The roots of Vedic tradition in India - the case of the sacred Ashvattha tree

The sacred fig tree (ficus religiosa) known as peepal or the Ashvattha tree in Sanskrit is native to the Indian subcontinent and is among the most sacred trees of India. It is said that the Gods reside in different parts of this tree. In the Bhagavad Gita 10.26, Lord Sri Krishna mentions that among the trees he is known as the Ashvattha.  It is also under this tree where prince Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment and became the Buddha, or the awakened one, and hence the tree is also known as the Bodhi tree or tree of awakening.  Thus, the Ashvattha tree has an important place in the Dharmic Indian cultures. 

Leaves of the sacred Ashvattha tree. Source: Wikimedia

This significance of Ashvattha can be traced all the way back in the ancient Vedic literature. In the Rig Veda, Gods like Indra and Vayu are associated with the Ashvattha tree, and ritual offerings are performed near it. 

Ride hither to the offering of the pleasant juice, the holy Fig-tree which victorious priests surround: victorious be they still for us. 

At once the cows yield milk, the barley-meal is dressed. For thee, O Vayu, never shall the cows grow thin, never for thee shall they be dry.

- Rig Veda 1.135.8 translated by Ralph TH Griffith

In one of the hymns of Rig Veda, it is said that the abode of Gods is a celestial tree in the heavenly realm of Yama where they drink divine nectar.

In the Tree clothed with goodly leaves where Yama drinketh with the Gods, 

The Father, Master of the house, tendeth with love our ancient Sires.

- Rig Veda 10.135.1 translated by Ralph TH Griffith

This tree is identified as Ashvattha tree in the Atharva Veda and the Chandogya Upanishad of Sama Veda.

In the third heaven above us stands the Ashvattha tree, the seat of Gods. 

There the Gods gained the Kushtha plant, embodiment of end- less life.

- Atharva Veda Shaunaka Samhita 6.95.1 translated by Ralph TH Griffith

Ara and Nya are two lakes in the world of Brahman, in the third heaven from hence; and there is the lake Airanimadiya, and the Ashvattha tree, showering down Soma...

- Chandogya Upanishad.  8.5.3 translated by Max Müller

In the Taittiriya Samhita of the Yajur Veda, Ashvattha wood is explicitly called as being of heavenly nature. 

The oblation−holder and the Agnidh's seat should be of Ashvattha wood, for that is heavenly.

- Taittiriya Samhita 7.2.1.3 translated by Arthur Berriedale Keith

Apart from this, the Vedic texts explicitly link the Ashvattha tree with Agni and the Yajnas, the Fire God and Vedic rituals which are core parts of the Vedic religion. This is hinted in relevant passages from Kathaka Samhita of the Yajur Veda and Baudhayana Srautasutra ritual text of Yajur Veda.

In the Baudhayana Srautasutra, it is stated that the divine sacrificial knowledge came down to the men through the Ashvattha tree.

It is indeed said, “Gods attained heaven through the entire sacrifice.” When the sacrifice came down to man from the gods, it came down upon the Ashvattha. They prepared the churning woods out of it; it is the sacrifice...

- Baudhayana Srautasutra 18.45 translated by CG Kashikar

Kathaka Samhita narrates how the tree got its name from Agni, who took the form of a horse and went away from the Gods, and the Ashvattha tree grew from the spot where he had hidden. Thus the tree is the nature of Agni himself.

Verily Agni, having become a horse, went away from the gods. On the (place), where he stood (i.e., stepped on) came into existence the tree Ficus Religiosa. That is precisely the significance of the name Ashvattha, (="under which a horse stands’). That the pieces of the wood of Ficus Religiosa are to be (used as a requisite), by means of them he procures that which is there of the nature of this (fire).

- Kathaka Samhita 8.2.9 translated by PD Navathe

In the Vedic rituals, the sacred fire is also produced with the churning of arani or the ritual churning sticks made of Ashvattha woods.

Let him therefore make himself an upper and a lower arani of Ashvattha wood, and the fire which results therefrom will be that very fire...

- Satapatha Brahmana 11.5.1.17 translated by Julius Eggeling

Ashvattha and its association with Agni and Yajna also plays a role in the famous legend concerning Aila king Pururavas and the Apsaras Urvashi. Pururavas is an ancestor of main Rig Vedic tribes as he is the Grandfather of Nahusha, who is invoked as an ancestor in the Rig Veda numerous times. Entire hymn of Rig Veda 10.95 is dedicated to the episode of Pururavas and Urvashi.

This legend narrated in various texts like Shatapatha Brahmana 11.5.1, Baudhayana Shrautasutra 18.45 and Kathaka Samhita 8.10 etc belonging to the various Yajur Veda schools.It is said that the Gandharvas allowed him to be a part of them by giving him Ashvattha woods to produce sacred fire. 

Thus, Ashvattha also plays a role in the legend concerning the ancestral figure of Vedic Aryan tribes.

An important aspect to note is that the Ashvattha leaves are also very popular in the bronze age art and iconography of the Harappan or Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization. In many Harappan seals we see deities along with arches made of Ashvattha leaves.

Various Harappan seals showing deities standing inside arches made of Ashvattha leaves. All parts of the seals catalogued in different volumes of Corpus of Indus Seals and Inscriptions (CISI) by Asko Parpola and various other authors.

This iconography of divinities under sacred arch continued in post Harappan times and is used by Hindus, Jains and Buddhists till date, known as prabhavali. Though now the arch is of the sacred fire symbolizing the divine Tejas or the brilliant aura of the deities, the Harappans preferred Ashvattha leaves since Ashvattha too is directly linked to Agni or sacred flame.

11th century Chola era bronze sculpture of the Goddess Mahishasuramardini depicting the sacred fiery arch or prabhavali behind her. Source: Wikimedia

12th century Pala era bronze sculpture depicting God Vishnu flanked by Goddesses Lakshmi and Sarasvati. Source: Wikimedia

Image of the Buddha from Gandhara, dating to Gupta period (3rd-7th centuries CE) showing his divine aura or prabhavali in background. Source: Wikimedia.

In a passage from Aitareya Brahmana, Ashvattha is explicitly linked with Tejas or the divine fiery brilliance. The king in royal Rajasuya ritual consumed the fruit of Ashvattha tree to gain divine Tejas or brilliance.

Now as to the (fruits) of Ashvattha. The Ashvattha tree was born from brilliance ; this is the over-lordship of the trees; verily thus he places in the lordly power the brilliance and the overlordship of the trees.

- Aitareya Brahmana 7.32 translated by Arthur Berriedale Keith

So the Harappan iconography indeed signifies the concept of divine fiery aura, the Tejas, represented by the arch of Ashvattha leaves. The leaves got replaced by flames directly in later iconography. It is unclear which deity or deities are depicted in the Harappan seals, but probably it is Agni himself or other related deities like Rudra or Skanda. It may even be some other obscure deity related to Agni who didn't make his or her way into the Vedic scriptures. Vedic texts mention various obscure deities after all, who find minor mentions compared to popular deities. The  precise identity of the deity will only be revealed to us if we successfully decipher the Indus script on the seals.

Apart from the arches, In some Harappans seals and also in Harappan pottery there is depiction of the Sun and it’s rays with sacred Ashvattha leaves.

Harappan pottery depicting the motifs of the Sun with Ashvattha leaves as the rays. Photo taken from : Harappan Civilization: A Recent Perspective by Gregory L Possehl.

This would reflect the Solar character of Ashvattha hinted in Atharva Veda and also Chandogya Upanishad highlighted above, where the Ashvattha tree in heaven or Svarga (realm of the Sun) showering Soma. It is said in Rig Veda that divine flame is brought from the Solar realm to the mortals (Rig Veda 6.8.4). Association of Agni with Ashvattha highlighted previously should be read together with this, as the Ashvattha symbolism is linked to both the Vedic Solar & the Vedic Divine Flame motif.

Even the Finnish Indologist Asko Parpola, who otherwise prefer Dravidian authorship of the Harappan script, had noted that even though the role of Agni has a cognates in wider Indo-European religions, his attributes are purely Indian in nature, and he highlights the association of Agni with Ashvattha or sacred fig tree.

"The Vedic fire-god Agni, who is said to be the mate or son of the Pleiades, has Indo-European ancestry, but has absorbed attributes and myths likely to have local Indian origin as they are connected with local plants and animals. Thus the upright kindling stick of sacred fire is taken of the pipal-fig or Ficus religiosa with flame-shaped leaves. The churning of fire has sexual symbolism and the upright stick represents the male organ. Agni is called the “embryo of forest-trees” and as such prayed to place an embryo in the womb"

(From - ‘Hind Leg’ + ‘Fish’: Towards Further Understanding of the Indus Script* by Asko Parpola

It is also to be noted that the name Ashvattha is an Indo-European name, relating to Ashva or horse, obviously a widely discussed Sanskrit word having Indo-European origin. The legend from Kathaka Samhita quoted above tells us how the tree got it's name from Agni when he took the form of a horse. According to Taittiriya Brahmana of the Yajur Veda, the sacrificial horse used in the royal Ashvamedha ritual is to be hosted in an enclosure made of the Ashvattha wood. 

The enclosure is made of Asvattha wood. (Formerly) Prajapati concealed himself from the gods. Having assumed the form of a horse (ashva), he stood for a year under an Ashvattha tree. That is the reason why the Ashvattha tree is called Ashvattha. Inasmuch as the enclosure is made of Ashvattha wood, it is indeed in the horse's own resting place that he (the Adhvaryu) establishes him (the horse).

- Taittiriya Brahmana 3.8.12 translated by Paul-Emile Dumont

The legend narrated in Taittiriya Brahmana is a modification of the legend concerning Agni and horse found in the Kathaka Samhita. In this version, Agni is replaced with Prajapati and it is he who hides himself from the Gods by taking form of a horse. Agni and Prajapati are closely linked together in the Vedic rituals and the fire altar is said to represent the body of Prajapati, or as his second self.

Thus without going further into archaeology or linguistic data or even the genetics which is a popular trend today, we can say that Vedic and Harappan elements surrounding the Ashvattha tree are closely associated with each other. This is a strong evidence for the Vedic or proto-Vedic elements having it’s presence among the Harappans.

In conclusion, regardless of where the Indo-Europeans ultimately originated from, Vedic tradition is native to India as much as Ashvattha or the ficus religiosa tree is. Even if Indo-Europeans originated from outside India at some point, they must have entered India generations prior to the time when Vedic ritual tradition evolved and codified. The evolution of Vedic tradition happened within India and the Ashvattha tree became a core element in Vedic religious lore and rituals. This tree is not found in Europe or West Asia or Central Asia. 

The fragment of Agnyadheya Brahmana of Katha shakha equates the entire Vedic tradition with the Ashvattha tree. It states that the Vedas are the the roots of Ashvattha, the Vedic chandas (metres) are the leaves and the various Vedic schools (shakhas) are it's branches

Of that (Ashvattha tree) the Veda is the root, the metres are its leaves (and) the different branches (=Vedic Schools) are its branches. 

-  Passage from Agnyadheya Brahmana fragment of the Katha shakha of the Yajur Veda translated by PD Navathe

Since the Vedas are the roots of Ashvattha, it is deeply rooted in India as much as the roots of Ashvattha tree and is an integral part of the heritage of Indians.

The veneration of the Ashvattha tree continues even today among the Hindus and we consider it as an abode of Gods just like the Vedic literature does. Thus, it is a continuity of ancient Vedic-Harappan cultural motif.

Shrine of Lord Shiva near the Gokarneshwor Mahadev temple at Kathmandu in Nepal made out of large Ashvattha tree. Image source: Wikimedia

Translations referred (in no particular order) :

Rigveda Brahmanas: The Aitareya and Kausitaki Brāhmaṇas of the Rigveda (1920) by Arthur Berriedale Keith

The Veda of the Black Yajus School: entitled Taittiriya Sanhita (1914) by Arthur Berriedale Keith

The Agnyadheya of The Katha Sakha with An Introduction, The Text, Appendices, Index of Mantras and English Translation (2012) by  PD Navathe

Hymns of the Rigveda (1889) by Ralph TH Griffith

Hymns of the Atharvaveda (1896)  by Ralph TH Griffith

Baudhayana Srautasutra (in 4 Volumes) (2002) by CG Kashikar

The Upanishads (1879–1884) by Friedrich Max Müller

The Satapatha-Brahmana according to the text of the Madhyandina School (in 5 volumes) (1882-1900) by Heinrich Julius Eggeling

The Horse-Sacrifice in the Taittiriya-Brahmana: The Eighth and Ninth Prapathakas of the Third Kanda of the Taittiriya-Brahmana with Translation (1948)  by Paul-Emile Dumont