Quotation zu Kohelet 1:3

The phrase "under the sun" indicates one of the two perspectives which are contrasted in the Book of Kohelet. "Under the sun" is the practical world of getting and spending, of looking out for our own interests. This is the perspective which we naturally assume. The other perspective which could be denoted as the "world beyond", or the "world to come" or simply "that world" is not separated from this world in time or space, but it derives from a different way of looking at things. In that world, what is right assumes more importance than what maximizes our individual benefit. The same events can be understood from the perspective of this world or from that world, from the perspective of what is under the sun or what is beyond the usual perspective of concern for our self-interest.