A Wisdom Archive on Forest

Veddhas (Sing.). The name of a wild race of men living in the forests of Ceylon. They are very difficult to find.

 
(See also: Veddhas, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary,  )

For more dictionary entries, see » Forest Dictionary

The Upanishads are records of the thoughts and teachings of ancient Indian sages who lived in forest hermitages. They are among the oldest religious scriptures in the world. All of them are preoccupied with the quest for knowledge of the Self.
 
Isa Upanishad is a compact and highly poetic scripture. It contains all the quintessential teachings of all the Upanishads. When asked to condense his life's message in three words, Gandhiji said: "Renounce and enjoy". This is the dictum in the very first stanza of Isa Upanishad: "All this - whatever moves on earth - should be enveloped by the Lord. Fortify yourself through this renunciation. Do not covet anybody's wealth; to whom does wealth belong?

 
(See also: Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Love and Happiness: Message of Control, Charity and Compassion

As the sighting of the moon is a must in Islam to signal holy occasions, so is the confluence of the full moon, pournami , and the star Pushya in the month of Makara or January. It is a day consecrated to the worship of Subrahmanya - he who is full of bliss and effulgence - the younger son of Shiva. He is more or less appropriated by the Tamils as their own god; temples to Kartikeya dot the state, most of them situated on hilltops, in places like Palani and Tiruttani, in thick forests as in Subrahmanya in Dakshina Kannada and on the seashore as in Tiruchendur.

 
(See also: Subrahmanya, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Subrahmanya: The Child as the Guru of God  

The hill-stream gurgled along impatiently. The old Kondh tribal sat by the stream, both feet dipped into its cold waters. The blue smoke from the homemade pipe he was smoking merged with the blue haze slowly descending from the Niyamgiri hill. Soon he was playing a wistful tune on a slender flute. The music drew me to him and we started talking.
 
He told me how he lost his wife a year ago. "The tiger dragged her away while she was in the forest. I was so unhappy I wanted to die and leave Dharani Ma (Earth Mother). Then deep inside I knew I can't, unless forced, leave this enchanting world even for a day.

 
(See also: Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Love and Happiness: A Kondh's Love for Life and Dharani

Once there lived a strong, young elephant named Meruprabh. One day a part of a huge forest caught fire and the fire spread rapidly, fanned by strong winds. The animals were scared.
 
When would the fire stop? Meruprabh along with 700 other elephants cleared one part of the forest of vegetation to prevent the fire from spreading. This clearing became a haven for animals seeking shelter from the fire and they huddled there till the fire went out. Animals who normally hunted each other now sat or stood close in amity. Fear was palpable.

 
(See also: Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Love and Happiness: The Elephant And The Monk - A Story of Compassion

Once upon a time, a musk deer went searching for musk. Round and round the forest she went, month after month, quite unaware that the heady fragrance, so desperately sought by her, lay beneath her own belly button. Many times, we humans, too, behave like the musk deer. We search for self-realisation outside, blissfully unaware that it lies within us, all the while untapped.
 
To experience this bliss, however, the seeker has to put in a different sort of effort with regularity and devotion. One way lies through the world of forms, through the path of bhakti, where the seeker concentrates on any of the manifest forms of the Ultimate.

 
(See also: Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Peace of Mind: The Ideal Way to Get Close to God - Bhakti

Aranyaka (Sanskrit). Holy hermits, sages who dwelt in ancient India in forests. Also a portion of the Vedas containing Upanishads, etc.

 
(See also: Aranyaka, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary,  )

For more dictionary entries, see » Forest Dictionary

The elephant captured in Chhattisgarh was a victim, not just of an over-eager, insensitive agency that was ironically set up for the specific purpose of protecting endangered pachyderms. The poor animal was first forced to leave the forests of neighbouring states frightened by miners and rendered homeless by human-induced forest degradation. And then, when it tried to survive, looking for food, it was chased, caught, and made to die a slow death. Whatever happened to our tradition of respecting all life forms?

 
(See also: Life and Death, Life and Beyond, Death and Dying, Body Mind and Soul )

Read more here: » Life and Death: Kaliyug Death of A Vishnu-bhakt

Kiratarjuniya of Bharavi (Sanskrit). A Sanskrit epic, celebrating the strife and prowess of Arjuna with the god Siva disguised as a forester.

 
(See also: Kiratarjuniya of Bharavi, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary,  )

For more dictionary entries, see » Forest Dictionary

Jungle refers usually to a forest. It originated from a Sanskrit word jangala, meaning wilderness. In many languages of the Indian subcontinent, including Indian English it is generally used to refer to any wild, untended or uncultivated land, including forest, scrub, or desert landscapes. In other English speaking countries, the term is a colloquialism used generically for dense forest in hot climates. In this context, the use of the term (which may sometimes be accompanied with adjectives such as "dark and steamy"), is ...

Read more here: » Jungle: Encyclopedia - Jungle

• Plant - Embryophytes
• Plant - Algae and Fungi
• Plant - Importance
• Plant - Growth
• Plant - Fossils
• Plant - Distribution
• Plant - References and further reading

Read more here: » Plant: Encyclopedia - Plant

Lebanon (Hebrew, Jewish). A range of mountains in Syria, with a few remnants of the gigantic cedar trees, a forest of which once crowned its summit. Tradition says that it is here, that the timber for King Solomon’s temple was obtained. (See "Druzes".)

 
(See also: Lebanon, Theosophy, Spirituality, Body mind and Soul, Spiritual Dictionary,  )

For more dictionary entries, see » Forest Dictionary