Ficus religiosa, the Bodhi tree is the most venerated tree in the world. It is sacred to the Hindus, the Buddhists and the Jains. The tree is considered to be a symbol of the universe.The Sanskrit name for Ficus religiosa is Ashwattha, which means 'Not the same tomorrow', showing the impermanent nature of the Universe. Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment under a Bodhi tree and became the Buddha.
The leaves of the Bodhi tree are heart shaped and pointed. The new leaves are a beautiful red, which turn a light green and then a dark green. Whenever there is a breeze, the leaves tremble , making a noise like the rain. The tree is a favourite of birds , insects and small animals. When the fruit are ripe, the tree will be full of birds, which disperse the seeds in the most inconvenient places. Gardeners have to pull out the seedlings from crevices in stonework, because later,when the seedling is bigger, no one will be willing to hurt a Bodhi tree.
Ficus religiosa, the Bodhi tree is the most venerated tree in the world. It is sacred to the Hindus, the Buddhists and the Jains. The tree is considered to be a symbol of the universe.The Sanskrit name for Ficus religiosa is Ashwattha, which means 'Not the same tomorrow', showing the impermanent nature of the Universe. Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment under a Bodhi tree and became the Buddha.
The leaves of the Bodhi tree are heart shaped and pointed. The new leaves are a beautiful red, which turn a light green and then a dark green. Whenever there is a breeze, the leaves tremble , making a noise like the rain. The tree is a favourite of birds , insects and small animals. When the fruit are ripe, the tree will be full of birds, which disperse the seeds in the most inconvenient places. Gardeners have to pull out the seedlings from crevices in stonework, because later,when the seedling is bigger, no one will be willing to hurt a Bodhi tree.
I enjoyed reading this post! Very informative. The Bodhi leaf skeletons are beautiful, too.
ReplyDeleteOk, you win :D much bigger than my trees, but I grew my ones from seeds, so small. Here it is too cold so in the winter they will loose all leaves and some smaller branches, but they recover and grow bigger again when the summer starts.
ReplyDeleteDoes this tree bear a yellow berry? I have a huge ficus tree at the entrance to my home, it is huge. It sheds it leaves all year round and the yellow berries once a year.
ReplyDeleteThanks Shailaja.
ReplyDeleteBarry,I think your trees will take a long time to become big.
Helen, yes these trees have yellow berries and shed leaves .You can recognize the tree by its heart shaped leaf.
What a pretty tree and an interesting story behind it. I've heard of it before, but haven't ever seen one.
ReplyDeleteCatherine, thanks for your comment.
ReplyDelete