The Majestic Quran

55. Ar-Rahman The Most Kind This Makkan chapter begins with the most beautiful name of God: Ar-Rahman, the Kind. The beautiful names of God are word- portraits of the loving and caring Lord. Each portrays an aspect of majesty. Ar-Rahman as a word-portrait shows countless gifts, bounties and favours of God and asks a simple question: “So which favours of your Lord will you deny?” This refrain is repeated thirty-one times after mentioning two favours, so effectively sixty- two favours of God are listed in this chapter. People are challenged about how they deny the Majestic, Creative, Almighty and Powerful Lord. Sells hints to the mystery of the refrain, which “resounds through the chapter each time as a reminder of the creative re-duplication of compassion, tying that core message into the morphology and the acoustics of language itself” ( Approaching the Quran ). This refrain is in a form of a question, but at a deeper level it’s a command. This is the Quranic style, which avoids giving direct instruction but makes the reader think; can you imagine that? Or have you seen that? Do you know? The question also invites agreement, since who can deny the obvious gifts of the Lord. The first section of the chapter draws attention to universal spiritual principles that underpin the existence of the universe, and maintain, control and regulate it. Just as the orbits of the moon and the sun are determined by God, so are the colours of flowers and the flavours of fruits. The farthest stars and planets in space are firmly under His control: “The sun and the moon move in exactly