A Banyan is a fig that starts its life as an epiphyte when its seeds germinate in the
cracks and crevices on a host tree. "Banyan" often refers specifically to the Indian banyan
or Ficus benghalensis, which is the national tree of the Republic of India, though the
term has been generalized to include all figs that share a characteristic life cycle, and
systematically to refer to the subgenus Urostigma. Like other fig species, banyans bear multiple
fruit in structures called syncarps. The Ficus syncarp supplies shelter and food for fig
wasps and in turn, the trees are dependent on the fig wasps for pollination.
The seeds of banyans are dispersed by fruit-eating birds. The seeds are small, and most banyans
grow in forests, so that a plant germinating from a seed that lands on the ground is unlikely
to survive. However, many seeds land on branches and stems of trees or on buildings. When those
seeds germinate they send roots down towards the ground, and may envelop part of the host
tree or building structure, giving banyans the casual name of "strangler fig". The "strangling"
growth habit is found in a number of tropical forest species, particularly of the genus
Ficus, that compete for light. Any Ficus species showing this habit may be termed a strangler
fig. The leaves of the banyan tree are large, leathery,
glossy green and elliptical in shape. Like most fig-trees, the leaf bud is covered by
two large scales. As the leaf develops the scales fall. Young leaves have an attractive
reddish tinge. Older banyan trees are characterized by their
aerial prop roots that grow into thick woody trunks which, with age, can become indistinguishable
from the main trunk. Old trees can spread out laterally, using these prop roots to cover
a wide area. In some species the effect is for the props to develop into a sort of forest
covering a considerable area, every trunk connected directly or indirectly to the central
trunk. The topology of this structure of interconnection inspired the name of the hierarchical computer
network operating system Banyan VINES. In a banyan that envelops a support tree the
mesh of roots growing round the support tree eventually applies very considerable pressure
and commonly kills the tree. Such an enveloped dead tree eventually rots away so that the
banyan becomes a "columnar tree" with a hollow central core. In jungles such hollows are
particularly desirable shelters to many animals.
Etymology
The name was originally given to F. benghalensis and comes from India where early travellers
observed that the shade of the tree was frequented by banias or Indian traders.
In the Gujarati language, banya means "grocer/merchant," not "tree." The Portuguese picked up the word
to refer specifically to Hindu merchants and passed it along to the English as early as
1599 with the same meaning. By 1634, English writers began to tell of the banyan tree,
a tree under which Hindu merchants would conduct their business. The tree provided a shaded
place for a village meeting or for merchants to sell their goods. Eventually "banyan" became
the name of the tree itself. Classification
The original banyan, the species F. benghalensis, can grow into a giant tree covering several
hectares. Over time, the name became generalized to all strangler figs of the Urostigma subgenus.
There are many banyan species, including: Ficus microcarpa, which is native from Sri
Lanka through New Caledonia and is a significant invasive species elsewhere.
The Central American banyan is native to Central America and northern South America, from southern
Mexico south to Paraguay. The shortleaf fig is native to southern Florida,
the Caribbean Islands, Central America and South America south to Paraguay. One theory
is that the Portuguese name for F. citrofolia, "Os Barbados", gave Barbados its name
The Florida strangler fig is also native to southern Florida and the Caribbean Islands,
and distinguished from the above by its coarser leaf venation.
The Moreton Bay fig and Port Jackson Fig are other related species.
Ornamental value
Due to the complex structure of the roots and extensive branching, the banyan is extensively
used for creating bonsai. Taiwan's oldest living bonsai is a 240-year-old banyan housed
in Tainan. In culture
Religion and mythology Banyan trees figure prominently in several
Asian and Pacific religions and myths, including: In Hinduism, the leaf of the Banyan tree is
said to be the resting place for the god Krishna. In the Bhagavat Gita Krishna said "There is
a banyan tree which has its roots upward and its branches down, and the Vedic hymns are
its leaves. One who knows this tree is the knower of the Vedas." Here the material world
is described as a tree whose roots are upwards and branches are below. We have experience
of a tree whose roots are upward: if one stands on the bank of a river or any reservoir of
water, he can see that the trees reflected in the water are upside down. The branches
go downward and the roots upward. Similarly, this material world is a reflection of the
spiritual world. The material world is but a shadow of reality. In the shadow there is
no reality or substantiality, but from the shadow we can understand that there is substance
and reality. Elsewhere in the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says:
Of all trees I am the Banyan tree, and of the sages among the demigods I am Narada.
Of the Gandharvas I am Citraratha, and among perfected beings I am the sage Kapila.(10.26)
The banyan tree is also considered sacred and is called "Vat Vriksha" in Sanskrit, in
Telugu known as: 'మర్రి వృక్షము ' ; Marri Vrikshamu and in Tamil known as:
'ஆல மரம்' ; Ala Maram. The god Shiva as Dakshinamurthy is nearly always depicted
sitting in silence under the banyan with rishis at his feet. It is thought of as perfectly
symbolizing eternal life due to its seemingly unending expansion.
In modern parlance in the Hindi language, it is known as Bargad, Vatavriksh, and Barh.
In Buddhism's Pali canon, the banyan is referenced numerous times. Typical metaphors allude to
the banyan's epiphytic nature, likening the banyan's supplanting of a host tree as comparable
to the way sensual desire overcomes humans. The Lam Tsuen Wishing Trees are banyan, and
are a popular shrine in Hong Kong. They are located near the Tin Hau Temple in Lam Tsuen.
In many stories of Philippine Mythology, the banyan, is said to be home to a variety of
spirits and demon-like creatures. Maligno associated with it include the kapre, duwende,
and the tikbalang. Children at a young age are taught never to point at a fully mature
banyan tree for fear of offending the spirits that dwell within them, most especially when
they are new to the place. Filipinos would always utter a respectful word or two to the
spirits in the banyan tree when they are near one, walking near or around it to avoid any
harm. Nearly every Filipino believes that provoking the spirits in a banyan tree can
cause one great harm, illness, misfortune, untold suffering and death.
In Guam, 'Chamorro people believe in tales of taotaomona, duendes and other spirits.
Taotaomona are spirits of the ancient Chamorro that act as guardians to banyan trees.
Locations
Thimmamma Marrimanu is the name of a Banyan tree in Anantapur district, located about
35 km from town Kadiri in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is present in the Indian
Botanical Gardens and is more than 200 years old. It is reported to be the world's biggest
tree with a canopy of 19,107 square metres. Its branches spreads over 8 acres, and hence
was recorded as the biggest tree in the Guinness Book of World Records in 1989
One of the largest trees, named the Great Banyan, is found in Kolkata in India. It is
said to be more than 250 years old. Another such tree, named Doda Alada Mara, is found
in the outskirts of Bangalore. Doda Alada Mara has a spread of around 3 acres.
One of the most famous of banyan trees was planted on the island of Kabirvad in Gujarat.
Records show that the Kabirvad tree is more than 300 years old.
Maui, Hawaii has a Banyan tree planted by William Owen Smith in 1873 in Lahaina's Courthouse
Square. It has grown to cover two-thirds of an acre.
In rural India many villages and towns have a traffic circle, a bus stop and a community
gathering place around a big old banyan tree. At night many people come to sit, relax and
chat around it. There is usually a small deity placed and worshipped at its foot.
Ta Prohm in the Angkor Wat temple complex of Cambodia is well known for the giant banyans
that grow up, around and through its walls. Several banyans can be found near downtown
Hilo, Hawaii. Some of them were planted by celebrities throughout the 20th century and
form Banyan Drive. Banyans also occur in areas of Australia such
as the Daintree rainforest in Queensland's far north. Well known is the Curtain Fig Tree
on the Atherton Tablelands. The first banyan tree in the continental U.S.
was planted by Thomas Alva Edison in Fort Myers, Florida in an attempt with Henry Ford
to find a more cost-effective way to produce rubber for car tires. The tree, originally
only 4 feet tall, now covers an acre of land on the estate.
One large Banyan tree called Kalpabata is there inside the premises of Jagannath Temple
of Puri. It is considered sacred by the devotees and is supposed to be more than 500 years
old. Famous Banyan Treea in Chennai where Theosophical
Society is established. Also called as Ala Maram
A large Banyan tree lives in Cypress Gardens, at the Legoland theme park located in Winter
Haven, Florida. It was planted in 1939 in a 5-gallon bucket.
Fiction
Brian Aldiss, in his novel Hothouse, describes a future Earth where a single huge banyan
covers half of the globe, because individual trees discover the ability to join together,
as well as drop adventitious roots. In Salman Rushdie's novel, The Satanic Verses,
the village of Titlipur is built around an enormous banyan tree, whose roots cover an
area "half a mile in diameter." The tree is intrinsic to the village with some villagers
building shelters in it and others living in the foliage.
In Arthur C. Clarke's novel, 2010: Odyssey Two, the banyan tree is used several times
as a reference to describe a fictional life form native to Europa.
In The Coral Island R. M. Ballantyne had Jack Martin give a brief but informative description
of a banyan tree they found on the island. This description was the first introduction
that many British children had to such a concept. Cambodian author Vaddey Ratner alludes to
a myth about the tree in her 2012 novel "In the Shadow of the Banyan," the story of a
child's experience in the horrors of the Cambodian Genocide.
In The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, in the arena of the 75th Games, the lightning tree
is a banyan. Other
The Banyan tree is the national Tree of India. The Banyan is part of the coat of arms of
Indonesia. It is meant to symbolize the unity of Indonesia - one country with many far-flung
roots. As a giant tree, it also symbolizes power. Soeharto used it as a logo for his
party, the Golongan Karya, taking advantage of the deeply rooted belief of his fellow-countrymen
and women in the sacred nature of the banyan The Economist magazine features an opinion
column covering topics pertaining to Asia named "Banyan".
The Banyan Tree is the name of one of the most fiendishly difficult rooms in the 1984
ZX Spectrum game Jet Set Willy. References
External links 360° panoramic photo of banyan tree
Stranglers and Banyans, palomar.edu Plant Cultures: Banyan tree history and botany,
plantcultures.org.uk