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Parijat, Hengra bubar, night-flowering jasmine, Shiuli | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Lamiales |
Family: | Oleaceae |
Genus: | Nyctanthes |
Species: | N. arbor-tristis |
Binomial name | |
Nyctanthes arbor-tristis | |
Synonyms[1] | |
Nyctanthes arbor-tristis, also known as the Night-flowering jasmine and Parijat(Parvati chi phula) is a species of Nyctanthes native to South Asia and Southeast Asia.[1][2][3][4]
Nyctanthes arbor-tristis is a shrub or a small tree growing to 10 m (33 ft) tall, with flaky grey bark. The leaves are opposite, simple, 6–12 cm (2.4–4.7 in) long and 2–6.5 cm (0.79–2.56 in) broad, with an entire margin. The flowers are fragrant, with a five- to eight-lobed white corolla with an orange-red centre; they are produced in clusters of two to seven together, with individual flowers opening at dusk and finishing at dawn. The fruit is a bilobed, flat brown heart-shaped to round capsule 2 cm (0.79 in) diameter, each lobe containing a single seed.[3][4]
The tree is sometimes called the "tree of sorrow", because the flowers lose their brightness during daytime; the scientific name arbor-tristis also means "sad tree". The flowers can be used as a source of yellow dye for clothing. The flower is called Gangaseuli and some where Jharaa sephali in Odisha, India. In the Borok Tipruri culture, it is associated with the cycle of life, i.e., birth and dying. It is popularly used as a garland for the dead.[citation needed]
The flower is the official flower of the state of West Bengal, and is also known as Parijat, Shefali and Siuli in local West Bengal region in India, and for Kanchanaburi Province, Thailand.[5] Nyctanthes arbor-tristis is commonly known as night-flowering jasmine and coral jasmine. It is referred to as Har-shringaar in Bihar's Mithilanchal and Madhesh. It is called Xewālee (Xewālee, শেৱালী) in Assamese, while in Sri Lanka, it is called Sepalika (සේපාලිකා). In Karnataka it is called has parijatha(ಪಾರಿಜಾತ), Kerala, where it is called Pavizhamalli (പവിഴമല്ലി) in Malayalam, Pavazhamalli (பவழ மல்லி) in Tamil, paardak (पार्दक) in Konkani, prajakta (प्राजक्त) in Marathi. In Myanmar, it is called eikphalu ( my:ဆိပ်ဖလူး ). It is used for pujas and similar ceremonies[citation needed]. It also has importance in old Malayalam romantic songs.[citation needed]
Parijat appears in several Hindu religious stories and is often related to the Kalpavriksha. In one story, which appears in Bhagavata Purana, the Mahabharata and the Vishnu Purana, parijat appeared as the result of the Samudra manthan (Churning of the Milky Ocean) and Lord Krishna battled with Indra to win parijat. Further on, his wife Satyabhama demanded the tree be planted in the backyard of her palace. It so happened that in spite of having the tree in her backyard, the flowers used to fall in the adjacent backyard of the other queen Rukmini, who was favourite of Lord Krishna, because of her superior devotion and humility. It is the subject of a prabandha named Parijatapaharanamu in Telugu literature written by Nandi Thimmana, the court-poet of Krishnadevaraya. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 5, 2020[6] participated in a "Bhoomi Pujan" or a groundbreaking ceremony that marks the building of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. Before laying the foundation stone of the temple, PM Modi planted a Parijat sapling in the temple premises.
The leaves have been used in Ayurvedic medicine and Homoeopathy for sciatica, arthritis, and fevers, and as a laxative.[7]