P. 26. _Preserved Book._--Mohammad taught that every “revelation” in the Korān was but a transcript from the pages of a great book, known as the “_Mother of the Book_,” “preserved” under the throne of God. The sentence, _Let none touch it but the purified_, is commonly inscribed upon the cover of the Korān. _Those brought nearest_, _i.e._ the _outstrippers_, or prophets. * * * * * P. 27. THE MERCIFUL.--_Then which of the bounties_, etc. A refrain or burden of this kind is rare in the Korān, and is in no other instance so often repeated. The _twain_ are mankind and the jinn (or genii). “Jinn,” it may be remarked, is a plural, and the singular is “jinni” (a genius), for the masculine, and “jinnīyeh” for the feminine. _The two Easts._ The rising-places of the sun in summer and winter; _the two Wests_, the corresponding setting-places. P. 28. _Two notables_, or “weighty ones,” _i.e._ men and jinn. * * * * * P. 32. THE UNITY.--This profession of faith is held by Muslims to be equal in value to a third of the whole Korān. * * * * * P. 33. THE FĀTIHAH, or “Opening” chapter, so called because it is placed at the beginning of the authorised arrangement of the Korān. It is the _Paternoster_ of Islam, and is repeated many times in the five daily prayers of the Muslims, and on every solemn occasion. THE MEKKA SPEECHES. II.--THE RHETORICAL PERIOD. P. 39. THE KINGDOM. _Say_: _i.e._ God bids Mohammad say. It must never be forgotten that Mohammad is only supposed to recite what God wrote in the Preserved Book (see note to p. 26) before the world began. * * * * * P. 41. THE MOON.--_Sign_, _i.e._ miracle, which Mohammad insistently declared his inability to work. _The Summoner_: the archangel Isrāfīl. _Called it a lie_, _i.e._ denied the doctrine of one God and of a Day of Judgment. P. 42. _Ad_: an ancient Arab people, destroyed in prehistoric days. See LANE: _Selections from the Kur-ān_, 60-62. _Thamūd_: another tribe, which experienced a similar fate. See LANE, _ibid._ * * * * * P. 45. K.--As to the meaning of this letter of the Arabic alphabet, which gives a title to this speech, in the words of the Muslim commentator, “God alone knoweth what He meaneth by it.” _A warner from among themselves._ The Mekkans were offended that an angel was not sent to them as an apostle, instead of a mere man. _Marvellous thing_: the Resurrection. P. 46. _The people of Tubba'_: the Himyarites of Arabia Felix. _A driver and a witness._--Two angels, who are supposed to carry on the ensuing colloquy with God. P. 48. _A tyrant._--Mohammad was sent to warn, not to compel the obedience and faith of his people. * * * * * P. 49. Y. S.--See note to K above, and to p. 87 below. P. 50. _Plain Exemplar_: the _Preserved Book_, mentioned above (note to p. 26).