Salaam Brother Hani
Excellent reply. The 12ers also have an attribution to Imam Jafar on the Sun and its benefits.
“Consider the rising and the setting of the sun in the production of the day and night. Without sunrise, all businesses of the world would come to a stop. The world would be sunk in darkness with no possibility for work or livelihood. There would be no relish in life without the pleasant effects of sunlight. The benefits of sunrise are obvious indeed and need not be discussed in detail. Now just consider the sunset. If it did not set, men would have no comfort nor any rest. Men inevitably need to rest and comfort to recuperate the faculties of digestion and assimilation, and to soothe and relax the nerves of the body.
Their greed, by persistent work, would have caused serious bodily disturbances for many are so that unless the night conceal them, they would enjoy no comfort and rest in their pursuit of livelihood and the accumulation of wealth. Perpetual sunshine would have heated the earth with repercussions on the lives of the animals and plants. The Almighty Allah has, therefore, ordained that there shall be periods of sunshine and darkness, like the lamp which is lit up as the household needs and it is put out when not needed, to give them comfort and rest. Light and darkness are opposed to each other and yet both are made subservient to the interests of the world's betterment and improvement.
Then consider the four seasons of the year which occur as a result of the elevation and inclination of the sun and the benefits and planning contained within. The trees and plants are renewed between the vital two periods of the sun's movement. The condensation of vapour in the air causes clouds and rain. The animals get their bodies re-invigorated in this season. There is an upsurge of vital heat in the summer as well with the production of the material which matures in winter. The plants get flowers and fruit in this season. The animals come into heat. The air is heated in summer which leads to the ripening of fruit. The waste products of the body get accentuated. The earth gets dried up and becomes fit for building and other performance. Air is purified in winter, ailments are negotiated. Physical bodies become healthy. Night gets longer and thus aids in the performance of certain tasks because of the longer periods. The air in this season suits other performances as well. It would take an enormous amount of time to discuss all of these in detail.
Now consider the motion of the sun through the twelve Zodiac belts to complete a year and the skill underlying it. This is the period that comprises the four seasons - Winter, Summer, Autumn and Spring, in their completeness. Grains and fruits ripen during this annual movement of the sun to meet human needs and the cycle of development continues on in a repetitive cycle. Don't you know that the sweep of this sun across the heavenly belt, from the Pisces belt back to it, constitutes one year? The year has continued as the calculating measures of time since the beginning of the world in all past ages. People calculate the periods of life-spans, loans, contracts and other business matters by it. It is with the movement of the sun that one year is complete and a correct estimate of time is established. Just see how the sun sheds its light on the world and with what wisdom has been ordained in it. If it shone only at one spot of the globe constantly, without changing its place, the benefits of its rays would not penetrate in all directions. It has, therefore, been so designed that it rises from the East in the morning. Moving constantly, extending its light from side to side till it goes on to the West to shed its light on objects which failed to receive it in the morning, so no corner will remain without the benefit and purpose it is meant to serve. If for a whole or a part of the year the situation changed to the contrary, you can imagine the plight of human beings. In fact what chance would they have to survive at all?
Does not man observe such magnificent planning, wherein his own plans would utterly fail? They function automatically without negligence, and do not lag behind the time regulated for the management of the world's organization and maintenance (Mufaddal ibn Umar, Tawheed Al Mufaddal Ch 4)
Imam Jafar himself in the 12er Shia books sees harm from the long term effects of the Sun being blocked by the clouds.
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April 09, 2015, 05:24:16 AM