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His words:

“Recite, and your Lord is the Most Generous, who taught by the pen, taught man that which he knew not.”

After declaring that He created, He named and described Himself as generous, indeed as the Most Generous, to make clear that He bestows blessings upon His creatures and brings them to praiseworthy ends. As He says elsewhere:

“Who created and proportioned, and who determined and guided.”

And as Moses, peace be upon him, said:

“Our Lord is He who gave each thing its form, then guided it.”

And as His intimate friend, peace be upon him, said:

“Who created me, and He guides me.”

Creation thus encompasses the beginning, while generosity encompasses the culmination. Likewise, in the Mother of the Quran, He says:

“Lord of the worlds,”

then says:

“The Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.”

The word karam (nobility and generosity) encompasses all fine and praiseworthy qualities. It does not mean merely giving; rather, giving completes its meaning, for doing good to others brings fine qualities to their perfection. Karam is the abundance and ready availability of goodness. Hence the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

“Do not call grapes al-karm (‘the noble one’), for al-karm is the believer’s heart.”