Called the Bo Tree Or Tree of Wisdom, It Is Sacred and Symbolic to Buddhists

Another tree of life, the cosmic tree or Peepul, the sacred g (Ficus religiosa, Moraceae) is the earthly representative of Brihaspati who is no other than European Jupiter, father and king of the gods. It is an extremely sacred tree for the Hindus and for Buddhists because it is dedicated to and shelters the Trimurti (the three gods Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu). It is especially honoured ere has been a link between plants and spirituality throughout history during the month of Shravana (July to August). and in all civilisations. Plants act as messengers, symbols, channels for good or evil, they make manifest our relation to the spiritual and to the divine. ey are at the origin of beliefs, they feature in prayers and worship and both poly- and monotheist pagan ceremonies. eir medicinal or deadly powers reinforce the symbolic beliefs which underlie our use of them. ese powers and the technical and aesthetic complexity of plants, coupled with their longevity, resistance and adaptation, are oen dicult to explain scientically simply by evolution. is may be why they oer unparalleled spiritual enlightenment. eir roles in the landscape and the perfect functional beauty of wild nature have oen reinforced and transcended the sense of a founding divine presence behind the creative forces of nature.

Called the Bo tree or tree of wisdom, it is sacred and symbolic to Buddhists. It shelters the souls of the dead and is endowed with the power to grant fecundity and fertility. Its wood is used to light the sacred re. e most famous is the Bodhi tree at Bodh-Gaya in the Indian state of Bihar. It was beneath its branches that Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, achieved nirvana (spiritual enlightenment or Bodhi). e tree is one of four Buddhist sacred sites and is visited by large numbers of pilgrims. e characteristic heart-shaped form of its leaf is a classical Buddhist decorative motif.

We have set out to tell you about the place of plants in our world in relation to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever importance. We do this with respect even if certain beliefs and rites oend our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not exhaustive and undoubtedly contains assumptions and choices based on our own encounters and voyages. e line between science and parascience uctuates through the history and geography of our civilisations and societies. is is clear with regard to the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces distortions, obsessions and neuroses which oen obscure a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function. According to Vedic myths all plants and trees are sacred because they possess the supreme gi s of immortality, healing and prosperity. Ayurvedic medicine is related to Indian mythology and religion which means that the origins of the sub-continent’s traditional medicine date to the legendary Dhanvantari, Vishnu’s avatar, who received wisdom from Brahma the Hindu god of creation. Its roots therefore go back for a very long time (2000 years BCE) and have emerged from a Sanskrit oral tradition, then from later writings still in use in ayurvedic medicine, notably cardamom (Elletaria cardamomum, Zingibera- ceae) and cinnamon (Cinnamomum sp., Lauraceae), which it is claimed stimulate digestive enzymes

is “alternative” medicine, like many oriental therapies, takes into account the whole organism in its physical dimension and progres- sively introduces phytotherapeutic (herbalist) ideas. Hundreds of plants have spiritual importance too. Ayurvedic medicine does not treat symptoms only as our western allopathic tradition does, but it treats both the body and the mind within an approach and philosophy of general well-being.

We have set out to tell you about the place of plants in our world in relation to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever importance. We do this with respect even if certain beliefs and rites oend our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not exhaustive and undoubtedly contains assumptions and choices based on our own encounters and voyages. e line between science and parascience uctuates through the history and geography of our civilisations and societies. is is clear with regard to the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces distortions, obsessions and neuroses which oen obscure a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function. Hanami (literally “viewing the owers”) is a traditional Japanese custom which sancties the beauty of owers, mainly cherry blossom (Prunus serrulata, Rosaceae), in the spring. Hanami dates back to the Nara period (710-794) when the owers, recently imported from China, became an object of veneration.

e original religion of Japan, Shinto, revered the forces of nature called shinto (or Way of the gods) an animist and shamanist belief founded on respect for the kami (literally “who are above men”). Sakura, cherry blossom (Japanese cherry in ower), was originally used as a signal for rice planting. As animists, the Japanese believe that the gods are within trees and they make oerings at the foot of sakuras. Poems are written praising the pink owers, their beauty seen as a metaphor for life itself, full of light, splendid and spectacular, but also eeting.

e cherry ower and the trees in blossom are therefore twice-blessed We have set out to tell you about the place of plants in our world in relation to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever in the Land of the Rising Sun. ey announce and symbolise: importance. We do this with respect even if certain beliefs and rites oend - the perfect moment to make an oering (food and saké) to the our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not spirits, the gods being favourable to the future rice harvest and exhaustive and undoubtedly contains assumptions and choices based on other events; our own encounters and voyages. e line between science and parascience uctuates through the history - the fragility and eeting nature of existence because the sakuras and geography of our civilisations and societies. is is clear with regard to only ower and attain such divine beauty for about ten days a the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces year in a wave of blossom which ows across the whole country. distortions, obsessions and neuroses which oen obscure a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function. Passion owers (Passi ora sp., Passi oraceae) were unknown to Europeans before the Spanish conquest of America. e rst description can be found in a work by the Spanish doctor and botanist, Nicolas Monardes, published in 1569. He was probably also the rst to use the religious term os de passionis ( ower of the Passion) to describe it. e ower was “destined to represent the Passion of Christ” according to Monardes, who was born in Seville in 1493 and never went to America. Descriptions of the plant, and samples brought back in a herbarium, enabled him to include detailed relatively scientic descriptions of some species of this spectacular tropical family in his work Historia Medicinal ….. which also includes tobacco and coca plants amongst others.

e name “passion ower” comes then from its role as symbol of the Passion of Christ. e radial laments represent the crown of thorns. e pistil with its three stigma represents the three nails used for the crucixion; the ve anthers with their red-hued bases symbolise the ve wounds; the tendrils represent the whips used for the agellation, and the stigmata the sponge soaked in vinegar. Finally, the three-lobed leaf with its sharp tip represents the spear and its under-surface marked with dark round stains, the thirty pieces of silver that Judas received for betraying his mentor.

is story, and also the origin of the name of the plant, is attributed to Jacomo Bosio, an Italian scholar monk. While he was working on his treatise on the cross and the calvary of Christ in 1609, he told it to Emmanuel de Villegas, a Mexican monk visiting Rome. e Mexican was carrying illustrations of the amboyant ower, then completely unknownWe have set in outEurope. to tell you about the place of plants in our world in relation to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever importance. We do this with respect even if certain beliefs and rites oend our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not exhaustive and undoubtedly contains assumptions and choices based on our own encounters and voyages. e line between science and parascience uctuates through the history and geography of our civilisations and societies. is is clear with regard to the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces distortions, obsessions and neuroses which oen obscure a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function. Traditional Tibetan medicine is strongly linked to spirituality and to plants. It is based on a complex diagnostic method which includes measuring pulse and urine for example. Tibetan doctors (amchis) give advice on behaviour and diet; they prescribe medicines made from numerous medicinal plants (over 1500) and minerals (50). Physical therapies such as acupuncture complete the treatment. e system is based on a synthesis of Indian (ayurveda), Persian, Greek and Tibetan practices, and on Chinese medical phytotherapeutic methods. It falls within the Buddhist tradition which maintains that all illness results from three poisons of the mind: excessive desire, hatred and ignorance.

We have set out to tell you about the place of plants in our world in relation to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever importance. We do this with respect even if certain beliefs and rites oend our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not exhaustive and undoubtedly contains assumptions and choices based on our own encounters and voyages. e line between science and parascience uctuates through the history and geography of our civilisations and societies. is is clear with regard to the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces distortions, obsessions and neuroses which oen obscure a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function. Holy basil, Ocimum sanctum (Lamiaceae), is native to India where it is attributed to Vishnu (the god of life) and is venerated as the incarna- tion of Lakshmi, his wife, goddess of fortune, prosperity and beauty. e plant reputedly has the power to reinforce faith, compassion and spiritual clarity. Its common name “tulsi” means incomparable.

ere has been a link between plants and spirituality throughout history and in all civilisations. Plants act as messengers, symbols, channels for good or evil, they make manifest our relation to the spiritual and to the divine. ey are at the origin of beliefs, they feature in prayers and worship and both poly- and monotheist pagan ceremonies. eir medicinal or deadly powers reinforce the symbolic beliefs which underlie our use of them. ese powers and the technical and aesthetic complexity of plants, coupled with their longevity, resistance and adaptation, are oen dicult to explain scientically simply by evolution. is may be why they oer unparalleled spiritual enlightenment. eir roles in the landscape and the perfect functional beauty of wild nature have oen reinforced and transcended the sense of a founding divine presence behind the creative forces of nature. Basil has a complex and powerful aroma and a number of medicinal properties (stimulant, antispasmodic). It is sacred and protects the household according to Hindu tradition. Beyond its energy-giving properties, holy basil essential oil owes many of its benets to its high eugenol content, a powerful antioxydant and stimulant of the immune system. It is also very eective in treating infections.

It is the custom in India to place a leaf of tulsi on the torso of a dead body in order to help the deceased nd the path to eternal peace. Garlands of the owers are worn around the neck and decorate the entrance to houses and temples in order to attract divine protection.

We have set out to tell you about the place of plants in our world in relation to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever importance. We do this with respect even if certain beliefs and rites oend our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not exhaustive and undoubtedly contains assumptions and choices based on our own encounters and voyages. e line between science and parascience uctuates through the history and geography of our civilisations and societies. is is clear with regard to the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces distortions, obsessions and neuroses which oen obscure a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function. Quetzalcoatl, literally the “serpent of quetzal feathers” in Nahuatl (a Mexican language of Aztec origin), is the Central Mexican name of one of the main mesoamerican divinities. It is also a character in the Aztec myth which explains the acquisition of food for mankind. e Leyenda de los Soles tells that the gods asked themselves what the men they had just created were going to eat. Quetzalcoatl, who had seen a red ant carrying maize (Zea mays, Poaceae) tried to nd out where it had come from. He changed himself into a black ant and followed. e red ant nally led him inside Mount Tonacatepetl from where he brought back the maize. Having tasted it and liked it, the gods gave it to the earth to feed the rst humans.

Maize is the most widely cultivated cereal in the world, a little ahead of rice and wheat. Over 1500 uses of the domesticated species have been identied, mainly for human and animal food, but also in the production of bio-fuels and bio-plastics. However, it is no longer the “feathered serpent” which controls its trade but the new god of the agri-food industry: GMOs

ere has been a link between plants and spirituality throughout history and in all civilisations. Plants act as messengers, symbols, channels for good or evil, they make manifest our relation to the spiritual and to the divine. ey are at the origin of beliefs, they feature in prayers and worship and both poly- and monotheist pagan ceremonies. eir medicinal or deadly powers reinforce the symbolic beliefs which underlie our use of them. ese powers and the technical and aesthetic complexity of plants, coupled with their longevity, resistance and adaptation, are oen dicult to explain scientically simply by evolution. is may be why they oer unparalleled spiritual enlightenment. eir roles in the landscape and the eperfect griot functional is a key characterbeauty of wild in some nature African have oen societies. reinforced His and function is totranscended conserve and the sensetransmit of a foundingthe oral cultural divine presence tradition behind through the creative stories, musicforces andof nature. chants. He is a wandering poet and musician sometimes feared, sometimes despised. e griot caste was born and evolved in the absence of writing and in the context of an oral tradition. Its members are seen as the repository and communicators of the tradition. Griot families specialise in the history of the country or genealogy, in oratorical or musical skills. e main griot groups are called jeli in Mandinka country and guewel in the Wolof country of Senegal. Burial of griots in hollow baobabs is a very old practice rst recorded in Senegal in 1594.

Amongst the Serer people, as in most of sub-Saharan Africa, griots are at the bottom of the social scale. Despised and feared, they and their wives and children were not buried in the ground; if they were, the earth would become sterile for ever. During burial ceremonies the griot,We have dressed set out in to his tell most you aboutbeautiful the place clothes, of plants was carriedin our world to a hollowin relation baobab.to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever eimportance. same type We of do grave this withis found respect In theeven Dakoro if certain region beliefs of and Burkina rites oend Faso, our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not butexhaustive here it isand reserved undoubtedly exclusively contains for assumptions lepers and andis a choicesDogon basedpractice on overour ownthe wholeencounters plain. and Baobabs voyages. (with only an opening towards the top) were e linefavoured between as sciencea tomb and because parascience the illness uctuates was fearedthrough and the it history was thoughtand geography that it ofwould our civilisations be spread byand rainwater societies. if is the is bodies clear with were regard buried to the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces normally.distortions, e obsessions body was and lowered neuroses vertically which oen into obscure the opening. a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function. e Epic of Gilgamesh is a legendary poem from ancient Mesapota- mia (modern Iraq). It is one of the oldest works of literature. e rst complete version known was written in Akkadian in Babylon in the 18th or 19th century BCE and engraved in cuneiform pictograms on clay tablets. Recent work has placed the Gilgamesh epic close in time to the twelve labours of Hercules which occurred about one thousand years earlier according to Homer. ere has been a link between plants and spirituality throughout history and in all civilisations. Plants act as messengers, symbols, channels for good or evil, they make manifest our relation to the spiritual and to the divine. ey are at the origin of beliefs, they feature in prayers and worship and both poly- and monotheist pagan ceremonies. eir medicinal or deadly powers reinforce the symbolic beliefs which underlie our use of them. ese powers and the technical and aesthetic complexity of plants, coupled with their longevity, resistance and adaptation, are oen dicult to explain scientically simply by evolution. is may be why they oer unparalleled spiritual enlightenment. eir roles in the landscape and the perfect functional beauty of wild nature have oen reinforced and transcended the sense of a founding divine presence behind the creative forces of nature.

Gilgamesh, king of the town of Uruk, was unpopular because he was severe and inexible with his subjects. At the request of the people, the goddess Aruru, mistress of the city, made a “double” of Gilgamesh out of clay named Enkidu in order to set him on the right path. e clay twins are the god of the sky, Anu, and Ninurta the god of war. Gilgamesh’s double is a rather wild man without much natural elegance. However, although the physical clone of Gilgamesh, Enkidu is generous. e two engage in a duel. At the end of the combat, each understands their complementarity and join together to accomplish great victories. Enkidu dies in combat and Gilgamesh, full of sadness at the loss of his twin, sets o in search of the secret of immortality. He nds it in the care of Uta-Napishtim, an epic personality. It was passed to Uta-Napishtim by the Mesopotamian deities following a ood provoked by them but which he survived. He tells Gilgamesh of a plant which confers youth. Gilgamesh obtains the plant but is robbed of it by a serpent. He understands that immortality is not part of the nature of man. Any quest for immortality is vain and we should prot from the pleasures that life oers every day. What though is this plant of everlasting life? A plant without a name which banishes fear and death, a miraculous anti-depressant which grows, according to legend, on the seabed and which stings. A gment of the imagination perhaps, probably a dream, a decoy or a smokescreen which is stolen from Gilgamesh by a reptile. e plant is We have set out to tell you about the place of plants in our world in relation sometimes linked to eternal life, to immortality. Aer the need to to the divine, sacred and spiritual in whatever form or of whatever survive poverty, the need for eternal life and spirituality follow. Is importance. We do this with respect even if certain beliefs and rites oend there a philosopher’s plant? Gilgamesh concludes his epic by a “no”. our social, scientic and ethnobotanical sensitivities. Our account is not exhaustive and undoubtedly contains assumptions and choices based on What a wonderful botanical parable: a plant with no name which tries our own encounters and voyages. to answer, in this poem to life, our existential fears. Carpe diem! e line between science and parascience uctuates through the history and geography of our civilisations and societies. is is clear with regard to the spiritual component of our lives. Fear of life, or of death, introduces distortions, obsessions and neuroses which oen obscure a scientic explanation of ritual and its primarily utilitarian function.