This excerpt is taken from the book of Fazilat-ul-Sheikh Abdul Salam Rustami From Denial of Hadith to Denial of Quran.
Hadith 31: The sun rises between the two horns of Satan
It is narrated from Ibn Umar رضي الله عنهما that the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said:
Do not pray at the time of sunrise and sunset because the sun rises between the two horns of Satan.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Beginning of Creation, Chapter on the Description of Iblis and his Soldiers, Hadith: 3273
Apart from the objection regarding the external existence of Satan and the movement of the sun, a major objection is that the sun is millions of times larger than our earth in size, so if it rises between the two horns of Satan, then how large would Satan’s head be and where would he be situated?
The discussion about the movement of the sun and the personal identity and existence of Satan has already passed. The only objection that the sun rises between the horns of Satan is a deliberately ignorant objection because in the story of Dhul-Qarnayn, the Qur’an states:
حَتَّىٰ إِذَا بَلَغَ مَغْرِبَ الشَّمْسِ وَجَدَهَا تَغْرُبُ فِي عَيْنٍ حَمِئَةٍ
“Until, when he reached the setting of the sun, he found it setting in a spring of murky water.”
Reference: (18-Al-Kahf:86)
The same objection arises on this verse as well, that the sun is millions of times larger than the earth and then the Black Sea, so how does it set inside this small spring? Those who have embraced Islam will certainly interpret this because they are people of the Qur’an, so why is there enmity with the hadith as well? They should provide a suitable interpretation here too.
➊ The famous interpretation of this hadith is that it means Satan makes the sun appear so adorned and beautiful in the eyes of the sun worshippers at the time of sunrise and sunset that they become engrossed in its worship. The example of this adornment is as if he has placed it on his head, and the reason for this interpretation is that this hadith intends to forbid the believers from resembling the polytheists, that is, do not pray at the time of sunrise and sunset because praying at these times necessarily causes resemblance to them.
➋ In the opinion of the sun worshippers, the rising and setting of the sun occurs between the horns on the head of Satan, just as a person can see the whole body with one eye or see the sun between two fingers, but this does not mean that the sun is actually so small that it can fit inside the eye or between two fingers.
