Sacred Grove : Lost tradition, lost microbial diversity, lost Prana

Marut

CommunityForests, Dharma

Distribution of Sacred Grove
Distribution of Sacred Grove

Every community of pre-British India had social responsibility to grow and protect groves. They were called sacred groves. There used to be rules defined for accessing these forest wealth. Not everyone can go and chop tree. Not in all seasons. Not all trees. All based on mutually agreed intuitive pro-synergy rules. These rules are sacred rules, considering groves alive and part of respected extended family for all.

What happened then?

We were brainwashed by education and having commune with Nature was taught as primitive and idiotic. Disconnected! There is no one to protect the groves. Now the same movement of brainwashing going in deep forests.

‘Sacred groves’ represents a traditional effort to conserve biodiversity. They are rich patches of undisturbed forests and serve as a natural habitat for many endemic, rare, primitive and economically valuable organisms representing a micro-level biodiversity hotspots.

Bacteria native to the pristine niche of sacred groves showed better plant growth promoting activities as compared to isolates from disturbed forest as well as type strains implicating the importance of sacred groves and their potential role in microbial diversity conservation.

Groves are प्राणवर्धक. Growing food without groves? It is nothing but highly unscientific way of greed-based industry. It cannot be called Agriculture (कृषि). Soil cannot grow प्राणवर्धक food without groves, without biodiversity. Without biodiversity, food lacks प्राण. Without प्राण, who can survive? Of course, we can survive. But like a dead body with little प्राण and anything worth to contribute in universal यज्ञ.

Read this paper to know more:


https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280737139_%27Traditional_Sacred_Groves%27_an_ethnic_strategy_for_conservation_of_microbial_diversity

‘Traditional Sacred Groves’, an ethnic strategy for conservation of microbial diversity


‘Sacred groves’ represents a traditional effort to conserve biodiversity. They are rich patches of undisturbed forests and serve as a natural habitat for many endemic, rare, primitive and economically valuable organisms representing a micro-level biodiversity hotspots. In this study, Bacillus spp. and related genera characterized from native soils of the pristine sacred groves of Meghalaya, India revealed dominance of Bacillus, Paenibacillus, Lysinibacillus and Viridibacillus. All the isolates exhibited good plant growth promoting traits when screened for traits like phosphate solubilization, 1-aminocyclopropane-1- carboxylate deaminase and catalase activity, production of auxin, siderophores, hydrogen cyanide and ammonia. Bacteria native to the pristine niche of sacred groves showed better plant growth promoting activities as compared to isolates from disturbed forest as well as type strains implicating the importance of sacred groves and their potential role in microbial diversity conservation.

Conclusion

Sacred groves are of great research value in in situ
conservation of biodiversity. Understanding the
potential roles played by sacred groves in in situ
biodiversity conservation, it would have greater
appeal if efforts are diverted to inventorize the
existing biodiversity, especially the species that
might be of economic importance or facing
extinction. The present study is the first report on
the indigenous aerobic endospore-forming Bacillus
and related genera from the pristine and undisturbed
sacred groves prevalent in the tropical belt of
Meghalaya, India. The observations lead to the
conclusion that Bacillus and related genera isolates
obtained from the sacred groves exhibits stronger
activity and more PGP traits than the disturbed forest
isolates indicating their strong potential as candidates
for promoting plant growth in agriculture and also the
important contribution of sacred groves as a rich
source of economically valuable microbes hence
signifies the relevance of ethnic strategy and efforts
for conservation of these pristine forests

 

 

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