Abstract
Paradise represents beauty and happiness in almost every culture. It has contributed to shape the history of mankind and colored public perception. This paper explores paradise gardens in Ottoman culture. The research unfolds the relevance of gardens to paradise imagery. The construction of paradise in Qur‟an frames and sets the trajectory of analysis. The investigation is furthered with reflections of the imagery on the decorative arts focusing on the relationship between garden and city in the Ottoman period and engages with the concept of Ottoman city and addresses the garden-city structure of Istanbul exemplifying the earthly projections. The aim here is to examine how the abstract perception of the heaven concept is being concretized through the Ottoman cities and gardens. To find answers to this, the study directs the attention to the sense of place originating from the images of paradise gardens and its influence on Turks especially following their conversion to Islam as depicted in various forms in the spaces of everyday life. The paper concludes by providing a survey for subject enthusiasts, including a way of thinking and a point of departure for various studies in interdisciplinary fields.
Highlights
Universalism in various civilizations and religions can be traced in the concept of Paradise cities and gardens
While defining Istanbul as „heaven on earth, fruit garden‟, Le Corbusier, described Istanbul as an artistic city together with its harmony built upon the details and the integrity of the opposing elements and diversity
Mentioning the Turkish proverb „one who builds a house should plant a tree in front‟ Le Corbusier indicated that the tree was the single most important element denoting joy, beauty and health, emphasizing how common the scale between man and nature was (Le Corbusier, 2001, p.193)
Summary
Universalism in various civilizations and religions can be traced in the concept of Paradise cities and gardens. The gardens standing out with the paradise descriptions and the related details in the Qur‟an offer connections with the shaping of the arts and the spaces of everyday life.
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