And “O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise and eat from wherever you will but do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers.” (Qur’an 7:19)
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We need to first understand why these questions come about and the possible intentions behind them. Especially in light of very clear verses of the Qur’an.
كِتَٰبٌ أَنزَلۡنَٰهُ إِلَيۡكَ مُبَٰرَك لِّيَدَّبَّرُوٓاْ ءَايَٰتِهِۦ وَلِيَتَذَكَّرَ أُوْلُواْ ٱلۡأَلۡبَٰبِ
“(This is) a blessed Book which We have revealed to you, (O Muhammed), that they might reflect upon its verses and that those of understanding would be reminded.” (Qur’an 38:29)
The first thing to say is that all who sincerely ponder upon the Qur’an will be rewarded. It is a very great act of worship.
The second is to say that all of us approach the Qur’an with our presuppositons. A presupposition is an implicit, underlying assumption about the world that a speaker takes for granted as true for an utterance to make sense in context.
So, if someone approaches the Qur’an with the idea in mind that miracles do not take place or the current Ijmāʿin science is the end, all be all, they will interpret the Qur’an in accord with this presupposition.
Others may feel the need to interpret the Qur’an in such a way in light of what they see as verses that could not be reconciled otherwise.
The Qur’an is clear that both Adam and his wife were in paradise (Jannah). Yet, this word literally means ‘garden’.
“O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise and eat there in abundance from wherever you will. But do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers.” (Qur’an 2:35)
“So he brought about their fall through deception. And when they tasted of the tree, their nakedness was exposed to them, prompting them to cover themselves with leaves from Paradise. Then their Lord called out to them, “Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you that Satan is your sworn enemy?” (Qur’an 7:22)
“O children of Adam! Do not let Satan deceive you as he tempted your parents out of Paradise and caused their cover to be removed in order to expose their nakedness. Surely he and his soldiers watch you from where you cannot see them. We have made the devils allies of those who disbelieve.” (Qur’an 7:27)
And “O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise and eat from wherever you will; but do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers.” (Qur’an 7:19)
The first objection to Adam-alayi salam being created in the heavenly paradise rather than a garden on Earth.
The Satan’s Access Argument Examined.
So, whether this means the Paradise that the righteous go to when they die, or it means some place on the Earth that Adam (alayi salam) was expelled from, raises questions.
The first question it raises is as follows:
“Allah said, “Then get down from Paradise! It is not for you to be arrogant here. So get out! You are truly one of the disgraced.” (Qur’an 7:13) clearly states that Iblis was already in the same “Jannah” as Adam before his expulsion.
This verse makes it clear that Iblis was removed from Paradise. Yet, we have the following verse:
“But Satan caused them to slip out of it and removed them from that in which they had been. And We said, “Go down, as enemies to one another, and you will have upon the earth a place of settlement and provision for a time.” (Qur’an 2:36)
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“O children of Adam! Do not let Satan deceive you as he tempted your parents out of Paradise and caused their cover to be removed in order to expose their nakedness. Surely he and his soldiers watch you from where you cannot see them. We have made the devils allies of those who disbelieve.” (Qur’an 7:27)
So how does Iblis have access to paradise? (Either the place the righteous go to when they die or the place on Earth that Adam -alayi salam was expelled from)
One approach that is used is to suggest that the satan that tempted Adam -alayi salam was not necessarily Iblis, but rather another Jinn that decided to go down the path of rebellion and perversion.
“And thus did We make for every prophet an enemy, the Shaitans from among men and jinn, some of them suggesting to others varnished falsehood to deceive (them), and had your Lord pleased they would not have done it, therefore leave them and that which they forge And that the hearts of those who do not believe in the hereafter may incline to it and that they may be well pleased with it and that they may earn what they are going to earn (of evil).” (Qur’an 112:113)
“He said: Get out of this (state), despised, driven away; whoever of them will follow you, I will certainly fill hell with you all.” (Qur’an 7:18)
“But Satan caused them to slip out of it and removed them from that in which they had been. And We said, “Go down, as enemies to one another, and you will have upon the earth a place of settlement and provision for a time.” (Qur’an 2:36)
“We said, “Descend all of you! Then when guidance comes to you from Me, whoever follows it, there will be no fear for them, nor will they grieve.” (Qur’an 2:38)
So, as Iblis was an inhabitant of heaven before he became a shaitan, it is reasoned that the jinn that tempted Adam -alayi salam was an inhabitant of heaven before he became a shaitan.
Some will argue that this cannot be the case as Iblis is the shaitan identified in the following verse:
“O children of Adam! Do not let Satan deceive you as he tempted your parents out of Paradise and caused their cover to be removed in order to expose their nakedness. Surely he and his soldiers watch you from where you cannot see them. We have made the devils allies of those who disbelieve.” (Qur’an 7:27)
This may not mean Iblis directly but by way of proxy. “He and his soldiers.”
The two “Descents” Hubut (هبوط) approach.
Another way Muslim commentators have tried to approach this is to suggest we distinguish between two different “descents” or “expulsions”:
- First Descent (Iblis): Iblis is expelled from the presence of divine mercy and from the company of the angels. However, he is not immediately removed from the physical location of the Garden. He lingers, seeking revenge.
- Second Descent (Adam): After successfully tempting Adam, both Adam and Iblis are then commanded to descend to earth.
This view holds that Iblis’s expulsion in Qur’an 7:13 is primarily a spiritual and relational expulsion (loss of status), while his physical departure from the Garden happens simultaneously with Adam in Qur’an 2:36 and Qur’an 7:24.
The Two Descents approach creates a theologically unacceptable inconsistency:
- Iblis: Commits direct, arrogant rebellion against Allah’s explicit command. Refuses to prostrate. Challenges Allah openly. His punishment? He is “expelled” but allowed to loiter around in the Garden long enough to tempt Adam -alayhi salam.
- Adam: Makes a mistake. He forgets. He is weak. He is then deceived by the very being Allah allegedly allowed to remain. His punishment? Immediate removal. No lingering.
This portrayal makes Allah appear inconsistent. May Allah forgive us. The rebel gets deferment; the one who stumbles gets the hammer. This is not the Allah of the Quran, who is Al-‘Adl (The Just) and Al-Rahman (The Most Merciful).
Our objection is not just logical; it is theological dynamite. It exposes that the “two descents” harmonization, far from solving the problem, actually creates a worse one: a morally problematic portrait of divine justice.
كيف قام الشيطان بأغواء آدم عليه السلام؟أين كانت جنة آدم عليه السلام؟وهل يمكن أن يدخلها ابليس؟
This is the way that Shaykh Ahmed Al Khalili (H) has answered the above question:
The second objection to Adam-alayi salam being created in the heavenly paradise rather than a garden on Earth.
If Adam-alayhi salam is a special creation of paradise, then how did mud make its way into heaven?
˹Remember, O Prophet˺ , when your Lord said to the angels, “I am going to create a human being from sounding clay moulded from black mud.” (Qur’an 15:28)
This is a rather odd objection.
Why couldn’t Allah have created the dust and clay for Adam within Paradise itself? For a being who creates the entire universe from nothing (“Be, and it is”), Allah could have willed into existence a handful of dust within the celestial garden just as easily as He could have on earth.
The Qur’an has already established the following:
“O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise and eat there in abundance from wherever you will. But do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers.” (Qur’an 2:35)
“So he brought about their fall through deception. And when they tasted of the tree, their nakedness was exposed to them, prompting them to cover themselves with leaves from Paradise. Then their Lord called out to them, “Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you that Satan is your sworn enemy?” (Qur’an 7:22)
“The description of Paradise promised to the righteous is that in it are rivers of fresh water, rivers of milk that never changes in taste, rivers of wine delicious to drink, and rivers of pure honey. There they will ˹also˺ have all kinds of fruit, and forgiveness from their Lord. ˹Can they be˺ like those who will stay in the Fire forever, left to drink boiling water that will tear apart their insides?.” (Qur’an 47:15)
Can you imagine!? Rivers of milk. Rivers of wine! Rivers of pure honey! Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory eat your heart out!
“And We will provide them with whatever fruit or meat they desire.” (Qur’an 52:22)
“˹They will also be served˺ any fruit they choose and meat from any bird they desire.” (Qur’an 56:20-21)
Allah (swt) has described the jannah as the place where Adam-alayi salam was eating. Does this then follow that he needed to relieve himself? Allah (swt) has described the jannah as a place that has trees, and it has leaves that Adam -alayhi salam used to cover his nakedness.
Therefore, the presence of these materials does not, in itself, prove the location was earthly. The miracle of creation is not bound by our physical laws of geology.
Just as one can have a garden on earth they can have a garden in heaven. Just as we can have trees and rivers on earth we can them in heaven.
The third objection to Adam-alayi salam being created in the heavenly paradise rather than a garden on Earth.
“And when your Lord said to the angels, I am going to place in the earth a khalif, they said: Will You place in it such as shall make mischief in it and shed blood, and we celebrate Your praise and extol Your holiness? He said: Surely I know what you do not know.” (Qur’an 2:30)
It is argued that this verse somehow contradicts Allah’s initial purpose of sending a khalif to the Earth. The argument is that if Allah (swt) decided in the beginning to send Adam-alayhi salam to the Earth, then why does Allah (swt) need an excuse to send him down to earth as a punishment?
In other words, if Adam -alayi salam had not slipped, he would not have been sent to the Earth.
The first point is that nowhere does the Qur’an say that the khilafa is for one who does not sin. Nowhere does it state that to be an Imam for others you need to be free from sin.
We have established this in our article here:
The second point is that Allah (swt) knows all things including what would happen between Adam-alayhi salam and his nemesis. Also, Allah (swt) knew what the selection of adam-alayi salam would be. To argue against this is to argue against the Qur’an itself. To argue against what Allah (swt) said about himself here:
“He is the First and the Last, the Most High and Most Near, and He has knowledge of all things.” (Qur’an 57:3)
“How could He not know His Own creation? For He is the Most Subtle, All-Aware.” (Qur’an 67:14)
Questions that must be asked of those who believe the garden was a place on Earth.
- Where is the location of this place?
- Can humans re-enter this location? If not, why not?
Why does Allah (swt) need to inform Adam-alayi salam of the following:
But Satan caused them to slip out of it and removed them from that in which they had been. And We said, “Go down, as enemies to one another, and you will have upon the earth a place of settlement and provision for a time.” (Qur’an 2:36)
He said, ‘Descend, being enemies to one another. And on the earth, for you is a place of settlement and enjoyment for a time.’ He said, ‘Therein you will live, and therein you will die, and from it you will be brought forth.'” (Quran 7:24-25)
If the earth was their default location, why do they need to be informed of it?
If you enjoyed this article you may find our other entries interesting.
May Allah Guide the Ummah.
May Allah Forgive the Ummah.
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