Life and Spirituality

California Poppies have come to my garden W hile our conscious minds contain some knowledge, far more is knowledge is contained in the depths of our being. It is from here that intuitions, sixth sense and feelings arise. We may not be able to explain or understand the source of our feelings but they drive us much through life. One of these feelings is what is known as love at first sight. This love at first sight does not take place for another human only; it can take place for other things too such as flowers. Two flowers that have grabbed me thus in life are cosmos and California poppy. I had chanced upon a bed of California poppy in childhood somewhere and it grabbed my attention much. Everything about it - ferny leaves, pointy buds like hats of some elves in story books and delightful gentle flowers were delightful as is with everything about someone we love deeply. Even their flaws add a special charm as long as we remain in love with them. In the years since I have...

Spinach mixed with Balsam flowers growing against a  boundary wall in author's home A n earlier post had described that if one had space indoors and light through windows then it is a lovely idea to grow herbs and other things indoors in pots. However, if the season is right and you have some space to garden outdoors then mixing in leafy vegetables like spinach, celery, goosefoot, lettuce etc. is a wonderful idea in flower beds. They look wonderful as shown in the picture from my garden. It shows spinach growing in with balsam flowers in a small strip against a boundary wall. Then one can go on to add small fruit trees and berry bushes in the garden too. Just a bit of a lemon tree is visible on the right of the picture. One may also include herbal bushes like basil, sage and curry leaf in the garden. I have several in mine. When there are edible things growing around the garden, then one can make any meal delightful by adding some fresh organic green things picked ri...

A ll trees are beneficial for the planet and the life that dwells upon it but if there is one that is more beneficial than most others in the warmer parts of the planet where winters are not cold enough to snow, then it is the Kachnar (Bauhinia or Phanera variegata ). It also known as the orchid tree or Mountain Ebony. It is truly a blessed tree with delicious edible flowers that are a beauty to behold. Kept in a flower vase by the bedside, they promote good sleep. The flowers are scented and attract humming birds much. An earlier post in this blog had described how fruit orchards can be made healthier by mixing in bio-diversity with other trees. Kachnar is a lovely tree to choose for this mix because its roots are nitrogen fixing and that along with its fallen leaves helps to keep the orchard much healthier than it would be otherwise over its life while adding beauty and food value to it. Moreover, because it does not grow to a very large size, it shall not impose upon the...

“Let your food be your medicine” Hippocrates W hile the young may suffer from health issues, several health problems are more common with age. Modern medicines can relieve many common conditions but they often come with adverse side effects that can leave a person compromised in health and worse off in the long run.  Before modern medicines became prevalent, humans treated many ailments with flowers, leaves, roots and barks of plants and trees. Ayurveda, an ancient Indian medicinal science, makes use of herbs and plant materials without substantial extraction of active ingredients as modern medicine does. These are called Ayurvedic medicines. The additional compounds in a medicinal or edible plant are an organic whole and a part of life that supports other life. It therefore helps to balance the chemicals in a way that is more conducive to life than a pure chemical in isolation would be. A modern example in wide use as food is sugar, a pure chemical isolated from j...

Blooming in the garden today F rom time to time, the mind of humans is drawn to past. While happy memories of joyous and peaceful times gladden them, they are also saddened by mistakes they made and the suffering or loss that ensued in its wake. It is so with all humans but if you are one of those that thinks they did not make errors in their journey through life, then slow down, you are fooling yourself, it will come crashing down on your head soon. To err is human and that is why life exists, to learn from these mistakes. If you have managed to become wiser and conquered the evil desires that led you to those errors then be glad, you have evolved to a better state and that is what matters most. The rest - wealth, fame, name, friends and relations are temporary companions for this lap of the journey of life that shall change soon, when you catch the next train for your journey into infinity, or at least that is how it has been with me, for there are numerous times I have ...

  Still life by Ambrosius Bosschaert   (1573–1621 ) W hile the common green and black tea is popular, it is by no means the only herb or flower that can prepare a good cup. Flowers not only add joy and beauty to fields and gardens but many are full of medicinal value too. A huge number of flowers are edible and many make an excellent tea from fresh or dried flowers. Very many have excellent health giving and tonic properties too and a few have been discussed in earlier articles of this blog. Prepared with a proper selection and process it may be regarded as the tea of the gods. A floral tea may be prepared from a single flower or a mix of two or more. While a few floral teas are available in the market, it is a better idea to prepare your own from flowers you have grown and picked yourself and discover your own mix just as long as you know which flowers are edible and pleasant in tea. Try different flowers that grow in your area to see the ones you like b...

C hrysanthemums are blooming in the garden and I took a picture of some white ones just a little while ago. They are delightful flowers to have around the garden because they come in so many shapes and colors and bloom profusely. After the season is over, one can cut them down and they will come up again the following year. Chrysanthemums sometimes called mums belong to the family Asteraceae, the most widely prevalent flower family on the planet. In many parts of the world these flowers are connected to peace for the soul after departure from this life and are therefore an ideal gift for funerals and caskets of the departed. Therefore it is not recommended that these be gifted to anyone on other occasions unless one wishes to rush them to their graves. In some countries they gift this to mothers but it would be wiser to gift pink roses or carnations in any color to a mother. The flower petals may be used as a garnish in various recipes and in China they eat both...

H ibiscus is a flowering plant of the mallow family that has a number of varieties and grows in many colors with the red hibiscus being the hardiest and most common. The genus includes from small shrubs to small trees. The flower is the national flower of South Korea and Haiti. The tea made of hibiscus flowers is known by many names in many countries around the world and is served both hot and cold. The beverage is well known for its color, tanginess and flavor. Dried hibiscus is edible, and it is often a delicacy in Mexico. It can also be candied and used as a garnish for desserts. The tea is a tonic and it seems lowers blood pressure. Hibiscus tea also contains bioflavonoids, which are believed to help prevent an increase in LDL cholesterol, which can increase the buildup of plaque in the arteries. However it seems the flower can have adverse effect in attempts at conception, pregnancy and also at the breast feeding stage. Thus it seems for women this flower may be best ...

     Balsam flowers W hile a huge variety of seasonal flowers grow on our planet when it is neither too hot nor too cold, unfortunately some do have to put up with extreme heat or cold for a part of the year. In northern Indian plains, summer temperatures may easily exceed 40 Celsius in the months of April, May and June and it is only the early mornings and evening that are cool to get out into the garden and have late evening garden parties. However the difficulty at this time is what flowers to grow in the garden. Few can tolerate that heat. However, with the grace of the Lord, there are some. The most popular are Zinnia, the yellow Cosmos, Portulaca and Balsam. The botanical name of the flower is Impatiens Balsamina.   It is an annual plant growing to 20–75 cm tall, with a thick, but soft stem.   Aside from the flowers the plant has beautiful leaves that are toothed and spirally arranged and that is something one has to look for in a pret...

  W hile the Lord decided to color the sky in shades of blue, plants in shades of green and earth in shades of grays and browns, other brilliant colors appear in sunset and sunrise and in different flowers on earth from time to time. Some humans do not appreciate the beauty of flowers because a certain degree of evolution is required before beauty can be appreciated and its value understood just as the value of fine music too requires a certain degree of evolution for appreciation. According to the a theory of creation of life - Panspermia or its adaptation Pansmeria,  ( See ), the genes of various life forms arrive on different planets from other planets in the universe from time to time through various mechanisms such as in the icy interiors of comets. Accordingly, the genes of plants and animals have probably reached earth in this manner. While some of these may have come from planets that are earth like, others would have arrived from planets with superior clima...

Flowers in Garden After deliberating on how much money it costs to extract the shit out of some of the leading lights of our one percent world in the previous post, whether it be on wall street or whether it be in a government planning department, I suffered from a perception that my soul too is getting filthy, for whatever a human focuses on, he tends to partake a bit of it. A cleansing exercise was needed and what better an instrument for it than flowers.  This year because of a severer than usual winter, there were fewer flowers in the garden than in most January. Therefore this morning I visited a nursery and brought an assorted mix of flowers to plant in an empty patch. A humming bird hiding in the bushes was thrilled. She immediately jumped on the flowers to suck the nectar. The bird is not in the photo because she moved away when I approached for the click. The flowers planted today were enteranium, flocks, petunia, shasta daisy and marigold. There are alr...