Malaika walisema: “Ee Mariamu, Mwenyezi Mungu anakupa habari njema ya neno linalotoka kwake, jina lake ni Masihi, Isa, mwana wa Mariamu, mwenye heshima duniani na Akhera, na atakuwa miongoni mwa walio karibu na Mungu. Atasema na watu akiwa utotoni kitandani na akiwa mtu mzima, naye atakuwa miongoni mwa watu wema.” Akasema: “Mola wangu! Nitapataje mwana na hali hakuna mwanamume aliyenigusa?” Akajibu: “Ndivyo ilivyo. Mwenyezi Mungu huumba anachotaka. Anapokusudia jambo, humwambia tu: ‘Kuwa,’ nalo likawa. Atamfundisha kitabu na hekima, pamoja na Taurati na Injili, naye atakuwa Mtume kwa Wana wa Israili. Nimekuletea ishara kutoka kwa Mola wako: Nitakuumbia kwa udongo sura ya ndege, kisha nitampulizia, na kwa idhini ya Mwenyezi Mungu atakuwa ndege aliye hai. Nitawaponya vipofu na wenye ukoma, na kwa idhini ya Mwenyezi Mungu nitawafufua wafu. Nitawaambia mnachokula na mnachohifadhi majumbani mwenu. Hakika katika haya kuna ishara kwenu, ikiwa ni waumini wa kweli.” (Aya 45-49)
The angels said: ‘Mary, God sends you the happy news, through a word from Him, [of a son] whose name is the Christ, Jesus, son of Mary, honoured in this world and in the life to come, and shall be among those who are favoured by God. He shall speak to people in his cradle, and as a grown man, and shall be of the righteous.” Said she: “My Lord! How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me?” [The angel] answered: “Thus it is. God creates what He wills. When He wills a thing to be, He only says to it Be, and it is. He will teach him the book and wisdom, and the Torah and the Gospel, and will make him a messenger to the Israelites. I have brought you a sign from your Lord. I will fashion for you out of clay the likeness of a bird. I shall breathe into it and, by God’s leave, it shall become a living bird. I will heal the blind and the leper, and bring the dead back to life by God’s leave. I will announce to you what you eat and what you store up in your houses. Surely, in all this there as a sign for you, if you are truly believers. (Verses 45-9)
Kwa akili ya binadamu, kuzaliwa kwa Isa ndiko muujiza mkubwa kuliko yote. Kwa mapenzi ya Mungu, ambayo hayana mipaka yoyote, si jambo la ajabu hata kidogo.
Note: The original uses "Jesus" in English, which in Swahili is written as Yesu, so I've kept the usual Swahili form. Final version:
Kwa akili ya binadamu, kuzaliwa kwa Yesu ndiko muujiza mkubwa kuliko yote. Kwa mapenzi ya Mungu, ambayo hayana mipaka yoyote, si jambo la ajabu hata kidogo.
To the human mind, Jesus’s birth remains the greatest of all miracles. According to God’s will, which is free of all restrictions, it is nothing out of the ordinary.
Tunaambiwa kwamba Maryamu alistahili, kupitia usafi wake, ibada yake na kumwabudu Mungu kwa dhati, kupata heshima hii na kuchaguliwa kwa tukio hili kubwa. Hapa anapokea habari hii kwa mara ya kwanza kupitia malaika: “Malaika walisema: Ee Maryamu, Mungu anakupa habari njema ya neno kutoka Kwake, [la mwana] jina lake ni Masihi, Isa, mwana wa Maryamu, mwenye heshima duniani na Akhera, na atakuwa miongoni mwa walio karibu na Mungu.” (Aya ya 45) Hii ni habari kamili inayoeleza jambo zima. Anapokea habari hiyo katika neno kutoka kwa Mungu, yaani Masihi, Isa, mwana wa Maryamu. Katika muundo wa sentensi, jina “Masihi” linachukua nafasi ya neno “neno”. Hata hivyo, yeye ndiye hasa “Neno”. Je, usemi huu kwa kweli unamaanisha nini?
We are told that Mary qualified, through purification, devotion and sincere worship, to receive this honour and to be chosen for this great event. Here she is receiving the news for the first time through the angels: “The angels said: Mary, God sends you the happy news, through a word from Him, [of a son] whose name is the Christ, Jesus, son of Mary, honoured in this world and in the life to come, and shall be among those who are favoured by God.’” (Verse 45) It is a complete piece of news which tells of the whole affair. She receives the news in a word from God, namely the Christ, Jesus, son of Mary. In the construction of the sentence, the name “the Christ” is a substitute for the term “a word”. Yet, he is indeed the “Word”. What does this expression actually mean?
Kauli hii na nyingine zinazofanana nazo ni miongoni mwa mambo yaliyo nje ya uwezo wa ufahamu wa kibinadamu. Hakuna njia ya kubainisha kwa hakika maana yake halisi. Huenda ni sehemu ya kile Mungu alichokirejelea katika kauli yake ya awali katika sura hiyo: “Ndiye aliyekuteremshia Kitabu, ndani yake mna aya zilizo wazi na zenye kuhukumiwa, nazo ndizo msingi wa Kitabu, na nyingine ni za mafumbo. Basi wale ambao nyoyo zao zimepotoka kutoka katika haki hufuata sehemu hiyo ya mafumbo, wakitafuta kuleta fitina na kujaribu kuipa maana ya kiholela.” (Aya ya 7) Hata hivyo, jambo hili linaonekana kuwa rahisi zaidi kama lengo letu ni kuelewa ukweli huu kwa namna inayoweka nyoyo zetu katika mawasiliano ya moja kwa moja na Mungu na uumbaji wake kamili, uwezo wake usio na mipaka, na mapenzi yake yasiyo na vizuizi.
This and similar statements are of those matters which lie beyond our human perception. There is no way to determine what they precisely mean. They may be part of what God referred to in His earlier statement in the sūrah: “He it is Who has sent down to you the Book, containing verses which are clear and precise — and these are the essence of the Book — and others are allegorical. Those whose hearts have swerved from the truth pursue that part of it which is allegorical, seeking to create dissension and trying to give it an arbitrary meaning.” (Verse 7) The matter, however, appears to be much simpler if our purpose is to understand this fact in such a way which keeps our hearts in direct contact with God and His perfect creation, His limitless ability and unrestricted will.
Ilikuwa mapenzi ya Mungu kwamba maisha ya binadamu yaanze kwa kuumbwa kwa Adamu kutokana na udongo wa mfinyanzi.
It was God’s will that human life should start with the creation of Adam from clay.
Iwe Adamu aliumbwa moja kwa moja kutoka udongo, au Yeye aliumba kutoka udongo spishi ya awali iliyoendelea kukua hadi binadamu alipopatikana, haina athari yoyote kabisa juu ya asili ya siri ambayo inabaki kujulikana kwa Mungu peke yake.
Whether He has made Adam directly from clay or He made from clay an earlier species which continued to develop until the humankind came into existence has no bearing whatsoever on the nature of the secret which remains known only to God.
Hiyo ni siri ya uhai iliyotolewa kwa kiumbe hai wa kwanza, au kumpa Adamu ikiwa aliumbwa moja kwa moja kutoka udongo usio na uhai. Yote mawili ni sawa kuhusiana na kazi ya Mungu. Hakuna hata moja linalopaswa kuchukuliwa kuwa bora kuliko jingine katika kueleza kuwepo.
That is, the secret of life which was given to the first living creature, or given to Adam if he was created directly out of lifeless clay. Both are the same in relation to God’s work. Neither should be considered preferable to the other in explaining existence.
Uhai huu umetoka wapi, na umekujaje? Hakika ni kitu tofauti na udongo, na tofauti na vitu vyote visivyo hai vilivyomo ardhini. Ni kitu cha ziada, kitu tofauti. Ni kitu kinacholeta mambo fulani ambayo hayawezi kamwe kupatikana katika udongo, mfinyanzi, au kitu chochote kisicho hai kabisa. Siri hii imetokeaje? Ukweli kwamba hatuijui hauhalalishi kukataa kwetu kuwepo kwake, wala kujishughulisha na mabishano madogo madogo kama wale wanaoamini vitu vya kimaada peke yake wanavyofanya.
Where has this life come from, and how? It is certainly something different from dust and different from all the lifeless materials available in the earth. It is something extra, something different. It is something which brings about certain aspects which can never be found in the dust, clay or in any lifeless material whatsoever. How has this secret come about? The fact that we do not know does not justify our denial of its existence or our indulging in petty arguments as those who believe only in matter do.
Wanafuata hoja zao kwa upeo mdogo wa fikra ambao hauwezi kuheshimiwa na mtu yeyote mwenye akili, achilia mbali mwanasayansi yeyote. Ukweli unabaki kuwa hatujui. Majaribio yote ambayo sisi, binadamu, tumeyafanya kwa njia zetu chache za kubaini asili ya uhai, au kuanzisha uhai kutoka kwa kitu kisicho hai, hayajafanikiwa kitu chochote.
They pursue their arguments with a narrow-mindedness which cannot be respected by any man of reason, let alone any scientist. The fact remains that we do not know. All the attempts which we, human beings, have made with our limited means to determine the origin of life, or to initiate life from something which is lifeless, have achieved nothing.
Hatujui, lakini Mungu, aliyetoa uhai, anajua. Yeye anatuambia kwamba uhai ni kupulizwa kwa Roho Yake ndani ya kitu fulani. Zaidi ya hapo, anatuambia kwamba kutolewa kwake kunafanyika kwa neno Lake: "Kuwa, nacho kikawa." Je, huu kupulizwa kwa roho ni nini? Roho inapulizwaje ndani ya kitu kisicho na uhai ili kukileta katika kuwepo? Hili ni siri inayobaki isiyoeleweka kwa akili ya kibinadamu. Hatuwezi kufikia ufahamu huo kwa sababu si sehemu ya kazi yetu. Kujua majibu haya hakumnufaishi mwanadamu katika kutekeleza utume wake ambao Mungu amemuumba kwa ajili yake, yaani, kuwa msimamizi wa dunia. Hatawahi kuhitaji kuumba uhai kutoka kwa mauti. Basi, ni thamani gani kwake kujua asili ya uhai, au asili ya kupulizwa kwa roho ya Kiungu, au jinsi ilivyotolewa kwa Adamu au kwa kiumbe cha kwanza katika mnyororo wa viumbe hai?
We do not know, but God, Who has given life, knows. He tells us that life is a breathing of His spirit into something. He further tells us that giving it is achieved by a word from Him: “Be, and it is.” What is this spiritual breathing? How is spirit blown into something lifeless so as to bring it into existence? This is a secret which remains incomprehensible to human reason. We cannot achieve that understanding because it is not part of our business. To know these answers does not benefit man in the discharge of his mission for which God has created him, namely, to be in charge of the earth. He will never need to create life from death. Hence, what is the value to him of knowing the nature of life, or the nature of the breathing of the Divine spirit, or how it has been given to Adam or to the first creature in the chain of living beings?
Mungu anatuambia kwamba kupuliza kwa roho Yake ndani ya Adamu ndiko kulikomfanya Adamu apate nafasi yake ya heshima na utukufu, hata juu ya malaika. Basi lazima liwe jambo tofauti kabisa na "uhai" huo tu alioupewa minyoo na viini vya magonjwa. Hili linatuongoza kumtazama binadamu kama aina ya uumbaji wenye kuwepo kwa namna yake ya pekee. Ana nafasi maalum katika mpangilio wa jumla wa ulimwengu ambayo haishirikiwi na kiumbe kingine chochote. Hata hivyo, hili si somo letu la moja kwa moja. Tumelitaja kwa ufupi tu ili kumwonya msomaji dhidi ya shaka zozote zinazoweza kuibuka kutokana na hoja zinazozunguka kuja kwa binadamu.
God tells us that the breathing of His spirit in Adam is what gave Adam his honourable place and distinction, even above the angels. It must be, then, something different from that mere “life” given to worms and germs. This leads us to consider man as a kind of creation with a separate existence. He has a special place in the general order of the universe which is not shared by any other creature. This, however, is not our immediate subject. We have only made this brief reference to it in order to warn the reader against any doubts which may arise as a result of arguments surrounding the advent of man.
Kinachojambo hapa ni kwamba Mungu anatueleza kuhusu mwanzo wa uhai. Haijalishi kwamba bado hatuwezi kuelewa asili ya siri hii au kuelewa jinsi uhai unavyopuliziwa ndani ya kitu kisicho na uhai.
What is important here is that God is telling us about the initiation of life. It does not matter that we remain unable to comprehend the nature of this secret or understand how life is breathed into something lifeless.
Ilikuwa mapenzi ya Mwenyezi Mungu, baada ya Adamu kuumbwa kwa njia hiyo ya moja kwa moja, kuweka utaratibu fulani wa kuzalisha uhai wa binadamu. Utaratibu huu unahitaji mwanamume na mwanamke wakutane, na yai la kike lirutubishwe na mbegu ya kiume ili mimba itungwe. Yai wala mbegu si vitu visivyo na uhai.
It was God’s will, after Adam came into existence in that direct way, to establish a certain procedure for the regeneration of human life. This procedure requires that a male and a female come together and that the female egg be fertilised by a male sperm for conception to take place. Neither the egg nor the sperm is lifeless.
Watu walizoea mchakato huu kwa vizazi visivyohesabika, hadi Mwenyezi Mungu alipoamua kuufanyia ubaguzi kwa mtu mmoja. Alifanya kuzaliwa kwake kufanana na mwanzo wa kwanza kabisa, ingawa si kufanana kabisa. Katika kisa hiki, mwanamke peke yake hupokea roho ya Kimungu inayoanzisha uhai, na mchakato unakamilika.
People were familiar with this process for countless generations until God chose to make an exception to it in the case of an individual human being. He made his birth similar to the very first beginning, although not exactly the same. In this case, a female on her own receives the Divine spirit which initiates life, and the process is completed.
Je, huu upulizaji wa roho ndio uliotajwa kuwa neno? Au neno lilikuwa lile agizo la mapenzi ya Mungu? Au neno linamaanisha amri "kuwa", ambayo inaweza kuchukuliwa kama ilivyo au inaweza kueleza kwamba mapenzi ya Mungu yamechagua kitu fulani hasa? Je, neno lilikuwa Yesu, au kuwepo kwake kunatokana nalo? Kufuatilia maswali kama haya yote kunaweza tu kuzaa shaka. Hitimisho pekee la kweli ni kwamba Mungu alipenda kuanzisha uhai kwa namna isiyokuwa na mfano wake. Mapenzi yake yasiyo na mipaka yalitimiza uanzishwaji huo wa uhai kwa kupulizia roho yake, na asili ya jambo hilo inabaki kuwa siri kwetu, ingawa tunaelewa athari zake. Hakuna sababu ya sisi kuelewa asili yake, kwa kuwa kuelewa huko hakuongezi uwezo wetu wa kutekeleza wajibu wetu duniani, kwani kuanzisha uhai si sehemu ya kazi tuliyopewa. Kwa kuangalia jambo hili kwa namna hii, swali zima linakuwa rahisi kueleweka na halileti shaka yoyote akilini mwetu.
Was this breathing of the spirit what is described as the word? Or, was the word the line God’s will has taken? Or, does the word mean the command “be”, which may be taken as it is or may express that God’s will has chosen something in particular? Was the word Jesus, or is his existence derived from it? The pursuit of all such questions can only result in creating doubts. The only true conclusion is that God willed to initiate life in a manner which had no parallel. His unrestricted will accomplished such an initiation of life through a breathing of His spirit, the nature of which remains unknown to us while we understand its effects. There is no reason for us to understand its nature because such an understanding does not add to our ability to discharge our mission on earth, since to initiate life is not part of our appointed task. Viewed in this manner, the whole question becomes easy to understand and raises no doubts in our minds.