A Discussion of the Narrations

The Vow of Imran’s Wife

From Ibn ʿAbbās regarding His words: “My Lord, I have vowed to You what is in my womb, dedicated” - this was because Mary’s mother, Hannah, had ceased from childbearing and menstruation. One day, while she was sitting in the shade of a tree, she saw a bird feeding its chick. This stirred her desire for a child, so she prayed to God to grant her a child. She began menstruating that very hour. When she became pure, her husband came to her, and when she became certain of pregnancy, she said: “If God delivers me and I deliver what is in my womb, I will surely make it dedicated…”(30)

It is narrated from Abū ʿAbdallāh (a.s.) who said: God revealed to ʿImrān: “I will grant you a blessed male child who will heal the blind and the leper, and will bring the dead to life by God’s permission, and I will make him a messenger to the Children of Israel.” He told this to his wife Hannah, who was Mary’s mother. When she became pregnant with her, she said: “My Lord, I have vowed to You what is in my womb, dedicated”(31)

From Ismāʿīl al-Juʿfī, from Abū Jaʿfar (a.s.) who said: When ʿImrān’s wife vowed what was in her womb as dedicated (muḥarrar), he said: And the dedicated one is for the mosque - when she gives birth [or] enters the mosque, they never leave [the mosque].(32)

From Ḥafṣ al-Bakhtarī, from Abū ʿAbdallāh (a.s.) regarding God’s words: “I have vowed to You what is in my womb, dedicated” - the dedicated one remains in the church and does not leave it.(33)

From Ḥarīz from one of them who said: She vowed what was in her womb to the church to serve the worshippers (ʿibād).(34)

Notes:

1. This section of verses relates the story of the birth of Mary and Joseph (a.s.), each of whom was born through special divine providence. Mary’s mother (a.s.) was Hannah, the wife of ʿImrān (a.s.), and her sister was the mother of Joseph (a.s.), the wife of Zechariah (a.s.); meaning Mary and Joseph (a.s.) were maternal cousins.

According to historians and exegetes, these two sisters did not have children for many years. Regarding Hannah, the mother of Mary (a.s.), it is said that one day she was sitting under the shade of a tree and saw a bird feeding its chicks. Observing this maternal affection ignited the flame of desire for a child in her heart, and she sincerely prayed to God requesting a child. Shortly after, her prayer was answered and she became pregnant with Mary (a.s.). According to a narration from Imam al-Ṣādiq (a.s.), when God gave ʿImrān the good news of a child who would perform miracles and be a messenger to the Children of Israel, and he informed his wife of this, when his wife became pregnant, she vowed her child to the sanctuary (miḥrāb). This vow was made because she thought her child would be male, as in those times the servants of the Holy House were chosen from among boys.

2. From the fact that ʿImrān’s wife independently made decisions about her unborn child, it becomes clear that at that time her husband ʿImrān was no longer alive, because if Mary’s father had been alive, such an action would certainly have been done in consultation with him, and Mary’s mother would not have undertaken it alone.
3. ʿImrān’s wife also prayed for her child Mary’s offspring: “I seek refuge with You for her and her offspring from Satan, the outcast”.(35) From this, it becomes clear that Mary’s mother was aware of her child’s future lineage and prayed for them, and this awareness was not merely an ordinary expectation.