Tulsi and Rudraksha

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Namaste Tiinaji,

 

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Om Namah Shivaya

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, "Tiina"

<xenamacbeal> wrote:

> Tulsi and Rudraksha -

> Can a Tree Be Sacred?

>

> http://www.hinduism-today.com/archives/1997/3/1997-3-03.shtml

>

> Plants provide our food, clothes, medicine, building materials and

> the oxygen we breath, yet we seldom honor their import. Perhaps

more

> than any faith, Hindus have mapped the divine nature of the plant

> world. Our Insight Section this month explores two preeminent

> botanicals: Tulsi and rudraksha . . .

>

> Few human cultures value and venerate the millions of species of

> plants upon which our lives, and our enjoyment of living, so

> profoundly depend. The tribals are an exception. In Brazil today

> medicine men know every forest botanical intimately, and plainly

> claim they talk to plants and plants teach them much. America's

> Indians still esteem plants and know the interrelationships we

share

> with our photosynthesizing kin. But for sheer depth of detail and

> ritualistic reverence, few cultures can parallel the intricate and

> profound relationships between the human and botanical kingdoms

found

> within the Sanatana Dharma. Virtually every species has a purpose

and

> a pious place. Among the elite must be counted rudraksha and tulsi,

> loved by worshipers of Siva and Vishnu, respectively. The rudraksha

> is a towering tree yielding an intricate, carnelian seed. Tulsi is

an

> unassuming, bushy herb. Both are found in temple, home, roadside

> shrines and on the bodies of the devout, who wear them for

healthful

> benefits and to please the Gods. Non-Hindu aspirants seek out both

to

> aid their spiritual quest. Now a look at two remarkable plants and

> their unique place in the lives of hundreds of millions.

>

> Tulsi: the Holy Basil

> Tulsi, Ocimum sanctum, belongs to the family of Labiatae. The

> classical name, basilicum, from which "basil" is derived,

> means "royal or princely." Hindus know the plant as Tulasi and

> Surasah in Sanskrit, and Tulsi in Hindi. Other commonly used names

> are Haripriya, dear to Vishnu, and Bhutagni, destroyer of demons.

> Tulsi is an upright, many branched, softly hairy annual herb

ranging

> in height from 30-60 cm. Its leaves are slightly smaller and paler

> green than the common basil. All Ocimum species are similar, but

> Vaishnava Hindus intransigently attest that there is only one true

> Tulsi--Ocimum sanctum.