Tafsir of Al-Anbiya' 21:81

(And for Solomon the wind) meaning: We subjected the wind to him. The prefix lam (for) is used here—unlike the previous mention—to indicate the disparity between the two acts of subjugation. The subjugation of what was granted to him (peace be upon him) was through total compliance and obedience to his commands and prohibitions, whereas the subjugation of the mountains and birds for David (peace be upon him) was by way of subordination and his following of the path of worshiping Allah, the Almighty and Exalted.

(Tempestuous) is a state (hal) of the wind, and the governing agent is the implied verb, meaning: "And We subjected to him the wind, while it was blowing fiercely." Describing it as such here does not contradict its description elsewhere as rakha’ (gentle/soft), because rakha’ describes it in its own essence, while ‘asifah (tempestuous) describes it in terms of its traversing a great distance in a short time, effectively acting like a storm while remaining gentle; it possesses the gentleness but performs the action of a storm. It is also permissible that the description changes depending on the time Solomon (peace be upon him) desired. It has been said that it was described as rakha’ in the morning (al-dhahab) and ‘asifah in the evening (al-iyab), consistent with the human habit of hastening toward home; thus, it is a storm during a time of gentleness, and vice versa.

Ibn Hurmuz and Abu Bakr, in one narration, read al-rih (the wind) in the nominative case (raf’) while singular. Al-Hasan and Abu Raja’ read al-riyah (the winds) in the accusative (nasb) and plural, while Abu Haywah read it in the nominative and plural. The accusative is clear; as for the nominative, it is because the noun is a subject (mubtada’), the predicate is the fronted prepositional phrase, and ‘asifah is a state of the pronoun within the predicate, governed by the meaning of stability contained therein.

(Blowing by his command) meaning: by his will and in accordance with his desire; this is a common usage. It is possible that he actually commanded it, and Allah, the Exalted, created it as obedient to his command, as was said regarding the trees coming to the Prophet (peace be upon him) when he called them. The sentence is either a second state, or a substitution (badal) for the first—as some have said, though the discussion on substituting a sentence for a single word is not foreign to you, so recall it—or a state related to the pronoun in the first.

(Toward the land which We have blessed) which is the Levant (al-Sham), as Ibn ‘Asakir narrated from al-Suddi. Since his residence (peace be upon him) was there, the intent is that it would blow by his command toward the Levant in the evening, after having traveled from it in the morning. Due to the widespread knowledge that he (peace be upon him) resided in that land, its blowing by his command from it was omitted, and it was limited to mentioning its blowing toward it, which is more evident as an act of favor. It has also been said that his residence was Istakhr, and he would board the wind from there, and it would blow by his command to the Levant.

It is also suggested that the land could be more general than the Levant, and it is described as blessed because whenever he settled in a land, he commanded the killing of its disbelievers, the establishment of faith therein, and the spreading of justice—and there is no blessing greater than that. However, it is unlikely because the standard understanding is that the land was already blessed before he reached it, whereas what was just mentioned implies it became blessed afterward. Much further from the truth is the claim of Mundhir ibn Sa’id, who said that the speech concluded at the words "to the land," and that "which We have blessed" is an adjective for the wind, implying a transposition in the verse—the original being: "And for Solomon the wind, which We have blessed, tempestuous, blowing by his command." Indeed, it is obvious that the speech of the Almighty Allah should not be subjected to such interpretation, a thing even the least of eloquent speakers would be above.

The manifest meaning is that "the wind" refers to this known element, general to all its famous types. It is said that it refers to the East wind (al-saba), and some reports appear to support this. Muqatil stated that the devils wove for Solomon (peace be upon him) a carpet of gold and silk, a farsakh by a farsakh. A golden pulpit was placed upon it for him to sit, surrounded by golden chairs for the prophets, silver chairs for the scholars, and around them all other people, with the jinn, devils, and birds surrounding them to shade him from the sun. The East wind would carry the carpet for a journey of a month, from morning to evening and from evening to morning.

The mention that he was carried on a carpet is the most famous account; perhaps that was at certain times. Otherwise, Ibn Abi Hatim narrated from Ibn Zayd that Solomon (peace be upon him) had a vehicle made of wood, containing a thousand corners, in each corner a thousand rooms; the jinn and humans would board with him, and under each corner were a thousand devils who would lift the vehicle. When it rose, the gentle wind would come and carry it, and they would travel with him; people would not realize it until the armies and troops cast their shadows over them. It has been said in reconciliation that the carpet was within the aforementioned vehicle, but that is not strong.

It is mentioned from al-Hasan that the honor Allah bestowed upon Solomon (peace be upon him) by subjecting the wind was a reward for what he did with the horses when he missed the Afternoon Prayer (‘Asr) because of them; he abandoned them for the sake of Allah, so Allah compensated him with something better, in terms of both speed and comfort. Curiously, the people of London have long exerted themselves to create a ship that travels high in the air to wherever they wish by means of vapors they trap within it, deceived by what appeared years ago regarding the creation of a ship that travels on water by means of machines moved by vapors inside it. But they have not succeeded, nor do I think they will succeed according to their desire in the perfect manner. Someone informed me that they did build a ship that travels in the air, but not to where they wish, but rather to where it happens to land.

(And We were, of all things, Knower.)