TRYST WITH TREES: PUNJAB’S SACRED HERITAGE

Mr.D.S.Jaspal, Principal Secretary, Information and Public Relations and Financial commissioner (Forests), Government of Punjab called on Sardar Surjit Singh Barnala, His Excellency the Governor of Tamil Nadu at Raj Bhavan, Chennai.

Mr.D.S.Jaspal presented a photograph of the Gurdwara Ber Baba Budha Sahib (zizyphus jujuba) located in the Golden Temple, Amritsar.  The photograph is a selection from TRYST WITH TREES – PUNJAB’S SACRED HERITAGE, a pictorial documentation of sacred Sikh shrines named after native species of trees, undertaken by him. 

Mr.Jaspal said he personally visited the shrines to photograph the trees against the backdrop of the shrine and to study the status of each sacred tree.  The project Tryst with Trees – Punjab’s Sacred heritage documents 48 sacred and historic Sikh shrines named after 17 species of trees – the most popular species being beri (Zizyphus jujuba), Tahli (shisham) and jand (Prosopis spicigera).  He apprised His Excellency about the efforts being taken by the Chandigarh Nature & Health Society, a Chandigarh based NGO, of which he is the president, for preserving and propagating the sacred trees through modern nursery technology.  He said that as an experiment, the Society has obtained stems of four beri trees associated with historic Sikh shrines.  Inducement of rooting in these stems is now being attempted in simulated environment conditions through a mist-chamber. 

His Excellency Sardar Surjit Singh Barnala commended the efforts taken by Mr.Jaspal to highlight the role of nature and environment in general and trees in particular.  His Excellency said that trees are repeatedly referred in all religious texts and hymns which emphasize that man must coexist with the environment and respect the forests and that is why many trees and plants are revered and worshipped by the people.

 His Excellency said that this will not only draw attention to the importance of nature and trees in the social and spiritual life of the people but also motivate them to take care of this heritage which is now under threat from the forces of urbanization and consumerism.  Sardar Barnala said that faith has an extremely important role to play in preserving and protecting our environment, since nature permeates every facet of our life.

His Excellency the Governor wished Mr.Jaspal all success in his mission to preserve and propagate sacred trees.

Secretary to Governor

Raj Bhavan, Chennai                                                                                                                                           Public Relations Officer
10.05.2006.

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