Tying Rakhi to trees - the latest trend
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All of us know that ‘Raksha Bandhan’ is the ‘Bond of Protection’. Sisters tie rakhi on the wrists of their brothers to safeguard them from untimely death, evil and bad luck. In turn, brothers vow to protect their sisters and their happiness forever. But originally, ‘Rakshaa’ could be tied to the wrists of husbands by wives (as done by Indrani – the wife of the King of Gods – Indra) or anybody by Pandits to protect them from any misfortune.
It is popular in India that women tie
Rakhis on anybody’s wrist and adopt them as a brother. As social awareness is on the rise, there is a growing trend in the girls and women to send rakhis to soldiers, prison inmates, orphans and senior citizens in old age homes.
Latest trend in this series is ‘Taru Bandhan’ or ‘Vriksh Raksha Bandhan’ which is about tying rakhi to trees.
As opposed to popular belief, it was not an urbane educated environmentalist who initiated the ritual of tying rakhi to trees but one of the indigenous people of the tribal heartland of Jharkhand called Mahadev Mahato. Mahato is a school teacher and belongs to Dudhmatia village in the Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand. To these people, forests and trees are the source of a sustainable life. Destroying them or cutting them down is like destroying their own home. Hence, from November 15 right up to the New Year, people of hundreds of villages in Jharkhand tie rakhi to trees and vow to preserve them from the axe and the saw. Once a rakhi is tied to a tree, villagers don’t pluck even a leaf from the tree.
The green tradition has been adopted by many all over India. Chief Minister of Bihar – Nitish Kumar – tie rakhi to trees every Raksha Bandhan. In Himachal Pradesh too, women have been known to tie rakhis to trees to show their protest when the trees around their area were in danger of drowning due to building of new dams. Several religious, political and social organizations too encourage their followers to tie rakhis to trees and be a part of the change.
Media channels, NGOs and several schools also organize events to tie rakhi to trees and use these occasions as an opportunity to promote awareness about importance of trees, environmental balance and sustainable lifestyles.
If you also want to adopt a green brother or sister this year, join the ‘Tie a rakhi to a tree’ campaign with Gujaratgifts.com
as you send
Online Rakhi to India.
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