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Paradise is an English word from Persian roots that is generally identified with the Garden of Eden or with Heaven. Originally meaning a walled garden or royal hunting grounds, the term entered Jewish (and eventually Christian) beliefs as a Greek translation for the Garden of Eden in the Septuagint. It is sometimes also identified with the bosom of Abraham, the abode of the righteous dead awaiting Judgment Day. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus tells a criminal crucified alongside him that they will be together in paradise that day.

Contents 1 Etymology 2 Paradise gardens 3 Religious use 4 References 5 See also 6 External links

The word "paradise" entered English from the French "paradis", inherited from the Latin "paradisus", which was in turn borrowed from the Greek paradeisos (royal garden).^[1] The root of the Greek word comes from the Avestan word pairidaêza-, meaning (a walled enclosure),^[2] which is a compound of pairi- (around), a cognate of the Greek περί peri-, and -diz (to create, make), a cognate of the English dough. An associated word is the Sanskrit word paradesha which literally means supreme country.

The word was also entered Semitic languages: Akkadian pardesu, Arabic firdaws (فردوس), Aramaic pardaysa (ܦܪܕܝܣܐ), and Hebrew pardes.^[3]

Sources as early as Xenophon in his Anabasis report the famed Persian "paradise" garden. In Achaemenid Persia, possibly earlier (in Mesopotamia?), the term was not just applied to 'landscaped' gardens but especially to royal hunting grounds, the earliest form of wildlife reserve, destined for hunting as a sport; in various cultures in contact with nature, paradise is portrayed as eternal hunting ground, not just in relatively primitive cultures (e.g. native American) but also in more advanced, essentially agricultural civilisations, e.g. the Egyptian Reed fields and the Greek Elysian fields.

The form of the word that is now understood as "heaven or any environment that is ultimately pleasurable" is derived from the Greek παράδεισος paradeisos used in the Septuagint Bible translation to mean the Garden of Eden. In the New Testament, paradise meant a paradise restored on Earth (Matthew chapter 5, verse 5 - the meek shall inherit the earth), though no reference is made to what condition (paradisaical or otherwise) the Earth would or should be in. However, certain sects actually attempted to recreate the garden of Eden, e.g. the nudist Adamites. On the cross, Jesus told Dismas that he would be with him in paradeisos, referring to heaven or to the bosom of Abraham.

In Islam, Paradise is used instead of Heaven to describe the ultimate pleasurable place after death. Heaven in Islam is used to describe the Universe.

In the 2nd century AD, Irenaeus distinguished paradise from heaven. In Against Heresies, he wrote that only those deemed worthy would inherit a home in heaven, while others would enjoy paradise, and the rest live in the restored Jerusalem. Origen likewise distinguished paradise from heaven, describing paradise as the earthly "school" for souls of the righteous dead, preparing them for their ascent through the celestial spheres to heaven.^[4]

• Brave New World novel by Aldous Huxley
• Celtic Park
• Elysium
• Enlightenment
• Heaven
• Third Heaven
• Jannah Muslim concept of paradise
• Nature
• Nirvana
• Paradise garden
• Paradise Lost epic poem by John Milton
• Spirit World (Mormonism)
• Utopia
• Willow Grove Park, named Paradise

• Etymology OnLine
• Aquinas on Paradise (parallel Latin English text)

Concepts of Heaven
Christian	Kingdom of God | Garden of Eden · Paradise | New Jerusalem | Pearly gates
Jewish	Gan Eden | Olam Haba
Islamic	Jannah | Houri | Sidrat al-Muntaha
Mormon	Celestial Kingdom | Spirit world
Ancient Greek	Elysium | Empyrean | Hesperides
Celtic	Annwn | Tír na nÓg | Mag Mell
Norse	Valhalla | Asgard
Indo-European	Paradise | Svarga | Aaru | The Summerland | Myth of Er | Fortunate Isles
Related concepts	Nirvana | Millennialism | Utopianism | Golden Age | Arcadia | The guf | Well of souls