Tulasi

Tulasi is a perennial herb or shrub native to India ; also grown as an annual plant . The leaves are green or purple, short-leaved, oblong-ovate, rarely dentate, up to five centimeters long. The stem, leaves and calyx are covered with hairs. Two-lipped flowers , white with a purple tint, are collected in false whorls.

In India, there are two types of tulasi - dark, called Shyama- tulasi , or Krishna- tulasi and light Rama- tulasi . Shyama-tulasi is widely used in medicine and religious worship.

The related tulasi fragrant basil ( Ocimum basilicum ) is sometimes incorrectly called the holy basil, but they can be distinguished by aroma and taste. Tulasi leaves are covered with hairs, while the sweet basil leaves are completely smooth; Tulasi does not have the strong aroma of licorice or anise characteristic of sweet basil ^[3] , and has a taste similar to that of cloves ^[4] .

The sacred basil in Thailand is called kapkhrao ( Thai. กะเพรา ) and is widely used in Thai cooking ^[5] . The most famous dish is phat kapkhrao ( Thai. ผัด กะเพรา ) - fried basil with meat or seafood served with boiled rice.

Also, do not confuse kapkhrao with or .

In Ayurvedic medicine, tulasi has been used for thousands of years as one of the main medicinal plants with great healing power. Tulasi is described by Charaka in the main Ayurveda text under the name Charaka Samhita , and is also mentioned in the Rig Veda . It is believed that tulasi has adaptogenic qualities, harmonizes bodily functions and helps to overcome stress ^[6] . Tulasi has a strong aroma, astringent taste and is considered an "elixir" with the ability to increase lifespan.

Medicines made from Tulasi are used to treat colds, headaches, stomach diseases, inflammation, various types of poisoning and malaria . For medicinal purposes, tulasi is used in different ways: as herbal tea, as dried powder, as fresh leaves or mixed with ghee . Essential oil obtained from karpur-tulasi is used for medical purposes and in cosmetics . India also has a centuries-old practice in which it is mixed with dried tulasi leaves to protect the grain from harmful insects.

Studies show that tulasi contains a large amount of eugenol (1-hydroxy-2-methoxy-4-allyl-benzene) and therefore has analgesic properties ^{[7] [8]} . Tulasi is also useful for the treatment of diabetes, as it has the ability to lower blood glucose levels ^[9] . Studies have also shown that tulasi lowers cholesterol and has a beneficial effect on blood glucose due to its antioxidant qualities ^[10] .

Tulasi also protects against radiation sickness ^[11] and cataracts ^[12] . Many followers of Vaishnavism , however, do not use Tulasi for medical purposes out of respect for its sacred status. Despite this, tulasi is widely used for medicinal purposes throughout India. Many Indians believe that along with the ancient knowledge of Ayurveda , the healing properties of such sacred plants as tulasi are a gift from God and can be used in medicine as a sign of gratitude and respect.

In Sri Lanka, tulasi is known as maduru-tala and is used as an insect repellent ^[13] .

The Puranas and other scriptures of Hinduism speak of the important role of Tulasi in religious worship. Tulasi is seen as the avatar of Lakshmi , the consort of Vishnu , or Radha , the eternal consort of Krsna . Tulasi trees and their leaves play a very important role in Vaishnavism . The scriptures recommend that Vaisnavas daily water the tulasi and collect its leaves for worship of Vishnu and Krishna. The first offering offered by murti Vishnu in Hindu temples during the morning puja is a garland of tulasi leaves. Tulasi ranks sixth among eight objects of worship in the rite of consecration of Kalash .

According to one of the stories described in the Puranas, Tulasi was one of the gopis who fell in love with Krishna and was cursed by another beloved of Krishna - Radha. As a result of this curse, Tulasi descended into the material world from the spiritual world, taking the form of a plant. Tulasi is also mentioned in the stories of Radha in Jayadeva 's famous poem, The Gitagovinda . In Gaudiya Vaishnavism and some other traditions of Krishnaism , the other name for Tulasi is Vrindadevi , which means "goddess of Vrndavana ." The famous Vaishnava guru Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati said of Tulasi that "... this is Krsna's most beloved devotee, and therefore her flowers and leaves are also very dear to Him."

Every year, on the eleventh day of the arriving moon of the month of Kartik according to the lunar-solar calendar , in Hinduism, the Tulasi-vivaha festival is held, symbolizing the wedding of Tulasi and Vishnu. The festival lasts for five days and ends on a full moon in mid-October. This holiday marks the beginning of the mating season in India .

The History of Tulasi and Salagram Shila

According to the Puranic legend, Tulasi was one of the gopi-shepherds in the eternal abode of Krishna - Loka Goloka . She was a close friend of Radha , the eternal lover of Krishna and the most important of the gopis. One day, Radha discovered that Tulasi was playing with Krsna without her permission. Radha was very angry and cursed Tulasi to take birth on earth in a human body. However, behind all these events was Krishna's plan, which was to bring benefits to the inhabitants of the material world, including people on Earth. Hearing this curse, Tulasi was so frightened that she took shelter of Krsna. Krishna comforted her and asked her not to worry. He promised her that if she accepts the human body and does penance, she will regain it. After that, Tulasi was born on earth as the daughter of King Dharmaraja and his wife Madhavati. Since no one could compare with her in beauty and qualities, she was called Tulasi, which in Sanskrit means "incomparable."

Tulasi went to the forest, and subjected herself to severe austerities that satisfied the creator of this universe, Brahma , who wanted to give her any blessings. Tulasi told Brahma that she was a gopi in Goloka and that she was cursed by Radha to be born in a human body. She also told him that when she took shelter of Krishna, he assured her that by performing austerities she could get him back. Having learned the history of Tulasi, Brahma granted her a blessing according to which she was to marry Narayana - Krishna in one of his personalities.

Brahma told Tulasi that Radha also cursed one of the cowherd boys from Goloka named Sudama , who took birth as a demon of Shankhasur . Since when Tulasi was at Goloka, she liked Sudama, Brahma invited her to marry him. Brahma promised her that later she should receive the blessing of Narayana and achieve liberation. Brahma predicted that she would become the greatest of all plants and the most dear devotee of Narayana, and that due to her purity she would free the whole world. Brahma also said that no worship would be considered complete without her. Then Brahma gave Tulasi a special “Radha Mantra”, consisting of 16 syllables, and blessed her in that she would become as lucky as Radha herself. Following Brahma’s direction, Tulasi married the demon Shankhasuru.

Shankhasura possessed an unrivaled power by which he conquered the heavenly planets and overthrew the virgins from heaven. He gained this strength thanks to the blessing received, which consisted in the fact that as long as his wife Tulasi was selflessly faithful to him, no one could kill him. Concerned virgins came to an audience with Brahma and asked him for advice on how they could overcome Shankhasura. Not knowing how to help them, Brahma went to Shiva for help, and Shiva, in turn, went to Vishnu on Vaikuntha . Vishnu reassured Shiva and promised to fulfill Tulasi’s desire to be his husband and to make Shankhasura lose the mystical power based on her fidelity. Vishnu announced that for this he would take the guise of Shankhasura and when Tulasi, without knowing it, became unfaithful to her husband, the virgins would have the opportunity to kill a powerful demon.

Following his promise, Narayana took the form of Shankhasura and thus fulfilled Tulasi's desire. When the virgins were able to kill the demon Shankhasura, Tulasi realized that someone else must have come to her in the guise of her husband and made contact with her. Realizing that it was probably Narayana himself, she cursed him to become a stone. However, Narayana responded by blessing her, saying that Tulasi, leaving his present body, would become as dear to him as Lakshmi . Tulasi's body will turn into the Gandaki River , and her hair will become a Tulasi bush. That is why it is believed that Narayana lives in the Gandaki river in the form of stones, which are accepted as its incarnations and are called " Salagram-silas ." Thus, Narayana is forever associated with Tulasi, both in her form of the Gandhaki River and in her guise of the holy plant of Tulasi. The demon Shankhasur (who was actually the shepherd boy of Sudama) became the shell of Shankha , one of the main attributes of Narayana, always in his hand. It is believed that without Tulasi, worship of Narayana cannot be complete.

Worship of Tulasi

The presence of a tulasi plant in a house is seen as a sign of religiosity and piety of a Hindu family. In areas of Hinduism such as Vaishnavism , cultivation and worship of Tulasi is an important aspect of spiritual life. In many Hindu families, tulasi is grown in a specially built structure for this, surrounded by murti of various forms of God and saints, set on four sides, and a niche for a small clay lamp. In some houses, you can find dozens of tulasi plants on the veranda or in the garden, forming a miniature grove from the basilica - "tulasi-van" or "tulasi-vrindavan." In Vaishnavism, the tulasi are also worshiped in the form of a murti - she is portrayed as a gopi girl. The Tulasi Manas Mandir in Varanasi is one of the most famous Tulasi temples in which it is worshiped along with various virgins of the Hindu pantheon .

According to the Gandharva Tantra, Tulasi thickets are ideal places for meditation and worship. Vaishnavas (followers of Vishnu or Krishna ) especially worship the tulasi leaves, which are an integral part of the Naiveda offerings - they are placed on food prepared for God, as well as at the feet of the murti Vishnu or Krishna. It is said that Krsna, or Vishnu, does not accept the food offered by him unless a leaf of tulasi has been added to it (in the event that it is possible to get the leaves of tulasi). Worshiping Tulasi in Vaishnavism is such a powerful process that simply by watering it or going around it, a person gets rid of the most serious sins. According to the rules of Tulasi worship, every day the plant should be offered arati , and the leaves should be picked only in the morning for an offer.

After the tulasi plant dies, the thick part of the trunk is used to make Vaishnava rosaries ( japa mala ) and beads that followers of Vaishnavism wear around their necks. Making beads and beads from Tulasi is one of the main forms of handicraft production in pilgrimage sites in India .

Tulasi Puja

Hindus often grow tulasi in the front yard. On a certain day of the year, called “Kartik-shukla-dvadashi” (the twelfth day of the moon of the Hindu month of Kartik , two weeks after Diwali ), there is a tradition of holding Tulasi Puja , during which Tulasi plants are beautifully decorated and placed in a specially constructed structure made from sugarcane , mango leaves and flowers.

As during Diwali celebrations, clay lamps are lit around Tulasi and throughout the house, and sometimes fireworks are also arranged. In North India , as well as in Hare Krishna communities in other regions, this ceremony is called Tulasi-vivaha - the wedding day of Tulasi with Krishna in His form as an awl . Another Tulasi festival is called Tulasi Ekadashi and is held on Ekadashi Day.

In Sri Vaishnavism, Tulasi is perceived as Lakshmi herself in the form of a beautiful girl, and at the same time a Tulasi tree. Tulasi is located by the rivers where Vishnu is in the form of a salagram in the waters. With her branches she is constantly inclined towards Vishnu to serve him in the material world. Vishnu came down to earth to help people come to him, and Lakshmi came to him in the form of this tree. Vishnu loves people so much that a salagram descends to them in the form of a stone, and his beloved Vishnupriya is always with him in the image of Tulasi.

Quotes

Quotations from the scriptures of Hinduism , which speak of the meaning of Tulasi:

From the Brhad Naradiya Puranas :

From the Skanda Puranas :

The Padma Purana speaks of how a Vaisnava should adorn his body with tilaka and beads from tulasi:

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  Tulasi flowers ( Salem , Tamil Nadu )

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  Tulasi in Jaipur

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  Blooming tulasi in Hyderabad , India

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  Young sprouts of Tulasi at home

• Salagram sila
• Kali Gandaki

Species Basil ( Ocimum ) of the tribe Basil ( Ocimeae ) of the subfamily Kotovnikovye ( Nepetoideae ) of the family Lamiaceae of the order Lamiaceae .

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