As we mentioned in our book Stories of the Prophets in Al-Quran, some of the stories related to the Prophets are revealed in general. It sometimes appears as a brief description of the Prophets virtues of patience or piety or righteousness.
And Zakariya and Yahya and Isa and Ilyas; every one was of the good; (Chapter 6, Verse 85) And Ismail and Al-Yasha and Yunus and Lut; and every one We made to excel (in) the worlds: (Chapter 6, Verse 86)
Then there are various stories that are mentioned in some level of detail. Since Al-Quran is a guide for the believers in particular and mankind in general, there are lessons to be derived from the details mentioned.One of the stories mentioned in relative detail is the miraculous birth of Prophet 'Isa (AS). In this short article we would like to focus on this particular verse.
The pains of labour drove her to the trunk of a date-palm. She [Maryam] said, "Oh if only I had died before this time and was something discarded and forgotten!" A voice called out to her from under her, "Do not grieve! Your Lord has placed a small stream at your feet. Shake the trunk of the palm towards you and fresh, ripe dates will drop down onto you. Eat and drink and delight your eyes?" (Chapter 19, Verse 23-26)
Allah (SWT) specifically mentions "fresh, ripe dates" as the food that He (SWT) provided for that sustained and nourished Maryam (AS) during her miraculous delivery of a son without the normal role of a father. (This probably included the time before labour and the days she took to recover after the delivery). It was not any kind of date fruit but "fresh, ripe dates".
Prior to this Maryam (AS) also received food as sustenance from Allah (SWT) in a somewhat unusual manner.
And her Lord accepted her with full acceptance and vouchsafed to her a goodly growth; and made Zakariya her guardian. Whenever Zakariya went into the sanctuary where she was, he found that she had food. He said: ?O Maryam! From where did this (food) come?? She answered: ?It is from Allah. Allah gives without stint to whom He wills.? (Chapter 3, Verse 37)
We mentioned in our book that what surprised Prophet Zakariya was that Maryam had summer fruits during winter and winter fruits during summer. The specific fruits are not mentioned only the unusual phenomenon of having summer fruits during winter and winter fruits during summer. Maryam clearly indicated that it was from Allah (SWT).
Maryam (AS) is the noblest of all women. She was honored to be chosen as the medium of one of the miracles from Allah (SWT), to deliver a child without the normal role of a father. She was alone during that miraculous birth. Allah (SWT) provided her sustenance and nourishment through "fresh, ripe dates" and fresh natural water. This was the specific type of food Allah (SWT) provided her during that period although He (SWT) provided her before with summer fruits during winter and winter fruits during summer, and "Allah gives without stint to whom He wills." Thus we can conclude that "fresh, ripe dates" is one of the best food for women during the period of labour and post-delivery.There is considerable wisdom in the way that Allah recommends Maryam to eat this fruit. The date is an excellent choice of food for the pregnant women and for those who have just given birth. This is a widely accepted scientific fact. Maryam was inspired to understand this point, in order to make her own labour easier. The date fruit has one of the highest sugar levels, 60-65%, of all fruits. Doctors recommend that pregnant women be given foods containing fruit sugar on the day they give birth. The aim behind this is to energize and revitalize the mother's weakened body and at the same time to stimulate the milk hormones and increase the levels of mother's milk essential to the new-born baby.
In addition, loss of blood during birth leads to a fall in body sugar levels. Dates are important from the point of view of enabling sugar to enter the body and prevent blood pressure from dropping. Their high calorific value strengthens people weakened by illness or suffering from extreme fatigue.
These facts reveal the wisdom in the way that Allah recommended Maryam to eat dates, designed to energize and invigorate the woman and ensure the emergence of mother's milk.