FROM THE EARTH

Throughout the ages, trees have played an important role in the life of humanity. This is appreciated even more so today with the critical role of forests being understood in terms of ecological balance. Here is the start of the creation story as told by the Yakut tribe of Siberia. Note that in both this story, and the one on page 8, that the tree, or stake, is the balancing element in the universe.

••Above the wide and motionless deep, under the nine spheres and seven storeys of heaven, at the most central place, the navel of the planet, earth’s stillest place, where the moon does not wane, and the sun does not set, where eternal summer reigns and the cuckoo calls unceasingly, there the Pure Youth found himself. In this wonderful place he sees a mighty hill, and on it an immense tree. It’s branches pierce the sky, penetrating the nine spheres and seven storieys of heaven and it’s very top is the tethering-post for the supreme god.••

The Buddha sits under the Bodhi tree -
a place of shelter - refuge.

THE BODHI TREE

There are many places where trees are mentioned in the Buddhist scriptures. One of the most famous relates to the time of the Buddha’s enlightenment.

••After wandering the countryside for about six years the Buddha finally came to rest in a forest beside the Naranjara River, not far from modern day Bodh Gaya. Sitting under a Bodhi tree, ardently practising meditation, he finally realised his true nature. The next seven days were spent under the tree experiencing the bliss of freedom and contemplating the extent of his new understanding.••

The story then goes on to relate four other periods of seven days, each spent under a different tree – the Banyan, the Mucalinda and the Rajayatana tree and then once more back to the Banyan. Each of these ‘tree scenes’ has its own well known story which space here does not allow. The tree of enlightenment is called, in Latin, ficus religiosa, or sacred fig; it is also known as the pipal tree. For Buddhists it is generally called the Bodhi, or Bo tree. Bodhi is a Pali* word for enlightenment. There is a descendant of the original tree still growing at Bodh Gaya and Bodhi trees are commonly found in Buddhist centres all over the world.

* Pali is felt by many to be the language that the Buddha actually spoke. It is the traditional, scriptural language used by Theravadan Buddhists and it was in Pali that the texts were first committed to writing in Sri Lanka.