Plants of India: Parijata

Parijata-The Wish-Granting Tree
by Christopher McMahon

Part 2: Stories of Parijata

With regards to the parijatak tree this story is often narrated in certain communities.

Once a royal princess fell in love with the sun god-Surya Dev. She was enamored of his brilliance and beauty as he daily passed through the sky from east to west in his fiery chariot. Her devotion attracted his attention and for a while he favored her with his attention but after awhile he was distracted with other interests and she was deserted. In despair she killed herself and from her cremated ashes the parijatak tree arose. Since she was rejected by Surya Dev, the flowers of the tree only bloom at night. Then before the sun rises the flowers fall so its rays will not strike her. Based on this story the tree was given the species name ëarbortristisí which means ëtree of sorrowí.

Another story surrounding the treesí origin is found in several ancient Indian scriptures called the Puranas. It is said that when the celestial beings, at the behest of Hari-the Preserver of the Universe, churned the cosmic ocean to obtain certain boons that would help alleviate suffering and protect the powers of good from the powers of evil one of the parijatak tree appeared as one of the divine treasures. Its perfume was said to permeate the entire universe. Because the tree holds such a elevated place in Indiaís sacred lore, the tree is revered by devote Hindus. The story, on one level, clearly illustrates that trees, flowers and fragrance represent some of the finest boons for humankind.

After the parijatak tree emerged from the ocean of existence it taken to the heaven worlds and planted in the pleasure garden of Indra- the lord of the gods. One day a great sage of ancient times named Narad Muni visited this garden in his meditations visited this garden and saw this lovely tree emitting its divine perfume. Using his yogic powers he gathered up some of these ethereal blossoms and brought them back to the physical plane and gave them to Rukmini, the favorite wife of the renowned avatar of Vishnu, Lord Krishna, who was at that time dwelling in Dwaraka in north India. The flowers were so lovely and the fragrance so delicate that Satyabhama another wife of Lord Krishna became desirous of possessing that celestial tree and having it planted in her own garden. She was jealous of the attention Krishna was showing to Rukmini and wanted him to give more time to her. She implored him to obtain the tree for her. To satisfy her desire he entered into a state of deep meditation and in that state plucked up the tree from the garden. Before leaving that place he was accosted by the keepers of the garden and was told he would incur the wrath of Indra as the tree belonged to his wife Sachi. But Satyabhama would not be put off by any obstacle and said that the tree was the common property of all and had as much place on earth as it had in the heavens. As a result Krishna waged a great war with Indra and his celestial army. In the end Krishnaís strength prevailed and Indra was forced to retreat. At that time Satyabhama taunted him as being a coward but decided to give back his celestial tree. Krishna also consented to return the tree to its celestial abode. But Indra said that there was no shame in being defeated by the avatar of Vishnu and that the tree should be taken to earth and planted in Dwarka where its fragrance could be enjoined by all the people of the earth. Thus the first parijatak tree was planted and its divine fragrance was said to spread for three furlongs. Its aroma was charged with so much power that it would help people enhaling it to remember events of their past lives. In this instance also we can see that the sages were explaining to the people that fragrance was a valuable means of accessing stored memories. In the East memory has a much more comprehensive meaning than in the West as it can include past lives as it is believed that the soul takes countless births on its journey to perfection but the same basic principal is explained in this story as is encountered in western literature regarding how fragrance stimulates memories of past events in ones life.

The above mentioned stories come down to us out of Indiaís rich cultural and spiritual heritage and are charged with tremendous meaning. The key to understanding can only be obtained by deep thought and contemplation and even this process may not totally unlock their secret is much is lost in translation or in change in the story over a period of time. Still, on a very basic level we can say that sages were trying to create in the mindís of the people a powerful remembrance of the plants that surrounded them so that they would learn to observe them minutely and learn to love and appreciate them. If a person could be encouraged to do this then they would definitely learn that every created object had numerous qualities that could prove beneficial in the form of foods, medicines, condiments, construction materials, cosmetics, and the like. Knowing this a simple hearted person would want to nourish, protect and propogate such plants so that their would be a constant supply of its beneficial products for one and all to use. It is in this way that a refined social consciousness was developed that did not depend on any external agencies but rather on the individuals efforts to keep the environment healthy and intact.

Updated: 5/26/2006

Copyright (C) 1998 by Christopher McMahon. All rights reserved.

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