1.3 – the Merciful, the Compassionate

“Merciful” and “Compassionate” are the translations that A. J. Droge gives for the Arabic terms raḥmān and raḥīm. These translations also appear in the basmala that comes at the beginning of every sūra except Sūra 9. Many Muslim translations of the basmala render the Arabic terms similar to Marmaduke Pickthall’s “Beneficent” and “Merciful.” The word compassionate has the sense of “suffering with,” and readers may explore whether “suffering with” is one of the characteristics that the Quran ascribes to Allah.