Flora in the Bhagavata Purana

About the Book Flora, since the dawn of civilization, has occupied a great place in human life. Puranas are encyclopaedic in nature. Besides dealing with the five characteristics in a regular manner, they take note of the role of flora in different stages of human life. From among the esteemed Indian Puranas, the Bhagavata Mahapurana deals with many feets of trees like their general usefulness in domestic life of spiritual importance.

Although to an outer angle, the scope of the work seems to be brief and limited only to Bhagavata Purana; efforts and pain has been taken from every angle of the plants from primitive age to modem age to limn the study perfect and full-fledged. The author has introduced nine chapters dealing with several facts of trees and plants besides the vast introduction chapter and the chapter of wise conclusion.

It may not be redundant to state the work Flora in the Bhagavata Purana will help to remove misconception of many people in India and abroad that Puranas are the meaningless narrations of cock and bull stories of an intelligent mass of ancient times having no scientific moorings behind them and establish the use of scientific observation and identify many elements around us in the form of flora to make human life more significant and worth living.

About the Author Dr. Puma Chandra Ojha, the author of Flora in the Bhagavata Purana is, at present, working as the Head of the Department of Sanskrit at H.N.S. Mahavidyalaya, Chandol, and Kendrapara in the state of Odisha. He has done his M.A. (Sanskrit and Odia), M.Phil, B.Ed., LL.B., and Ph.D. from Utkal University, Odisha and Kovida in Sanskrit as well as in Hindi from Sanskrita Bharati, Girinagaram, Bangalore and Rastrabhasa Prachar Samiti, Wardha respectively. He has served as the Principal of Bahugram College at Cuttack in Odisha from 1980 to 1985. He has many books to his credit like: Asvattha in everyday like as related in Puranas, A short Quadrulingual Word Book (Sanskrit-Odia-Hindi- English), Easy way to Sanskrit Translation, Kalidasa o Shriharsha, Sanskrita Sahityara Itihasa (Co- writer), Sanskrita Vyakarana Navanitam, Gopigita, A lady ever dissatisfied (Co-writer) etc., besides many other books which are under publication. He has written many research articles attending many seminars, symposia, conferences, workshops etc. He is a good orator, voracious reader and untiring personality in literary world. Dr. Ojha is associated with a number of organizations as : The president of Kalinga Sahitya Academy, Odisha; Member oflntermational Medical society (MIMS), Delhi; Honorary member to the Research Board of Advisors, The American Biographical Institute, U.S.A.; Life member of All Orissa Association of College Teachers in Sanskrit, Utkal University; Dhanvantari Bharatiya Chikitsa Vikash Samstha, Kashinagar, Odisha; Utkala Sahitya Samaja, Cuttack; Member, NBT of India; Working President of OSA, V. v. Pitha, Bahugram; Vice- President of , Salipur and Advisors of many institutions.

Dr. Ojha is the recipient of Kalinga Sahitya Academy Award; Rajyastariya Saraswata Mahotsava Sanmana; Jagatpur Mahotsava Sanmana; Scholars of Brilliance award; Saraswata Samaroha Samiti Sanmana; Jagannatha Mishra Memorial Prize (Sanskrit) from Ravenshaw College; Certificate of Merit from Einstein Science Club, Odisha etc. Though the work - Flora in the Bhagabata Purana seems to be limited to Bhagavata Mahapurana only, the author has thrown light on various aspects of trees and plants vividly and elaborately.

Preface ARS LONGA, VITA BREVIS. It was the yaer-1983, being the Principal of Bahugram College, I had an opportunity to preside over an auspicious religious meeting in the Mango-grove (fixed at the venue of daily prayer) of Vivekananda Vidyapitha, Bahugram, arranged by the college and the school as well. The meeting was graced by the world famous saint H.H. Swami Chidananda Saraswati Maharaj, the President of Divine Life Society, Rishikesh, India as the august Chief guest.

While delivering his exalted and examplary germane noble mellifluous prelection on the relationship of man with nature, Swamiji was citing the sacred verses from the esteemed Bhagavata-Mahapuranam (Bha.P) related to the sacred plants of India as well as the trees of western lands and was admonishing the mass that how nature's resources are being depleted much rather than they could be replenished.

I was moved and motivated by the holy speech of Swamiji and from that day, I made up my mind to have a work on the sacredness and yeoman's service of the plants as related in Bha.P This inquisitiveness increased day by day. Man is a slave to circumstances. Owing to certain domestic anxieties and my incessant instantaneous illness, I could not give my thought fully on it. But deo gratia, the chance came. Heeding after and heading to the unstinted valuable advice of my revered teachers, Prof. Dr. U.N. Dhal (now is no more) and Prof. Dr. Raghunath Panda (at present my honourable guide), I choose the topic for my research work as a result of which the work "Flora in the Bhagavata Purana" could see the light.

It may not be redundant to express my feelings here that before this work, though a number of scholars have taken long strides to work in various topics related to Bha.P; nobody has taken any work to be dealt with the plants as deciphered in the present endeavour. So this is the another reason for which I took this topic and hope this may be appreciated almost by all in future. To an outer angle, though the scope of the work seems to be brief and limited only to the Bha.P; efforts and pain has been taken from every angle of the plants from primitive age to modern age to limn the study perfect and full-fledged.

Foreword It indicates the Vedas (which are considered as the source of all the divine as well as mundane knowledge) are to be extended by the help of the ItiliUsas and Puranas. By Itihdsa we traditionally accept the epic texts of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.

These works, specially the Later one has been distinguished by the title like the "fifth- veda" etc. The Puranas further laler texts have got the clues in themselves to be claimed as old as the Vedas. In the Chandogyopanisad, Narada tells Sanatkumar that he has read the Itihasas and the Puranas with other texts recognised at that time. To quote etc. (Ch.Up.VII.1.2). The Puranas particularly claim some ancient origin due to the very analysis" As such eighteen Mahapuranas came to light and proved to be the most popular religious as well as secular texts of the Indians for centuries together. A general definition of a Purana is: Later the area of these texts were further extended to the ten laksanas such as : Their popularity. grew so much that gradually the Puranas were written centering around particular deities, centres of pilgrimage and even a number of Puranas on a particular tirtha or deity. For example for Sakti-cult, we see Mahapurana and Upapuranas like Mahabharata-Purana, Devi Bhagavata, Kalika Purana, Candi Purana and so on. Of the whole of the puranic literature, the Bhdgavata Purana happens to be the crest-jewel.

Its supremacy can well be proved from the saying This popular saying indicates that the Bhagavata Mahdpurana is a testing ground of the erudition of scholars in Indian milieu of culture and philosophy.

**Contents and Sample Pages**