SACRED TREES OF INDIA : adornment and adoration as an alternative to the commodification of nature

Deforestation poses a fundamental threat to ecological sustainability and to the continuation of life on earth. Investigating the role of perception to environmental protection, this book draws on 10 years of fieldwork in India, documenting sacred trees and groves, and showing that contemporary Indian tree-worship presents a powerful alternative to the Western capitalist commodification of nature that has contributed to the current ecological crisis. Featuring hundreds of original photographs from Hindu, Adivasi, Buddhist and Muslim sacred sites, this study reveals a culture whose reverence for trees has helped to prevent their destruction. The book will appeal to environmentalists, aesthetes, scholars of religion and ecology, and people interested in the continued connection between spiritual practice and the natural environment. Dedication Table of Contents List of Figures Acknowledgements Foreword Introduction Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Conclusion Bibliography