The Tree That Made Them Stop

The Ashoka Tree

The gulmohur reminds you that summers can be beautiful, too, provided you don't rely on weather reports. The proximity of some trees alters the state of the mind. Our rishis discovered this secret aeons ago. Even if partly, Ravana also knew what the rishis knew. He kept Sita in Ashoka Vatika because he wanted her to be free from sorrow. Ashoka means "without sorrow". If you are in the vicinity of an ashoka tree, your sorrow will be mitigated. That's why we see ashoka trees near crematoriums.

Trees don't speak, but they tell a lot. Try listening to one this summer. Spend a few moments to think about the unknown hands that planted it. And consider planting a few yourself even if you can never know whose sorrow you will reduce decades from now.