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qāla rabbi jʿal lī ʾāyatan qāla ʾāyatuka ʾallā tukallima n-nāsa thalāthata ʾayyāmin ʾillā ramzan wa-dhkur rabbaka kathīran wa-sabbiḥ bi-l-ʿashiyyi wa-l-ʾibkāri
He said, ‘My Lord, grant me a sign.’ Said He, ‘Your sign is that you will not speak to people for three days except in gestures. Remember Your Lord much, and glorify Him morning and evening.’
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah 'Ali-Imran, Verse 41
41. "He (Zakariya) said: 'My lord! Appoint a token for me'. He said: ' The token for you (will be) that you cannot speak unto human beings for three days except by signals; and remember your Lord immensely and glorify (Him) in the evening and early morning."
Here, Zachariah (as) asked Allah for a token for that glad tiding he received, in order to make his heart completely certain. It was similar to the case that Abraham (as) requested Allah to see the scene of resurrection to make his heart certain more than before.
In answer to him, Allah said that the token for him was that he could not speak to people for three days, except by signals, and his tongue, without having any disease or natural disorder, would stop talking with men:
Yet, to show his (Zachariah's) gratitude to that bounty, the verse says:
Thus, the Lord accepted the request of Zachariah. But his tongue could not move speaking with people for three days and nights without being involved by any natural cause. Yet, in the meanwhile, he was in a condition that he was still able to be busy murmuring the name of Allah. That wonderful state was a sign of Allah's power dominated over everything. The Lord, Who is able to open the speechless dumb tongue when it starts to invoke the name of Allah, is also able to bring a believing child into existence from a fruitless barren womb. This occurrence can be the manifestation of the remembrance of the Providence, too.