What are the five trees and six flowers in Buddhism? Why do temples have to grow these plants?

There is a small detail that many people may not have noticed. In fact, the plants grown in every temple in the world are similar. Because there are clear rules about temple plants in Buddhism, this rule is what we are going to talk about today? Five trees and six flowers? .

Because Buddha Sakyamuni was born under a carefree flower tree and eventually became a Buddha under a bodhi tree. Therefore, Buddhism has a very close relationship with plants. With the gradual development of Buddhism, plants are also planted in temples. Five trees and six flowers? The provisions of the. So-called? Five trees and six flowers? Among them, five trees are bodhi tree, Ficus altissima, palm leaf, betel nut and sugar palm; Six flowers refer to lotus (lotus), asparagus, turmeric, plumeria, osmanthus and Trollius.

About the significance of these 1 1 plants to Buddhism, let me give you a brief introduction.

Tianzhu bodhi tree

Everyone knows this, because Sakyamuni Buddha meditated under the bodhi tree and identified the bodhi tree, Buddha bone relic and Buddha statue as three things to worship in the world. Called by Buddhists? Holy tree? Of course, the bodhi tree should be among the five trees.

Gao Rong

Gao Rong was chosen as one of the top five trees for two main reasons. First, Ficus altissima can grow very big and grow into a canopy shaded by green trees, which is very suitable for preaching under trees and has specific practical value; Secondly, because banyan and bodhi belong to the same family, they are also regarded as Buddhist sacred trees by Buddhists.

Patra

Palm leaves play an unparalleled role in the early development of Buddhism, because its leaves can be used to write scriptures after treatment. For a long time, Buddhist scriptures were also called? Baye? .

areca

In ancient times, due to the limited medical conditions, betel nut could be used as medicine and repelled insects, which made it a frequent visitor to many sacrificial ceremonies and gradually endowed it with certain divinity.

Sugar brown

Sugar palm has become one of the five largest trees, which may be related to the living habits of Southeast Asia. Although its leaves can't be used to write scriptures like palm leaves, they can be used as mats; Moreover, its fruit can also be used to make sugar, wine and vinegar, because people widely use sugar palm in all aspects of life, and naturally it has entered the planting range of temples.

lotus

Lotus is called one of the six flowers for two reasons. One reason is that before Buddhism, Indians had worshipped lotus very much; The second is that when the Buddha was born, a huge lotus flower suddenly grew in the pond of the palace. After the Buddha was born, there were thousands of lights in his mouth, and each light turned into a lotus. Therefore, lotus is regarded as a symbol of Buddhism.

Wen Lan Shu

This plant is said to have a close relationship with Manjusri Bodhisattva, but the specific story is hard to find. However, Manjusri Bodhisattva is the embodiment of wisdom, so Manjusri is also considered as a plant of wisdom.

Trollius dichongensis

As the name implies, it is said that this kind of flower often has the image of rising into the sky and dumping the earth lotus when the Buddha lectures, and the earth lotus appears. Therefore, because of the prosperity of Buddhism in Southeast Asia, people have also given it a holy nickname: Thousand Petals Lotus.

Dioscorea zingiberensis, frangipani and osmanthus fragrans.

Why is this flower written together? The author has been searching for relevant information for the reason that Dioscorea zingiberensis and frangipani are classified as six flowers. However, when reading the data of Osmanthus fragrans in Myanmar, I got a little inspiration, so I boldly made the following remarks (please correct me).

Is Osmanthus fragrans in Myanmar valued by Southeast Asia? Peace and happiness? Our plants, because of their white colors and quiet flowers, are also regarded as respect and praise for the Buddha.

The shape of Dioscorea zingiberensis flower is very similar to a group of flying butterflies, and its fragrance is very pure, which makes people feel solemn and elegant, so it is not surprising that it has been selected as one of the six famous Buddhist flowers.

As for frangipani, you can guess the reason by looking at the shape of this flower.