Houri

In Islam, the houri (حورية), Hour -ul-`Ein or hawra’ in Arabic, are described as "fair women of Paradise" awaiting devout Muslims. According to the Qur'an (55.56), the houri are pure, having never been touched by man or jinn and so they are virgins who marry the devout in the Jannah, the paradise, of afterlife.

The word 'virgin' in Arabic does not translate perfectly into English. A closer translation is 'pure being'. The use of the word is not always sexual.

The usual etymology derives houri from the word hawira, to be black-eyed, like a gazelle (but see the alternative etymology below).

The houri are mentioned in the following verses of the Qur'an:

• [44.51] Surely those who guard (against evil) are in a secure place,
• [44.52] In gardens and springs;
• [44.53] They shall wear of fine and thick silk, (sitting) face to face;
• [44.54] Thus (shall it be), and We will wed them with Houris pure, beautiful ones.
• [44.55] They shall call therein for every fruit in security;
• [44.56] They shall not taste therein death except the first death, and He will save them from the punishment of the hell,
• [44.57] A grace from your Lord; this is the great achievement.
• [44.58] So have We made it easy in your tongue that they may be mindful.
• [44.59] Therefore wait; surely they are waiting.
• [55.56] In them shall be those who restrained their eyes; before them neither man nor jinni shall have touched them.

The Islamic belief in an afterlife replete with houris is reinforced in the following hadith (source: [1] (http://skepdic.com/houri.html)):

Collected by Imam at-Tirmidhi in "Sunan" (Volume IV, Chapters on "The Features of Heaven as described by the Messenger of Allah", Chapter 21: "About the Smallest Reward for the People of Heaven", hadith 2687) and also quoted by Ibn Kathir in his Tafsir (Koranic Commentary) of Surah Rhman (55), ayah (verse) 72:

"It was mentioned by Daraj Ibn Abi Hatim, that Abu al-Haytham 'Adullah Ibn Wahb narrated from Abu Sa'id al-Khudhri, who heard the Prophet Muhammad (Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) saying, 'The smallest reward for the people of Heaven is an abode where there are eighty thousand servants and seventy two wives, over which stands a dome decorated with pearls, aquamarine and ruby, as wide as the distance from al-Jabiyyah to San'a.

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri reported that the Prophet Muhammad said: "The lowest of people in status in Paradise will be a man whose face Allah turns away from the Fire towards Paradise, and shows him a tree giving shade. He will say, 'O Lord, bring me closer to that tree so that I may be in its shade... Then he will enter his house (in Paradise) and his two wives from among Al-Hoor Al-'een (houris) will come in and say to him, 'Praise be to Allah who brought you to life for us and brought us to life for you.' Then he will say, 'No one has been given what I have been given.'" (Reported by Muslim) (source: [2] (http://www.islamonline.net/fatwa/english/FatwaDisplay.asp?hFatwaID=69605))

The Houri also appears in Bahá'í literature, although the term is rendered as "Maid of Heaven" in official translations. Baha'is generally see her as a symbol of the holy spirit, the spirit of Baha'u'llah's revelation, or even as his "higher self". While always depicted as sexually desirable, or even as a temptress, she also appears as a transcendent spiritual figure, and sexual desire is understood to be a metaphor for spiritual longing. For an example, see the provisional translation of the "Tablet of the Houri" by Bahá'u'lláh [3] (http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jrcole/houri.htm) While other houris appear in Baha'u'llah's works, they are generally depicted as handmaidens of the Houri, or occasionally the personification of a divine virtue, such as trustworthiness. For a brief overview see John Walbridge's "Erotic Imagery in the Allegorical Writings of Baha'u'llah." [4] (http://bahai-library.com/unpubl.articles/erotic.allegory.html)

Houri is also the word used to describe the engravings of women in ancient stonework such as the temples at Angkor Wat.

Alternative etymology

A German scholar studying Islam has lately published, using the pseudonym Christoph Luxenberg, controversial findings that include his assertion that "houri" is actually not an Arabic, but an Syro-Aramaic word and that it does not mean "virgin of paradise" at all but rather "white raisins" or "juicy fruits". Early eastern Christian writings (such as those of Papias) often referred to giant bunches of grapes in paradise, and Luxenberg asserts that the Qur'an simply adapted that vision. Further discussion (http://www.parapundit.com/archives/001519.html) of a Newsweek article on Luxenberg's book.

This interpretation has been refuted by the senior advisor of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, Dr. Maher Hathout, who writes that the author writing as Luxenberg misrepresents the hadith. Dr. Hathout describes the houri as "allegorically symbolic beings of bliss in paradise." He goes on to explain, "It seems that what he (Luxenberg) was referring to as raisins is 'kawaib.' He challenges what he claims as the Arabic meaning of 'beings with swollen breasts,' while if he had known Arabic, he would have understood the term as 'beings of distinction.'" [5] (http://www.islamonline.net/English/News/2003-08/05/article03.shtml)