Here is one of Allah’s finest strokes of genius: a heavenly guidebook on how to communicate without actually opening your mouth. The All-Knowing, the Master of language itself, the Being who allegedly created words, sounds, and speech—suddenly decides that the greatest wisdom is… silence. But not just silence—performative silence, a silence so scripted that it becomes a language of its own.
The instruction to Mary is absurdly simple: “Eat, drink, calm your nerves. And if anyone approaches, don’t bother explaining anything. Just announce, paradoxically, that you’re not speaking.” [1].
فَكُلِى وَٱشْرَبِى وَقَرِّى عَيْنًۭا ۖ فَإِمَّا تَرَيِنَّ مِنَ ٱلْبَشَرِ أَحَدًۭا فَقُولِىٓ إِنِّى نَذَرْتُ لِلرَّحْمَـٰنِ صَوْمًۭا فَلَنْ أُكَلِّمَ ٱلْيَوْمَ إِنسِيًّۭا ٢٦
So eat and drink and be contented. And if you see from among humanity anyone, say, ‘Indeed, I have vowed to the Most Merciful abstention, so I will not speak today to [any] man.'”
— Saheeh International
So eat and drink and cool your eyes; and if you see any person say to him: ‘Verily I have vowed a fast to the Most Compassionate Lord, and so I shall not speak to anyone today.’ “1
— A. Maududi (Tafhim commentary)
So eat and drink and be consoled. And if thou meetest any mortal, say: Lo! I have vowed a fast unto the Beneficent, and may not speak this day to any mortal.
— M. Pickthall
“So eat and drink and cool (thine) eye. And if thou dost see any man, say, ‘I have vowed a fast to (Allah) Most Gracious, and this day will I enter into not talk with any human being'”
— A. Yusuf Ali
Think about the brilliance: you’re literally talking to declare that you’re not talking. You communicate your silence out loud. It’s like inventing a religion around “expressive muteness”—the holy mime act of divine approval.
It becomes a sacred paradox:
- Speech that exists to deny speech.
- Words used to celebrate the absence of words.
- A vow of silence that still requires an official press release.
Imagine Mary meeting someone on the street. They ask her a question. Instead of answering, she solemnly proclaims: “I have taken a vow of silence.” The irony? She just broke her silence to say that. It’s like wearing a T-shirt that says “I’m invisible”—everyone sees you, and yet you insist they don’t.
And here’s the kicker: the Qur’an presents this as a sign for the intelligent. Apparently, the mark of deep wisdom is to master the art of contradiction: to speak by not speaking, to explain by refusing to explain, to declare silence in the loudest possible way.
So the great divine secret is revealed: If you want to look wise, don’t answer questions. Just state, with gravitas, that you’re too holy to speak. Silence, packaged as speech, becomes the ultimate tool of spiritual authority.
In the end, Allah’s communication strategy boils down to this timeless trick: Say nothing, but make sure everyone hears it.