and likewise in Sūrat Yā Sīn:

“And a sign for them is the night: We strip the daylight from it, and at once they are in darkness.

“And the sun runs toward its appointed resting place. That is the determination of the Almighty, the All-Knowing.

“And the moon—We have determined phases for it, until it returns like an old date-palm stalk.

“It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor does the night outstrip the day. Each is floating in an orbit.”

Thus, His words, “Each is floating in an orbit,” encompass what precedes: the night, the day and the sun, as He mentions in Sūrat al-Anbiyā’. If He has described night and day as floating, although this depends on the motion of something else, then the same applies to His description of the sun and moon as floating in dependence on the celestial sphere. There is evidence for this, but this is not the place to set it out in detail.

As for the stars, Allah has told us that they adorn the lowest heaven, as He, Most High, says:

“Indeed, We have adorned the lowest heaven with the beauty of the stars.”

And He says:

“And We have certainly adorned the lowest heaven with lamps.”

Some of those who hold that the celestial spheres are distinct from the heavens said that “the lowest heaven” here refers to the eighth sphere, in which astronomers say the fixed stars are situated. They claimed that those are the higher heavens, whereas the celestial spheres are the lower heavens. This view, however, rests on a weak foundation. Moreover, what we observe is the stars.

He, Most High, says:

“So I swear by those that recede,

“that move and withdraw.”

Receding means being concealed, which occurs before they appear in the east. Withdrawing is their return from the direction of the west. Thus, those that were concealed before rising withdraw after setting; while visible, they move, travelling from east to west.