Ficus religiosa

For the large tree in Bodh Gaya, India, see Bodhi Tree.

Sacred fig
The tree trunk and distinctive heart-shaped leaves
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Moraceae
Genus: Ficus
Subgenus: F. subg. Urostigma
Species:
F. religiosa
Binomial name
Ficus religiosa
L. 1753 not Forssk. 1775
Synonyms[1]
  • Ficus caudata Stokes
  • Ficus peepul Griff.
  • Ficus religiosa var. cordata Miq.
  • Ficus religiosa var. rhynchophylla Miq.
  • Ficus rhynchophylla Steud.
  • Ficus superstitiosa Link
  • Urostigma affine Miq.
  • Urostigma religiosum (L.) Gasp.

Ficus religiosa or sacred fig is a species of fig native to the Indian subcontinent[2] and Indochina[3] that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family. It is also known as the bodhi tree,[4] peepul tree,[2] peepal tree, pipala tree or ashvattha tree (in India and Nepal).[5] The sacred fig is considered to have a religious significance in four major religions that originated on the Indian subcontinent: Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. Hindu and Jain ascetics consider the species to be sacred and often meditate under it. Gautama Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment under a tree of this species. The sacred fig is the state tree of the Indian states of Odisha,[6] Bihar and Haryana.

  1. ^ The Plant List, Ficus religiosa L.
  2. ^ a b Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Peepul" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 21 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 45.
  3. ^ "Ficus religiosa". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  4. ^ Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, 1971, p. 1014
  5. ^ "Ficus religiosa — Peepal". Flowers of India. Archived from the original on 14 February 2012. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
  6. ^ State symbols