The Sun's Prostration at Sunset

Question

Because of the difference in the points of sunrise (ikhtilaf al-matali‘), the sun keeps rising and setting continuously: at sunrise it asks permission to come out, and at sunset it performs sujud (prostration) beneath the ‘Arsh (Throne). In the tafsir “Ma‘arif al-Qur’an” it is written that sujud here means obedience (ta‘a). But it renders obedience at all times, continuously — indeed, it is by virtue of this very obedience that it travels on its course.

Answer

Every creature at every instant is occupied in obedience to the Creator, whether by compulsion or by choice, whether this be the obedience of creation (takwini) or of divine law (tashri‘i). When the sun sets, by its very nature it appears as though it is performing sujud — this is what is called “sujud beneath the ‘Arsh”.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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