Nature study in school and in Life

16th June 2016.

Greetings

Nature study in school and in Life down memory lane- -----

WE used to have Nature Study classes in school till 6th Standard; then we called it " NATURE STUDY".

it was  mainly outdoors as we had sprawling acres of grounds in our school, all wooded and filled with trees, bushes and plants.We used to call it our Woods, Jungle etc  In school we joyfully collected different kinds of  Leaves, with great excitement ; then study it-draw it and preserving it in a book as it dried , softened and was smooth; used as a book mark sometimes-

Try with leaves, esp like Ashwattha, Bilwa, Ixxora, Pongam (Karanja),Scarlett Cordia and more.

then with the smaller delicate one..but larger thick leaves are easier in a book  --

Then nature study experiment  with a soft bean in a glass bottle with water and  lined with blotting paper done in class /home on  "GERMINATION" in 1956 Nature study class.

Watch the sprouting...was a delightful pastime and we learnt.That was 1955..

Even today many small children especially  like doing this.

Nearly 3 decades later in 1985  I wrote a paper on Raw Cashew shipment imports  from Africa  on moisture damage to cargo with sprouting (Germination) on long voyages on just a experimental basis wit the help of my Lab Chemist - and this set in motion many papers. The Raw Cashew claims review Paper was even accepted by the Insurance Cos, the trade &  Lloyds Agentys accepted it -

But today for me this nature watch is the greatest Relaxation.

Nature Appreciation & meditation recd a great boost from 4 Existential Labs-through Prasanna Trust Bangalore,  attended in early 90s and it was  great experience and  to get inspired.

All this helps more for Earth Day, Environment ,Green Peace.

Great quotes and thoughts on Nature

quotes

To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter...to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird’s nest or a wildflower in spring—these are some of the rewards of the simple life. —John Burroughs

To see a world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity in an hour.
from-William Blake.

Thoughts-

" Look at the trees, look at the birds, look at the clouds, look at the stars... and if you have eyes you will be able to see that the whole existence is joyful.  Everything is simply happy.  Trees are happy for no reason; they are not going to become prime ministers or presidents and they are not going to become rich and they will never have any bank balance.  Look at the flowers - for no reason.  It is simply unbelievable how happy flowers are."~Osho

Nature is amazing and delightful  

Rgds,

TR 

Trees & Tanks at temples-part 2.

GREETINGS

Part 2--Temple Tanks -Trees & Tanks at temples --an integral part of the philosophy of Divinity in Nature

Teertha,Talaab,Kalyani, Pushkarini, Kunda, Sarovara,- Kolam etc. are all a part of the Hindu Temple Culture  The tanks or in some cases the Wells like at Rameswaram were  built for bathing before prayer.
Their waters have been  given a special sacrality and so a bath is always taken here. Sadly with a population explosion and poor management in the new phenomena called Pilgrimage Tourism these Tanks are sometimes not maintained properly and get soiled.But Faith remains and the large majority take a Dip and then only offer  prayers.

Temple Tanks also are a part of Water storage plans. They work  by the underground flow to connect rainfall in cities and helps to share the rain water received and avoid wastage by flow in drainage.Here again. much damage has been done as many tanks have been filled in and closed -or over tapped by bores in adjacent areas and are now dry.

On the West Coast -all along the Konkan coast, the SW Monsoon is from June-Sept. and   heavy - and copious rain falls to replenish these great temple tanks -

On the East Coast esp Tamilnadu rain is mostly from NE Monsoon which is less -So, Chennai and the surrounding areas are water starved and these tanks  often dry .Some efforts to recharge and save has been taken up in recent years.
We Pray that Water saving, storage and underground supply charging will gain focus in this new Govt era as much neglect was seen in the last few decades.
During the SC.Math-Prabhat Somnath Gujarat TeethYatra, we had the opportunity to see the most brilliant engineering marvels of India of the earlier time viz.the Stepp Wells  This is an extremely large deep well with brilliant masonry well .The steps going down to the water level in the well is shown ia pic taken by me during the Yatra . Such wells are called Bawlis in north India but as Vava in Gujarat; eg.Rani ke Vaav in Gujarat.They were built by Rajas and so were a special bathjing place for royalty then--later for the common man and woman.See Pic no 5 below.

Truly a great culture and scientific system that connects science and spirituality with nature.

Trees & Tanks at temples

dt 5th June 2014.
Trees & Tanks at temples;
an integral part of the philosophy of Divinity in Nature
Introduction:

Age and a slow down process in Life (and some health limitations) can some
times bring in some unexpected surprises and pursuits--in fact Hobbies and
learning. When I started on Temple Trees in 1998 at Ramnagar with taking

a photo of a
Peepal tree entwined with a Frangipani , I never realised I was on an amazing
voyage of discovery about Ficus genus and this developed a wonderful purusit with TreeWatch..

The study  actually began when I attended the punar  pratishta of  Sri Ram temple in Mavungal (Kanhangad Dist) inauguration. My room mate was a very nice person who had a copy of a book "Temple Culture" by one AKB Nair of Kasargode..In 2-3 days , I went through it with deep interest  at the ashram itself and managed to go through most of it, as it was a small booklet -but brilliantly researched and written. Later, spoke to him and purchased  several copies o and distributed to friends. This book is now available at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. The one  titled  "Sacred Trees of Tamilnadu".by the CPR Foundation of Chennai is also very good. There are also a few papers available on  Temple Trees by some authors. ( in later years) gave an added impetous to progress on the study of  Temples and Tree Watch.

Sthala Vriksha means the Tree of the sacred location (and specific ) is linked to the Deity in the temple and so we have Sthala (place)  Vrikshas (Tree) .

The tree study  of  1998 began with the Peepal -Frangipani -Banyan, Oudamber (all same  Ficus genus but differ ) was an amazing start. Then the Neem and the  study gradually increased my awareness of our culture and tradition that had largely been missed earlier, as I have been  living in a metro city.

Then as time passed in 2009--shared on sites and finally a blog "Prakruti Mother nature" .
It has kept me happily occupied.

If we look carefully we will find  many trees near Temples in the south especially but one Tree
will gain  prominence -eg   Palash--Purasai (tamil)  in in Puraswalkam at Shree Gangadeeshwar Temple -Chennai., Punnai at Shree Kapaleeswar-Mylapore.

These 5 trees have a special significance  --,  

1 Bilwa (Aegle marmelose)
2 Shami (Banni) (Acacia ferruginea)
3 Ashwatha (Arali) (Ficus religiosa)
4 Margosa (Neem) (Azadirachta indica)
5 Audumbara (country fig) (Ficus racemosa)

In almost every town and village,  temples in south India  maintain these great trees. 
They also serve as a meeting centre of many social, religious and community activities of the village. It is widely believed  that these 5 Panchavati trees offer a sacred space.  
These trees have been a source of inspiration for many of our saints and sages.
Sadly most of the Hindus do not even care to read about Sthala Vrikshas -TR

Contd -----