Sacred groves – an ancient tradition of nature conservation of sthalavrikshas in coimbatore, tamil nadu, india

In India sthalavrikshas worship in temples was a religrous practice. In Tamil Nadu almost every temple is associated with a plant or tree connected to the history and mythology of the temple and or deity. The worshipper who comes to the temple attains a healty spiritua; enlighten. Sthalavrikshas is a natural tree found in the temple site brfore construction of the temple. The present investigation was carried out in coimbatore district to enumerate the sthalavrikshas associate with temple by field observation method. During the field visit temples were frequently visited and surveyed for the sthalavrikshas from the month of December 2019 - February 2020. The survey was conduced at 46 ancient temples of the coimbatore district and revelated the occurrence of 19 sthalavrikshas species were observed in different area of coimbatore district. These sacred plants are worshiped by the local people for getting the blessing of health and wealth by positive powers of nature. Sthalavrikshas are germplasm reservers and an indicator of socio-cultural conservation strategy. It is concluded that the Sthalavriksha worship is an age old practice, myths, beliefs and floklore play a major role in the exsistance of Sthalavrikshas worship and this customms help in plant conservation.

Floristic Diversity and Ethnobotanical Studies of Nandha Gopalasamy Hill Temple Sacred Grove of Western Ghats, Pollachi Taluk, Coimbatore

Background: The sacred groves are considered to be ecologically most important area as they are rich in plant diversity. It is considered to be repository of many important medicinal plantspecies including endangered and endemic and many valuable plant species. An ethanobotanical survey was carried out to assess the floristic diversity and it medicinal properties used by the indigenous peoples and local people. The floristic study conducted to understand the status of vegetation an it is important step towards conservation. Methods: The study was carried out for about one yearby frequent field visit and inperson interview with indigenous peoples to know the medicinal properties of the species. Result: The study showed presence of 54 medicinal plants out of which 22 are herbs, 12 shrubs, 2 climbers and 17 are tree habits. All the plants are found to be highly medicinal in treating many diseases. The survey reveals the conservation importance of the sacred grove to safe guard the ecosystem for sustainable development.

Traditional Institutions' Management of Sacred Forests in Tanzania: History, Narratives, and Evidence from Njombe Region, 1880s-2019

<p>Forest management entails interdependence between nature and society at different levels and systems. In Africa, one example of the interdependence of nature and society is ‘sacred forests,’ groves of trees with special religious importance to a people’s culture. In Tanzania, sacred forests are comparatively small in area, scattered over the entire country, and primarily managed by local village lineages, or kinship groups. In these communities, the close interaction in a small-scale society acts as a monitoring and sanctioning device. The patches of sacred forests have historically been managed as part of local tradition. Their management demonstrates Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), the linkages between biodiversity and cosmology, and the intersection between the social and the natural sciences. Scholars of traditional forestry in Tanzania have for decades compared sacred woodlands with the state- or private-owned forests. Comparing these different forest management systems cultivated a ‘relic stance’ in much of the scholarship regarding sacred groves. The predominant tone of sacred forest scholarship has been to describe sacred landscapes as static communal sites without exploring their associated constitutive dynamics. In such an interpretation, sacred forests have been regarded as remnants of the primordial past, a frozen view of these fragments of woodlands. Studying sacred groves without considering the institutions that uphold them is problematic, as it assumes traditional institutions have continued to be stagnant, interacting with sacred forests in the same way throughout time. This thesis studies traditional institutions’ management of sacred forests by the Bena people of Njombe, southwest Tanzania, 1880s–2019. The Bena are a largely unstudied group. The study uses a qualitative, mixed-method research approach, including interviews in Swahili and Bena, documentary evidence from the Tanzania National Archives, anthropological reports, participant observation, and online documentaries. In applying a mixed-method approach, the thesis bridges history, anthropology, ethnography, and ecology to study forest management as an ongoing process of interdependence between nature and society. Rather than exclusively looking at the sacred forests as geographic locations, this study underscores their socio-ecological aspect and asserts traditional institutions’ dynamics as a key in explaining their history in Njombe. Thus, the thesis not only foregrounds the existence of such patches of forests in Njombe but also unpacks the institutional, cultural politics to reveal the contestations and appropriations around the symbolic, cultural, economic, and ecological value of sacred sites among the Bena community. By using a knowledge-practice-belief complex systems lens, this thesis expands beyond simplistic narratives of inertness, to focus on historical, cultural, economic, and political dynamics that are internal and external to communities that have often helped sustain sacred groves’ traditions or contributed to their degradation. The thesis argues that the Bena sacred forests are embedded in a cultural matrix which is very different from the socio-cultural, economic, political, and ecological landscapes from which they evolved. While managing sacred forests was traditionally an integral part of cultural systems designed to sustain livelihoods and spiritual well-being of the community, the relationship between the land and culture has shifted dramatically within different historical periods, altering the steadiness of the sites. In pre-colonial Njombe, chiefs and elders controlled the use of natural resources, but the relationships of the inhabitants to the forests changed with shifting social and environmental conditions. During German and British colonial rule, differences in perception of the landscape defined the contest over sacred forests between the indigenous people and the foreigners. The materially driven world has increasingly necessitated redefinition of sacred landscapes in post-colonial Njombe. The meanings attributed to sacred forests, derived from traditional Bena cosmology and which drive current conservation policies, have changed, and adapted to new circumstances. The shift represents the flexibility and evolution of local institutions and ecological knowledge, which illustrates the power of fluid, dynamic local communities. The change also emphasises the divergent approach of current conservation programs, which view sacred forests as static and contained.</p>

Traditional Institutions' Management of Sacred Forests in Tanzania: History, Narratives, and Evidence from Njombe Region, 1880s-2019

<p>Forest management entails interdependence between nature and society at different levels and systems. In Africa, one example of the interdependence of nature and society is ‘sacred forests,’ groves of trees with special religious importance to a people’s culture. In Tanzania, sacred forests are comparatively small in area, scattered over the entire country, and primarily managed by local village lineages, or kinship groups. In these communities, the close interaction in a small-scale society acts as a monitoring and sanctioning device. The patches of sacred forests have historically been managed as part of local tradition. Their management demonstrates Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), the linkages between biodiversity and cosmology, and the intersection between the social and the natural sciences. Scholars of traditional forestry in Tanzania have for decades compared sacred woodlands with the state- or private-owned forests. Comparing these different forest management systems cultivated a ‘relic stance’ in much of the scholarship regarding sacred groves. The predominant tone of sacred forest scholarship has been to describe sacred landscapes as static communal sites without exploring their associated constitutive dynamics. In such an interpretation, sacred forests have been regarded as remnants of the primordial past, a frozen view of these fragments of woodlands. Studying sacred groves without considering the institutions that uphold them is problematic, as it assumes traditional institutions have continued to be stagnant, interacting with sacred forests in the same way throughout time. This thesis studies traditional institutions’ management of sacred forests by the Bena people of Njombe, southwest Tanzania, 1880s–2019. The Bena are a largely unstudied group. The study uses a qualitative, mixed-method research approach, including interviews in Swahili and Bena, documentary evidence from the Tanzania National Archives, anthropological reports, participant observation, and online documentaries. In applying a mixed-method approach, the thesis bridges history, anthropology, ethnography, and ecology to study forest management as an ongoing process of interdependence between nature and society. Rather than exclusively looking at the sacred forests as geographic locations, this study underscores their socio-ecological aspect and asserts traditional institutions’ dynamics as a key in explaining their history in Njombe. Thus, the thesis not only foregrounds the existence of such patches of forests in Njombe but also unpacks the institutional, cultural politics to reveal the contestations and appropriations around the symbolic, cultural, economic, and ecological value of sacred sites among the Bena community. By using a knowledge-practice-belief complex systems lens, this thesis expands beyond simplistic narratives of inertness, to focus on historical, cultural, economic, and political dynamics that are internal and external to communities that have often helped sustain sacred groves’ traditions or contributed to their degradation. The thesis argues that the Bena sacred forests are embedded in a cultural matrix which is very different from the socio-cultural, economic, political, and ecological landscapes from which they evolved. While managing sacred forests was traditionally an integral part of cultural systems designed to sustain livelihoods and spiritual well-being of the community, the relationship between the land and culture has shifted dramatically within different historical periods, altering the steadiness of the sites. In pre-colonial Njombe, chiefs and elders controlled the use of natural resources, but the relationships of the inhabitants to the forests changed with shifting social and environmental conditions. During German and British colonial rule, differences in perception of the landscape defined the contest over sacred forests between the indigenous people and the foreigners. The materially driven world has increasingly necessitated redefinition of sacred landscapes in post-colonial Njombe. The meanings attributed to sacred forests, derived from traditional Bena cosmology and which drive current conservation policies, have changed, and adapted to new circumstances. The shift represents the flexibility and evolution of local institutions and ecological knowledge, which illustrates the power of fluid, dynamic local communities. The change also emphasises the divergent approach of current conservation programs, which view sacred forests as static and contained.</p>

First report of the cuckoo wasp Chrysidea falsa (Hymenoptera) from India

Only two species of Chrysidea Bischoff, 1913 have been reported from India: C. furiosa (Cameron, 1897) from West Bengal and C. pumila (Klug, 1845) from Maharashtra. Here, we report the first record of a third species, C. falsa Rosa & Xu, 2015 from India, previously recorded only from China, Malaysia, and the Philippines, and thereby extending the known range of this species. We randomly collected chrysidids from Kasaragod and Calicut Districts in Kerala, which lies in the south-western part of India. Six specimens of C. falsa were collected using sweep nets. Five of them were from two sacred groves in Kasaragod District, Edayilakkad Kavu and Koyithatta Sree Dharma Shastha Kavu. One specimen was collected at Vadakara, Calicut District. The specimens from Kasaragod and Vadakara were found in small rock crevices and on the brick walls of an old abandoned house respectively.

Corticolous Lichen Species Diversity on Dominant Trees in Selected Sacred Groves of Paschim Medinipur District, West Bengal, India

Sacred groves are the fairly well-protected system of community-based conservation of tree patches on account of their association with village gods, and repository of many rare and threatened elements of biodiversity. There are, however, few publications on lichens of sacred groves. The lichens have long been regarded as sensitive indicators for monitoring environmental state. The present study reports one hundred and sixteen species of lichens from forty-four genera of nineteen families in four selected sacred groves of Paschim Medinipur district, West Bengal. These lichens represent two different growth forms, i.e. crustose (105 species) and foliose (11 species). Shorea robusta, a dominant tree species in two sacred groves bears the highest lichen diversity with seventy-four species. To better understand the related biodiversity and climate, this work is likely to promote further studies on lichen diversity in other regions of West Bengal.

Indian sacred groves: Floristic diversity, Ecology and conservation

Practice of conservation of biological diversity in India had been carried out since dates back and sacred groves, the socially protected forest patches, are such classic evidence. Since pre-Vedic period, India has its legacy of harbouring numerous sacred groves almost in every part ofthe country especially in the Western Ghats , and North-East Himalayan region. These small fragmented forest patches are well known especially for sustaining rich biological heritage, entailing ecological history of the region and being a local biodiversity hotspot through in-situ conservation of both floral and faunal components especially the rare and endemic ones. Sacred groves also represent ideal community organization for functioning of many ecological processes providing valuable ecosystem services like soil and water conservation, nutrient cycling and many more. Tn India, various systems of traditional conservation practices have been reported as the country is known for its socio-cultural diversity. In the past few decades, the existence of sacred groves is being challenged through serious lhrcals like cncroachment, loss of belief in taboos and many modern developmental practices. It is the need of hour to protect these ecological heritage by adopting integrated sustainable management practices through communlity involvement and convergence of various schemes of different sectors.

Cultural dimensions of sacred forests in the Western Ghats Biodiversity Hot Spot, Southern India and its implications for biodiversity protection

Sacred groves are relict forests dedicated to local deities that have been informally protected and managed by local communities over centuries. To gain greater insights into underlying sociocultural reasons for protection, and possibilities of strengthening such efforts, a study has been undertaken in 66 sacred groves in the Maharashtra State of Western Ghats biodiversity hot-spot in India, which shows different facets of human-nature relationships. Primary data on size, ownership, deity, religious aspects and awareness amongst the local people was collected through site visits, semi-structured interviews, and by participating in village meetings. It was observed that village councils owned 48% of the groves as against temple trusts (41%) and forest department plus individually owned groves (11%). Nearly 52% of the groves have an area less than one-half hectare. Forty-seven percent of the groves have male deities, 29% female deities and 26% were dedicated to spirits. Eighty percent of the local people were aware of cultural and religious aspects associated with the groves, whereas awareness about ecological and utilitarian values declined steeply to less than 20% of the population, necessitating the explanation of scientific conservation values of these critical ecosystems to the local people. The paper also discusses the significance of such studies in connection with the relevant UN Sustainable Development Goals and AICHI Biodiversity targets. In addition, it also discusses links with national biodiversity targets and how legal provisions under India’s Biological Diversity Act (2002) can be used to benefit both the ecosystem and the cultural values of the people, and how such informal institutions can be strengthened under formal protection mechanisms.