DOI: 10.36347/sajb.2015.v03i09.015

Pages: 828-831

India's vast cultural landscape is deeply enriched by its ancient traditions of plant veneration and ritual use where the natural world is not merely a backdrop for human activity but an active, sacred participant in the spiritual and ritualistic life. Thus, the paper is an attempt to explore the profound and diverse relationships between India's human communities and its flora, as expressed through a myriad of rituals, ceremonies and daily practices. The Ocimum sanctum, for instance, is examined not just as a medicinal herb but as a worshipped goddess and a pivotal axis of the Hindu household, her daily veneration a ritual that sanctifies the home. Similarly, the Banyan (Ficus benghalensis) and Peepal (Ficus religiosa) are archetypes of eternal life and wisdom, serving as focal points for community worship, meditation and rites of passage. However, regional and community-specific diversity of these practices are evident in the use of the Khejri tree (Prosopis cineraria) in the Bishnoi community's ecologically grounded protection rituals with the role of specific flowers in tribal harvest festivals or the intricate floral carpets (Kolam/Rangoli) created in South Indian households. In short, it is a "leaf of faith" that sustains not only spiritual beliefs but also reinforces ecological wisdom, social cohesion and a tangible, everyday connection to the biodiversity that surrounds and sustains human life. This intricate web of relationships underscores an ancient, yet urgently relevant, paradigm where cultural and biological diversity are inextricably and beautifully linked.