Surah 55. Ar-Rahman, Ayah 48

According to Tabari, the noun fann (lit., "mode" or "manner") is in this case synonymous with lawn ("colour" or "hue"). Afnan is a double plural, and hence denotes "many hues"; and since - as pointed out in the Taj al-'Arus - one of the several accepted meanings of fann is "a wonderful thing", afnan can also be understood as "many wonderful things". The rendering adopted by me combines both these interpretations. - As regards the indescribable nature of what is termed "paradise", see 32:17 and the corresponding note [15].