A past-tense sentence becomes negative when مَا is placed at its beginning.
فَرِحَ زَيْدٌ — Zayd became happy.
مَا فَرِحَ زَيْدٌ — Zayd did not become happy.
The action and its time stay in the past; مَا only denies that the action happened.
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The Core Rule
Negating Past-Tense Sentences with مَا
A past-tense sentence becomes negative when مَا is placed at its beginning.
فَرِحَ زَيْدٌ — Zayd became happy.
مَا فَرِحَ زَيْدٌ — Zayd did not become happy.
The action and its time stay in the past; مَا only denies that the action happened.