Gardening during Buddha Period | Horticulture

After reading this article you will learn about the pattern of gardening during Buddha period.

Man is always attracted by natural objects like planets, mountains, sea, rivers, trees and other flora and fauna, from time immemorial. Man was always attracted toward, colorful objects. Out of many natural objects, trees attracted most. Since the trees are part of eco­system in which man lives and thus he has close association with them.

Trees serve mankind in several ways like maintain balance between O₂ and CO₂, provides shade, fruits, timber, wood for fuel, medicines, etc. Trees also provide dense shade and living space and berries like fruits for birds. Long association has also been observed during Buddha period and later on trees and other plants were utilized in making gardens.

Therefore, it is necessary to understand the status of gardening during the period and association of these with Buddha. There are several descriptions available about birth of Lord Buddha and association with trees. According to one mythology, Lord Buddha was born as a royal prince in 624 BC, in place called Lumbini which was originally in north India but is now part of Nepal. His mother name was Queen Maya Devi and his father was Suddhodhana.

One night Queen Maya dreamed that a white elephant descended from heaven and enters her womb. On that night she conceived a child who was pure and powerful being. When she gave a birth to a child instead of experiencing pain, the queen experienced a special pure vision in which she stood holding the branch of tree while gods Braham and Indra took the child painlessly from the side. There they proceed to heaven leaving infant after offering him ritual ablutions.

According to another mythology the events of birth of Lord Buddha has been described by Thomas and according to him after queen Maha Maya bearing the Bodhi Sattva for ten months when her time came, desired to go to her relatives house and addressed to king Suddodhana, ‘I wish, O King, to go to Deva daha, the city of my family’.

The king approved and ordered that the road from Kapilvastu to Deva Daha to made smooth and adorned with vessel filled with plantain, banners and flags and seating her in golden palanquin borne by a thousand courtier’s seat her with a great retinue. Between two cites, there is a grove of Sal trees (Shorea robusta) named the Lumbini groves. At that time from roots to the tips of branches it was one mass of red coloured flowers and from within the branches and flowers host of bees of five colours and various flocks of birds sported, singing sweetly.

When Queen saw it, and expressed desire to stop in the grove. The courtier brought the queen and entered the grove. She went to foot a Sal Tree and desired to seize a branch. The branches like the tip of a supple red bent down and came within the reach of hand. Stretching out her hand she seized the branch. She was shaken with throes of birth. So multitude set up a curtain for her and retired. Holding the branches and even while standing she was delivered.

According to another Legend, in the dream of Queen Maha Maya Bodhi Sattva descended in the form of elephant. It is further related that she seized not a Sal branch but a plaksha (Butea monosperna) at the moment of birth. These are two common trees in tarai of Nepal in which the birth place of Buddha is situated.

According to Chinese traveller Hiuen sang who visited Lumbini in A.D. 630 and stayed upto 645 A.D. He has also described the birth place of Buddha. According to him to the north east of the arrow well about 80 or 90 li (1 li = 500 m), we came to Lumbini (Lavani) garden. Here is the bathing tank of the Sakya Muni, the water of which is bright and clear as a mirror and the surface is covered with a mixture of flowers (lotus and water lilies).

To the north of this 24-25 paces, there a asoka flower tree (Saraca asoca) which is now decayed, this is the place where “Bodhi Sattva” was born, So Lord Buddha birth has been associated with three trees viz. Sal, Asoka, Plaksha. There are other trees also which are associated with Lord Buddha. Buddha got enlighment under pipal tree (Ficus religiosa), at Bodh Gaya (Bihar). Buddha gave first sermon under the tree of mango at Sarnath (varnasi). Buddha died in Salvana- a grove of Sal (Shorea robusta) near Kushinagar (U.P).

The association of trees and other flowers with Lord Buddha inspired the Buddhist monk most and they were revered to them. Thus after the death of Buddha, Buddhist priests had lot of leisure time and they preferred peaceful surrounding which are highly pertinent for tranquility of mind, worship and meditation.

The monks planted flowering trees and flowers around their vihars (monasteries) and took great interest in gardening. Thus, in fact the evolution of gardening is intimately associated with the monasteries and temples. In India, Buddhist monks grew groves of flowering trees like nag kesar (Mesua ferea), kadamba (Nucleon purpurea), rukmini (Ixora pauiflora) etc. whereas Chinese monks preserved rare trees like ginko (Ginkoga biboba).

In India, Buddhism spread as a religion after King Asoka adopted it as state religion after Kalinga war. Emperor Asoka (273 to 232 BC) one of the ruler of India was most valour King who ruled over north India. His last major war was for the conquest of Kingdom of Kalinga (in Orissa) in 261 B.C. but long and brutal war resulted in toll of 1, 50,000 men and 1,50,000 men were wounded and thousands were captured. This horrific bloodshed shook him. Thus he gave up hunting and slaughtering of animals and adopted Buddhism.

Ashoka actively promoted Buddhism under his regime. Thus Buddhism spread to Syria, Egypt, Central Asia, Burma, Ceylon, Thai Land, Indonesia, China, Japan, etc. He sent his son prince Mahendra with a Bodhi tree (Ficus relegiosa) to Ceylon in about 250BC, and planted at Anuradhapura. It is old historical tree in the world whose branches are supported by pillars.

Ashoka inscribed official orders on rocks and pillars at various places to spread the message of love and peace in effort to spread Buddhism. During pilgrimage he visited several places like Vaishali, Lumbini, Kapilvastu, Shravanti, etc. along with his daughter. Where ever he went he caused pillars Stupas, to be erected in the memory of his visit.

There is one such memorial pillar at Sarnath. On the top of a stone pillar of about fifty feet high, there are beautiful figures of four lions and it has been adopted as a official emblem by govt., of India. Ashoka chakra or known as Dharma chakra adorns the national flag of India. Besides, stupas and pillars, Ashoka built caves, dwellings, rest houses and Buddhist Vihars which were duly planted with trees and flowering plants. Out of many, stupas of Bharhut, Sanchi and Mathura are very famous and depicts association with many flowering trees.

In Bharhut sculpture, the Buddha is shown nowhere but he is represented by symbols viz a lotus flowers symbolizes his birth, a pipal tree his enlightenment, a wheel his first sermon and stupa his nirvana. At Mathura the massive figure of Buddha is shown with a back ground of pipal leaves. Cunnigham has identified seven Bodhi trees. The pipal (Ficus religiosa) is the Bodhi tree of Sakya Mani.

The other five trees are banyan (Ficus benghalensis), the Bodhi tree of kasyapas; gular (Ficus glomerata) the Bodhi tree of Kanaka muni; Siris, (Albizzia lebbek), the Bodhi tree of Kraku echanda; Sal (Shorea robusta), the Bodhi tree of vishwa bahu; (Saraca asoca)- the Bodhi tree of vipasuvi. All these are shady trees and these trees have been given title gratitude as India is a hot country. Apart from these six trees, white lotus is symbol of Sikh.

The Tala tree of (Borassus flabelliformis) is also depicted in one of the medallions. It is common tree of south and eastern India. In ancient India tree worship was very common which is still being followed. Girls and young women are considered as human embodiments of maternal energy of nature.

In awakening of asoca tress, by touching and kicking of the tress by their feets, they transfer their potency, and enable it to bring forth blossom and fruits. In the ancient city of Saravastia, Salabhanjika festival was celebrated with great zeal when the Sal trees flowered. The Sal trees in full blossom were being worshipped for offspring.

According to another jataka, trees have great spirits that is why they are being worshiped with perfumes, flowers and food. These spirits live in much kind of trees but the banyan, Sal and silk Cotton (Bombax malabaricum) were favorable. The trees are worshipped not for its own sake, but because it is the home of spirit. If the spirit leaves a tree, it withers and dies but the spirit is immortal.

All the tress has electro-magnetic energy which is passed in us when we touch them. With the passage of time and changes in religioso, and socio-political conditions the impact of Buddhist gardens eroded in India but they flourished and survived in Thailand, China, Korea and Japan.

The Buddhist gardens have been transformed into a new style of gardening in Japan Known Japanese styles of gardens in the hands of crafty gardeners and modified according to the local climate conditions and varied plants available.