally. He made his sign — confirming what he had heard of the glad tiding of the angels concerning Yaḥyā, that it was from Allah — a sign from himself, by which He, exalted be His mention, combined the mark which he had asked his Lord for, which would make clear to him the truth of the glad tiding that it came from Allah, and a purification for him of his slip and the error of his utterance and his asking.
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And in accordance with what we have said about this, a group of the exegetes spoke.
Mention of who said that:
7005 - Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His word: "My Lord, grant me a sign. He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures" — he was only punished with this because the angels had conveyed it to him orally and had given him the glad tiding of Yaḥyā, and he asked for the sign after the angels had spoken to him. Therefore his tongue was taken from him, so that he could not speak except by beckoning and gesturing. Then Allah, exalted be His mention, said, as you hear: "Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures."
7006 - 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: أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُبَشِّرُكَ بِيَحْيَى مُصَدِّقًا ("that Allah gives you the glad tiding of Yaḥyā, as a confirmer") — he said: The angels conveyed it to him orally, and he said: "My Lord, grant me a sign. He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures" — that is: except by beckoning. It was a punishment with which he was punished, when he asked for the sign despite the oral conveyance by the angels of that with which they gave him the glad tiding.
7007 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Isḥāq related to us, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Abī Jaʿfar related to us, on the authority of his father, on the authority of al-Rabīʿ, concerning His word: "My Lord, grant me a sign. He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures" — he said: It was transmitted to us, and Allah knows best, that he was punished because the angels had conveyed it to him orally and had given him the glad tiding of Yaḥyā, and he afterwards asked for the sign, whereupon his tongue was taken from him.
7008 - It was related to me, on the authority of ʿAmmār ibn al-Ḥasan, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Abī Jaʿfar related to us, on the authority of his father, on the authority of al-Rabīʿ, who said: It was transmitted to us, and Allah knows best, that he was punished because the angels conveyed it to him orally and gave him the glad tiding of Yaḥyā, and said: أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُبَشِّرُكَ بِيَحْيَى ("that Allah gives you the glad tiding of Yaḥyā"), whereupon he asked for the sign after the angels had spoken to him. Thereupon his tongue was taken from him, so that he could not speak except by gestures — that is: he beckoned with a beckoning.
7009 - Abū ʿUbayd al-Waṣṣābī related to me, saying: Muḥammad ibn Ḥumayr related to us, saying: Ṣafwān ibn ʿAmr related to us, on the authority of Jubayr ibn Nufayr, concerning His word: "He said: My Lord, grant me a sign. He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures" — he said: His tongue swelled up in his mouth until it filled it, then Allah released it again for him after three days.
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Abū Jaʿfar said: The reciters chose the naṣb ending (accusative) in His word "allā tukallima l-nāsa" (that you shall not speak to people), because the meaning of the utterance is: "He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days in the future" — so that "an" here is the particle that accompanies the future, and not that which accompanies nouns and puts them in the accusative. Had the meaning therein been: "Your sign is that you (innaka) shall not speak to people for three days" — that is: that you shall remain in this state for three days — then the correct form of the utterance would have been the rafʿ ending (nominative), because "an" would then be in the meaning of the emphasized but lightened (an). But that was not permissible, for the reason I have described, namely that this has the other meaning.
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As for "al-ramz": its predominant meaning among the Arabs is beckoning with the lips, and sometimes it is used for beckoning with the eyebrows and the eyes, though that is not frequent among them. One may also call "al-ramz" the hidden part of speech that is as it were a whispering with a lowered voice. Of that is the word of Juʾayya ibn ʿĀʾidh:
"And the speech of the heroes was like gestures, and a muttering from them like the growling (of the stud-camel)."
One says of that: "ramaza fulān, fa-huwa yarmizu wa-yarmuzu ramzan = wa-yatarammazu tarammuzan." And one says: "ḍaraba-hu ḍarbatan fa-rtamaza minhā," that is: he convulsed from it in death. The poet said:
"I fell forward by it upon the back of my head, convulsing."
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The exegetes have differed concerning the meaning which Allah, mighty and exalted, intended by it in His report about Zakariyyā in His word: "Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures" — and which of the meanings of "al-ramz" was intended by it?
Some said: By it was intended: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days except by movement with the lips, without forming the speech with your tongue.
Mention of who said that:
7010 - Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Jābir ibn Nūḥ related to us, on the authority of al-Naḍr ibn ʿArabī, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His word: "except by gestures" — he said: the moving of the lips.
7011 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: "three days except by gestures" — he said: his beckoning with his lips.
7012 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, the like of it.
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Others said: No, by it Allah intended beckoning and gesturing.
Mention of who said that:
7013 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: My father related to us, on the authority of Salama ibn Nubayṭ, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk: "except by gestures" — he said: the gesture.
7014 - It was related to me, on the authority of al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Faraj, saying: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd ibn Sulaymān informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say concerning His word: "except by gestures" — he said: The gesture is that he beckons with his hand or his head and does not speak.
7015 - Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: My father related to me, saying: My uncle related to me, saying: My father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: "except by gestures" — he said: The gesture is that his tongue was taken from him, so that he began to address the people with his hand.
7016 - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Salama related to us, on the authority of Ibn Isḥāq: "except by gestures" — he said: and the gesture is the beckoning.
7017 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: "My Lord, grant me a sign. He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures," the entire āya, he said: He made his sign that he would not speak to people for three days except by gestures, except that he remembered Allah. And the gesture is the beckoning, he beckons to them.
7018 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda: "except by gestures" — except by beckoning.
7019 - It was related to us, on the authority of ʿAmmār, saying: Ibn Abī Jaʿfar related to us, on the authority of his father, on the authority of al-Rabīʿ, the like of it.
7020 - Mūsā related to me, saying: ʿAmr related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: "except by gestures" — he says: a gesture.
7021 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Kathīr said: "except by gestures" — except by a gesture.
7022 - Muḥammad ibn Sinān related to me, saying: Abū Bakr al-Ḥanafī related to us, on the authority of ʿAbbād, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, concerning His word: "He said: Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures" — he said: He held back his tongue, and began to beckon with his hand to his people: glorify (Allah) in the morning and the evening.
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Explanation of His word: وَاذْكُرْ رَبَّكَ كَثِيرًا وَسَبِّحْ بِالْعَشِيِّ وَالإِبْكَارِ ("And remember your Lord much, and glorify (Him) in the evening and the early morning") (3:41).
Abū Jaʿfar said: By this He means: Allah, exalted be His praise, said to Zakariyyā: O Zakariyyā, آيَتُكَ أَلا تُكَلِّمَ النَّاسَ ثَلاثَةَ أَيَّامٍ إِلا رَمْزًا ("Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures"), without muteness, defect, or illness = "and remember your Lord much," for you will not be prevented from remembering Him, nor will any obstruction be placed between you and glorifying Him and other ways of remembering Him. And already:
7023 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Abū Maʿshar, on the authority of Muḥammad ibn Kaʿb, who said: If Allah had granted anyone a dispensation to neglect the remembrance (of Him), He would have granted it to Zakariyyā, when He said: "Your sign is that you shall not speak to people for three days, except by gestures," (and yet He said) likewise: "and remember your Lord much."
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As for His word: "and glorify (Him) in the evening (al-ʿashī)" — He means: glorify your Lord by His worship in the evening.
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And "al-ʿashī" runs from the moment the sun declines (from the zenith) until it sets, as the poet said:
"Thus you cannot reach the shade out of the coolness of the forenoon, nor do you taste the twilight-shade out of the coolness of the evening."
For the twilight-shade (al-fayʾ) only begins its return at the declining of the sun, and reaches its end at its setting.
* * *
As for "al-ibkār": it is a verbal noun (maṣdar) of the saying: "abkara fulān fī ḥāja, fa-huwa yubkiru ibkāran" — and that is when he goes out for it in the period between the rising of the dawn and the time of the forenoon (al-ḍuḥā); that is "ibkār." One says of that: "abkara fulān" and "bakara yabkuru bukūran." Of "al-ibkār" is the word of ʿUmar ibn Abī Rabīʿa:
"Did you, of the clan of Nuʿm, set out early or go forth in the morning?"
And of "al-bukūr" is the word of Jarīr:
"Behold, Salmā set out in the morning, and grievous was her morning departure, and she severed the staff (of concord) after togetherness, she who wields her authority."
And one says of that: "bakara l-nakhl yabkuru bukūran = wa-abkara yubkiru ibkāran" (the date-palms bore early fruit). And "al-bākūr" of fruits: the first of them to ripen.
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And in accordance with what we have said about this, the exegetes spoke.
Mention of who said that:
7024 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: "and glorify (Him) in the evening and the early morning" — he said: al-ibkār is the beginning of the dawn, and al-ʿashī is the declining of the sun until it sets.
7025 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, the like of it.