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Encyclopedia of Religion entry for
Eden
Arabic ‘Adn The word ‘Adn is not used in the Qur’an for the residence of our first parents, the term used being al-jannah, although the Muslim Commentators are agreed in calling it the Jannatu ‘Adn ‘, "the Eden". The expressions Jannatu ‘Adn;, "the Garden of Eden" and Jannatu ‘Adn, "the Gardens of Eden," occur ten times in the Qur’an, but in each case they are used for the fourth heaven, or stage, of celestial bliss. [PARADISE.] According to the Qur’an, it seems clear the Jannatu ‘Adn is considered to be a place in heaven and not a terrestrial paradise, and hence a difficulty arises as to the locality of that Eden from which Adam fell. Is it the same place as the fourth abode of celestial bliss? Or, was it a garden situated in some part of the earth? Al-Baizawi says that some people have thought this Eden was situated in the country of the Philistines, or between Faris and Kirman. But, he adds, the Garden of Eden is the Dira ‘s-Sawab, or "the House of Recompense," which is a stage in the paradise of the heavens; and that when Adam and Eve were cast out of Paradise, Adam fell on the isle of Ceylon, or Sarandib, and Eve near Jiddah in Arabia; and after a separation of 200 years. Adam was, on his repentance, conducted by the Angel Gabriel to a mountain near Makkah, where he knew his wife Eve, the mountain being thence named ‘Arafah (ie "the place of recognition): and that he afterwards retired with her to Ceylon, where they continued to propagate their species. Muhammad Tahir (Majma ‘u ‘l-Bihar, p 225), in remarking upon the fact that in the Traditions the rivers Jaihun and Jaihan are said to be rivers in "the garden", (al-Jannah), says the terms are figurative, and mean that the faith extended to those regions and made them rivers of paradise. And in another place (iden p 164) the same author says the four rivers Saihan (Jaxartes), Jaihan (Jihan), Furat (Euphrates), and Nil (Nile), are the rivers of Paradise, and that the rivers Saihan and Jaihan are not the same as Jaihun and Jaihan, but that these four rivers already mentioned originally came from Paradise to this earth of ours. 
, which al-Baizawi says means " a fixed abode." The Hebrew 
is generally understood by Hebrew scholars to mean "please" or "delight."
citations: Dictionary of Islam, Hughes
article created 2006-04-12 , last updated 2006-04-12
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