Due to our limitations as humans, it is sometimes difficult to understand certain concepts about God. We will be looking at three such mysteries and then discuss how God, through His mercy, makes it easier for us to understand them by showing us manifestations or samples in the universe. Specifically, we will be discussing the name an-Noor and sun.

First Mystery

Allah (SWT) states in the Qur’an

The Letter “Qaf” (50:16)

وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ وَنَعْلَمُ مَا تُوَسْوِسُ بِهِۦ نَفْسُهُۥ ۖ وَنَحْنُ أَقْرَبُ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ حَبْلِ ٱلْوَرِيدِ ١٦

We created man––We know what his soul whispers to him: We are closer to him than his jugular vein––
— M.A.S. Abdel Haleem

So God is incredibly close to us. On the other hand, God is beyond our senses and even beyond our comprehension. So how is it that God is so close to us and yet we are so far away from Him?

Second Mystery

In Surat al-An’am verse 59, God states

۞ وَعِندَهُۥ مَفَاتِحُ ٱلْغَيْبِ لَا يَعْلَمُهَآ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا فِى ٱلْبَرِّ وَٱلْبَحْرِ ۚ وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلَّا يَعْلَمُهَا وَلَا حَبَّةٍۢ فِى ظُلُمَـٰتِ ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَا رَطْبٍۢ وَلَا يَابِسٍ إِلَّا فِى كِتَـٰبٍۢ مُّبِينٍۢ ٥٩

He has the keys to the unseen: no one knows them but Him. He knows all that is in the land and sea. No leaf falls without His knowledge, nor is there a single grain in the darkness of the earth, or anything, fresh or withered, that is not written in a clear Record.
— M.A.S. Abdel Haleem

How is it that even the tiniest beings cannot escape the scope of His knowledge and command? How can His knowledge and command be so extensive? This can seem very mysterious to us humans due to our limitations.

Third Mystery

 In surat an-Nahl verse 40, The Qur’an mentions how effortless it is for God to do something

إِنَّمَا قَوْلُنَا لِشَىْءٍ إِذَآ أَرَدْنَـٰهُ أَن نَّقُولَ لَهُۥ كُن فَيَكُونُ ٤٠

When We will something to happen, all that We say is, ‘Be,’ and it is.
— M.A.S. Abdel Haleem

How can we understand the fact that God commands something and it happens instantaneously?

These things can seem confusing for us humans. However, God, in His ultimate mercy, shows us samples or manifestations of these in the universe to help us understand our Creator better.

To be more specific, the sun manifests the name of God an-Nur (The Light). That is, the sun teaches us about this name of God and also sheds some light on these mysterious questions.

Ok so how does the sun help us understand these concepts?

First Mystery: God is very close to us yet we are very far from Him

Now imagine a transparent object like a droplet of water. When the sun shines on such objects (such as a droplet of water), they reflect it back. In fact, they become – to some level – a source of light and heat to their surroundings just as the sun is a source of heat and light to its surroundings as well.

Now, the sun has complete control over these transparent objects meaning that it is the sun that’s causing them to become a source of light and heat. In a sense, the sun is very close to them as it has the ability to completely influence them. These transparent objects, on the other hand, are very far away from the sun. They cannot, in any shape or form, influence the sun. Thus the sun is very close to these objects, yet they are very far away from it.

Second Mystery: Even the tiniest beings cannot escape God’s knowledge and command

When we look at the sun shining on the surface of the earth, we see that it encompasses everything, no matter the size. Even the tiniest little beings cannot escape the influence of the sun (I.e. sunlight). In fact, the size of an object has nothing to do with whether it receives sunlight or not.

Even the tiniest beings cannot escape the power and knowledge of
God. Though this may seem confusing to us as human beings, it becomes easier to understand when we think about the sun. Indeed, when the sun shines on the surface of the earth, nothing can escape its sunshine no matter their size. In a sense, everything is under the sun’s influence.

Third Mystery: Whenever God wills something, He says‘Be,’ and it is

So how does God carry out whatever He wills instantaneously with zero effort from His part? Again, this is difficult for us to understand since we must exert some degree of effort for tasks taht we do and it certainly doesn’t happen instantaneously.

Not only is the sun capable of influencing all the beings on the surface of the earth, but it does so very easily and smoothly, as though it doesn’t exert an effort at all. Unlike us humans who tend to easily be overwhelmed by tasks or by multitasking, unlike computers that overheat or tend to freeze when performing rigorous tasks, the sun seems to carry out its duty of lighting up and heating its surroundings, with such ease and smoothness that we don’t sense any effort exerted by the sun. This helps us in understanding the truth behind “كن فيكون” (Be and it is). That is, the we understand, to some degree, the truth behind God carrying out whatever He wishes with zero effort from His part.

The sun manifests the name an-Noor

Now, the sun manifests the name an-Noor. That is, God uses the sun as a sample to teach us and allow us to understand, to some degree, the name an-Noor.  If manifesting this single name of God gives the sun such incredible capabilities, imagine what the Creator of the sun is like. Surely He can create whatever He wants with absolutely zero effort, nobody can escape His knowledge or command. He is also incredibly close to us, even closer to us from our jugular vein, as we are completely under His control. Yet we are very far from Him.

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Source

The Fourth, The Fourteenth Word, The Words by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi