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Ficus
Ficus - اللبخ
Description
The ficus can grow in the form of a tree, bush or vine and comes in 800 varieties across the Mediterranean and Asia. The fig tree, but also the banyan and the sycamore are varieties of ficus trees and they all fall under the umbrella of the mulberry family (moraceae).
In Beirut, the ficus tree is a popular choice in public spaces around the city. The American University of Beirut’s campus has some iconic banyan trees said to have been brought over from India in the 1870s.
Cited in the Bible and the Koran, it was at the foot of a ficus tree that Siddharta (the Buddha) is said to have had his revelation.
The Ficus also holds spiritual and cultural significance. It is mentioned in both the Bible and the Qur'an, and according to tradition, it was beneath a Ficus tree that Siddhartha—later known as the Buddha—received his enlightenment.
Poem
The Buddha
Born out of the Lotus, he sets off like an untamed horse
Triumphing over the demons of desire that plague us all
Before sitting under the Fig Tree
Ready to receive the Idea of enlightenment.
There, the Wheel of Law circles back
To start all over again
Guiding us through the cycle
To the principal of True Faith.
Bestowing the certainty that the being within us is real
And can accomplish great things with the help
Of the inimitable Self whose half-closed eyes we must contemplate.
With his enigmatic and tender smile,
Rid of all his earthly possessions – he is ready
To hear the voice of heaven that dazzles him so.
Published in La Planète Éxaltée. Éditions de le Revue Phénicienne, 2004.
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Trees (excerpt)
One must know
How to plant
A beautiful living tree,
Under the inspiring cues
Of a splendid spring;
One must know
How to plant
Beautiful trees,
Come summer time
It becomes a sacred duty.
Lifeless marbles they are not,
Filled with sweetness and scented love
One must know how to plant
Passionate trees,
For their soft shade and tenderness
Not to get lost
Embracing the wind
In the powdery desert;
One must know how to plant
Magnificent trees
In tune with the sky,
In line with the sun;
One must know how to plant
Forever and ever
Romantic trees
In the orb of love,
So they can love.
Published in La Montagne Parfumée. Éditions de le Revue Phénicienne, 2004.
