Tafseer of Yaseen · Yaseen · 36:38
And the sun runs [on course] toward its stopping point. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
His statement وَالشَّمْسُ تَجْرِي لِمُسْتَقَرٍّ لَهَا ("And the sun runs to a resting place appointed for it"): the Exalted, whose mention is exalted, says: and the sun runs to the place of its rest, in the meaning of: up to the place of its rest. And thus has the report (athar) come from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.
* Mention of the report concerning that:
Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Jābir ibn Nūḥ related to us, saying: al-Aʿmash related to us, on the authority of Ibrāhīm al-Taymī, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Abū Dharr al-Ghifārī, who said: I was sitting with the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in the mosque, and when the sun set, he said: "O Abū Dharr, do you know where the sun goes?" I said: Allah and His Messenger know best. He said: "Verily, it goes and prostrates itself (in sujūd) before its Lord; then it asks permission to return and it is granted; and it is as though it is said to it: return from whence you came; then it rises from its place, and that is its resting place (mustaqarr)."
And some said concerning it what Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning his statement وَالشَّمْسُ تَجْرِي لِمُسْتَقَرٍّ لَهَا , he said: a single fixed time which it does not exceed.
And others said: the meaning of it is: it runs to a course appointed for it, up to the measures of its places, in the meaning that it runs up to its furthest resting places at sunset, and then returns without exceeding them. They said: and that is because every night it keeps advancing further until it reaches its furthest places of setting, and then returns.
And his statement ذَلِكَ تَقْدِيرُ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ ("That is the decree of the Almighty, the All-Knowing"): he says: this which We have described concerning the running of the sun to a resting place appointed for it, is the decree of the Almighty (al-ʿAzīz) in His vengeance upon His enemies, the All-Knowing (al-ʿAlīm) of the interests of His creatures and all other matters; nothing hidden remains concealed from Him.
