DOI: 10.4324/9781003364931-3 2.1 Introduction In the conversation of Islam and evolution, Muslims exhibit a wide spectrum of opinions. The growing literature on the subject identifies several points of contention, including the role of chance in evolution, the intelligent design argument, flaws in the science, and the creation narrative in Islamic scrip- ture. 1 One scriptural point that reappears is the location of the Garden from which Adam was expelled. This matter has been instrumentalised by both compatibilists and incompatibilists of Islam and evolution. Some incompatibilists (those who reject human evolution in a religious context) argue that Adam was created in the heavenly Garden and later expelled to Earth, and since he was the first human, humanity could not have evolved on Earth. For instance, Nuh Ha Mim Keller, a well-known contem- porary Ashʿarī 2 theologian and human exceptionalist 3 says, “[Human evolu- tion] is incompatible with the Qurʾānic account of creation. Our first ancestor was the prophet Adam (upon whom be peace), who was created by Allah in janna, or ‘paradise’ and not on earth …” 4 He concludes that the “claim that man has evolved from a non-human species, this is unbelief (kufr) no matter if we ascribe the process to Allah or to ‘nature.’” 5 Keller’s work has been reviewed by Malik and Kulieva who pinpoint his argument about a heavenly Garden as central to his rejection of human evolution and identify it as a mat- ter needing further investigation. 6 Similar perspectives come from those who deny evolution altogether, like Seyyed Hossein Nasr and Muzaffar Iqbal, who clutch to a heavenly reading. 7 Thus, Nidhal Guessoum notes, “most contem- porary religious scholars understand the creation story of Adam as indicating a special and separate creation of a first full-fledged human being, and many insist that this occurred in a metaphysical ‘paradise’ location.” 8 Similarly, T.O. Shanavas asserts: “Most contemporary Muslims across the world believe that Adam and Eve were created in Paradise.” 9 By contrast, the Egyptian scholar Mostafa Mahmud argues for an earthy Garden to make the story of Adam compatible with evolution, declaring this to be a fresh, contemporary reading in light of modern science. 10 Likewise, 2 Adam and Eve’s Garden in Sunnī Islamic Thought Heaven or Earth? David Solomon Jalajel, Shoaib Ahmed Malik, Marzuqa Karima and Nadda Khan