STHALAVRIKSHA

Description

ABOUT THE BOOK

Trees are living monuments of nature, and worshipping them is the oldest form of religion, documented in ancient societies all over the World, because of their sheer magnificence, antiquity and benefits to humankind on Earth. The worship of plants is an ancient phenomenon in India, too. The earliest form of worship was the veneration of a single tree, line of trees, cluster of trees, groves and woodland/forest. Especially among the Tamils, “Trees were the embodiment of divinity; in them, Gods dwelt and had to be worshipped” (Agam,270.12;7; Puram,191.1;198). Many villages set apart sanctified land to propitiate the vanadevatas. i.e. tree spirits. The two notable traditional institutions of tree worship by the Tamils were Kovilkadu, or “Sacred Grove”, and Sthalavriksha or “Sacred Tree” of a temple.

This compendium narrates five such keystone “Sthalavriksha” as temple tree species offering their Ecosystem services, defined as “the benefits that humankind derives from nature or ecosystems”. Through provisioning, regulating, and providing habitat and cultural services to the local communities in various Tamil Nadu State, India districts. Study and documentation of the five temple tree species reveal their importance to conserve them in situ not only within a temple precinct but also in streets and various public open spaces in villages, towns and cities, for them to continue providing life support essentials like clean air, water, soil fertility, biodiversity. These “Trees are the earth’s endless effort to speak to the listening heaven” for the well-being of humankind and the Earth.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Prof. Dr PARISUTHA RAJAN, Professor and Director of Research at the Faculty of Architecture, Dr M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute (Deemed to be University with Graded Autonomy Status), Chennai. An immense study in Landscape Architecture with two and a half decades of practice and academics with research on native plant material of Indian Tropical Dry Evergreen Forest. Born and brought up in Pondicherry, presently lives in Chennai. Alums of four prestigious institutions: BVBCET, Hubballi (present KLE Technological University), School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, Institute for Housing and Urban Development, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands and School of Planning and Architecture, Vijayawada. After a longstanding professional association with erstwhile AUROSERVICE D’AUROVILLE in Pondicherry from 1992, they established their practice in 2000 under the aegis ECOTONE, a Blue + Green Design Studio + Lab with parallel practice and academic activities as visiting Professor to Principal for a decade. In 2022, I was awarded a doctorate from the School of Planning and Architecture, Vijayawada, titled: Impact of Native Evergreen Trees with Planting Design on Outdoor Thermal Comfort in Urban Parks, Chennai. A commendable thesis towards urban resilience for climate change mitigation using native trees. Fellow Member of the Indian Society of Landscape Architects and was the ISOLA – Resource Centre Coordinator for 2018-20. Presently, Chairman of The Indian Institute of Architects, Puducherry Centre and Immediate Past Chairman of ISOLA: Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry Chapter, and I volunteer for IFLA APR EAA to support and enable collaboration across landscape architecture education imparting schools in the Asia Pacific region. Visiting Professor and recipient of Asia Pacific Academic Activity Teaching Fellowship to School of Art, Department of Landscape Architecture, Fu Jen Catholic University, Taipei and Guest Speaker at Department of Landscape Architecture, Tunghai University, Taichung, Taiwan.