1. [n]  any place of complete bliss and delight and peace
2. [n]  a heavenly place (peaceful and beautiful) where those who are favored by the gods can go when they die

Paradise
Meredith Bancroft and Matthew Ferrell turn to each other again after years apart, hoping to rekindle quiescent flames.

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1. \Par"a*dise\, n. [OE. & F. paradis, L. paradisus, fr.
   Gr. para`deisos park, paradise, fr. Zend pairida[=e]za an
   inclosure; pairi around (akin to Gr. ?) + diz to throw up,
   pile up; cf. Skr. dih to smear, and E. dough. Cf. {Parvis}.]
   1. The garden of Eden, in which Adam and Eve were placed
      after their creation.
   2. The abode of sanctified souls after death.
            To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise. --Luke
                                                  xxiii. 43.
            It sounds to him like her mother's voice, Singing in
            Paradise.                             --Longfellow.
   3. A place of bliss; a region of supreme felicity or delight;
      hence, a state of happiness.
            The earth Shall be all paradise.      --Milton.
            Wrapt in the very paradise of some creative vision.
                                                  --Beaconsfield.
   4. (Arch.) An open space within a monastery or adjoining a
      church, as the space within a cloister, the open court
      before a basilica, etc.
   5. A churchyard or cemetery. [Obs.] --Oxf. Gloss.
   {Fool's paradise}. See under {Fool}, and {Limbo}.
   {Grains of paradise}. (Bot.) See {Melequeta pepper}, under
      {Pepper}.
   {Paradise bird}. (Zo["o]l.) Same as {Bird of paradise}. Among
      the most beautiful species are the superb ({Lophorina
      superba}); the magnificent ({Diphyllodes magnifica}); and
      the six-shafted paradise bird ({Parotia sefilata}). The
      long-billed paradise birds ({Epimachin[ae]}) also include
      some highly ornamental species, as the twelve-wired
      paradise bird ({Seleucides alba}), which is black, yellow,
      and white, with six long breast feathers on each side,
      ending in long, slender filaments. See {Bird of paradise}
      in the Vocabulary.
   {Paradise fish} (Zo["o]l.), a beautiful fresh-water Asiatic
      fish ({Macropodus viridiauratus}) having very large fins.
      It is often kept alive as an ornamental fish.
   {Paradise flycatcher} (Zo["o]l.), any flycatcher of the genus
      {Terpsiphone}, having the middle tail feathers extremely
      elongated. The adult male of {T. paradisi} is white, with
      the head glossy dark green, and crested.
   {Paradise grackle} (Zo["o]l.), a very beautiful bird of New
      Guinea, of the genus {Astrapia}, having dark velvety
      plumage with brilliant metallic tints.
   {Paradise nut} (Bot.), the sapucaia nut. See {Sapucaia nut}.
      [Local, U. S.]
   {Paradise whidah bird}. (Zo["o]l.) See {Whidah}.
   

2. \Par"a*dise\, v. t.
   To affect or exalt with visions of felicity; to entrance; to
   bewitch. [R.] --Marston.
   

Paradise is a subsystem (a set of packages) developed to implement inter-processes, inter-tasks and inter-machine communication for Ada programs under Unix. This subsystem gives the user full access to files, pipes, sockets (both Unix and Internet) and pseudo-devices.

Paradise has been ported to Sun, DEC, Sony MIPS, Verdex compiler, DEC compiler, Alsys/Systeam compiler.

Version 2.0 of the library. E-mail: <[email protected]>.

a Persian word (pardes), properly meaning a "pleasure-ground" or "park" or "king's garden." (See EDEN.) It came in course of time to be used as a name for the world of happiness and rest hereafter (Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 12:4; Rev. 2:7). For "garden" in Gen. 2:8 the LXX. has "paradise."