And the western one is its opposite, meaning: it is a tree in a desert, exposed to the land, such that nothing hides it from the sun, and this is better for its oil; thus, it is not purely eastern to be called eastern, nor [purely] western to be called western, but rather it is eastern and western. Al-Tabari said on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas: It is a tree in a thicket which has surrounded it, so it is not exposed from the east nor from the west. Ibn Zayd said: It is from the trees of al-Sham (the Levant), for the trees of al-Sham are neither eastern nor western, and the trees of al-Sham are the best of trees, and it is the blessed land.
Al-Qurtubi said in the interpretation of this verse: [This is] an exaggeration regarding its beauty, purity, and quality.
2602: 14612: It gives light: 1: 2603: 14619: Light: 1: The words of the Most High: "Light upon light," meaning: the lamp's light, the glass's light, and the oil's light gathered in the niche, and because of that, it became light upon light.
It was also said: It means the Quran is a light from Allah—the Most High—to His creation, along with the proofs and signs He established for them before the descent of the Quran, so they increased by that in light upon light.
Tafsir Mujahid: (2/443).
: 14622: It neighbors it: 2: Al-Qurtubi said: Meaning it clarifies: the analogies, as an approximation for the intellects.
: 14624: He wills: 3: 2604: 14627: That: 1: Al-Qurtubi said: People differed regarding the houses here according to five opinions: First: That they are the mosques specifically for the worship of Allah—the Most High—and that they shine for the inhabitants of the heavens just as the stars shine for the inhabitants of the earth. This was said by Ibn 'Abbas, Mujahid, and al-Hasan.
