page_title: Islamic garden
section_title: Sensory plants
hierarchical_section_title: Islamic garden / Elements / Sensory plants
context_page_description: An Islamic garden is generally an expressive estate of land that includes themes of water and shade. Their most identifiable architectural design reflects the Charbagh quadrilateral layout with four smaller gardens divided by walkways or flowing water. Unlike English gardens, which are often designed for walking, Islamic gardens are intended for rest, reflection, and contemplation. A major focus of the Islamic gardens was to provide a sensory experience, which was accomplished through the use of water and aromatic plants.
  Before Islam had expanded to other climates, these gardens were historically used to provide respite from a hot and arid environment. They encompassed a wide variety of forms and purposes which no longer exist. The Qur'an has many references to gardens and states that gardens are used as an earthly analogue for the life in paradise which is promised to believers:
  Allah has promised to the believing men and the believing women gardens, beneath which rivers flow, to abide in them, and goodly dwellings in gardens of perpetual abode; and best of all is Allah's goodly pleasure; that is the grand achievement. – Qur'an 9.72
context_section_description: Irrigation and fertile soil were used to support a botanical variety which could not otherwise exist in a dry climate. Many of the extant gardens do not contain the same vegetation as when they were first created, due to the lack of botanical accuracy in written texts. Historical texts tended to focus on the sensory experience, rather than details of the agriculture. There is, however, record of various fruit-bearing trees and flowers that contributed to the aromatic aspect of the garden, such as cherries, peaches, almonds, jasmine, roses, narcissi, violets, and lilies. According to the medico-botanical literature, many plants in the Islamic garden produce therapeutic and erotic aromatics.
  Muslim scientist al-Ghazzi, who believed in the healing powers of nature, experimented with medicinal plants and wrote extensively on scented plants. A garden retreat was often a "royal" prescription for treating headaches and fevers. The patient was advised to "remain in cool areas, surrounded by plants that have cooling effects such as sandalwood trees and camphor trees."
  Yunani medicine explains the role of scent as a mood booster, describing scent as "the food of the spirit". Scent enhances one's perceptions, stirs memories, and makes the experience of visiting the garden more personal and intimate. Islamic medico-botanical literature suggests the erotic nature of some aromatic plants, and medieval Muslim poets note the role of scents in love games. Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah reflects the scents worn by lovers to attract each other, and the presence of aromatic bouquets that provides sensual pleasures in garden spaces.
  Exotic plants were also sought by royalty for their exclusivity as status symbols, to signify the power and wealth of the country. Examples of exotic plants found in royal gardens include pomegranates, Dunaqāl figs, a variety of pears, bananas, sugar cane and apples, which provided a rare taste. By the tenth century, the royal gardens of the Umayyads at Cordova were at the forefront of botanical gardens, experimenting with seeds, cuttings, and roots brought from the outermost reaches of the known world.
caption: Gulistan (1258), a classical Persian manuscript depicting a flowering tree in a garden
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