Sacred trees
D.B.N. MURTHY
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Designating certain spaces in the forest as sacred helps in biodiversity conservation.
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A few trees have been saved from the axe because from time immemorial they have been considered sacred. In any village you will find an askwattakatte where nagapratisthe takes place under the sacred peepul tree. It was under one such tree in Bodh Gaya, that Buddha was enlightened. Banni (Accacia Ferruginea) is sacred because it was in one such tree that Arjuna, as stated in the Mahabharat, hid his Gandhiva bow and arrows while in his agntavasa, (one year of total anonymity), when the Pandavas were banished to the forest.
Protected
Banni trees are worshipped and oil lamps are lit during certain festival months. The banyan tree, because of its sheer size and longevity is venerated and sacred.
Devivana and Devarakadu are other places, under the control of the temples or forest department that contain sacred plants some of which have medicinal properties too. Navagrahahavana contains plants associated with each planet that is considered sacred. Such vanas help in biodiversity conservation as these are protected as sacred. A few tribal communities worship trees as manifestation of god. The Vishnoi community protects Khejri trees as these are venerated. The Gujjars of Rajasthan worship the neem tree as the abode of Deonarayan. In Chitrakoot, Madhya Pradesh, the nearby forest is considered holy and no one dares to enter the forest, let alone cut a tree. The forest is associated with the legend that Rama, Sita and Laskman spent a part of their vanvas in this forest.
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