Bodhi Tree ( Bo tree, Peepal ) Peepal tree or the Bodhi Tree as it is known among the Buddhists is the most sacred tree of India. It is this tree that was once considered as the Cosmic Tree or the Axis mound. During the Ancient and Medieval ages, the cosmos was represented as many-layered, held together by a cosmic tree that runs through the exact centre of the cosmos. This tree was known as the Axis Mundi. In many cultures, a particular tree was considered as the cosmic tree. In India, it was the peepal tree; for the Celts, it was the oak, for the Greek it was the ash, the date palm for the Mesopotamians, the birch for the Siberians, the Cedar for the Lebanese and the Chienmu tree for the Chinese. But, it is in India that this concept of cosmic tree attained such profound metaphysical dimensions through the peepal tree. The cosmic tree was held as the great Universal Mother, the goddess of nature. Many cultures believed that the cosmic tree stands for the sacredness of the world, its creation, continuation and fertility. The aśvattha tree is also known as the 'tree of life' and the 'tree of knowledge'. During the Rig Vedic times, peepal tree was the symbol of cosmos. During the time of Atharva Veda, this tree worshipped for victory over the enemies, and for the birth of male progeny. It was also regarded as the abode of gods and goddesses. In later Puranas, aśvattha mentioned as the abode of goddess Lakshmi. It is also sacred to the sun god. In Mahabharatha there is a reference that worshipping aśvattha is worshipping the cosmos. This tree planted in all temples, especially in Vishnu temples. The tree is worshipped daily by brahmins during their evening prayer. It was under this tree Gautama Buddha attained enlightenment. Gautama had been practicing austerities for six years by the side of the Niranjana river near Gaya. He then realized that such practices could not lead him to the goal, so he abandoned the austerities and left the place. In the adjacent village of Senani (also known as Sujata), a Brahmin girl by the same name Sujatha, offered him rice cooked in milk. He took a full meal of this and then sat under a nearby peepal tree facing east. He resolved not to rise until he attained enlightenment and sank in deep meditation. The legends say that many forces like Mara, the god of illusion, tried to dissuade him, forcing him to abandon the vow. But he triumphed over everything and, finally, the light of enlightenment filled him. His ego, whatever remained vanished, his mind totally subdued, emptiness filled him, and from that emptiness the enlightened Buddha resurrected. For a while, illuminated with all wisdom sat the Buddha, lost in contemplation of the universe as it is. And at last, lifting his voice, he cried aloud in triumph his song of victory: “Through the worldly round of many births, I ran my course unceasingly, Seeking the maker of the House; Painful is birth again and again. House-builder! I behold thee now. Again a house thou shalt not build; All the rafters are broken now, The ridgepole also is destroyed, My mind, its elements dissolved, The end of cravings has attained.” It was on the Vaishakhapoornima day of 623 BC, and Gautama was thirty-five years old. This enlightenment that he attained was not the result of any miraculous or mystic occurrence caused by the influence of extramundane, divine power. It was due to the direct apprehension of the truth; not a "revelation," but a "self-realization." Fischer quotes Asvaghosa, the famous Sanskrit poet and Buddhist scholar: “At that moment of the fourth watch when the dawn came up, and all that moves was stilled, the great seer reached the stage that knows no alteration, the sovereign leader, the state of omniscience. When as the Buddha, he knew this truth the earth swayed like a person drunk with wine. The four quarters shone bright with crowds of Siddhas, and mighty drums resounded in the sky. A pleasant breeze blew softly, and heaven rained moisture from a cloudless sky, and the trees there dropped flowers and fruits out of due season as if to do him honour. At that time, just as in paradise, the mandāraflowers, lotuses and water lilies of gold and beryl fell from the sky and bestrewed the place of the Shakya sage.”. It is always like that. You seek enlightenment you will never get it, but it may come to you unexpectedly like a shower of flowers from heaven. Buddha continued to sit there for another seven days, meditating without moving, another week he was walking and meditating, and the week after that he simply gazed at the peepal tree without moving his eyes. " I once heard Osho Rajneesh quoting a story in one of his discourses, which I carry in my mind. 'Subhuti, an ardent disciple of Buddha, was one day sitting under a tree in a mood of sublime emptiness when flowers began to fall around him. "We are praising you for your discourse on emptiness", the gods whispered to him. "But I have not spoken of emptiness", said Subhuti "You have not spoken of emptiness; we have not heard of emptiness", responded the gods. "This is true emptiness". And blossoms showered upon Subhuti like rain'