East and West: Qur’an Verses

وَلِلّٰهِ الْمَشْرِقُ وَالْمَغْرِبُ فَاَيْنَمَا تُوَلُّوا فَثَمَّ وَجْهُ اللّٰهِۜ اِنَّ اللّٰهَ وَاسِعٌ عَل۪يمٌ

And Allah's is the east and the west: and wherever you turn, there is Allah's countenance. Behold, Allah is infinite, all-knowing.

سَيَقُولُ السُّفَهَٓاءُ مِنَ النَّاسِ مَا وَلّٰيهُمْ عَنْ قِبْلَتِهِمُ الَّت۪ي كَانُوا عَلَيْهَاۜ قُلْ لِلّٰهِ الْمَشْرِقُ وَالْمَغْرِبُۜ يَهْد۪ي مَنْ يَشَٓاءُ اِلٰى صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَق۪يمٍ

THE WEAK-MINDED among people will say, "What has turned them away from the direction of prayer which they have hitherto observed?" Say: "Allah's is the east and the west; He guides whom He wills onto a straight way."

لَيْسَ الْبِرَّ اَنْ تُوَلُّوا وُجُوهَكُمْ قِبَلَ الْمَشْرِقِ وَالْمَغْرِبِ وَلٰكِنَّ الْبِرَّ مَنْ اٰمَنَ بِاللّٰهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْاٰخِرِ وَالْمَلٰٓئِكَةِ وَالْكِتَابِ وَالنَّبِيّ۪نَۚ وَاٰتَى الْمَالَ عَلٰى حُبِّه۪ ذَوِي الْقُرْبٰى وَالْيَتَامٰى وَالْمَسَاك۪ينَ وَابْنَ السَّب۪يلِ وَالسَّٓائِل۪ينَ وَفِي الرِّقَابِۚ وَاَقَامَ الصَّلٰوةَ وَاٰتَى الزَّكٰوةَۚ وَالْمُوفُونَ بِعَهْدِهِمْ اِذَا عَاهَدُواۚ وَالصَّابِر۪ينَ فِي الْبَأْسَٓاءِ وَالضَّرَّٓاءِ وَح۪ينَ الْبَأْسِۜ اُو۬لٰٓئِكَ الَّذ۪ينَ صَدَقُواۜ وَاُو۬لٰٓئِكَ هُمُ الْمُتَّقُونَ

True piety does not consist in turning your faces towards the east or the west – but truly pious is he who believes in Allah, and the Last Day; and the angels, and revelation, and the prophets; and spends his substance – however much he himself may cherish – it – upon his near of kin, and the orphans, and the needy, and the wayfarer, and the beggars, and for the freeing of human beings from bondage; and is constant in prayer, and renders the purifying dues; and [truly pious are] they who keep their promises whenever they promise, and are patient in misfortune and hardship and in time of peril: it is they that have proved themselves true, and it is they, they who are conscious of Allah.

اَلَمْ تَرَ اِلَى الَّذ۪ي حَٓاجَّ اِبْرٰه۪يمَ ف۪ي رَبِّه۪ٓ اَنْ اٰتٰيهُ اللّٰهُ الْمُلْكَۢ اِذْ قَالَ اِبْرٰه۪يمُ رَبِّيَ الَّذ۪ي يُحْي۪ وَيُم۪يتُۙ قَالَ اَنَا۬ اُحْي۪ وَاُم۪يتُۜ قَالَ اِبْرٰه۪يمُ فَاِنَّ اللّٰهَ يَأْت۪ي بِالشَّمْسِ مِنَ الْمَشْرِقِ فَأْتِ بِهَا مِنَ الْمَغْرِبِ فَبُهِتَ الَّذ۪ي كَفَرَۜ وَاللّٰهُ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِم۪ينَۚ

ART THOU NOT aware of that [king] who argued with Abraham about his Sustainer, (simply] because Allah had granted him kingship? Lo! Abraham said: "My Sustainer is He who grants life and deals death." [The king] replied: "I [too] grant life and deal death!" Said Abraham: "Verily, Allah causes the sun to rise in the east; cause it, then, to rise in the west!" Thereupon he who was bent on denying the truth remained dumbfounded: for Allah does not guide people who [deliberately] do wrong.

وَاَوْرَثْنَا الْقَوْمَ الَّذ۪ينَ كَانُوا يُسْتَضْعَفُونَ مَشَارِقَ الْاَرْضِ وَمَغَارِبَهَا الَّت۪ي بَارَكْنَا ف۪يهَاۜ وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَتُ رَبِّكَ الْحُسْنٰى عَلٰى بَن۪ٓي اِسْرَٓاء۪يلَ بِمَا صَبَرُواۜ وَدَمَّرْنَا مَا كَانَ يَصْنَعُ فِرْعَوْنُ وَقَوْمُهُ وَمَا كَانُوا يَعْرِشُونَ

whereas unto the people who [in the past] had been deemed utterly low, We gave as their heritage the eastern and western parts of the land that We had blessed. And [thus] thy Sustainer's good promise unto the children of Israel was fulfilled in result of their patience in adversity; whereas We utterly destroyed all that Pharaoh and his people had wrought, and all that they had built.

وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ مَرْيَمَۢ اِذِ انْتَبَذَتْ مِنْ اَهْلِهَا مَكَانًا شَرْقِيًّاۙ

AND CALL to mind, through this divine writ, Mary. Lo! She withdrew from her family to an eastern place

اَللّٰهُ نُورُ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْاَرْضِۜ مَثَلُ نُورِه۪ كَمِشْكٰوةٍ ف۪يهَا مِصْبَاحٌۜ اَلْمِصْبَاحُ ف۪ي زُجَاجَةٍۜ اَلزُّجَاجَةُ كَاَنَّهَا كَوْكَبٌ دُرِّيٌّ يُوقَدُ مِنْ شَجَرَةٍ مُبَارَكَةٍ زَيْتُونَةٍ لَا شَرْقِيَّةٍ وَلَا غَرْبِيَّةٍۙ يَكَادُ زَيْتُهَا يُض۪ٓيءُ وَلَوْ لَمْ تَمْسَسْهُ نَارٌۜ نُورٌ عَلٰى نُورٍۜ يَهْدِي اللّٰهُ لِنُورِه۪ مَنْ يَشَٓاءُۜ وَيَضْرِبُ اللّٰهُ الْاَمْثَالَ لِلنَّاسِۜ وَاللّٰهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَل۪يمٌۙ

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The parable of His light is, as it were, that of a niche containing a lamp; the lamp is [enclosed] in glass, the glass [shining] like a radiant star: [a lamp] lit from a blessed tree – an olive-tree that is neither of the east nor of the west the oil whereof [is so bright that it] would well-nigh give light [of itself] even though fire had not touched it: light upon light! Allah guides unto His light him that wills [to be guided]; and [to this end] Allah propounds parables unto men, since Allah [alone] has full knowledge of all things.

قَالَ رَبُّ الْمَشْرِقِ وَالْمَغْرِبِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَاۜ اِنْ كُنْتُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ

[But Moses] went on: “[He of whom I speak is] the Sustainer of the east and the west and of all that is between the two”- as you would know] if you would but use your reason!”

رَبُّ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْاَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا وَرَبُّ الْمَشَارِقِۜ

the Sustainer of the heavens and the earth and of all that is between them, and the Sustainer of all the points of sunrise!

حَتّٰٓى اِذَا جَٓاءَنَا قَالَ يَا لَيْتَ بَيْن۪ي وَبَيْنَكَ بُعْدَ الْمَشْرِقَيْنِ فَبِئْسَ الْقَر۪ينُ

But in the end, when he [who has thus sinned] appears before us [on Judgment Day], he will say [to his other self], “Would that between me and thee there had been the distance of east and west!” for, evil indeed [has proved] that other self!

رَبُّ الْمَشْرِقَيْنِ وَرَبُّ الْمَغْرِبَيْنِۚ

[He is] the Sustainer of the two farthest points of sunrise, and the Sustainer of the two farthest points of sunset.

فَلَٓا اُقْسِمُ بِرَبِّ الْمَشَارِقِ وَالْمَغَارِبِ اِنَّا لَقَادِرُونَۙ

But nay! I call to witness [Our being] the Sustainer of all the points of sunrise and sunset: verily, well able are We

رَبُّ الْمَشْرِقِ وَالْمَغْرِبِ لَٓا اِلٰهَ اِلَّا هُوَ فَاتَّخِذْهُ وَك۪يلًا

The Sustainer of the east and the west [is He]: there is no deity save Him: hence, ascribe to Him alone the power to determine thy fate,