The Mother of Mary had prayed to God that if she had a child, she would dedicate him to the Solomon’s Temple of Jerusalem. She was expecting that she would bear a boy; instead, she gave birth to a daughter (Mary). Acting on her promise to God that she would devote Mary to the Temple, she sent Mary to live in the Temple and her Uncle Prophet Zachariah (father of John the Baptist) became her custodian. Her reclusive life (khilwat) was for achieving mental concentration (Muraqaba). During her stay she involuntarily began performing miracles and other supernatural acts. In the Qur’an (Koran), it is mentioned that whenever her Uncle Prophet Zachariah would go to see her in the Temple, he would be surprised to see fruits of other seasons. Upon inquiring, she would say that that was the gift from the Lord.