yet again ... getting lost ... then enjoying self-discovery ...

There is something about Banyans  The place I grew up at was named after Banyans - Vadodara - Vad being Gujarati for the Banyan Banaras too has some stunning ones  And, of course, I am not the only one enamoured by these This awe inspiring one at the gate of the CIHTS at Sarnath "जैसे मुझे जानता हो बरसों से देखो, उस दढ़ियल बरगद को देखो मुझे देखा तो कैसे लपका चला आ रहा है मेरी तरफ़" Kedar Nath Singh These at the BHU campus  This a grand presence  This one sneaking up amidst the bricks along with a Peepal , both towered by a Mango  "बरगद के नीचे चबूतरे पर  रेंगता कीड़ा सर उठाकर  देखता है : एक पत्ता और गिरा।"   Ashok Vajpeyi These at the KFI campus at Rajghat  An elephant herd?  A raptor's talons? "मेरे रास्ते में एक मोड़ था और उस मोड़ पर पेड़ था एक बरगद का  ऊंचा घना जिस के साये में  मेरा  बहुत वक़्त बीता है लेकिन हमेशा यही मैं ने सोचा  कि रस्ते में यह मोड़ ही इस लिए है  कि यह पेड़ है" Javed Akhtar The final o...

What cutting of one tree in Banaras tells us? Few days ago, the newspapers talked of one particular tree that fell. A Banyan in Banaras. Large number of people expressed anguish and some also considered it a harbinger of bad times for the town. Perplexed, I wondered what bad omen meant for a town ravaged by Covid? Amidst the pandemic driven chaos Banaras has, during the past few weeks, been witness to corpses lined up outside crematoriums and floating on river waters. And also, why one particular tree got the attention it did? Especially given that, around the same time, the news from the Capital, talked of treed avenues being destroyed. Of the uprooting and probable relocation of around 400 trees - including Jamun and Neem – some of those aging around 100 (years). A Banyan still standing (representative image from elsewhere) Image Credits: Dharmendra Khandal  The tree under discussion was the Akshay Vat - the indestructible Banyan tree . Only 2 such trees now remain - one at Gaya...