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The Bishnois, a community in
Rajasthan, is an example of human beings living in harmony with nature.
The name “Bishnoi” (“Twenty-nine”) represents the number of principles espoused by their prophet, Lord Jhambheshwar.
It is said that Lord Jhambheshwar attained saintly enlightenment while meditating beneath a tree in a place that would later become the village of
Jhamba. There, where he discovered a water source that rescued his people from a 20-year drought, he established his ideal community, a society of people living in harmony with each other and with their environment.
Among the
29 principles propounded by the founder of the sect prophet, Lord
Jhambheshwar, three concern nature conservation. Cutting and
lopping of green trees is strictly prohibited. They maintain groves,
locally known as orans, for the animals to graze and birds to feed.
Orans serve as important recharges of rain water in the aquifers in
the desert, where every single drop of water is precious.
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In most
orans, particularly in western Rajasthan, the dominant tree,
Prosopis cineraria or Khejari, a tree species, is worshipped for its
immense ecological value. Leave aside orans, they would not even cut
Khejari trees even from their agricultural fields. The tree enriches
soil nitrogen, and during drought and famine, the bark of the tree
is mixed with flour for consumption.
In accordance with their principles, the Bishnoi never cut living trees for firewood or building materials. In 1847, the Jodhpur king sent his army out to cut trees to build his palace. When his army started to log a Bishnoi forest, they staged a
non- violent protest, offering their bodies as shields for the trees. The army’s axes killed 363 before the king, hearing of their courage, halted the logging and declared the Khejarli region a preserve, off limits for logging and hunting.
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Khejari
tree
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The
Bishnois, however, have adapted themselves to the needs of the
modern times. Realising that Prosopis juliflora (Bilayati Babool) is
an exotic weed and would not permit the indigenous Prosopis
cineraria to grow, they readily axe the tree to meet their fuelwood
requirements. Due to their conservation efforts, the blackbuck
(Antelope cervicapra) and the Indian gazelle (Gazella gazella)
are seen along with human habitations, agricultural fields and the
orans. The very concept of orans, however, is not unique to the
Bishnoi community. In Jaisalmer, in the Bhadaria temple complex, the
community, although not Bishnoi, maintain an oran with a
concentration of Ziziphus nummularia (Ber) trees known for large
fruits. Solar energy is used to extract underground water to
irrigate the oran. The traditional annual celebration in honor of Lord Jhambheshwar is still observed on the first night of the new moon in the month of Chetry, two weeks after the Holy Indian National Festival. Thousands of people make the pilgrimage to the remote desert village to drink the salty water from the sacred source, believing it will cleanse them of all their sins.
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Bisnois
women carry
water from long distance. |
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