120 HOURS WITH NATURE. 



things that surrounded him on every side. For our- 

 selves, we found Svamiji a most agreeable instructor, 

 full of sweetness and light. He often took us round 

 the park and talked to us about the trees and shrubs, 

 and taught us the alphabets, as it were, of the 

 plant-lore. 



ON SOME TREES AND SHRUBS. 



A stately ashwathiva (Ficus religiosti) is a noble 

 tree wherever found. The one, however, to which re- 

 ference is here made, and round which hover many 

 associations is a particularly fine one. It stands 

 on the south-west corner of Svamiji's park bordering 

 a public path, and is surrounded by a spacious mud 

 platform with brickwork facing. Morning, evening, or 

 noon it is a place of much resort. During the fierce mid- 

 day heat of summer weary pedestrians find rest under its 

 cool and grateful shade. Simple village folks from many 

 miles round come to worship the tree, or, more correctly 

 speaking to offer poojah to the presiding gods of the tree. 

 For, according to popular Hindu notion, Brahma is sup- 

 posed to hold sway over the roots of an ashwathwa^ and 

 Vishnu over the stem ; the branches and leaves being 

 assigned to Siva with his retinue of ghosts and goblins. 

 Small wonder that people should feel religious scruples 

 in breaking even a twig of this sacred home of the 

 Hindu trinity, or horror at the idea of being possessed 

 of evil spirits which hold nightly revels under its shade ! 

 Whatever the origin of the belief might have been, it 



