﴿ أَمْ حَسِبْتَ أَنَّ أَصْحَٰبَ ٱلْكَهْفِ وَٱلرَّقِيمِ كَانُوا۟ مِنْ ءَايَٰتِنَا عَجَبًا ﴾

“[AND SINCE the life of this world is but a test, dost thou [really] think that [the parable of] the Men of the Cave and of [their devotion to] the scriptures could be deemed more wondrous than any [other] of Our messages?”

�the inscription (al-raqīm)�He said:Al-Raqīm is their leader who is called �the dog� but they do not actually have a dog. God, Exalted is He, said Their dog [lay] stretching his two forelegs on the threshold [18:18]. That is, stretching his two forelegs in command and prohibition. ʿIkrima said, �al-raqīm is the word for inkwell in the Byzantine tongue.� Ḥasan said, �al-Raqīm is the valley in which the Cave is situated�, while Kaʿb said, �al-raqīm is a lead tablet on which is inscribed their names, their genealogies, their religion and from whom they fled.� Al-waṣīd, however, is the threshold.His words, Exalted is He: