The story of the sacred shrub Tulasi, which relieves all sins.
In India, the Tulasi tree grows in almost every courtyard, both in private houses and high-rise buildings, in stone pots on flat roofs and terraces. There are many types of flowering trees and shrubs in this country that bear tasty and healthy fruits. Tulasi does not bear fruit, and its small light pink flowers are almost invisible, but it is this shrub, which is short, with small oblong leaves, which is revered here above other plants. Tulasi serve in temples, glorified as a great saint. Natalia Fedorova, a regular author of Realnoe Vremya, talks in more detail about Tulasi and the traditions connected with it in her regular column.
Not a bush, but a great saint
Tulasi is not just a shrub, every religious Indian knows about it. As I was explained in West Bengal, where I now live, worshiping him cannot be compared with the worship of pagans to a stone or a tree, because in this case they worship not a material object, but a person who has taken such a form. The Puranas, ancient scriptures preserved in India, tell the story of Tulasi. It says that one great saint lived in the spiritual world, on the planet Goloka. And one day, out of compassion, she decided to go down to earth and take the form of a bush here, so that people could worship her and receive benefit. Tulasi is translated as incomparable. It is said that there is no one on earth equal to her in devotion to God, so he really likes it when people take care of this plant.
The service for the Tulasi tree is held in the temples in the morning and in the evening. I usually visit one of these temples in the town of Mayapur every morning. In December-January, at four o'clock in the morning, it is still very dark and cold, and in the rice fields around, coyotes howl and there is a thick fog. However, this does not prevent the hundreds of Indians and foreigners living in the settlement from cycling and walking to morning services. One of the elements of this morning temple worship is Tulasi arati and puja (chanting and ritual).
Tulasi service in the temple.
It happens like this. Two small Tulasi bushes (for the female and male halves) are brought in pots into the altar room and placed on small tables. Then one of the parishioners conducts a service: the tree is offered fire (lighted cotton wicks in melted butter), incense and flowers. Tulasi is decorated with garlands of fresh flowers, usually marigolds. At this time, all the rest of the audience offer prostration to Tulasi and recite her pranama mantra (a short verse praising her qualities). Then everyone sings melodious prayers in Bengali to the sound of drums (mrdanga) and the ringing of copper plates (karatal). After that, the parishioners take turns touching the fire that was offered to Tulasi with their right palm and their foreheads, and also inhale the fragrance of the flowers offered to her. Then everyone walks at least three times around Tulasi: it is believed that if you do this every day,one gets rid of all sins and offenses.
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The same services as in temples are held daily at home in religious families. Indian believers are sure that misfortunes never come to the house where Tulasi lives, and thanks to her presence this place becomes cleaner than all the holy places. The pot in which Tulasi grows is decorated with a skirt made of beautiful embroidered fabric. It is also considered auspicious to water the ground at the base of Tulasi, take a little of this land and touch your forehead with it, if you do this, a person gains the result of worshiping God for a hundred days.
Aroma and taste of Tulasi
Tulasi is an edible plant. In botany, it is called the Sacred Basilica. Tulasi leaves have a sour taste. Knowing about the medicinal properties of the plant (diaphoretic, antipyretic, strengthening nerves, antispasmodic, antibacterial), it is used by many Indian (and not only) pharmaceutical companies. However, Indian believers consider this an insult, they will never buy such medicines.
Tulasi leaves on the deity's feet.
However, Tulasi leaves can still be eaten. They are necessarily put on food that is offered to God on the altar. The scriptures say that without this he will not accept even a crumb of the offering. Then Tulasi leaves can be eaten along with the offered food. In the Skanda Purana it is said that by eating a Tulasi leaf one becomes impeccably pure: "Even a sinner devoid of spiritual love can enter the abode of the Lord simply by eating the Tulasi leaf offered to the Lord." However, if someone does not eat a leaf that is not offered, then it is tantamount to the sin of killing a brahmana or having sex with one's own mother.
Also, Tulasi leaves are used to decorate the feet of deities in temples. Plants make large garlands of leaves and flowers to decorate the necks of deities, and then these garlands are divided into parts and distributed to parishioners.
It is necessary to pluck the leaves from Tulasi very carefully so as not to hurt the tree. In Vishnu-smrti it is said: “If someone breaks branches while collecting Tulasi leaves, the Lord feels pain in his heart. You should clap your palms three times before picking the leaves of Tulasi, and pick them up so as not to shake her branches. This should be done during the daytime, from dawn to dusk. I remember once I was walking in the evening by the Tulasi bush in the yard of my house and wanted to pick a few leaves. One Indian woman stopped me by saying something in her own language and making a negative hand gesture.
Rosary from Tulasi.
When the Tulasi tree dries up and dies, beads for beads (japa-mala) are cut out of its branches and trunk, on which representatives of many traditions repeat mantras. It is said in the sastras that chanting the Lord's names on a Tulasi rosary quickly liberates one from material bondage. Also from Tulasi they make beads (kanthimala), which are worn around the neck. They protect a person from bad dreams, accidents, gun attacks. But in order for these beads to have such an effect, they must be offered to the deities on the altar. Anyone who wears Tulasi beads not consecrated on the altar will go to hell after death, the scriptures say.
Tulasi is also worshiped in the form of a murti (deity) - she is portrayed as a cowherd girl in elegant clothes. I was once lucky enough to visit such a Tulasi temple near Vrindavan in North India. A small temple stands on the shore of a lake among the fields, in the temple there is only one very beautiful deity Tulasi, who is served by several monks living here.
Deity of Tulasi Devi.
Frees from sins
In the sastras there are so many different descriptions of how worshiping and simply touching a person with Tulasi can help him. For example, it is said that when a person dies, you need to put the leaves of a plant on his tongue. “The leaves, flowers, roots, bark, branches, trunk and shadow of Tulasi Devi are spiritual. One whose dead body is burned in the fire of the Tulasi tree goes to the spiritual world, even if he is the most sinful of sinners, and the one who makes such a fire will be freed from the consequences of all sins. Therefore, traditionally, during cremation, a stick of Tulasi is also put into the fire along with the body of the deceased.
Also in the Puranas it is said that the most favorable place for life on earth is where many Tulasi bushes grow. It is so auspicious to just see a bush or walk past a house or garden in which it grows that one is immediately freed from the reactions of all his previous sins, including the sin of killing a saint. Even the aroma of Tulasi is glorified: if it is carried by the wind, it purifies everyone who smells it. And the place where the shadow of this tree falls is considered the best place on the planet.
Lovers in separation should worship Tulasi, and this will give them hope for an early reunion. Similar recommendations exist for unmarried girls: if Tulasi is satisfied with their service, he will send them a good husband.
Tulasi in the courtyard of the temple.
Even the shadow of Tulasi is considered auspicious. Many of my acquaintances in India have said that it is better to concentrate in the shade of a bush during meditation or prayer. It protects against the influence of spirits and ghosts. For example, one American shared this memory: in the 1970s, he lived with friends in an old house in Atlanta, where fierce battles took place during the Civil War and many people died. The ghosts tormented them every night. However, when they brought Tulasi into the house and began to worship her, the evil influence disappeared.
In the book Tulasi Upanishad, modern commentators recall a man who died in the last century from spinal cord cancer: “In early October, a small Tulasi was placed over the body of a suffering patient, and when it was taken outside for 10 minutes, the patient complained that the pain returned to the previous level. She was put in its usual place, the patient clearly confirmed that the strongest pain had dulled. Also in India, a pot of Tulasi is hung over the bed of a woman who is expecting a baby to reduce her pain during gestation and during childbirth.
However, even the shadow of Tulasi must be handled very carefully, the sastras say that to step on her shadow is an offense. Although in rooms with electric lighting, this is almost inevitable …
This is how Tulasi is grown in Russia under artificial light.
Tulasi outside India
Inspired by this influence of Tulasi, many people around the world, believers and not only, buy her seeds and grow a tree at home. Of course, Tulasi grows best in the Indian tropical climate. In Russian, this plant does not have enough light, so you need to turn on special lamps that simulate sunlight for the whole day. It is also necessary to maintain the humidity level and the high temperature in the room. Tulasi requires a lot of care in an alien climate, various pests are often found, while the plant cannot be cut off the roots and branches, and if it dies, this is considered an unfavorable sign. However, all these difficulties do not stop many of my Russian friends, who still plant Tulasi on their windowsill.
Natalia Fedorova, photo from the author's archive