Surah Al-Furqaan (25) — Ayah 45

(Ayah 45) ➊ { اَلَمْ تَرَ اِلٰى رَبِّكَ كَيْفَ مَدَّ الظِّلَّ … :} The surah begins with proofs of the affirmation of monotheism and arguments against polytheism; after mentioning the misguidance of the disbelievers, once again the proofs of monotheism are presented. Another relevance is that the spreading and contracting of shadows is mentioned as an example of the principle of gradualness in the universe, drawing attention to the fact that this same principle is at work in the gradual revelation of the Qur’an.
➋ At the beginning of the verse, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is addressed, but Allah refers to Himself in the third person, saying: «{اَلَمْ تَرَ اِلٰى رَبِّكَ كَيْفَ مَدَّ الظِّلَّ }» “Have you not seen your Lord, how He spread the shadow?” because the main purpose is to draw attention to the state of the shadow. At the end, He refers to Himself in the plural form to express His majesty, saying: «{ ثُمَّ جَعَلْنَا الشَّمْسَ عَلَيْهِ دَلِيْلًا }» “Then We made the sun an indicator for it.”
➌ By “shadow” is meant the intermediate state between light and darkness that exists before sunrise and remains throughout the day in houses, behind walls, and under trees. Some commentators have taken “shadow” to mean the darkness of night, which Allah gradually spreads with the setting of the sun and gradually ends with the rising of the sun.
➍ That is, have you not seen the wondrous craftsmanship of your Lord, how He made the shadow such that it is spread everywhere until sunrise? If Allah had not allowed the sun to rise, that same shadow would have remained, but by His power He brought forth the sun, from which the sunlight began to spread and the shadow gradually started to contract to one side. If there were no sunlight, we would not even be able to understand what a shadow is. Then, with the rising of the sun, the shadow of everything is very long and spread out towards the west; then, as the sun rises higher, the shadow gradually contracts until, with the spreading of sunlight, it completely disappears or only a little remains. Then the shadow begins to increase towards the east, which eventually ends with the darkness of night. In this spreading and contracting of the shadow, there are countless benefits for humans, animals, and indeed for everything that exists on earth; in fact, their very lives depend on this increase and decrease of the shadow. If there were always shadow, no living creature, not even plants, could survive on earth, because the life of all these depends on the heat of the sun. If there were no shadow at all, life would also be impossible, because if everything were always exposed to the sun and there was no shelter from its rays, neither living beings nor plants could survive, and even the existence of water would be difficult to maintain. Then, it is Allah’s grace that this alternation of sunlight and shade changes gradually; if this change were to happen all at once, even then the creatures of the earth would not be safe. The entire system of day and night, sunlight and shade, and the changing of seasons is based on the principle of gradualness, the purpose of which is to fulfill human needs. The times of the day, whether for prayers or any other activity, are determined by the increase and decrease of the shadow.
➎ { وَ لَوْ شَآءَ لَجَعَلَهٗ سَاكِنًا :} For its explanation, see Surah Al-Qasas (71, 72).
➏ { ثُمَّ جَعَلْنَا الشَّمْسَ عَلَيْهِ دَلِيْلًا :} That is, if there were no sunlight, it would not be known what a shadow is, because everything is recognized by its opposite. (Qurtubi) In addition, the meaning of the sun being an indicator for the shadow is that the shadow remains subject to the sunlight; it increases, decreases, spreads, and contracts according to the sunlight, as if the sunlight is a guide and indicator for it. (Shawkani)