A quest for the impact of Allah’s promise on (A reflection) Persian garden building

Subject Areas : environmental management

Ali Sharghi ^{1 *} , Mohammad Teimoori ²

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Received: 2008-04-08 Accepted : 2008-10-01 Published : 2012-04-02

Keywords: Quran, Jannaaton Tajri Men Tahtahl An, garden, garden building, Persian garden, garden architecture,

Abstract :

The most beautiful description of Paradise in the Holy Koran is Jannaaton Tajri Men Tahtehal Anhaar which means "Gardens with beneath running streams". The word "tree" is not explicitly mentioned here, though it is implicitly understood. In Majma-ol Bayan by Abu Ali Amin-ol Eslam Tabarsi, we read that the word Roza means a green land in which plants grow well, and the word Jannat means a land with trees around it, and consequently Rowzaat-ol Jannaat (plural form of Rowzatol Jannat) are the gardens with trees in the middle of a green land. Many of the Persian gardens have these features. Numbers and concepts such as: Chahar Bagh (Four Gardens), Hasht Behesht (Eight Paradises), Bagh Dar Bagh (Garden in Garden), Gardesh Ab (Water Circulation), etc have their roots in the Koran terminology that gives ideas to architecture and composition of the Persian gardens and then many of the gardens in other Islamic and even the European countries. (The impact of Persian gardens in France and Spain is a proof of this claim and cannot be rejected.) However, the most effective Korans terms in Persian garden construction are Jannaaton Tajri Men Tahtehal Anhaar. Some of the annotators and theologists have clarified this phrase and considered the gardens of this world as an introduction to the Paradise. Many of the Iranian and Persian poets have compared the world to a whole garden and even some like Molavi have compared the human body and soul to a garden. Many garden builders and architectures were influenced by the mentioned Korans phrases which have tried to go beyond the described Korans gardens and created similar ones. Doubtlessly, paradise garden or with Korans terms Jannaaton Tajri Men Tahtehal Anhaar is similar to earthy, man-made gardens with the mere difference that "In Paradise, where the host of man is Allah, the worthiness is not that there are the gratification of eating, drinking and having sex, but eternally feeling that He hospitalizes you. And this is not exhausting"