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Of the 114 chapters in the Quran, 86 are classified as Meccan, as they were revealed before the Hijrah, while 28 are Medinan, as they were revealed after. This classification is only approximate in regard to the location of revelation; any chapter revealed after migration of Muhammad to Medina (Hijrah) is termed Medinan and any revealed before that event is termed Meccan. However, some Meccan surahs contain Medinian verses (verses revealed after the Hijrah) and vice versa. Whether a surah is Medinian or Meccan depends on if the beginning of the surah was revealed before or after the Hijrah.
The Meccan chapters generally deal with faith and scenes of the Hereafter while the Medinan chapters are more concerned with organizing the social life of the nascent Muslim community and leading Muslims to the goal of darul islam by showing strength towards the unbelievers. Except for surah At-Tawbah, all chapters or surahs commence with "In the Name of Allah, Ar-Rahman (The Beneficent), Ar-Rahim (The Merciful)". This formula is known as the Basmala and denotes the boundaries between chapters. The chapters are arranged roughly in order of descending size; therefore the arrangement of the Quran is neither chronological nor thematic. Surahs (chapters) are recited during the standing portions (Qiyam) of Muslim prayers. Surah Al-Fatiha, the first chapter of the Quran, is recited in every unit of prayer and some units of prayer also involve recitation of all or part of any other surah.
The word surah was used at the time of Muhammad as a term with the meaning of a portion or a set of verses of the Quran. This is evidenced by the appearance of the word surah in multiple locations in the Quran such as verse 24:1: "A surah that We have sent down and appointed, and We have sent down in it signs, clear signs, that haply you will remember."[Quran 24:1] (see also verses 2:23, 9:64, 86, 124, 127, 10:38, and 47:20). It is also mentioned in plural form in the Quran: "Or do they say, He invented it? Say, "Then bring ten surahs like it and call upon whomever you can besides God, if you are truthful."[Quran 11:13]
Arab tradition, similar to other tribal cultures of that time, was to name things according to their unique characteristics. They used this same method to name Quranic chapters. Most chapter names are found in hadith. Some were named according to their central theme, such as Al-Fatiha (The Opening) and Yusuf (Joseph), and some were named for the first word at the beginning of the chapter, such as Qaf, Ya-Sin, and ar-Rahman. Some surahs were also named according to a unique word that occurs in the chapter, such as al-Baqarah (The Cow), An-Nur (The Light), al-Nahl (The Bee), Az-Zukhruf (The Ornaments of Gold), Al-Hadid (The Iron), and Al-Ma'un (The Small Kindness).
Each chapter of the Qur'an is a well-structured unit. It is only a lack of consideration and analysis on our part that they seem disjointed and incoherent... Each chapter imparts a specific message as its central theme. The completion of this theme marks the end of the chapter. If there were no such specific conclusion intended to be dealt with in each chapter there would be no need to divide the Qur'an into chapters. Rather the whole Qur'an would be a single chapter... We see that a set of verses has been placed together and named 'surah' the way a city is built with a wall erected round it. A single wall must contain a single city in it. What is the use of a wall encompassing different cities?....[15]
The study empirically investigated the idea that Quranic verses (Surah Al-Rehman) can help manage depression. Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud (radiAllahu anhu) reported that the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said, "Everything has an adornment, and the adornment of the Qur'an is Surah Al-Rehman." Surah Al-Rehman is the most rhythmic surah of the Quran, so it was used for our experimental study. The idea of the study was drawn from the premise that music therapy helps reduce depression. The objective of the present study was to investigate the efficacy of Surah Al-Rehman for managing depression in Muslim women admitted for treatment of major depressive disorder in a psychiatry ward of a government hospital. It was hypothesized that women diagnosed with severe depression in the treatment group will have reduced level of depression as compared to control group at post-assessment level. It was further hypothesized that the amount of decrease in depression in treatment group at the post-assessment level will be greater as compared to the control group. A purposive sample of 12 female patients diagnosed with depression was randomly assigned to the treatment group (n = 6) and control group (n = 6). Assessment was done at pre- and post-level by using Beck Depression Inventory-II. Both groups did not significantly differ on pre-assessment depression scores. Twelve structured group sessions of 22 min, two times a day, were conducted for a period of 4 weeks with the groups. Treatment group was made to listen to Surah Al-Rehman recited by Qari Abdul Basit, and control group was exposed to music used for relaxation and treatment of depression. Wilcoxon signed ranks test was used to find the within-group differences between pre- and post-assessment scores. Both groups had decreased level of depression at post-assessment level, so it was important to assess if there was any difference in level of decrease. Mann-Whitney U test for comparison of groups on level of decrease at the post-assessment level endorsed that treatment group had significantly greater decrease than control group on depression. Our study highlights the efficacy of Surah Al-Rehman as a remedy to reduce depression. The Holy Quran intones, "This sacred book is 'shifa' for its followers." Hence, we recommend that researchers should focus on finding remedies for other psychological and physical diseases from Quranic verses. An exploration of possible mechanism (such as activated cognitions or associated emotions while listening to Quran) through which effects of recitation are reached, can also be subject of investigation for forthcoming studies.
Name
The Surah takes its name al-Mulk from the very first sentence.
Period of Revelation
It could not be known from any authentic tradition when this Surah was revealed, but the subject matter and the style indicate that it is one of the earliest Surahs to be revealed at Makkah.
Theme and Subject Matter
In this surah, on the one hand, the teachings of Islam have been introduced briefly, and, on the other, the people living in heedlessness have been aroused from their slumber in a most effective way. A characteristic of the earliest surahs of the Makkan period is that they present the entire teachings of Islam and the object of the Holy Prophet's mission, not in detail, but briefly, so that they are assimilated by the people easily. Moreover, they are particularly directed to make the people shun heedlessness, to make them think, and to arouse their dormant conscience.
In the first five verses man has been made to realize that the universe in which he lives is a most well organized and fortified Kingdom in which he cannot detect any fault, any weakness or flaw, how ever hard he may try to probe. This Kingdom has been brought from nothing into existence by Allah Almighty Himself and All the powers of controlling, administering and ruling it are also entirely in Allah's hand and His power is infinite. Besides, man has also been told that in this wise system he has not been created without a purpose, but he has been sent here for a test and in this test he can succeed only by his righteous deeds and conduct.
In vv. 6-11, dreadful consequences of disbelief which will appear in the Hereafter have been mentioned, and the people told that Allah, by sending His Prophets, has warned them of these consequences in this very world, as if to say "Now, if you do not believe in what the Prophets say and correct your attitude and behavior accordingly, in the Hereafter you will yourself have to admit that you really deserved the punishment that was being meted out to you."
In vv. 12-l4, the truth that has been impressed on the minds is that the Creator cannot be unaware of His creation, as if to say: "He is aware of each open and hidden secret of yours, even of the innermost ideas of your hearts. Hence, the right basis of morality is that man should avoid evil, fearing the accountability of the unseen God, whether in the world there is a power to take him to task for this or not, and whether in the world there is a possibility of being harmed by such a power or not. Those who adopt such a conduct in the world alone will deserve forgiveness and a rich reward in the Hereafter."
In vv. 15-23, making allusions, one after the other to those common truths of daily occurrence, which man does not regard as worthy of much attention, he has been invited to consider them seriously. It has been said: "Look: the earth on which you move about with full satisfaction and peace of mind, and from which you obtain your sustenance has been subdued for you by Allah; otherwise this earth might at any time start shaking suddenly so as to cause your destruction, or a typhoon might occur, which may annihilate you completely. Look at the birds that fly above you; it is only Allah Who is sustaining them in the air. Look at your own means and resources: if Allah wills to inflict you with a scourge, none can save you from it; and if Allah wills to close the doors of sustenance on you, none can open them for you. These things are there to make you aware of the truth, but you see them like animals, which are unable to draw conclusions from observations, and you do not use your sight, hearing and minds which Allah has bestowed on you as men; that is why you do not see the right way."
In vv. 24-27, it has been said: "You have ultimately to appear before your God in any case. It is not for the Prophet to tell you the exact time and date of the event. His only duty is to warn you beforehand of its inevitable occurrence. Today you do not listen to him and demand that he should cause the event to occur and appear prematurely before you; but when it does occur, and you see it with your own eyes, you will then be astounded. Then, it will be said to you "This is the very thing you were calling to be hastened."
In vv. 28-29 replies have been given to what the disbelievers of Makkah said against the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) and his Companions. They cursed the Holy Prophet and prayed for his and the believers destruction. To this it has been said: "Whether those who call you to the right way are destroyed, or shown mercy by Allah, how will their fate change your destiny? You should look after yourselves and consider who would save you if you were overtaken by the scourge of God? You regard those who believe in God and put their trust in Him as the misguided. A time will come when it will become evident as to who was misguided in actual truth.
In conclusion, the people have been asked this question and left to ponder over it "If the water which has come out from the earth at some place in the desert or hill country of Arabia and upon which depends your whole life activity, should sink and vanish underground, who beside Allah can restore to you this life giving water?"