 Forests are vital to life on earth. In addition to their ecological importance, forests have myriad symbolic and cultural significance. On this International Forest Day, I was recollecting one of my most memorable visit to a sacred grove in north east of India.
Sacred groves are patches of forest that rural communities protect and revere as sacrosanct. It is a reflection of ancient values of reverence for nature. Declaring a patch of forest near villages as sacred and protecting it on the grounds of religious and cultural beliefs is an age-old practice in many parts of India. Sacred groves also play a crucial role in the preservation of biological diversity. There are thousands of sacred groves in India. Sacred groves are known by different names in different regions as Than or Madaico in Assam, Matagudi, Devgudi in Chattisgarah, Dev Van in Himachal Pradesh, Jaherthan or Sarana in Jharkhand, Devarakaadu or Kans in Karnataka, Kaavu in Kerala, Devrai or Devgudi in Maharashtra, Umang Lai in Manipur, Law Kyntang in Meghalaya, Jahera or Thakuramma in Orissa, Orans in Rajasthan, Kovilkaadu in Tamil Nadu, Bugyal or Dev Van in Uttarakhand and Garamthan or Jahiristhan in West Bengal. Some of the most magnificent sacred groves in the country are found in the Khasi Hills of Meghalaya, where almost every village is said to have had a grove, known locally as the law kyntangs. There are at least eighty sacred groves in Meghalaya alone. Mawphlang is probably the most well preserved among them and Ahalya and myself were keen to have a glimpse of it during our visit to the region. After a short drive through enchanting landscapes we arrived at the small town of Mawphlang. A local guide was kind enough to accompany us. We drove past the entrance gate managed by a youngster in traditional attire after paying a small fee (the sacred grove is looked after and managed by the local community). What I saw would remain etched in my memory forever. Rising up from the flat, barren landscape stood a vast green mass of trees. It was an incredibly beautiful sight. Outside the sacred groves there were clusters of ancient monoliths. These monoliths are stone structures that serve as respectful reminders of elders in the community who have passed away. I was informed that the vertical ones signify men, while the horizontal ones represent women. As we entered the hallowed grounds, the light seemed to dim considerably. Inside it was dense and dark in complete contrast to the surrounding. The ground beneath was uncannily soft, with patches of green carpets of fallen leaves. Giant roots covered with thick moss spread across the ground. The majestic presence of each and every tree envelops you as you make your way in the warm, lush forest. The grove is reported to have more than four hundred different species of trees. It was truly as magical as I had imagined it. I feel sometimes that the network of the trees in the forest is much akin to neural and social networks! The guide informed that not even a twig can be taken from the forest. Harm and misery befalls anyone who attempts to do so. It is also believed that the spirits and deities that reside in the groves protect the local population from various kinds of calamities. While showing us the wonders of the grove, he gently picked up a seed that is popularly called ‘Rudraksh’ and used in many religious ceremonies. After explaining to us its significance, he put it back where he found it. As we walked along in the dense forest, there were more megalithic stone structures. These stones are silent witnesses to numerous traditional beliefs and legends about the sacred forest, revered and preserved by local Khasi community. I was also told that Maw means stone and phlang means grass. The Mawphlang sacred grove is believed to be the home of two guardian deities — one in the shape of a leopard (khlathapsim), believed to be the benevolent one, and the other in the form of a snake (bsein), deemed the opposite. According to local mythology, those who have seen the leopard god have led a life of prosperity, while those who have encountered the other deity, have been showered with afflictions. Wish I had a glimpse of the leopard! Mawphlang was not merely an expression or representation of sacredness….it was sacredness itself .. As Seneca commented eons ago, "When you enter a grove peopled with ancient trees, higher than the ordinary, and shutting out the sky with their thickly inter-twined branches, do not the stately shadows of the wood, the stillness of the place remind you that you are in the presence of a deity?” More eloquently in the words of Lord Byron… "There is a pleasure in the pathless woods, There is a rapture on the lonely shore… I love not man the less, but Nature more."
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 I grew up with sparrows. They used to nest amidst the wooden rafters in the ceiling of our house. They were our co-tenants! Their constant chirping was a music to the ears. It was a lovely sight to see the chicks emerge from the nest and fly away after a few days. We later moved to another house which had a concrete roof and hence there was no place for the sparrows to roost. They slowly disappeared from our urban locale. I felt at home many decades later when I watched scores of them fluttering amidst the tall canopy of the Bangalore airport.
Sparrows have been around for very many years. Two jawbones of pre-domestic sparrows more than 100,000 years old, were found in a layer of sediment in a cave in Israel. The modern house sparrow started appearing in fossil records 10,000 or 20,000 years ago. With the spread of agriculture, house sparrows began to live among humans and spread across the globe. In the process they evolved in size, shape, color and behavior in different regions. It was not smooth sailing for them though. Mao viewed sparrows as one of the four “great” pests of his regime (along with rats, mosquitoes and flies). There were several billions of them in China. Once Mao decided to kill the sparrows, he commanded people all over the country in March of 1958, to come out of their houses to bang pots and make the sparrows fly which they did. The sparrows flew until exhausted, then they died mid-air, and fell to the ground, their bodies still warm with exertion. Sparrows were also caught in nets, poisoned and killed anyway they could be, adults and eggs alike. By some estimates, a billion birds were killed. The story of ecology is much more complex. When the sparrows were killed, crop production increased, at least initially. But with time, pests of rice and other agricultural produce increased in numbers never seen before. As a result of this and the ensuing crop failure, 35 million Chinese people died. It was then noticed that while adult tree sparrows mostly eat grains, their babies, like those of house sparrows, tend to be fed insects. In killing the sparrows, Mao and the Chinese had saved the crops from the sparrows, but seemed not to have considered the threat posed by the insects. And so Mao in 1960, ordered sparrows to be conserved! The story of the house sparrows in India is a disheartening, gloomy one. Over the past two decades, their population is on a rapid decline in almost every city. The reasons attributed are many: rapidly changing cities are no longer a suitable habitat for the house sparrow, as the new and modern designs of infrastructure does not give any room for the sparrow to nest; pollution, pesticides and diminishing ecological resources for sustenance further compound the issue. Sparrows finds mention in ancient Tamil literature. Kuṟuntokai which is the second of the Eight Anthologies (Ettuthokai) in the Sangam literature has some lovely poems about sparrows. This particular one describes the lament of a lady who misses her lover. ஆம்பல் பூவின் சாம்பல் அன்ன கூம்பிய சிறகர் மனை உறை குரீஇ முன்றில் உணங்கல் மாந்தி, மன்றத்து எருவின் நுண் தாது குடைவன ஆடி, இல் இறைப் பள்ளித் தம் பிள்ளையொடு வதியும் 5 புன்கண் மாலையும் புலம்பும் இன்று கொல் தோழி, அவர் சென்ற நாட்டே? In the house colored like 'ambal' flowers sparrows with closed wings eat the grains spread out in the courtyard for drying These sparrows, peck and play merrily with their chicks on the dried dung outside the house Watching them On this dull evening I feel lonely Where have you gone My dear one? (An adaptive translation of mine!) Subramanya Bharathi wrote a famous poem about sparrows being the symbol of freedom. விட்டுவிடுதலையாகிநிற்பாயிந்தச் சிட்டுகுருவியைபோலே, Stay liberated –Like this little sparrow. Renowned Hindi author, Mahadevi Verma’s story ‘Goraiya’ has wonderful descriptions of a sparrow eating grains from her hands, playing hide and seek and hopping around. There are many different species of sparrows. While birding in the Point Reyes area near San Francisco, my attention was drawn to a small bird that fluttered down and settled itself on a leafy thicket. Soon it serenaded me with one of the most beautiful bird calls interspersed with chips and trills that I have ever heard. True to its name, it was a Song Sparrow! Unfortunately in our urban milieu the song of the sparrows has been silenced. It’s time that we bring back the chirpy sparrows into our lives….  Colours play an important role in the festival of Holi. They add vitality to the festival, making it one of the most vibrant of celebrations. Each of the colours is deemed to have a symbolic significance. Blue for instance is the colour of Krishna's complexion and also of the sky and the oceans.
And colours are the smiles of nature. Birds are beautiful jewels in the sky. There are many brightly coloured birds in the world, and the most flamboyant ones are the parrots. During our birding sojourn in Australia, Ahalya and myself saw some of the most multihued parrots, prominent among them being the Rainbow Lorikeet. Rainbow Lorikeet, definitely deserves its name! True to its name, one can see all the colour palettes of rainbow in its feathers. Its head is deep blue with a greenish-yellow nuchal collar, and the rest of the upper parts (wings, back, and tail) are green. The chest is orange/yellow in colour. The belly is deep blue, and the thighs and rump are green. Their species name, haematodus, comes from the Latin word for blood, and is a reference to the rich red found on its breast. The colour of the feathers of birds serves various functions; thermoregulation, climatic adaptation and a fine balance between sexual signalling and camouflage. Birds need to balance being attractive to potential mates while having some kind of camouflage against potential predators. When hunted from above, the Rainbow Lorikeet blends with the foliage of the trees with its green back. It has been suggested that the colourful patches confer evolutionary advantage in courtship and mate recognition. Rainbow lorikeets have two unique features. They possess a tongue with brush-type tissues helping them to collect nectar and pollen. The other distinctive feature is their agile legs which help them to hang upside-down and feed on bottlebrush flowers. It is a dazzling sight when flocks of them fly with the rays of the sun streaming through their gorgeous plumage! On the occasion of Holi, in the words of Maya Angelou, let us “Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.”  Like many Hindu festivals, Holi is also inextricably linked to many legends. One of them relates to Hiranyakashipu, his sister Holika and his son Prahlada. Hiranyakashipu, the Asura, was the son of Sage Kashyapa and Diti and was keen to avenge Vishnu for eliminating his brother Hiranyakasha.
Prahlada was an ardent devotee of Vishnu as he was able to hear the chants of Narada praising the lord, even while he was in the womb of his mother. Hiranyakashipu was incensed with Prahlada’s unwavering devotion to Vishnu and initiated various attempts to kill him. Prahlada survived all these attempts. Holika, the sister of Hiranyakashipu had a boon that she could not be hurt by fire. Hiranyakashipu placed Prahlada on the lap of Holika as she sat on a lit pyre. Undeterred by this Prahlada prayed to Vishnu and Holika perished since she did not know that her powers were only effective if she entered the fire alone. This myth has a strong association with the festival of Holi, and even today there is a practice of forming a pyre the night before Holi and setting it alight as a symbolic burning of the demoness Holika. This is known as Holika Dahan and it is not merely a story about the triumph of good over evil. Holika symbolizes the hold of jealously, anger and pride on our behaviour and the importance of vanquishing these to rediscover the Prahlada within us. Though there are many sculptures of Narasimha disemboweling Hiranyakashipu in Hoysala temples, depiction of Prahlada is comparatively rare. This small frieze in the 13th century Somanathapura temple near Mysore, depicts Prahlada sitting on the pyre unharmed by the fire, praying to Vishnu. |
Dr Raguram
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May 2024
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