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Religious Reference

In addition, the images of paradise are abound in poetry. The admonitory reference to Iram, a king who attempted to rival paradise by building the Garden of Iram in his kingdom, captured the imagination of poets in the Islamic world. The description of garden in poetry provide the archetypal garden of paradise. Pre-Islamic and Umayyad cultures imagined serene and rich gardens of paradise that provided an oasis in the arid environment in which they often lived.[4] Persian garden, based on the Zoroastrians myth, is a prototype of the garden of water and plants. Water is also an essential aspect of this Paradise for the righteous.[4] The water in the garden represents Kausar, the river or lake in paradise, and only the righteous deserve to drink. Water represents God's benevolence to his people and it is a necessity for survival for humans and nature.[4] Water is also viewed as a symbol of mercy from God due to its very close association with rain and water in the Qur'an.[1] Conversely, water can be seen as a punishment from God through floods and other natural disasters.[4] The gardener is the earthly reflection of Rizvan, the gardener of Paradise, and the “chinar” (Platanus) is refer to the Tuba tree, a tree that grows in heaven.

Convey Power

Islamic gardens are often used to convey a sense of power. Garden is the symbol for the omnipotence of the king. In order to convey royal power, they try to make a connection between the “garden of paradise” and “garden of the king.”