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Conserving the sacred: from species to landscape
Abstract
One aspect of increasing interest in traditional resource management is a growing recognition of the extent and importance of religious sanctuaries and sacred places whish house the gods of village communities and are therefore taboo to human interference. These community-based living repositories provide an important contribution to the conservation of biological diversity, complementing the more recent approaches to protected area management, based on Western scientific knowledge, and promoted by conservation groups and government agencies. In India, examples of what can be called local, or vernacular conservation, can be observed at different scales and levels, including the protection of sacred species, sacred groves and sacred landscapes.
... Despite being under human use for several thousand years (Chandran, 1997) India has retained almost all of its biodiversity (Rangarajan, 2005). Sacred groves, sacred species, indigenous seeds, indigenous breeds (Ramakrishnan, 1996;Ramakrishnan, 2003) are examples of the ecological knowledge of adaptive management of biodiversity. Changing balance in human-nature relationships necessitated application of exclusionary models of conservation in the 1990s. ...
... Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board can conduct a detailed assessment based upon primary and secondary data from research papers, reports and PBRs, using participatory approaches to increase the coverage of OECMs leading to landscape conservation through LBHS models (Figure 2 Flow chart depicting process of identification to declaration of BHS). Similar biocultural conservation practices exist in all parts of India as shown by Ramakrishnan (1996), and the model can be used for the entire India. ...
India’s Biological Diversity Act 2002 is now 18 years old, and it has made it possible for the local communities to actively engage in the management of biological resources in various manners. One of the important provisions empowers the local communities to designate biodiversity rich areas as a Biodiversity Heritage Sites (BHS). However, our national progress in designating BHS has been snail-paced and far away from optimal use of such a provision for the benefit of nature itself. This calls for strategies and measures that empowers local communities to assess and designate the potential of a socio-ecological landscape as a Local Biodiversity Heritage Site (LBHS). Here we propose a conceptual framework for establishing Local Biodiversity Heritage Sites that represent the richness of the social-cultural landscape of Maharashtra state. Steps required to identify and establish a LBHS are listed based on the examples Sacred Groves and Rocky Plateaus, two habitats of high conservation importance in Maharashtra. In our opinion such sites are the humanities last chance to preserve the gene, species, ecosystem, its services, associated knowledge, culture, traditions and thereby natural heritage. It is our belief that LBHS can be a true legacy for future generations and a lasting reminder of the indelible connection of human beings with Mother Nature.
... Species diversity in the forest ecosystem context is profoundly influenced by cultural belief and management (Laird, 1999); an expression of this is the sacredness associated with species at that level (Ramakrishnan, 1996(Ramakrishnan, , 1998aKhaneghah, 1998;Michaloud and Dury, 1998). Oak species and Oak-dominated forest ecosystems are 'sacred' for the mountain people in the central Himalayan region (Ramakrishnan, 1998a,b) with all its implications for addressing sustainable developmental concerns. ...
... Several initiatives have been taken to reorient research and policy concerning the landscape (Vos and Klijn, 2000;Leitao and Ahern, 2002;Rescia et al., 2010;Martinez et al., 2010;Spulerova and Petrovic, 2011;Keighren and Withers, 2012;Burton, 2012;Hohn and Neumann, 2012;Jiao et al., 2012;Dobson, 2012). Policy makers became aware of the growing challenge when trying to preserve any value of traditional landscape and researchers increased the number of publications in this domain (Ramakrishnan, 1996;Antrop, 1997;Austad, 2000;Green, 2000;Wascher, 2000;Wascher and Jongman, 2000;Nohl, 2001;von Haaren, 2002;Mahanty, 2003;Anderson et al., 2005;Zimmermann, 2006). ...
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is one such example of traditional practices. ...
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a kind of cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is The cultural, religious beliefs and taboos that deities reside in this forest are the reasons why forests are left undisturbed by the local peoples which give a home to rich biodiversity and are protected by the indigenous people. ...
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is one such example of traditional practices. ...
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a kind of cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is The cultural, religious beliefs and taboos that deities reside in this forest are the reasons why forests are left undisturbed by the local peoples which give a home to rich biodiversity and are protected by the indigenous people. ...
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is one such example of traditional practices. ...
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a kind of cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is The cultural, religious beliefs and taboos that deities reside in this forest are the reasons why forests are left undisturbed by the local peoples which give a home to rich biodiversity and are protected by the indigenous people. ...
... The sacred groves also help in maintaining health of ecosystem, reduce habitat destruction, conserve the viable population of pollinators and predators, conserve the indigenous flora and fauna and preserve the cultural and ethical practices developed through indigenous knowledge of generations (Ramakrishnan and Ram, 1988;Godbole et al. 1998;Godbole and Sarnaik' 2004;Tiwari et al., 1998a,b;Singh et al., 1998). Ramakrishnan (1996) reported the existence of sacred groves in different parts of India and they are known by different names in different areas (Bhakat, 1990). Most of the sacred groves reported from India are in the Western Ghats, North Eastern India and Central India Burman, 1992;Rodgers, 1994;Balasubramanyam and Induchoodan, 1996;Tripathi, 2001;Khumbongmayum et al., 2005a). ...
... Most of the sacred groves reported from India are in the Western Ghats, North Eastern India and Central India Burman, 1992;Rodgers, 1994;Balasubramanyam and Induchoodan, 1996;Tripathi, 2001;Khumbongmayum et al., 2005a). Sacred groves have been reported in Meghalaya (Boojh and Ramakrishnan, 1983;Ramakrishnan, 1996;Tiwari et al. 1998a;Jamir, 2002;Law, 2002;Upadhaya, 2002;Mishra et al., 2004), Manipur (Khumbongmayum, 2004;Khumbongmayum, et al. 2005a), and Western Ghats . Mitra and Pal (1994) also reported the occurrence of sacred groves in Meghalaya, Bihar, Rajasthan and the states along the Western Ghats. ...
Sacred groves are patches of primary and natural forests, protected through socio-cultural laws by the local communities near their villages and are always dedicated to certain deities. This practice of conserving such groves is linked to the society since the beginning of human settlement. In Bonai forest division, Odisha eighty such sacred groves were identified in 6 ranges of namely Barsuan, Jarda, Koliposh, Sole, Tamana and Bonai. The size of sacred groves ranges from 0.01 Acre to 7.98 Acre, covering about 2.2% of the total geographical area of the division. In the CHAPTER 4 36 sacred groves a total of 306 species of plants comprising 291 species of angiosperms (107 species of trees, 118 species of herbs, 14 species of shrubs, 47 species of climbers and 10 species of orchids), 11 species of lower plants (4 lichens and 7 bryophytes) and 45 species of fungi were recorded. Similarly 25 species of mammals, 133 species of birds, 22 species of reptiles, 13 species of amphibians, 122 species of butterflies, 26 species of odonates, 27 species of arachnids, 31 species of other invertebrates were also observed in these groves. The study highlights some important observations and recommendations to include sacred groves in policy level conservation planning. It is very important to uphold traditions and beliefs in order to protect and conserve these unique forest patches which represent the rich vegetation of the concerned area. Ecological services rendered by sacred groves needs to be highlighted and people should be aware to realize that the conservation of these groves are crucial for their sustenance.
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is one such example of traditional practices. ...
... In remote areas ethnic groups have culture to have a sacred place or saved site. The conservation of this rapidly diminishing pool of experience, a kind of cultural diversity is as the conservation of biological diversity (Ramakrishnan, 1996). There are many traditional way of conserving and protecting the biodiversity and sacred group is The cultural, religious beliefs and taboos that deities reside in this forest are the reasons why forests are left undisturbed by the local peoples which give a home to rich biodiversity and are protected by the indigenous people. ...
Sacred and traditional beliefs plays an significant role in conservation of biodiversity. Based on spiritual and cultural values,local communities in many parts of the world have conserved sacred forests or groves. This research studied 3 Sacred Groves (Daikho) in Dima Hasao that are protected by the Dimasa community through their religious beliefs. 10 quadrats were taken from each sacred grove, i.e. (1x1)m for herbs, (5x5)m for shrubs was laid down randomly for vegetation analysis. Floristic analysis revealed that a total of 44 species belonging to 42 genera and 27 families were observed in the Sacred Grove. Total numbers of herb, shrub, climbers and fern species encountered in each Sacred Grove were 29, 10 and 6 respectively. The Simpson value index for dominance and Shannon Weiner Index of herbs and shrubs showed highest species diversity in site 1 and site 2. The data collected include information regarding the Sacred Groves and their associate deities, nearest human habitation and their floral diversity. A questionnaire was conducted in the nearby villages namely Nabdidaolaguphu (Site 1), Gerem (Site 2) and Longma (Site 3). Different deities are worshipped in different Daikho and each Daikho was named after the deities dwelling in respective Sacred Groves. Many taboos help in managing the natural resource of the Sacred Grove. But people’s change in their attitude, human impact and erosion of religious beliefs have degraded Sacred Groves year after year. So, supporting traditional culture, existing local community management of resources and creating awareness among the communities is highly recommended.
Keywords: Daikho, Community Management, Taboos, Sacred Grove, Traditional Practices
... Despite their great cultural and economic value, sacred natural sites were not on the agenda of nature conservation worldwide until recently. Apart from some pioneering work of documenting sacred groves for example in India, the literature that highlights the conservation value of sacred sites only started to emerge in the 1990s (Chandrashekara, 1998;Knudtson & Suzuki, 1992;Ramakrishnan, 1996). Scholars interested in specific ecosystems such as mountains, forests (Chandran & Hughes, 2000) or rivers (Blatt 2005;Klubnikin et al. 2000), or in interdisciplinary research of ethnobiology and ecological anthropology, have been actively promoting the integration of cultural concerns in ecology and conservation. ...
... Sacred natural sites are rarely considered in national-level decision-making processes and coherent, policy, legal and management approaches are lacking (Bhattacharya, 2005). Many sacred natural sites that lie outside government protected areas are increasingly being recognized at the international level as protected areas, or Indigenous and Community Conserved Areas (ICCA) in their own right Ramakrishnan, 1996;Schaaf & Rossler, 2010). In some cases, this support will enable the innovative creation of conservation networks such as the extension of the protected areas network based on sacred natural sites currently under way in Benin. ...
... Each sacred place can include one or different separate locations and be dedicated to specific natural elements (e.g. particular plant or animal species) or phenomena, or can encompass a larger totality of natural components, thereby comprising a sacred landscape or ecosystem (Oviedo et al., 2005;Ramakrishnan, 1996;Sponsel, 2016, Wild, & McLeod, 2008Verschuuren, 2006). ...
By successfully merging social and ecological elements, many Indigenous landscapes have become over the centuries rich reservoirs of biodiversity, where nature grows intertwined with local livelihoods, cultural beliefs, and value systems. These biocultural oases are however not immune to pressures that might
temper with their richness by exposing them to negative social and ecological consequences. In order to ensure effective and just protection of this heritage, conservation should be based on a nuanced understanding of the dynamic socio-ecological relations that have fostered such biocultural richness in order to appropriately detect potentially harmful changes and to address them without affecting local human-nature nexuses.
The history of Indigenous people and conservation is long and problematic. In contrast, contemporary conservation narratives and discourses look at Indigenous communities as actors playing a pivotal role in nature and biodiversity protection. This – sometimes contradictory – perspective is rooted in the recent recognition of the importance of traditional environmental knowledge, customary practices, and cultural systems in securing sustainable and mutually beneficial human-nature relationships. By building on this body of knowledge, this thesis analyses an Indigenous sacred landscape of high ecological and cultural value: Naimina Enkiyio forest in Southern Kenya. It does so with the goal of exploring how social, cultural,
and spiritual dynamics have fostered the emergence of a successful conservation scenario and how the latter is changing under the pressure of new socio-ecological challenges. The complex relationships between local Maasai communities and their ancestral land is studied through the lens of socioecological system theory. The notion of biocultural diversity and conservation frontier are also mobilised to decode
traditional conservation patterns and changing socioecological dynamics. Supported by literature review, qualitative research methods are used to meet this thesis’s goals.
The results show how conservation is deeply embedded in local livelihood systems and cultural practices. Despite almost entirely relying on their surroundings for survival, Loita Maasai have developed a form of constructive dependence with the landscape that ensured ecological richness and well-being until today. The extraction and protection of resources is carefully mediated by tacit traditional environmental knowledge, cultural beliefs, and traditional institutions. All members of the communities play their part in reproducing these mutually beneficial dynamics and ensuring the survival of the region’s biocultural richness. In Naimina Enkiyio conservation is an every-day practice aimed at protecting the resources constituting the basis of Maasai cultural identity and survival.
The data collected on the field also shows the delicate nature of Naimina Enkiyio socioecological system. The thesis presents a number of challenges that are increasingly modifying the traditional human-nature relationship that ensured the conservation of the local natural and cultural heritage. Considering the strict
bond between culture and nature characterising the region, these challenges act as disruptive elements causing negative externalities both in ecological and social terms. This study argues that the transformative nature of these changes is creating a conservation frontier, ultimately bringing new actors and interests in the area potentially opening the way for future fortress conservation strategies based on the exclusion of local communities and the disruption of traditional and precious biocultural ties.
... 5,6 A summary of the subsistence of sacred groves in Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and different regions of India are acknowledged by various scientific reports. 7,8,9,10 India is unique in its biogeographical location with extensive and diverse biodiversity legacy. This has led to its recognition as one of the twelve mega diverse countries of the world. ...
Sacred groves are the patches of pristine forest that nurture rich biodiversity and play a principal role in the conservation of endemic and rare species. The present study was conducted to identify and enumerate the plant diversity of Iringole Kavu (sacred grove) of Ernakulum district of the state of Kerala. A total of 142 plant species were documented which include three vulnerable species and 18 endemic species. Among them 129 are angiosperms, two are gymnosperms, seven are pteridophytes and four belong to fungi. Angiosperms include 36 herbs, 23 shrubs, 41 trees and 29 climbers. Fabaceae, Rubiaceae, Moraceae, Acanthaceae and Apocynaceae are the dominant angiosperm families. The study revealed the occurrence of two critically endangered plant species viz. Ixora johnsonii (Rubiaceae) and Vateria indica (Dipterocarpaceae).
... Several studies have shown the importance of sacred sites in biodiversity conservation (Bharuch, 1999;Chandrakanth & Romm, 1991; 1 3 1036 Page 2 of 10 Vol:. (1234567890) Ghate et al., 2004;Ramakrishnan, 1996;Upadhaya et al., 2003). The state government of Manipur (India) designated the Shirui lily as the "state flower" in 1989 due to its heritage importance and distinctiveness. ...
Lilium mackliniae Sealy is a species endemic to the Indo-Myanmar Biodiversity Hot-spot with confined occurrence in the Shirui hills of Manipur (India). A rapid fragmentation of the species resulted in enlisting the remaining population as endangered. Tribal communities have managed this population in national parks for in situ conservation because of its sacred value. Maximum entropy-based modeling was performed with 19 bioclimatic and six geospatial variables on 65 true presence data to assess the threat on its only habitat. The accuracy of modeling was confirmed by an AUC value of 0.989. Among the variables used for habitat modeling, elevation range was a key predictor of the species distribution, followed by land use class and annual temperature range. Additionally, the model projected a similar habitat for the species in the same district. This study, therefore, provides essential information for the conservation and management of the species.
... Since the turn of the 21st century, there has been a renewed interest in sacred landscapes and sacred natural sites (SNS) from conservationists, cultural anthropologists, and protected area (PAs) managers as social institutions that have effectively preserved nature and culture. International organizations such as United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO, Ramakrishnan 1996), World Wildlife Fund (WWF; Jeanrenaud 2001, Dudley et al. 2005, and International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; Mallarach and Papayannis 2007, Dudley 2008, Wild and McLeod 2008, Papayannis and Mallarach 2010, Verschuuren et al. 2010 have acknowledged that SNS not only are rich repositories of biocultural diversity and constitute an important shadow conservation network but may even offer better protection than "secular," scientifically managed PAs. ...
Sacred natural sites (SNS) are valuable biocultural hotspots and important areas for nature conservation. They are attracting a growing attention in academic, management, and political fora. The relevance and implications of the sacred nature of these sites for the multiple actors involved in their management is widely acknowledged. However, the complexities and ambiguities surrounding the notion of "the sacred" have not been researched in depth. Because few previous scholarly works have specifically
examined a topic that has profound implications for conservation as well as for the communities inhabiting these sites, we aim to fill
in the gap by unraveling the conceptualizations and assumptions of "the sacred" in academic, peer reviewed SNS publications. Through a systematic review of the literature performed from a conservation lens, our findings unveil that: (1) Conservationists and protected areas managers have paid much more attention to SNS than social scientists and religious studies scholars; (2) The sacredness motif tends to be predominantly associated with taboos, bans, and regulations of community-managed resources; (3) The sacred is a highly complex concept often used in a binary, dichotomous way, as opposed to the profane and wild related; (4) An instrumental view of the sacred can limit the potential to include other intangible values in management and exclude relevant stakeholders; and (5) The insights from cultural anthropology, political ecology, and religious studies unveil the power dynamics and hidden assumptions that often go unnoticed in the literature. These perspectives should be included in the management of SNS and in policymaking.
... Also, patches of vegetation protected on the basis of religious faith are referred to as sacred groves. In some societies of Africa, America, Asia, Australia and Europe had long been preserving sections of the natural environment as sacred groves to Gods and Goddesses (Gadgil and Vartak, 1975;Khiewtam and Ramakrishnan, 1989;Hughes, 1994;Ramakrishnan, 1996). The role of natural sacred sites, particularly sacred groves, is attracting increasing interest in conservation organizations such as UNESCO, the WWF and has significant relevance for the implementation of the Conservation of Biological Diversity which stresses more on the use of traditional wisdom and practices for conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. ...
This study was carried out to assess the tree species diversity, family composition and diameter size distribution of the tree species in Igbo-Olua sacred groove, Ondo state, Nigeria using appropriate standard techniques. A total of 34 tree species distributed in 23 families were recorded. Sterculiaceae family (66) had the highest number of individual stem per ha while Moraceae family had the highest number in terms of tree species per hectare (7). The distribution of the diameter structure is typical of the natural forest type with high number of tree species in the smaller size classes or interval (12.5) and the number of tree species decreases with increasing size class or interval. Diversity measures obtained included Shannon-Weiner index (3.09), Evenness (0.64) and Margalef index (6.36). Awakening the consciousness of people towards the protection of sacred groves has practical implications on their survival. Hence government and other allied institutions should gear efforts towards grove conservation.
... La escucha del manokiuy es el origen de distintas enfermedades provocadas por el "susto" (na'tse), lo que deriva en la pérdida de los kojamas (o componentes del alma zoque), que les permiten interpretar y conectarse con elementos específicos de su entorno, muchas veces a través de la escucha. El temor hacia los seres desconocidos o sobrenaturales parece haber sido utilizado estratégicamente por varios grupos indígenas como un mecanismo disuasorio para desalentar el uso indebido de la biodiversidad y promover el respeto a sitios naturales (principalmente bosques, cuerpos de agua, cuevas y montañas) y a los espíritus que los resguardan como lugares sagrados (Ramakrishnan, 1996;Malhotra et al., 2001;Anderson et al., 2005;Fernández y Albó, 2008). En distintas culturas alrededor del mundo es común encontrar referencias sobre la existencia de propietarios y guardianes de las montañas que pueden castigar severamente a quienes violan su condición sagrada al practicar la caza, la tala o la transgresión de los sitios ceremoniales (Reichel, 1976;Blanco et al., 1992;Durand, 2005;Guerrero et al., 2010). ...
La relación entre pueblos originarios y su entorno sonoro constituye un campo emergente para conocer el valor de la dimensión acústica en la comprensión del territorio y los vínculos entre sus componentes naturales y culturales. A partir de entrevistas semiestructuradas, se documentó y analizó el conocimiento local de los zoques de Tapalapa, Chiapas, México sobre los sonidos de su entorno y las interacciones, percepciones e interpretaciones que han desarrollado sobre los mismos, aportando una perspectiva sobre el valor de las sonoridades para la comprensión y convivencia con la biodiversidad. Partiendo del sistema local de clasificación de sonidos, se reconoció a las cosmofonías como una categoría que visibiliza las interpretaciones sonoras relacionadas con la cosmovisión zoque. Los hallazgos de este estudio resaltan el valor de las especies y de los ecosistemas en buen estado de conservación como refugio para la riqueza de señales sonoras, esenciales en la vida comunitaria, e invitan a profundizar en la comprensión de los procesos modernizadores que han erosionado el patrimonio sonoro de los zoques de Tapalapa. Concluimos que la degradación de los ecosistemas locales y de su sonoridad impacta el sistema de conocimiento, la identidad cultural y el sentido de pertenencia de los zoques.
... Les sites sacrés et sanctuaires sont les plus anciens exemples de zones protégées, dans ce cas précis pour des motifs religieux ou spirituels (Ramakrishnan, 1996 ;Verschuuren et al., 2010). Ce sont des raisons essentiellement économiques qui ont motivé ensuite la protection des écosystèmes pour les ressources qu'ils fournissent à la société. ...
La connectivité écologique des habitats est nécessaire aux processus écologiques assurant le maintien de la biodiversité. Des méthodes ont donc été développées pour la modéliser afin de comprendre précisément son influence et d’orienter les mesures de conservation de la biodiversité. Parmi ces méthodes, les graphes paysagers modélisent un réseau d’habitat sous la forme d’un ensemble de taches d’habitat (noeuds) reliées par des chemins de dispersion potentiels (liens). La validité écologique de ces outils nécessitait néanmoins d’être évaluée à l’aide de données reflétant les réponses biologiques des populations à la connectivité de leurs habitats. Les données génétiques permettent cette validation car la structure génétique des populations dépend notamment des flux génétiques entre leurs taches d’habitat. La structure génétique peut également être modélisée par un graphe génétique dont les noeuds correspondent à des populations et dont les liens sont pondérés par le degré de différenciation génétique entre populations. L’objectif de cette thèse était d’utiliser conjointement des graphes génétiques et paysagers pour (i) évaluer la validité écologique des graphes paysagers et (ii) améliorer notre compréhension de la relation entre connectivité et structure génétique. Après avoir identifié les méthodes de construction et d’analyse des graphes génétiques les plus adaptées à chaque contexte et développé un outil informatique permettant l’utilisation conjointe des graphes génétiques et paysagers, nous les avons comparés dans le cadre de deux études empiriques. Elles ont permis (i) d’évaluer l’influence respective des différentes composantes de la connectivité des habitats sur la diversité et la différenciation génétiques et (ii) de confirmer la validité écologique des graphes paysagers. Nous avons ensuite montré que l’intégration de variables associées à la fois aux noeuds et aux liens de ces deux types de graphes améliorait l’estimation de l’influence des éléments du paysage sur la connectivité. Les méthodes développées dans cette thèse pourraient trouver d’autres applications dans ce champ d’étude comme dans d’autres. Nous espérons que les résultats de cette thèse et l’outil informatique développé y contribueront.
... These are the prime resources and activities that the hill people of Himalaya are associated with. Their traditional management, therefore, becomes necessary 31 . It has been pointed out that the conservation of bioresources reflects our emotional attachment to it 32 . ...
... The concept of the 'sacred' in a cultural sense, an intangible entity, has entered the ecological paradigm not only because human societies have traditionally looked at nature with awe and reverence but also because of their strong dependence on nature to obtain their livelihood needs. The concept of the culturally valued -sacred species, sacred groves (ecosystems) and sacred landscapes (landscapes) -comes under this category (Ramakrishnan, 1996;Ramakrishnan et al., 1998). ...
Although wetlands provide many goods and servicesto people, ecological, economic and sociocultural,they are often undervalued. In particular, thesociocultural importance of wetlands is often ignoredand difficult to capture with traditional economicvaluation methods. There currently exists noframework to assess and value the social and culturalimportance of wetlands. Although sacred sites, landrights and native title based on spiritual relationshipto land are legally recognized, water however is not.A typology of sociocultural functions and valueshas been created in order to assess the socioculturalimportance of wetlands in northern Australia. Thetypology includes tangibles as well as intangibles:human health, cultural heritage, spiritual andexistence value, inspiration and expression,knowledge, sense of place, aesthetic quality, tourismand recreation, and peace and reconciliation.Indicators have been selected for these socioculturalvalues and scores have been attributed to them onthe basis of interviews and best professionaljudgment. Scores have been attributed for differentstakeholders such as Aboriginal people, fishers,pastoralists and tourists, who make different uses ofwater and hold different sociocultural values relatedto water and land.Remaining challenges include the selection ofappropriate indicators and valuation processes; theneed for the application of appropriate guidelinesand methodologies to assess the socioculturalimportance of wetlands; setting in placemanagement methods and policy instruments thatfacilitate integration of sociocultural importance; andfacilitating equitable trade-offs and compensationmechanisms between intangible values anddevelopment, conservation and poverty alleviation.
... Because many sacred groves were tracts natural heritage and highlighted the need for their of original forest that had been protected from time protection and further study. Ramakrishnan (1996) has immemorial, it would be expected that at least a also reviewed the theme with particular reference to proportion of the original biodiversity would have east India. Sacred groves of Tamil Nadu are small in size, survived (Hughes, 1998). ...
Pudukkottai is a small district which had a lot of rich forests earlier. Later, all these thick forests were cleared for eucalyptus plantation to feed the paper and rayon factories. Much of the biodiversity has been lost due to the monoculture of eucalyptus. There a quite a few sacred groves in this district which still harbour a substantial number of the native flora and fauna and continue to offer the ecosystem services. But many of them are slowly getting degraded due to human intrusion, cattle grazing and invasion by exotic species like Prosopsis. Conservation of these sacred groves will help in conserving biodiversity and also restore the valuable ecosystem services. Conservation measures should aim to improve the conservation status of the existing sacred groves and to replicate these in other areas available for plantation.
... In the present time also, several communities continue to practice many forms of nature conservation through worshiping the SGs. Most of the sacred groves in India are reported from the Western Ghats, North Eastern India and Central India (Gadgil and Vartak 1976;Boojh and Ramakrishnan 1983;Burman1992;Ramakrishnan 1996;Tiwari et al. 1998;Tripathi 2001;Jamir 2002;Mishra et al. 2004;Khumbongmayum et al. 2005) where they are found mainly in tribal dominated areas and are known by different names in ethnic terms, such as Sarna or Dev in Madhya Pradesh, Devrai or Deovani in Maharashtra, Sarnas in Bihar, Orans in Rajasthan, Devaravana or Devarakadu in Karnataka, Sarpakavu and Kavu in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, Dev van in Himachal Pradesh, Law Lyngdoh or Law Kyntang (Khan et al. 2008). In Sikkim, SGs are classified into two categories based on the community religion through which they are conserved, namely: Gumpa forests and Devithans (Table 1). ...
The institution of Sacred Groves (SGs) in Sikkim is long been in practice as community based nature conservation model which is deeply rooted with the existence of the communities of this region. The sacred groves in Sikkim are broadly categorized as,
Gumpa forests and Devithan. The Gumpa forests' sacred groves are mainly worshipped and protected by the Buddhist community whereas the Devithan (abode of goddess) is worshipped by the people of Hindu faith. The SGs, which are consecrated in the name of local deities or ancestral spirits, is perhaps the best example of indigenous traditional resource use practices promoting conservation of nature.
This book documents sacred grove of Sikkim Himalaya, their dominant floral species, threats and conservation measures, and the religious belief of the communities connected to the physical environment. It also highlights community based biodiversity conservation, role of SGs in ecological functioning, social-ecological linkages and taboos, along with the details about SGs (i.e. checklist, geographical attributes, etc). The questionnaire survey was carried out to investigate the peoples’ perceptions towards the SG and to document the community-based biodiversity conservation strategies. A detailed list of sacred groves is presented in Table 1.
Based on primary survey, a total of 22 groves were documented in Sikkim of which 7 are in East district, 7 in West district, and 4 each in South and North districts of Sikkim. In which, total 6 Devithans and 16 Gumpa forests were recognized as SGs. These sacred groves are located between elevation ranges 260 m to 3010 m asl. Rolu Devi Mandir and
Kalkani Devi Mandir SGs are located along the valley of river Rangit whereas, Chuba and Nub Dechen Phug sacred groves are located above 3000m. Present survey indicates that most of the sacred groves of Sikkim fall under the Eastern Himalaya sub-tropical broad
leaved forest (10 Nos.) followed by the Himalayan wet temperate forest (8 Nos.) following the classification Champion and Seth (1968). Furthermore, most of the forests are under Protected Areas/ Reserved forest category where SGs occupy a significant space in
preserving local forest-based cultural traditions.
... Sacred groves have a significant effect on biodiversity conservation due to the special precautions and exclusion due to social fencing adopted from associated belief systems and taboos (Anthawal et al., 2006;Bhagwat and Rutte 2006;Singh 2012). Limited anthropogenic activities due to taboos and prohibitions allowed sacred groves to hold old growth vegetation and many ecologically and socially valuable biotic species (Ramakrishnan 1996;Godbole and Sarnaik 2004;Gadgil and Vartak 1975). ...
The study was conducted in two sacred groves of Kathmandu Valley, Pashupati Sacred Grove, and Bajrabarahi Sacred Grove, aiming to analyze the diversity of tree species and their role in conserving biodiversity. Parallel transects with concentric circular plot survey methods were applied for data collection. During the study, 23 tree species belonging to 22 genera and 15 families were recorded in Pashupati sacred grove, whereas only 19 tree species belonging to 16 genera and 13 families were recorded from Bajrabarahi Sacred Grove. The Shannon-Weiner diversity indices were higher (H=1.91) in Pashupati Sacred Grove compared to Bajrabarahi Sacred Grove, with 1.80 Shanon-Weiner Indices. Three types of forest were recorded from Pashupati Sacred Grove, namely the Schima-Pyrus forest, Myrsine-Persea forest, and Quercus-Myrsine forest, and only one Neolitsiacuipala forest from Bajrabarahi Sacred Grove. The sacred grove is one of the pioneers and community-based management regimes of the forest resource management system. It plays a decisive role in biodiversity conservation as it associated with many taboos and belief systems, thus providing a better opportunity for conservation compared to that of the government management system.
... Such alienation has understandably reduced the efficacy of the centralized system of parks and sanctuaries in conserving biodiversity (DeFries et al. 2007), and unregulated activities may persist, causing degradation of habitat and biodiversity (Bruner et al. 2001, Parrish et al. 2003, Struhsaker et al. 2005. These limitations of the protected areas model have encouraged alternative models and complementary roles for local communities in governing forests and biodiversity (Ramakrishnan 1996, Berkes 2007, Shahabuddin & Rao 2010. ...
Sacred forests are small patches of forest that are preserved and protected from human exploitation. Although they are identified primarily for spiritual or religious purposes, their contribution to biodiversity conservation has been widely debated. Sacred sites are known to harbour greater biodiversity compared to exploited forests, but the patterns are not well known. We studied tree diversity in a remote forested location in eastern India where sacred forests and reserve forests used by people are present. Tree data from eight sacred forest sites and nine reserve forest sites showed that species richness was significantly greater in sacred forests; species diversity and evenness tended to be greater, but these were not statistically significant. Basal area (a measure of aboveground biomass) was significantly greater, mainly due to the greater density of large trees. There were significant departures from the theoretical expectation of stem size density distributions under pure asymmetric competition for both land tenures, which indicated that extraneous mortality increased death rates of large trees under both regimes, but sacred forests had a greater range of stem sizes. Our results suggest that sacred forests can contribute to biodiversity conservation by preserving greater tree diversity than forests subject to human use.
... Sacred forest reserves are also important socially and culturally, as the wild ancestors of several crops and domesticated animals are still conserved there (Aerts et al., 2016;Swamy et al., 2003). They also provide windbreaks (Kothari and Das, 1999), water (Bharuch, 1999), hunting grounds, and forest products for self-provisioning (Wadley and Colfer, 2004), and are an important source of propagules for rehabilitating degraded land (Miehe et al., 2003;Ramakrishnan, 1996). ...
Mayan community forest reserves (MCFR) play an important role in agricultural landscapes in Mexico, as they provide forest products and a broad variety of benefits that contribute to improving local people's livelihoods. Nevertheless, academia has generally considered conservation and use of forest resources to be incompatible. We describe the spatial configuration of MCFR, evaluate floristic and structural characteristics of woody vegetation present in selected reserves, and identify social norms that govern use and conservation of MCFR. These reserves largely consist of mature vegetation (80% of total cover); their plant structure is similar to that of the surrounding tropical sub-deciduous forest; and they house a large number of endemic species. The MCFR studied contain a total of 146 tree species and cover 11% of the study area, which includes at least 140 villages in the north-central part of the Yucatan Peninsula. These reserves are collectively managed and conserved by Mayan peasants in the interest of the common good. The communities in our study area combine conservation and use of forest resources, and we recommend that in public policy, government agencies and NGOs incorporate MCFR as a model of biological conservation and sustainable natural resource use, taking into account traditional knowledge and local norms that allow these reserves to function in a sustainable manner.
... According to tradition, beyul are protected by secret doors, accessible only to adepts, that will open at the appropriate time, transporting practitioners to another realm of existence. Some well-known beyul are currently existing geographical places, including the Khumbu, Kembalung, and Rowaling valleys of Nepal (Skog 2016;Spoon and Sherpa 2008;Armbrecht 2009); Pemako in southeastern China (Baker 2004;Sherpa 2005); the Bumthang valley of Bhutan (Tshewang et al. 1995); and Dremoshung, an area below Mount Kangchenjunga in Sikkim (Balikci Denjongpa 2002;Ramakrishnan 1996;Sherpa 2005). The beyul are believed to supply material abundance to meet human needs; people are expected to behave in a manner appropriate to a sacred space. ...
Consistent with the pan-Himalayan tendency to see the landscape as lively and animated, protector deities and local spirits are perceived to inhabit various features of the landscape in Bhutan, causing these places to be treated with reverence and respect. Local spiritual beliefs are prized as central to the cultural identity of the Kingdom, making their way into government planning documents, town planning negotiations, and the 2008 Constitution. This elevation of local spiritual belief has been central to the maintenance and preservation of Bhutanese culture in its encounter with globally hegemonic social, economic, and political norms. Spirits and deities are believed to be the original owners of the land predating the introduction of Buddhism from Tibet. According to terma texts—spiritual treasures hidden by great Buddhist teachers to be discovered later—the initial introduction of Buddhism into Bhutan occurred in the seventh century. At that time, the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo, the 32nd king of the Yarlung dynasty, built two temples in western and central parts of Bhutan as part of a strategy to pin down a demoness who was ravaging the Himalaya. About a century after the construction of the temples, Padmasambhava, known throughout the Himalayas as Guru Rimpoche, or “Precious Teacher,” arrived in Bhutan, subjugated eight classes of local spirits and made them sworn protectors of the Dharma. In this way, local deities and spirits became incorporated into Bhutan’s Vajrayana Buddhism to the extent that images of them are found at Buddhist temples and monasteries. Vajrayana Buddhism and local deities and spirits twine together in Bhutan to shape a cosmology that recognizes a spectrum of sentient beings, only some of whom are visible. The presence of deities and spirits informs local land use. Deity abodes or “citadels” (Dz.: pho brang) are restricted from human use. The presence of a deity citadel is sufficient in some locales to cause the diversion or reconsideration of human construction and resource use. By grounding spiritual beliefs in specific sites of the landscape, the citadels of deities sanctify the landscape, becoming nodes of resistance and resilience that support the Bhutanese in inhabiting their own internally-consistent cosmology, even as the pressures of global integration seek to impose hegemonic Western norms.
... The complex and diverse arena of spiritual, emotional, intellectual, and practical activities at the interface of religion and ecology (Sponsel 2001) can be observed at sacred natural places. These places are a phenomenon of many societies, for example: in Greece there are sacred groves for Christian-Orthodox communities, in Japan there are Shinto shrine groves, in India there are sacred groves for local communities in the Himalayas (Ramakrishnan 1996), and in tropical Africa there are grove/community areas with several levels of sacredness (Michaloud and Dury 1998). In the Maghreb countries (i.e. ...
In the Maghreb countries, the surroundings of Muslim saint’s tombs, which are also used as burial grounds by local people, often shelter the last remnants of forest vegetation in these otherwise intensively cultivated regions. After a brief introduction to the cults of Muslim saints and pilgrimage practises in Morocco, the results of a geo-botanical case study of two areas of sacred groves in northern Morocco (i.e. Tangier Peninsula) are presented. The sacred groves studied are characterised by a fine-grained vegetation mosaic that in part originate from multiple forms and intensities of human use (e.g. pasturing, small-scale burning, grave digging). The results of the vegetation analysis lead to discussion of the potential role of sacred
groves in nature conservation. The nature conservation value of sacred places is seen in their roles: as aesthetic elements of the landscape, as models for future attempts to reconstruct degraded areas with endemic forest vegetation, in biodiversity conservation, in the protection of rare plant species, in the protection of genetic
resources, and as habitats for animals. The high diversity of sacred groves is seen in relation to the level of human impact. The local society’s appreciation of some of these areas is changing. How these changes materialise will have an effect on the long-term conservation prospects for these areas.
... Sacred groves played an important role in maintaining the ecological balance by fulfilling the needs of people while protecting and conserving their primitive cultures along with wild flora and fauna (Mgumia andOba, 2003, Jamir andPandey, 2003;Chima and Nuga, 2011). This community base tradition received an invaluable attention from sociological as well as biological point of view (Ramakrishnan, 1996;Chandrasekara and Sankar, 1998;Ramanujam and Kadamban, 2001). It was reported that sacred groves shelter a high diversity of medicinal plants and tree regeneration is more than doing by the forests (Boraiah et al., 2003, Khumbongmayum et al., 2005. ...
Woody species play an important role in storing carbon through aboveground biomass (AGB) and are considered one of the captive areas of biodiversity. However, the quantitative relationship between tree species diversity and AGB is poorly understood in sacred groves of the world. In the present investigation, the relationship between measures of biodiversity and AGB were quantified. PCA analysis was used to find a possible relationship between AGB and biodiversity in studied groves and revealed the significant relationship between species richness and above ground biomass within the groves suggesting the role of species richness in the carbon cycle. It was also observed that there was a negative relationship between above ground biomass and species richness at larger plots while positive relationship exists when the size of the sampling plot is small at larger spatial extent. Therefore priorities should be put to ensure the safety of bio-diverse carbon pool while implementing conservation and management practices. The fate of biodiversity is believed to depend on the forest remnants in human-made landscapes like sacred groves. Our finding indicates the importance of species richness in storing atmospheric carbon through photosynthesis and special attention must be given in terms of conservation and protection of biodiversity.
... The practice of assigning a patch of forest as the abode of Gods or Goddesses is not new. The societies of Africa, America, Asia, Australia and Europe had long been preserving sections of the natural environment as sacred groves to Gods and Goddesses [3][4][5][6] . In spite of a generally very high population ratio, sacred groves which are the relics of vegetation which have survived under a variety of ecological situations in India and they represent hot spots of biodiversity [7] . ...
The present study was carried out for quantitative analysis of diversity, population structure, regeneration and conservation status of tree species in Joypur Joysini Matar Than (JJMT), a sacred grove of West Midnapore district. A total of 32 tree species belonging to 30 genera distributed in 23 families from 13 orders were recorded. Ficus benghalensis, family Moraceae showed the highest SIVI (34.58%) and FIVI 76.36 (25.45%) values respectively. Individuals were categorized into three groups, seedling, sapling and adult based on girth classes. Majority of tree species (40.62%) species exhibited good regeneration followed by poor regeneration (28.12%) and fair regeneration (15.63%) respectively. The overall population structure of tree species showed a good regeneration potential with a stable nature of the sacred grove. The study area being a sacred grove would be well protected by tribal communities due to their religious sanctity.
... The legacy of sacredness, recently demarcated as the Kailash Sacred Landscape, has been shown to have a major effect on culture, conservation, ecology, and environment due to the associated special precautions and restrictions on use [82]. As a result of limited human activity due to sociocultural taboos and prohibitions, sacred places frequently possess old-growth vegetation and many ecologically and socioculturally valuable plant species [83,84]. ...
Background: This study seeks to better understand the human-nature interface and to measure the variability of
plant use knowledge among cultures, through inter- and intracultural analyses. We compared plant collection, use,
and management of two culturally distinct groups (Baitadi and Darchula) of the Nepal Himalaya. They inhabit
different physiographic regions, yet share the same ecological landscape, environmental resources, and livelihood
challenges. We hypothesized that the elderly, native, and traditional healers living in remote and rural places possess
more diverse and detailed knowledge of plant use and conservation than young, non-native, and non-healers.
Methods: A total of 106 people were contacted for interviews, and 100 (68 men and 32 women) agreed to share
ethnobotanical, demographic, and socioeconomic information. They were asked about the three most important
plants for their socioeconomic benefit, culture, primary health care, and livelihood.
Results: The knowledge of plant collection, use, and its transfer was strongly associated with the cultural heritage
whereas the ecogeographical condition influences the ways in which plants are collected and used. The divergent
knowledge of plant collection, use, and transfer between the participants of Baitadi and Darchula was significantly
(p < 0.001) attributed to the cultural heritage of the area. The low consensus of plant use (FiC 0–0.87; IASc 0–0.67)
between Baitadi and Darchula district could be due to cultural divergence, varied accessibility, physiographic
heterogeneity, and biodiversity uniqueness.
Conclusions: Differences in plant use knowledge may help in diversifying the strategies of plant use in accordance
with the livelihood, culture, and environment, and therefore, more studies measuring these aspects can further the
ecosystem and cultural health of the region.
Keywords: Medicinal plants, Use reports, Consensus, Transhumance, Intracultural, Nepal Himalaya
... Consequently, the concept of cultural landscape was later expanded to reflect the fundamental links between local communities, their cultural heritage and the natural environment and the multifaceted interactions between the tangible and intangible cultural manifestations within the natural environment (Rössler 2006;Taylor 2009). These manifestations include both the outcome of human cultural practices on the natural environment as well as the cultural values that inform those practices (Ramakrishnan 1996). ...
The concept of cultural landscapes relates to the multifaceted links between people, place and identity. From a professional perspective, the concept refers to a category of designated conservation areas with specific biocultural heritage values. From a local perspective, it may refer to a landscape that is associated with the provision of a culturally-specific sense of identity and belonging. We explore these two perspectives through a comparative analysis of three cultural landscapes in South Africa, the 'expert' designated Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape and the Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape, and the local associative landscape of emaXhoseni, which is not formally recognised. We propose that a biocultural diversity perspective of heritage not only recognises the inextricable relationship between nature and culture, but it also gives prominence to the beliefs, values and practices of local people, and to strengthening their agency to safeguard their heritage in ways and forms that are relevant to them.
... INDIA HAS a strong tradition of conservation through the aegis of sacred groves and religious prescriptions (Chandrashekara and Sankar, 1998;Ramakrishnan, 1996;Ramanujam and Kadamban, 2001). In India, 13,270 sacred groves are documented. ...
Sacred groves are the patches of forest with spiritual significance to people and communities. They are one of the most valuable practices of nature conservation. It is believed that these sacred groves are well protected by the village folk deities and largely free from anthropogenic activities. In India, about 13,270 such sacred groves have been reported, out of which the Devbhumi, in Himachal Pradesh supports about 5,000 sacred groves. These sacred groves have not been explored for the floristic diversity including orchids. Therefore, while exploring the floristic diversity, presently an attempt was made to assess the diversity and
indigenous uses of orchids occurring in the sacred groves. Extensive surveys have been carried out in Hadimba Devi, Rupasana Devi, Shangchul Rishi, Bhrigu Rishi and Jamdagni Rishi sacred groves of Kullu district, Himachal Pradesh and a total of 7 orchid species have been reported. Four species are native and three are non-native. These orchid species were found to be distributed between 1500 - 2400 m amsl. Calanthe tricarinata, Epipactis helleborine, and Herminium lanceum were reported from Hadimba Devi, Epipactis helleborine, Habenaria edgeworthii and Herminium lanceum from Rupasana Devi, Cephalanthera longifolia, Epipactishelleborine, Habenaria edgeworthii, and Spiranthes sinensis from Shangchul Rishi, Calanthe tricarinata and Habenaria edgeworthii from Bhrigu Rishi and Goodyera repens, Habenaria edgeworthii and Herminium lanceum from Jamdagni Rishi, sacred groves. The reported species have relatively small populations. Some of these species were used for the treatment of various ailments suchas wounds, cuts, cough and blood purification, etc. Therefore, regular monitoring of the populations of these species is required to understand the dynamics and their conservation status within the sacred groves.
... Humans and ecosystems are part of one system and are intricately linked, but in policy these components are often considered in isolation. Recent studies have pointed to the importance of ecosystem services in livelihoods [23,36], human health [72], cultural activities [73,74], their overall monetary value for policy decision making [75] and in human well-being [8, 26-29, 76, 77]. Recently, Altman [18], Grieves [39], Garnett et al. [40], Taylor [16], Dockery [20] and Ganesharajah [15] have highlighted from a social-economic perspective how Aboriginal well-being depends upon land and related resources. ...
The livelihoods and well-being of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities in remote and rural northern Australia are dependent upon the ecosystem services provided by tropical ecosystems. The well-being of all Australian citizens is measured by the Australia Bureau of Statistics (ABS) using socioeconomic indicators. In this study we investigated the importance of non-market benefits derived from ecosystem services for Aboriginal well-being. Through a case study with the Mullunburra-Yidinji people in the Wet Tropics, Queensland, we applied the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) framework to identify the links between ecosystem services and the MA's six constituents of human well-being. The study demonstrated that cultural and provisioning services were key determinants of community well-being, and these are not currently measured by the ABS. We adapt the MA framework to include the ABS indicators and explore the potential strengths and weaknesses of the approach for measuring the well-being of contemporary remote and rural Aboriginal communities.
... Consequently, the concept of cultural landscape was later expanded to reflect the fundamental links between local communities, their cultural heritage and the natural environment and the multifaceted interactions between the tangible and intangible cultural manifestations within the natural environment (Rössler 2006;Taylor 2009). These manifestations include both the outcome of human cultural practices on the natural environment as well as the cultural values that inform those practices (Ramakrishnan 1996). ...
South Africa is widely recognised as a highly diverse country with regard to its people, culture, landscapes, biological resources and ecology. The importance of policies on protecting cultural diversity and how they relate to the environment is only just emerging at an international level, but in South African we find there is a complete lack of institutional support for rural communities' attachment to local landscapes. The main objective of this case study is to improve our understanding of the meanings and values that Xhosa people (amaXhosa) of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa attach to their natural landscapes. It is clear that the amaXhosa are still intrinsically connected to their natural environment, in particular the thicket biome that is called ihlathi yesiXhosa (Xhosa forest). Access to places and spaces within the natural environment provides a sense of wellbeing, a link to ancestral spirits, a location for religious rituals, plus a wealth of culturallyinspired uses of specific species and sacred places in the landscape. We suggest that local cultural values could be incorporated into the formal conservation process. © 2012 Wageningen Academic Publishers The Netherlands. All rights are reserved.
The paper is an effort to understand the tradition of sacred groves among the Khasi community of Meghalaya and its role in the preservation of nature in the areas inhabited by them. It attempts to historically understand the factors that have contributed to the gradual erosion and destruction of this institution among the Khasi people across years and with changing regimes. The chapter tries to show that apart from factors such as commercial exploitation of forests as usually held responsible for environmental damage, aspects like flaws within the forest administrative structure are also accountable for injuries caused to sacred groves in the Khasi-populated districts of Meghalaya.
Sacred natural sites are considered part of human beings and communities, consisting of unique medicinal plant species with specific therapeutic properties. Among the sacred trees, Nakshatravan comprises an impressive range of medicinal and aromatic plants, mainly trees, which may help as a source of readily available raw materials from temple premises for traditional medicine. Therefore, the review aims to analyze and compare the medicinal properties and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) of nakshatravan trees, which are associated with 27 nakshatras/constellations used in Vedic tradition since 2nd Century. Various scientific databases, such as Pubmed, Scopus, and Google Scholar, were used. The keywords such as constellation, nakshatravan trees, human health, sacred groves, volatile oil, essential oil, and influence on human diseases were used. The 27 nakshatravan trees belong to 20 families, of which the Moraceae family contributes five trees; Fabaceae, Papilonaceae, and Sapotaceae contribute two trees, whereas the remaining 16 family consists of 1 tree each. There are 92 different medicinal properties, and 132 Volatile Compounds (VCs) and 36 non-volatile compounds (NVCs) noted from 27 trees, which are reported from nakshatravan trees and used for the treatment and prevention of various human diseases. An innovative approach to conserving these plants diversity has been emerging as ‘Star Garden’ comprising imperative medicinal trees with several unique or common medicinal properties. This approach will facilitate establishing and maintaining important, unique medicinal tree species. In the present study, we have analyzed common and unique medicinal properties, volatile and non-volatile compounds of 27 nakshatravan trees, and their potential pharmacological values.
Sacred groves are forest patches being conserved by tribal people. Sacred groves are closely associated with religious practices, social duties and taboos. The present study attempts show a key role play to conserve plant species by Kansari Mavli sacred grove. The sacred grove is situated in songadh range of vyara division, Gujarat state. Due to excess use of forest resources for timber, fodder and food, forest cover areas are rapidly decreasing. This forest patch has rich plant diversity and is protected by local people. Total 149 plant species are recorded, studied and collected
Southern eco-regions of the state West Bengal (Lat. 22.0°–23.3° N; Long. 86.0°–88.3°E), India, is a mosaic of different landscape types, endowed with undulating lateritic terrain with macro and micro gullies. The rate of infiltration is very high on the lateritic upland with dense vegetation cover. However, the upland surface composed of lateritic hard crust with jointed structures and granular materials is endowed with only sparse vegetation because of massive deforestation. Occasionally, the seepage waters from the vegetated uplands can generate a stream flow along the valley fill surface. Four major different aspects of riverine environment are required to be studied in order to gain a complete and holistic knowledge of the ecodynamics of river ecosystem in any area like Southern West Bengal, India.
This article gives a short outline of the ongoing loss of biodiversity in India. By evaluating the mongrel lease status of biodiversity in India, regions which need genuine consideration can be listed. There is a dire need to screen loss of biodiversity by investigating the circumstances which lead to elimination of species. It was seen in various contextual investigations that significant disaster's happening in creating countries was credited to loss of biodiversity. All these stress for a change in outlook in the manner in which we way to deal with handle the issue. This article attempts to concentrate on the causes which lead to loss of biodiversity in India. This was accomplished by gathering all contextual analyses and reports from logical diaries. A test remains, in any case, in utilizing this data to give worthy answers for powerful protection techniques. This audit will diagram the biodiversity misfortune in India by ordering information into various categories and gives a general picture to Indian situation. What's more, while not being a complete survey of all the biodiversity misfortune in India, various flying creatures, fauna and greenery are incorporated into the audit. Protection systems received so far in India and procedures which have been proposed are talked about toward the end.
The Sacred Groves of the Indian Himalayan Region have not been explored for the ecosystem services provided by them. Therefore, present attempt has been made to assess the economically important floristic diversity of Kamrunag Sacred Grove. A total of 249 species of economical importance belonging to 74 families and 168 genera were recorded. Of these 165 species were, used as medicine and 37 species used as edible; fodder (23 spp.); fuel (11spp.); timber (06 spp.); religious (03spp.); Dye and miscellaneous (4 spp.). Different parts of the plants were utilized, of which Whole plant was used in majority of cases. Maximum number of native (134), non-native (115) and near endemic (68) species were found at an altitudinal range of 1800-2800m. Four species (i.e., Pimpinella acuminata, Goldfussia dalhousiana, Angelica glauca and Wikstroemia canescens) were found endemic to the Indian Himalayan Region. Management options for the conservation and sustainable utilization of the species have been suggested.
Existence of an age-old tradition of preserving the forests on the ground of cultural and religious beliefs has become imperative not only for biodiversity conservation but also for overall sustainability of the traditional societies existing in Kullu district of western Himalayas. Existence of scared ecosystems has shown potential for conservation of bio-diversity. However, it is unfortunate that the so-called environment planners view local communities as primary threat to bio-diversity conservation. In recent times, indigenous socio-cultural practices are under constant threat due to the introduction of various western models of resource conservation. It is felt that there is an urgent need to initiate action-oriented resource management programmes involving the indigenous knowledge systems. This will help us to conserve our natural resource in a better way.
This has been added to capture the citations that wrongly used this title of the PhD
Himalayan region is a trans-boundary area with rich biodiversity of global importance, while this region has been subject to great human stress and continues to face multiple threats with the global change. Inadequacy of the institutional arrangements and shortcomings of governance practice are challenging the effective conservation of trans-boundary biodiversity in this region. This chapter synthesizes an empirical overview of trans-boundary cooperation in establishing institutions for biodiversity conservation through case study in bordering areas across India, China, Nepal and Bhutan. Based on the hypothesis that trans-boundary biodiversity protection involves understanding tightly coupled interrelationships between natural systems and human society, a theoretic institution framework of sixfold matrix including economic, technical, social, environmental, ethnical/cultural, and political dimensions was structured to promote the efficient trans-boundary biodiversity conservation in the Himalayan region. It was proposed in this chapter that regional institutions, in close collaboration with national governments of member countries, needed to develop a vision for an integrated approach to institutionalize the trans-boundary biodiversity conservation.
There is a wide recognition throughout the globe and across disciplines that regions of ecological prudence exhibit a symbiotic relationship between habitats and culture (Arizpe, 1996). This explicates that culture and environment are complementary in various stages of evolution. Traditional societies have co-evolved with their environment, modifying nature but actively maintaining it in a diverse and productive state based on their indigenous knowledge, socio-cultural practices and/or religious beliefs since antiquity (Gadgil and Berkes, 1991; Ramakrishnan, 1998). However, these traditional societies are no longer immune to the changes occurring in the world with time. The predominant culture of over-consumption of natural resources is making a dent into these societies, resulting in erosion of their time-tested and valued institutions. At present, when the social fragmentation reaches to the family level and individual interests get priority, the community functions take a back seat. Further, access to information is no more a limiting phenomenon in this era of information technology; as a result it has been observed that the heterogeneity of the culture that evolved in isolation is being increasingly homogenized (Robertsons, 1992). Such a distortion has been noted in the Himalayan societies too.
p>Population structure and regeneration status of tree species were studied in two sacred groves of Kathmandu valley, Pashupati (PSG) and Bajrabarahi (BSG) by sampling in concentric circular plots of 20 m radius. The dominant tree species of PSG are Schima wallichii, Pyrus pashia, Myrsine capitellata, Persea odoratissima and Quercus glauca , where as those in BSG are Neolitsea cuipala, Castanopsis indica, , Choerospondias axillaris, Schima wallichii and , Myrsine capitellata . On the basis of biomass removal, tree cutting, livestock and wildlife grazing and other anthropogenic activities, disturbance levels were classified as undisturbed, least disturbed, moderately disturbed and highly disturbed. The highest number of seedlings, saplings and adults were found in the least disturbed areas of the studied groves showing good to fair regeneration of tree species. In this study Pyrus pashia, Myrsine capitellata, Castanopsis indica, Neolitsea cuipala are found in good and fair state of regeneration. Management authority should address the prevalent factors affecting natural regeneration of the tree species.
ECOPRINT 22: 29-38, 2015</p
The field of environmental studies has been till now concerned mainly with the scientific study of bio-diversity and biophysical exchange while culture and environment remains a relatively new and uncharted territory. Although considerable research work has been undertaken by anthropologists and ecologists, a lot of important information and indigenous knowledge base has already been lost as old people die and their knowledge is not transmitted to younger generations. It is to be noted that ecology is the key to a better understanding of the place that man occupied in nature and of the religious and customary rules that he developed to assist him in his survival. With the disappearance of many traditional customs and the death of those, who enforced them, a lot of extremely valuable information has been/well be lost forever. The present study deals with the traditional beliefs and customs being practiced in the central Himalayas and makes an attempt to bring out the inherent environmental principles behind these practices. Pragmatic approaches combining conservation and sustainable uses are considered, as are traditional values that have conserved the forest and wildlife in the past.
Indigenous Knowledge of the Medicinal Plant Resources of Coromandel Coast Forests of Peninsular India in Modern Period
Based on field investigation and consulting of specimens and related data, the distribution amount, species composition and areal-type of "Fengshui woods" in 12 districts of Guangzhou City were analyzed. The results show that there are 162 "Fengshui woods" in Guangzhou City, in which, there are 153 "Yangzhai Fengshui woods", their number is the most (accounting for 94. 44% of total number of "Fengshui woods"); Among 12 districts, the number of "Fengshui woods"in Conghua City is the most (78). There are 732 species (including varieties) of wild vascular plants belonging to 397 genera in 140 families, including 55 species (including varieties) of pteridophyte belonging to 30 genera in 18 families, 4 species of gymnosperm belonging to 3 genera in 3 families and 673 species (including varieties) of angiosperm belonging to 364 genera in 119 families; in which, there are 22 species as new records in Guangzhou City. The seed plant areal-type of "Fengshui woods" in Guangzhou City is mainly tropical element and also is affected by temperate element in a certain degree, in which, numbers of family, genus and species of the tropical type is 70 families, 289 genera and 304 species, respectively, and those of the temperate type is 17 families, 41 genera and 2 species, respectively. Although, there are only 2 genera of endemic type in China, but the endemism is notable in species level, there are 207 endemic species in China in which 70 species are the endemic to South China, accounting for 31. 11% and 10. 51% of total species number of seed plant of "Fengshui woods" in Guangzhou City, respectively. In addition, there are 8 species of the national key protected plants. According to the investigation results, conservation policies of "Fengshui woods" in Guangzhou City are put forward.
Sacred groves are traditionally managed forest patches that functionally link, social life and forest management system of region. It is believed that one of the prime utility of sacred grove is the protection and occasional supply of medicinal plants. The literature reveals that, the survey of sacred groves is not complete in India and particularly in Karnataka so their exact number and area still far away from complete. With this background, the present paper attempts to highlight the role played by Sri Ramlingeshwara Sacred Groove, Sippur, Chikodi taluk, Belgavi district, Karnataka. The study records 212 species belonging to 125 genera and 70 families, covering 97, 56, 42, and 17, species of herbs, shrubs, trees and climbers respectively. This sacred groves also supports few useful medicinal plants, therefore, there is an urgent need to protect the sacred forest to sustain the biodiversity.
This book is concerned with the argument that religious traditions are inherently environmentally friendly. Yet in a developing country such as India, the majority of people cannot afford to put the 'Earth first' regardless of the extent to which this idea can be supported by their religious traditions. Does this mean that the linking of religion and environmental concerns is a strategy more suited to contexts where people have a level of material security that enables them to think and act like environmentalists? This question is approached through a series of case studies from Britain and India. The book concludes that there is a tension between the 'romantic' ecological discourse common among many western activists and scholars, and a more pragmatic approach, which is often found in India. The adoption of environmental causes by the Hindu Right in India makes it difficult to distinguish genuine concern for the environment from the broader politics surrounding the idea of a Hindu rashtra (nation). This raises a further level of analysis, which has not been provided in other studies.
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