Guest guest Posted August 26, 2006 Report Share Posted August 26, 2006 Hare Krishna, Please accept my obeisances. Recently I received a young Tulasi from a devotee. After only two months she has grown from about an inch to a foot and a half and is in full bloom. I noticed, though, that the manjaris are wide-spaced and have white flowers, instead of the usual purplish flowers. The leaves are larger than normal and the characteristic fragrance of Tulasi is not there. Instead, the leaves and young manjaris have a light fragrance of cloves. I did some research and found that this variety is a sub-species of Basil called Clove Basil (ocimum gratissimum). Both the light and dark varieties of Tulasi in the vaishnava tradition are Holy Basil (ocimum sanctum, or recently reclassified as ocimum tenuiflorum). These two varieties are more commonly known as Rama and Krishna (or Shyam) Tulasis. Both have purple flowers. However, I have seen several references by devotees to so-called "Pure Rama Tulasis" that supposedly have white flowers, and "Vana Tulasis," which are from the sub-species of ocimum gratissimum. Is there any Tulasi expert out there who can enlighten me whether we have a genuine Tulasi here? It may mean the difference between worship or pesto... Hoping this meets you well, Y.s. Varnadi das Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.