ISBN10: 0143066269, ISBN13: 9780143066262, [publisher: India Penguin] Softcover 312 pages. Plants personify the divine- The Rig Veda (X.97) T rees and plants have long been held sacred to communities the wor ld over. In India, we have a whole variety of flora that feature in our myths, our epics, our rituals, our worship and our daily l ife. There is the pipal, under which the Buddha meditated on the path to enlightenment; the banyan, in whose branches hide spirits ; the ashoka, in a grove of which Sita sheltered when she was Rav ana's prisoner; the tulsi, without which no Hindu house is consid ered complete; the bilva, with whose leaves it is possible to ina dvertently worship Shiva. Before temples were constructed, trees were open-air shrines sheltering the deity, and many were symboli c of the Buddha himself. Sacred Plants of India systematically la ys out the sociocultural roots of the various plants found in the Indian subcontinent, while also asserting their ecological impor tance to our survival. Informative, thought-provoking and meticul ously researched, this book draws on mythology and botany and the ancient religious traditions of India to assemble a detailed and fascinating account of India's flora. Editorial Reviews About the Author Nanditha Krishna is a historian, environmentalist, and writer based in Chennai. A PhD in ancient Indian culture, she is the director of the C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation and C.P.R. E nvironmental Education ...

Penguin India. Paperback. New. Penguin India ISBN 0143066269 9780143066262 [IN]

ISBN10: 0143066269, ISBN13: 9780143066262, [publisher: Penguin Books] Softcover
[New York, NY, U.S.A.] [Publication Year: 2014]