Surah 37. As-Saffat, Ayah 5

Sc., "and of sunset" (cf. 55:17 and the corresponding note [7]). The stress on the various "points of sunrise" (al-mashariq) brings out the endless variety of all created phenomena as contrasted with the oneness and uniqueness of their Creator. The mention of "the points of sunrise" and omission of "the points of sunset" in the wording (though not in the meaning) of the above phrase alludes, I believe, to the light-giving quality of the Qur'an spoken of in verses {1-3}.

Allah is the Lord of everything that exists-'the heavens and the earth, and all between them'. He is the Lord of the Mashariq,-of every point at the rising of the sun. As the Commentators tell us, there are in the solar year only two equinoctial days, when the sun rises due east: on every other the sun rises at a shifting point either north or south of due east. In vii. 137 we have Mashariq al ardhi wa magaribaha, where the plural of the words for East and West is negligible, as the conjunction of the two embraces all points. The same may be said of lxx. 40, where Allah is called "Lord of all points in the East and the West". If we are speaking of longitudes, they may embrace all latitudes. In lv. 17 Allah is called "Lord of the two Easts and the two Wests", referring to the extreme points in either case. A cursory reader may ask, why is only the East referred to here? The reply is that it is not so much the East as the rising of the sun, on which stress is laid. The Arabic mashriq or mashariq is close enough to the root-word sharaqa, to suggest, not so much the East as the rising of the sun, especially when the plural form is used. The glorious sun rises from different points, as seen by us, but it illuminates the whole heaven and earth. It is an emblem of Unity.