Roots of Wisdom, Branches of Devotion: Plant Life in South Asian Traditions

by Thomas Dahnhardt (Editor), Fabrizio M Ferrari (Editor)

Overview

Plant life has figured prominently in Indian culture. Archaeobotanical findings and Vedic texts confirm that plants have been central not only as a commodity (sources of food; materia medica; sacrificial matter; etc.) but also as powerful and enduring symbols. Roots of Wisdom, Branches of Devotion: Plant Life in South Asian Traditions explores how herbs, trees, shrubs, flowers and vegetables have been studied, classified, represented and discussed in a variety of Indian traditions such as Vedism, Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, indigenous cultures and Islam. Moving from an analysis of the sentience of plants in early Indian philosophies and scientific literature, the various chapters, divided in four thematic sections, explore Indian flora within devotional and mystic literature (bhakti and Sufism), mythological, ritual and sacrificial culture, folklore, medicine, perfumery, botany, floriculture and agriculture. Arboreal and floral motifs are also discussed as an expression of Indian aesthetics since early coinage to figurative arts and literary figures. Finally, the volume reflects current discourses on environmentalism and ecology as well as on the place of indigenous flora as part of an ancient yet still very much alive sacred geography.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781781791202
Publisher:	Equinox Publishing
Publication date:	06/01/2016
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.17(h) x (d)

About the Author

Fabrizio M. Ferrari is Professor of Indology and South Asian Religions in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Chester. Thomas Dahnhardt is Assistant Professor in Hindi and Urdu Languages and Literatures in the Department of Asian and Mediterranean African Studies at the Ca' Foscari University of Venice.

Table of Contents

Introduction Fabrizio M. Ferrari and Thomas Dahnhardt Section 1: Nature, Landscape, Devotion 1. A Modern Kalpavriksha: Sathya Sai Baba and the Wish-fulfilling Tree Antonio Rigopoulos, Ca'Foscari University of Venice 2. "Pagoda Tree": Plants and Other Foliate Motifs on Indian Coins through History Shailendra Bhandare, Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford 3. Divine Flora, Divine Love: The Place of Natural Scenery in the Ultimate Vision of Krsna Bhakti Graham M. Schweig, Christopher Newport University, USA Section 2: Devotion, Ecology, Ritual 4. Perfumed Islam: The Culture of Scent at the Nizamuddin Basti Mikko Viitamaki, University of Helsinki 5. The Bodhi Tree and Other Plants in the Pali Tipiṭaka Antonella S. Comba, University of Turin 6. Wood, Water, and Waste: Material Aspects of Mortuary Practices in South Asia Albertina Nugteren, Tilburg University, The Netherlands Section 3: Ritual, Power, Myth 7. The Herbal Arsenal and Fetid Food: The Power of Plants in Early Tantric Exorcism Rituals Michael Slouber, Western Washington University, USA 8. Tree-Hugger: The Samavedic Rite of the Audumbari Finnian M.M. Gerety, Brown University and Harvard University Section 4: Myth, Food, Nature 9. Caryota Urens: From Vegetable Manifestation of God to Sacred Tree of the Lanjia Saoras Stefano Beggiora, Ca'Foscari University of Venice 10. Rice and Rice Culture. Cultivation and Worship of a Divine Plant in Western Odisha Uwe Skoda, Aarhus University, Denmark 11. Agriculture, Floriculture and Botanical Knowledge in a Middle Bengali Text Fabrizio M. Ferrari