His saying, exalted and glorified is He: "Certainly, We see your face turning in the sky. So We will surely turn you toward a qiblah that you will be pleased with. So turn your face toward the Sacred Mosque, and wherever you are, turn your faces toward it. And indeed, those who were given the Scripture know that it is the truth from their Lord. And Allah is not unaware of what they do." "And if you brought to those who were given the Scripture every sign, they would not follow your qiblah, and you are not a follower of their qiblah. And some of them are not followers of the qiblah of others. And if you were to follow their desires after what has come to you of knowledge, then indeed, you would be among the wrongdoers." The aim is the turning of the sight, and the face is mentioned because it is more general and noble. It is used in seeking desires. You say: "I devoted my face to such and such," and "I did it for the sake of so-and-so." From this is the saying of the poet: "I returned with what I seek and my face with its water..." Also, the face turns with the turning of the sight. Qatadah and Al-Suddi and others said: "The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, would turn his face in supplication to Allah, the Most High, that He would turn him toward the qiblah of Mecca. It was said: He was turning to be permitted to supplicate." The meaning of turning toward the sky is that the sky is a direction from which the scholar has become accustomed to mercy, like rain and light and revelation. They make their desire where the blessings have continued. And "that you will be pleased with it" means: you love it and your eyes find comfort in it. The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, loved the Kaaba and the turning away from the House of Al-Maqdis for three reasons that have been narrated. Mujahid said: For the saying of the Jews: "Muhammad does not know his religion until he follows us." Ibn Abbas said: And to attain the qiblah of Ibrahim, peace be upon him. Al-Rabi' and Al-Suddi said: And to win over the Arabs for their love of the Kaaba. Abdullah ibn Umar said: The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, directed himself and his nation toward the Mizab of the Kaaba. Ibn Abbas and others said: Rather, he was directed toward the entire House. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: The Mizab is the qiblah of Medina and the Levant, and there the qiblah of the people of Andalusia is without a doubt. There is no disagreement that the Kaaba is a qiblah from every horizon. And His saying, exalted and glorified is He: "So turn your face toward the Sacred Mosque," is a command to turn and an abrogation of the qiblah of the Levant. It was said: "This was revealed to the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, while he was in the noon prayer after two rak'ahs of it, and he turned in prayer." Abu Al-Faraj mentioned that Abbas ibn Nahik was with the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, in this prayer. It was said: This verse was revealed not during prayer, and the first prayer toward the Kaaba was the afternoon prayer. And "toward" is in the accusative case as an adverb, and it resembles the object due to the occurrence of the action upon it. Its meaning is: toward and facing. Ibn Ahmar said: "They rush toward a gathering while it is binding, the knot has tightened from its sending forth the bonds." And others said: "I say to Umm Zinba'a: Stand up, the fronts of the camels toward Banu Tamim." And Al-Luqayt said: "And indeed, a horror has overshadowed you from the direction of your mouth, a horror that has darkness that overwhelms you in pieces." And others said: "Is there no one to convey to Amr a messenger? And what will the message benefit Amr?"

'And wherever you may be, turn your faces towards it.' This is a command for the community that abrogates previous rulings. Dawood ibn Abi Hind said: In the readings of Ibn Mas'ud, 'Turn your face towards the Sacred Mosque.' Muhammad ibn Talhah said: In it, 'Turn your faces towards it.' Ibn Abi Abla read: 'Turn your faces towards it.' And 'Those who were given the Scripture': the Jews and the Christians. Al-Suddi said: The intended meaning is the Jews. The first is more apparent. The meaning is that the Jews and the Christians know that the Kaaba is the qibla of Ibrahim, the leader of the nations, and that facing it is the truth that is obligatory upon all, following Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, whom they find in their books. Ibn Amer, Hamzah, and Al-Kisai read: 'Regarding what you do' with a 'taa' indicating address, either referring to the people of the Scripture or the community of Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him. In both cases, it indicates that Allah, glorified and exalted is He, does not neglect the servants nor is He heedless of them, and He included therein a warning. The others read with a 'yaa' from below. And His saying, 'And if you were to come,' indicates that Allah, glorified and exalted is He, informed His Prophet when the Jews said to him: 'Turn back to the direction of Bayt al-Maqdis and we will believe in you,' as a deception from them that they do not follow him in a qibla, meaning in general, because some of them did follow, like Abdullah ibn Salam and others, and that they do not adhere to his religion, meaning do not listen to them. The verse here is a sign. The response to 'if' is like the response to 'if only,' and it is the opposite in that 'if only' requires continuity and occurrence, while 'if' requires reception, as both precede the meaning of the oath. The response is indeed for the oath, not that one of the two letters takes the place of the other. This is the saying of Sibawayh. And His saying, 'And you are not a follower of their qibla,' is a statement that contains a command, meaning do not lean towards any of that. And His saying, 'And not some of them,' the verse, Al-Suddi and Ibn Zayd said: The meaning is that the Jews do not follow the qibla of the Christians, nor do the Christians follow the qibla of the Jews. This indicates their disagreement and their divergence and their misguidance. Others said: The meaning of the verse is: And not those who have embraced Islam among them follow the qibla of those who have not embraced Islam, nor do those who have not embraced Islam follow the qibla of those who have embraced Islam. The first is more apparent in the parts. And the qibla of the Christians is the east, and the qibla of the Jews is Bayt al-Maqdis. And His saying, 'And if you were to follow,' the verse, is addressed to the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, and the intended meaning is his community. And what has come from this type that implies a potential wrongdoing from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, is to be understood as referring to his community, due to the infallibility of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him. We have established that this cannot be from him, for the intended meaning is one who could possibly do that, and the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, was addressed to emphasize the matter. And 'the desires' is the plural of 'desire,' and it is not pluralized as 'ahwa'iya.' They have said: 'Nadi' and 'andiya.' The poet said: 'On a night of Jumada with its 'andiya' * * * the dog cannot see in its darkness the thorns.

The desire of the soul is only used most often in matters that have no good in them. It may also be used in good, conditioned by it, as Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said regarding the captives of Badr: 'The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, preferred what Abu Bakr said.' And 'if' is a particle whose meaning is: that what has been mentioned is established.