A reflection on Surah Al-Mulk 67:5 - the three purposes scholars describe for the stars, and the reminder that beauty in creation always comes paired with accountability.
Surah Al-Mulk turns from the vastness of the seven heavens to something more familiar and nightly visible - the stars themselves.
Beauty With Purpose
Allah (SWT) says:
وَلَقَدْ زَيَّنَّا ٱلسَّمَآءَ ٱلدُّنْيَا بِمَصَـٰبِيحَ وَجَعَلْنَـٰهَا رُجُومًا لِّلشَّيَـٰطِينِ ۖ وَأَعْتَدْنَا لَهُمْ عَذَابَ ٱلسَّعِيرِ
"And We have certainly beautified the nearest heaven with lamps [i.e., stars] and have made [from] them what is thrown at the devils1 and have prepared for them the punishment of the Blaze." (Surah Al-Mulk 67:5)
Scholars describe three purposes for the stars: adornment for the sky, missiles against devils who attempt to steal information from the heavens, and guidance for travellers navigating land and sea. Beauty, in this ayah, is never separated from purpose or from consequence.
Proofs We Overlook
We often search for signs of Allah (SWT) in the extraordinary, while the moon and stars, visible almost every night, sit overlooked. We remind our students that these are not decoration; they are among the clearest proofs of a Creator whose design has no flaw, and a call to contemplation that leads, eventually, to the Hereafter.
May Allah (SWT) let the sky above us be a constant reminder of His majesty, not a familiar sight we stop truly seeing. Ameen.