In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
A summary of the Tafsir of al-Tabari.
Abridged by Dr. Aqil Ibn Salim al-Shammar.
Surah al-Shams (The Sun).
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
By the sun and its brightness.
And by the moon as it follows it.
And by the day as it reveals it.
And by the night as it covers it.
And by the sky and He who built it.
And by the earth and He who spread it.
And by the soul and He who proportioned it.
And inspired it with its wickedness and its righteousness.
Allah, may His praise be exalted, swears by the sun and its daylight.
This is because the light of the visible sun is what constitutes the day.
And by the moon as it follows the sun.
And by the day as it reveals the sun through its illumination.
And by the night as it covers the sun.
Until it sets and the horizons grow dark.
And by the sky and He who built it.
It is also permissible to interpret this as referring to the sky and its construction.
And by the earth and He who spread it out to the right, to the left, and on every side.
And by the soul and He who proportioned it.
Meaning, Himself.
For He is the One who proportioned the souls and created them, perfecting their form.
It is also possible that the meaning is:
By the soul and its proportioning.
And inspired it with its wickedness and its righteousness.
He says:
He made clear to it what it should perform or avoid, whether good or evil.
And what constitutes obedience or disobedience.
“He is indeed successful who causeth it to grow,” (91:9)
“And he is indeed a failure who stunteth it.” (91:10)
He has succeeded who has purified his soul.
By increasing its goodness through cleansing it of disbelief and sins.
And by rectifying it through righteous deeds.
And he has failed in his pursuit.
He did not attain what he sought and desired for his soul in terms of righteousness.
He who has corrupted his soul, debased it, and lowered it.
By abandoning it and withholding guidance from it.
Until it committed sins and abandoned the obedience of Allah.
Thamud denied [the truth] through their transgression.
When the most wretched of them was sent forth.
“And the messenger of Allah said: It is the she-camel of Allah, so let her drink!” (91:13)
But they denied him and hamstrung her.
“But they denied him, and they hamstrung her, so Allah doomed them for their sin and rased (their dwellings).” (91:14)
And he does not fear the consequences thereof.
The people of Thamud denied the punishment that Salih, peace be upon him, had promised them.
That punishment was overwhelming, as it surged over them.
When the most wretched of Thamud rose up.
And he is Qudar Ibn Salif.
Salih, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said to them:
Beware of the she-camel of Allah and her drink.
He warned them specifically regarding the she-camel's share of water.
Because he had previously conveyed to them, by the command of Allah:
That the she-camel had a turn to drink on one day.
And they had their turn to drink on a day other than the she-camel's day.
Yet they denied Salih regarding the news he brought them.
So their Lord destroyed them.
This was due to their disbelief in Him and their denial of His messenger, Salih.
And their hamstringing of His she-camel.
He leveled the destruction upon them all.
Not a single one of them escaped.
And He does not fear the consequences of His destruction upon them.