Tafsir of Ash-Shams 91:15

"Nor does He fear," that is, the Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, "the consequence thereof," meaning its outcome and its aftermath, in the way that those who punish, such as kings, fear the consequence and aftermath of what they do. This is a representational metaphor for their insignificance and that they are lowly before Allah, may His majesty be glorified. The waw (and) is for the state (hal) or for starting a new sentence. It has been permitted that the pronoun in "does not fear" refers to the Messenger, and the waw is for starting a new sentence only, according to what is apparent. The Messenger does not fear the consequence of this act upon them, since he had warned and cautioned them.

Al-Suddi, Al-Dahhak, Muqatil, Al-Zajjaj, and Abu Ali stated: The waw is for the state, and the pronoun refers to "the most wretched of them," meaning the one who rose up to hamstring it, and he did not fear the consequence of his action due to his disbelief and tyranny. This is much further from the truth than the former. Ubayy, Al-A‘raj, Nafi‘, and Ibn ‘Amir read it as fala yakhafu (with a fa'). It was also read as wa lam yakhaf (with a waw), and the verb is jussive due to lam.

There is a difference of opinion regarding these people: did they believe and then disbelieve, or did they not believe at all? The majority hold the second view. Some held that they believed and pledged allegiance to Salih for a period, then denied him and disbelieved, and were thus destroyed, as detailed elsewhere. The Great Sheikh, Muhyiddin—may his secret be sanctified—said in his Sufuf that they, along with the people of Lot—peace be upon him—have no salvation on the Day of Resurrection in any way, shape, or form, and he did not equate them with other nations who were destroyed in this world for their disbelief, such as the people of Noah—peace be upon him. His words, may his secret be sanctified, have people who understand them; so refer to them for understanding if you find them.

Some of the people of esoteric interpretation mentioned that the sun is an allusion to the Essence of the Necessarily Existent, glorified be He, and its brightness is an allusion to the Muhammadan Reality. The moon is an allusion to the essence of the contingent being, which derives existence from the sun of the Essence. The day is an allusion to the world in all its various types, through which the attributes of the beauty, majesty, and perfection of the Essence have appeared. The night is an allusion to the existence of the various types of contingent beings that are witnessed, and it is a veil in the eyes of those who are obstructed from the True Existence. The heaven is an allusion to the world of the Intellect, and the earth is an allusion to the world of the Body, while the soul is acted upon. The she-camel of Allah is an allusion to the mount of yearning that leads to Him, glorified be He, and its watering is an allusion to its drinking place from the fountain of remembrance and reflection.

Others said: The sun is an allusion to the True Existence, which is the very essence of the Necessarily Existent, for He is more manifest than the sun: "Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth." Our sheikh of sheikhs, Al-Bandaniji—may his secret be sanctified—said: You are manifest, yet You are not seen Because eyes are veiled by points. Its brightness is an allusion to the first of the determinations, by whatever name you call it. The moon is an allusion to the fixed essences that are bestowed through the Most Holy Emanation. Alternatively, the sun is an allusion to the Essence, and its brightness is an allusion to its existence, with the addition being for a conceptual distinction. The moon is an allusion to the first of the determinations. The day is an allusion to the contingent beings bestowed through the Holy Emanation, and the night is also an allusion to them, considering the perspective of the veiled ones. Or, the day is an allusion to the attribute of Beauty, and the night is an allusion to the attribute of Subjugation and Majesty. The heaven is an allusion to the world of subtlety—and the soul is mentioned after its entry into this world due to the attention given to its affair—and the earth is an allusion to the world of density. The she-camel of Allah is an allusion to the Path, and its watering is its drinking place from the fountain of the Sharia. Other things have been said, and Allah, the Exalted, is the Guide to the straight path.