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Houri

beings in Paradise in Islamic belief

In Islam, the houri (Arabic حورية, also ḥūr or ḥūrīyah) refers to splendid beings or celestial virgins who await the saved in paradise.

Houris in paradise, riding camels. From a 15th-century Persian manuscript.

Quotes

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Quran

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  • إِنَّ أَصْحَـٰبَ ٱلْجَنَّةِ ٱلْيَوْمَ فِى شُغُلٍۢ فَـٰكِهُونَ هُمْ وَأَزْوَٰجُهُمْ فِى ظِلَـٰلٍ عَلَى ٱلْأَرَآئِكِ مُتَّكِـُٔونَ لَهُمْ فِيهَا فَـٰكِهَةٌۭ وَلَهُم مَّا يَدَّعُونَ سَلَـٰمٌۭ قَوْلًۭا مِّن رَّبٍّۢ رَّحِيمٍۢ
    • Quran 36:55–58
    • Translation:
      • Indeed, on that Day the residents of Paradise will be busy enjoying themselves. They and their spouses will be in ˹cool˺ shade, reclining on ˹canopied˺ couches. There they will have fruits and whatever they desire. And "Peace!" will be ˹their˺ greeting from the Merciful Lord.
  • وَعِندَهُمْ قَـٰصِرَٰتُ ٱلطَّرْفِ أَتْرَابٌ هَـٰذَا مَا تُوعَدُونَ لِيَوْمِ ٱلْحِسَابِ إِنَّ هَـٰذَا لَرِزْقُنَا مَا لَهُۥ مِن نَّفَادٍ
  • وَزَوَّجْنَـٰهُم بِحُورٍ عِينٍۢ يَدْعُونَ فِيهَا بِكُلِّ فَـٰكِهَةٍ ءَامِنِينَ لَا يَذُوقُونَ فِيهَا ٱلْمَوْتَ إِلَّا ٱلْمَوْتَةَ ٱلْأُولَىٰ
  • فِيهِنَّ قَـٰصِرَٰتُ ٱلطَّرْفِ لَمْ يَطْمِثْهُنَّ إِنسٌۭ قَبْلَهُمْ وَلَا جَآنٌّۭ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ كَأَنَّهُنَّ ٱلْيَاقُوتُ وَٱلْمَرْجَانُ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ هَلْ جَزَآءُ ٱلْإِحْسَـٰنِ إِلَّا ٱلْإِحْسَـٰنُ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ
    • Quran 55:56-61
    • Translation:
      • In both ˹Gardens˺ will be maidens of modest gaze, who no human or jinn has ever touched before. Then which of your Lord's favours will you both deny? Those ˹maidens˺ will be ˹as elegant˺ as rubies and coral. Then which of your Lord's favours will you both deny? Is there any reward for goodness except goodness? Then which of your Lord's favours will you both deny?
  • يَطُوفُ عَلَيْهِمْ وِلْدَٰنٌۭ مُّخَلَّدُونَ بِأَكْوَابٍۢ وَأَبَارِيقَ وَكَأْسٍۢ مِّن مَّعِينٍۢ لَّا يُصَدَّعُونَ عَنْهَا وَلَا يُنزِفُونَ وَفَـٰكِهَةٍۢ مِّمَّا يَتَخَيَّرُونَ وَلَحْمِ طَيْرٍۢ مِّمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ وَحُورٌ عِينٌۭ كَأَمْثَـٰلِ ٱللُّؤْلُؤِ ٱلْمَكْنُونِ جَزَآءًۢ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
    • Quran 56:17–24
    • Translation:
      • They will be waited on by eternal youths with cups, pitchers, and a drink ˹of pure wine˺ from a flowing stream, that will cause them neither headache nor intoxication. ˹They will also be served˺ any fruit they choose and meat from any bird they desire. And ˹they will have˺ maidens with gorgeous eyes, like pristine pearls, ˹all˺ as a reward for what they used to do.
  • إِنَّآ أَنشَأْنَـٰهُنَّ إِنشَآءًۭ فَجَعَلْنَـٰهُنَّ أَبْكَارًا عُرُبًا أَتْرَابًۭا لِّأَصْحَـٰبِ ٱلْيَمِينِ ثُلَّةٌۭ مِّنَ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ وَثُلَّةٌۭ مِّنَ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِينَ
    • Quran 56:35–40
    • Translation:
      • Indeed, We will have perfectly created their mates, making them virgins, loving and of equal age, for the people of the right, ˹who will be˺ a multitude from earlier generations and a multitude from later generations.
  • إِنَّ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ مَفَازًا حَدَآئِقَ وَأَعْنَـٰبًۭا وَكَوَاعِبَ أَتْرَابًۭا وَكَأْسًۭا دِهَاقًۭا لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ فِيهَا لَغْوًۭا وَلَا كِذَّٰبًۭا جَزَآءًۭ مِّن رَّبِّكَ عَطَآءً حِسَابًۭا رَّبِّ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ
    • Quran 78:31–37
    • Translation:
      • Indeed, the righteous will have salvation—gardens, vineyards, and full-bosomed maidens of equal age, and full cups ˹of pure wine˺, never to hear any idle talk or lying therein—a ˹fitting˺ reward as a generous gift from your Lord, the Lord of the heavens and the earth and everything in between, the Most Compassionate.
  • فِيهِنَّ خَيْرَٰتٌ حِسَانٌۭ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ حُورٌۭ مَّقْصُورَٰتٌۭ فِى ٱلْخِيَامِ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ لَمْ يَطْمِثْهُنَّ إِنسٌۭ قَبْلَهُمْ وَلَا جَآنٌّۭ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ مُتَّكِـِٔينَ عَلَىٰ رَفْرَفٍ خُضْرٍۢ وَعَبْقَرِىٍّ حِسَانٍۢ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ تَبَـٰرَكَ ٱسْمُ رَبِّكَ ذِى ٱلْجَلَـٰلِ وَٱلْإِكْرَامِ
    • Quran 55:70–78
    • Translation:
      • In all Gardens will be noble, pleasant mates. Then which of your Lord's favours will you both deny? ˹They will be˺ maidens with gorgeous eyes, reserved in pavilions. Then which of your Lord's favours will you both deny? No human or jinn has ever touched these ˹maidens˺ before. Then which of your Lord's favours will you both deny? All ˹believers˺ will be reclining on green cushions and splendid carpets. Then which of your Lord's favours will you both deny? Blessed is the Name of your Lord, full of Majesty and Honour.

Poetry

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  • 'Twas on the sixth of June, about the hour
      Of half-past six—perhaps still nearer seven—
    When Julia sate within as pretty a bower
      As e'er held houri in that heathenish heaven
    Described by Mahomet, and Anacreon Moore,
      To whom the lyre and laurels have been given,
    With all the trophies of triumphant song—
    He won them well, and may he wear them long!
  • He moves a mighty turban on the timeless houri's knees,
    His turban that is woven of the sunset and the seas.
  • Thy wife or thy daughter, that Eastern houri that thou lockest under thy arm as thou wouldst thy treasure-casket?

Literature

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  • Then the lady took the cup, and drank it off to her sisters' health, and they ceased not drinking (the Porter being in the midst of them), and dancing and laughing and reciting verses and singing ballads and ritornellos. All this time the Porter was carrying on with them, kissing, toying, biting, handling, groping, fingering; whilst one thrust a dainty morsel in his mouth, and another slapped him; and this cuffed his cheeks, and that threw sweet flowers at him; and he was in the very paradise of pleasure, as though he were sitting in the seventh sphere among the Houris of Heaven.

Commentary

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  • The blessed Verse 56 treats of the six Blessing – chaste spouses in Paradise. The blessed Verse is saying that there shall be women in those palaces in Paradise who restraining their glances solely look at their husbands and love no one but them and no jinni or man has ever touched them. Thus, they shall be virgin and undefiled in any respect.

    It is narrated on the authority of Abudhar Ghaffari that the woman in Paradise shall say unto her husband:

    "By the Glory of my Lord! I find nothing better than you in Paradise. Praise be to God Almighty Who married me unto you."

  • It is true that simple-minded religious men have conceived their goal as a state of continued existence beyond the grave filled with all happy things and experiences. But plainly such happy things and experiences were no more than symbolic, and the happy heavens containing such things have the character of myth. To the human mind, fast fettered by the limits of its poor imagination, they stand for and represent the goal. One cannot conceive the inconceivable. So in place of it one puts whatever one can imagine of delight; wine and houris if one's imagination is limited to these; love, kindness, sweetness of spiritual living if one is of a less materialistic temper. But were these existences and delights, material or spiritual, to be actually found and enjoyed as present, they would be condemned by the saint along with all earthly joys. For they would have upon them the curse, the darkness, the disease, of all existent things, of all that is this or that. This is why we cannot conceive of any particular pleasure, happiness, joy, which would not cloy – which to be quite frank – would not in the end be boring.

See also

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Wikipedia
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Wiktionary
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