Page:Sacred Books of the East - Volume 9.djvu/29

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ⅩⅦ, 108-ⅩⅧ, 2.
the chapter of the cave.
13

of our Lord ! verily, the promise of our Lord is ever fulfilled ” — they fall down upon their beards weeping, and it increases their humility.’

110 Say, ‘ Call on God, or call on the Merciful One, whichever ye may call on Him by ; for His are the best of names[1].’

And do not say thy prayers openly, nor yet murmur them, but seek a way between these.

And say, ‘ Praise belongs to God, who has not taken to Himself a son, and has not had a partner in His kingdom, nor had a patron against (such) abasement.’ And magnify Him greatly[2]!




The Chapter of the Cave.

(ⅩⅧ. Mecca.)

In the name of the merciful and compassionate God.

Praise belongs to God, who sent down to His servant the Book, and put no crookedness therein, — straight, to give warning of keen violence from Him ; and to give the glad tidings to the believers, who do what is right, that for them is a goodly reward wherein they shall abide for ever and for


  1. The Arabs whom Mohammed addressed seem to have imagined that he meant by Allâh and Ar-raʿhmân (the Merciful One) two separate deities. The various epithets which are applied to God in the Qurʼân, such as ‘ kind,’ ‘ seeing,’ ‘ knowing,’ &c., are called by the Muslims al ʼasmâʼu ʼlʿhusnâ, ‘ the best of names,’ and are repeated in telling the beads of their rosary.
  2. This command is obeyed by the Muslims frequently pronouncing the phrase Allâhu akbar, especially as an expression of astonishment. It is the same expression as that used by the Egyptian women concerning Joseph, in Chapter Ⅻ, verse 31.