Inspired, Like the Bee

So Allah (swt) told the mother of Mūsā (peace be upon him) — and We inspired the mother of Mūsā. Now, this is not the waḥy of prophethood. The word waḥy can mean either inspiration or revelation to a prophet. In this particular situation it is inspiration, ilhām; it is not revelation to a prophet. When the word waḥy is mentioned in the Qur'an, it does not necessarily mean revelation to a prophet, because there is a place in the Qur'an, in Sūrat al-Naḥl, where Allah (swt) says: wa awḥā rabbuka ilā al-naḥl — and your Lord inspired the bee. So are the bees prophets? The revelation here means inspiration: a strong inspiration in the heart of the mother of Mūsā.

Allah (swt) said: and We inspired the mother of Mūsā, saying, suckle him — breastfeed him — but when you fear for him, cast him into the river, and do not fear, nor grieve. Now, this is a strong inspiration, because no mother would throw her child into a flowing river. Anyone who has seen the Nile knows it is a very, very powerful and strong river; people who swim in it — strong swimmers — put themselves at risk of drowning, because the current is violent and strong.

So this was a very strong inspiration, because no mother would do this unless she felt very strongly that it was a command from Allah (swt). Allah (swt) told her to breastfeed him as usual — but whenever you feel he is in danger, throw him into what seems to be the greatest danger: the river. A child of Mūsā's age, perhaps a few days old, a baby who can barely see and can do nothing for himself, put into a river in a wooden box. To our limited minds and reasoning, that would seem to be throwing him to his death. But because it was an order from Allah (swt), this righteous mother was able to suppress her strong feelings of motherhood and care for her child, trust the child to the hands of Allah (swt), and believe that Allah (swt) would take care of the child better than she could.