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| Tree worship in Hinduism, indiaunrevealed.com |
In Hinduism there is a unique space for ubiquitous tress plants. flowers, grains, rivers, etc. Hinduism believes that all living things are sacred in their own ways. Because of their association with deities in the Hindu mythology, people consider them holy or unique and worship them. Tree worship, part of the fabric of Hindu religion, has been around for several centuries. The following are the trees or plants that have close association with the almighty. There is no Hindu temple without a tree associated with the primary god or goddess and like wise one will seldom find a Hindu home without Tulsi (basil) plant.
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| Banyan Tree www.reddit.com |
An interesting fact is in any rural areas, particularly in Tamil Nadu one can find a small stone idol of God Ganesa or some other goddess under the banyan tree. The goddess is supposedly the village deity, guarding the village and the people living there. The tree, as a whole, is also widely worshiped by people as, it is believed, to be the abode of Lord Krishna. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says, "I am the Peepal tree among the trees, Narada among the sages, Chitraaratha among the Gandharvas, And sage Kapila among the Siddhas." Young women seeking fertility worship the tree regularly for a particular period of time and pregnant women also offer prayers regularly for event less and safe delivery of the baby. The tree offers a large area of shade to weary travelers and villagers especially in the summer time. More often than not, the local village council or Panchayat members meet and discuss the affairs of local village administration as well as fringe areas in the cool shadows of the huge banyan tree to redress the civic problems being faced by the villagers. The Ficus religiosa tree is considered sacred by the followers of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.
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| Parijat tree at Kintoor, Barabanki, UP, India. en.wikipedia.org |
The Ashoka tree, considered to be holy in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, is a small evergreen rain-forest tree that produces beautiful and fragrant red and yellow flowers. One can find this tree in many gardens in India The tree used to be a center piece in every palatial garden in India. The Hindu temples and Buddhist monasteries have the symbol of the Yakshi, a female deity standing with her foot on the trunk and her hand holding the branch of an Ashoka tree. It is found in Central and Easter Himalayas and in the Western Ghats. In the great Epic Ramayana the messenger of Sri Rama great Hanuman saw, for the first time, the consort of the lord Sri Sita (who was in exile) under the Asoka tree in the Asoka Vanam of Lanka kingdom. Ashoka tree is a well-known tree of India. In Sanskrit, Ashoka means without grief or the one who gives no grief.
The Sandalwood tree (the genus Santalum) is widely used in Buddhism and Islam besides Hinduism. In Sufi tradition, sandalwood paste is applied on the Sufi’s grave by the disciples as a mark of devotion. It is widely practiced particularly among the Indian Subcontinent Muslim disciples. This fragrant tree is closely associated with Lord Dharukavaneshwara. Sandal paste is widely used in all Vaishnava temples, in particular, Sri Krishna temples of Kerala. The wood is sacred in all temples of Subramaniya or Karthkeya as well. Santhana Abiskegam - anointing using sandalwood water is common in many temples of Tamil Nadu. At temples, preparation of the paste is entrusted only with the priests, as part of their religious duty. Because the paste will be applied on the main idol, and it should be prepared with utmost care, devotion or bakthi.
According to some Buddhist traditions, sandalwood is considered to be of the padma (lotus) group and attributed to Amitabha Buddha. Sandalwood scent is believed by some to transform one's desires and maintain a person's alertness while in meditation.
After tonsuring their head as part of their prayer, at temples like Tirupathi (Andhra), Palani, Thiruchendur (Tamil Nadu), etc., many devotees apply the sandalwood paste with water on the freshly shaved head. Sandalwood paste has medicinal properties and is good to cool the body heat and give relief to skin rashes and skin pricks. Devout Hindus use the sandal paste as a mark on the foreheads.
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| Ficus religiosa (peepal tree), Leaves and trunk of a sacred fig. Note the distinctive leaf shape. |
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| A huge Peepal tree in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh,en.wikipedia.org |
The Peepal tree, also known as the Sacred Fig or the Bodhi Tree is yet another tree of much significance in Hinduism. It was under the a Peepal tree, King Siddartha (Lord Buddha) had meditated and gained enlightenment. Later he chose the path of of renunciation, giving up his princely, luxurious life for the sake of humanity and their sufferings. Hence it is more sacred to the Buddhists than others. The leaves, etc., have extensive medicinal value and are widely used in traditional Ayurvedic medicine to treat Jaundice, epilepsy, gastric problems, asthma, diabetes, diarrhea, inflammation and infections and sexual disorders. It is also used to cure certain sexual disorders.
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| Tulsi madam or vridavan. ykantiques.com |
The Tulsi or Tulasi (Ocimum tenuiflorum) plant or Holy basil is a widely used sacred plant in Hindu belief. Hindus regard it as an earthly manifestation of the goddess Tulsi; she is regarded as a great worshiper of the god Vishnu. Shri-Tulsi is synonymous with Lakshmi Goddess of wealth and a consort of Lord Vishnu. The offering of its leaves is mandatory in ritualistic worship of Vishnu and his forms like Krishna and Vithoba or Rama
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| Tulsi plants. remedyspot.com |
Tulsi known as-Vaishnavi -"belonging to Vishnu,"or Vishnu Vallabha - "beloved of Vishnu" is regarded as the holiest of all plants and is found at a point between heaven and earth.
Hindu homes have Tulsi plants growing in front of or in the rear of their home. Some people have Tulsi Madam (also called Vrindavan) in the central courtyard. It is a common feature in all Brahmin homes in the Agraharams of South India in those days. The plant is kept in the houses for religious and medicinal purposes. Sacred places where they are grown are also known as Vrindavan - grove of Tulsi.
Tulsi is sacred to Sri Krishna and Sri Rama, avatars of Sri Vishnu. Garlands made of hundreds of tulsi leaves are offered to main deities in Vaishnava temples. So is Tulsi Thertham (holy water mixed with Tulsi leaves) by the temple priest to the devotees. According to Vaishnava tradition, use of Japa malas (a string of Hindu prayer beads) made from Tulsi stems or roots called Tulsi Malas (important symbol of the initiation). Such Tulsi
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| Tulsi plant for daily worship in a courtyard in India.en.wikipedia.org |
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| Set of Japa mala (prayer mala), made from Tulasi wood, with head bead in foreground. en.wikipedia |
