 Photo Credit: Kevin Braun After nearly six months of isolation and remote execution of academic tasks, I decided to visit Mr & Mrs Sahi at Karlsruhe. This visit was a crucial break, as with every passing day, my belief grew certain that I was pacing towards a burnout on a personal, professional, and artistic level. Though corona spread like wildfire for a few months at the start of the year, things started to work out either out of need or force. Even when many knew the trouble was still hanging around, and more of it was yet to come. The bitter reality was that, except for covering faces with masks that were not just unsettling but mostly non-helpful due to the intellectuals who used them without covering their nose, there was nothing anyone could do. So, with varying climates, unsettling streets, and panicking public, I finally met them. Though the absence of the little prince was evident, the cosy chambers, spicy food, positive ambience, & healthy atmosphere were the most needed comforts for a time. Not to mention the unlimited screen time, evening walks, winter shopping, & short trips. Though most of the trip was as expected, there was one unplanned event at the Botanical Garden of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology organised by the Friends of the Garden (Freigelände des Botanischen Garten des KIT). Not that I have not seen the garden before. Dr Sahi ensured that I visited it every time I visited them with detailed explanations of every fancy plant we could find. This time, however, plants only from India were being explored from a Socio-cultural, therapeutic and political point of view. Something I have never heard of before, especially regarding plants. Knowing Dr Sahi personally for a few years, I knew he would not hesitate to express his views about any political personality, historical reference, & cultural differences. I knew he would not shy away from expressing his opinions indiscreetly. So, being offered an entry pass, I set out to rejoice in statements relating to superfood, Jesus, palm tree, Hindu rituals, Bamboo, drumstick, & colonisation. Believe me, they are not disjointed but work wonderfully together in this context. We attended the afternoon session, which started at thirteen hours, with nine companions, including myself & Mrs Sahi. The goal of the speaker, Dr Sahi, was to explore three main chambers, namely the Garden of Harmony, the Garden of Taste and the Garden of Politics. These greenhouse rooms with varying temperatures help the institute grow mango, tulsi, sugarcane, cotton, amongst many other tropical plants in Germany, where shrubs resting beside the heater would not last the winter. Garden of HarmonyIn the Garden of Harmony, the first chamber of the three, Dr Sahi explored the banyan tree, drumstick, palm, Bamboo & black gold. Apparently, drumsticks which are sold in India for a nominal price are now fast becoming a superfood in the European market. Referring to the significant distinction in pricing between the Indian & European markets, Dr Sahi jokes, “Superfood can be any food that is both exotic and super expensive.” Following the smiles, he continues, “This, however, doesn’t mean drumsticks are just a contemporary market trick. Moringa has more protein than eggs, more calcium than milk, more iron than spinach and so forth, making it a 'super' food. In Germany, even the leaves are consumed as a powder for their nutritional value.” Following nutrition, Palm Sunday entered the conversation as Dr Sahi redirected his viewers to a palm tree. For those of you uninformed like me, it was palm leaves that were used by the followers of Jesus to welcome him and also to clear his path when he was walking with the cross. Even today, Palm Sunday is referred to as such due to this plant. The third in the list was Bamboo, which surprisingly represented fertility and prosperity. Aspects I have never heard about Bamboo. Although regular uses were mentioned, such as in building & cooking, the cultural representation was interesting and unique. The last in the list was black pepper, which was also referred to as black gold. This spice, as Dr Sahi says, is not only one of the major contributing factors for the search of India, opening the doors for trade and later even colonisation, but it was so influential that a guild in Europe was formed to control and monitor the trade of black pepper. With this, the discussion in the first chamber concluded with a mention as to why the chamber was named the Garden of Harmony. Curated by Mrs Sahi, the garden was a spot of harmony since plants, being highly competitive for resources under the soil, somehow managed to co-exist in that selected habitat. Being humans with the same capacities or even more capacities, we are binding ourselves in an ever-ending conflict rather than a preferential co-existence. Garden of TasteIn the second garden, Dr Sahi introduced coconut, tamarind, chocolate, betel & mango. As the name of the garden suggests, all of them are related to taste. This chamber was not as informative as the last one, but was rather appreciative of what the plants offered. One unique aspect that I could notice was the way we Indians depended on mango leaves. Talking about the hundreds of varieties of mangoes, Dr Sahi mentions, “In the Hindu system, there are sixteen rituals in a lifetime. Most of these rituals in some or other way make use of the mango tree, either using the leaves, the fruits or the wood. So much so that mango wood is one of the preferred woods for cremation, the last ritual for a Hindu”. Except for this remarkable statement, discussions covered tamarind’s role in digestion, the use of coconut fibre in bed mattresses and cooking. They introduced the cousin of black pepper and the betel plant. Garden of PoliticsThe last of the chambers was the garden of politics. Aptly named due to the presence of sugarcane and cotton, although it also has other essential plants like the tulsi, banana, ginger and turmeric. This is where the British entered the discussion again while mentioning the way opium and indigo led to the exploitation of the farmers. An introduction to the tea and opium trade was also mentioned. The most noteworthy aspect I would like to highlight is how the British introduced tea to the Indians. Turns out, to make tea into a lucrative business, the English had to spread the habit of tea drinking among the Indian populace. Since it was not common and many were averse to the idea of drinking tea, the English tea companies used beautiful porcelain and tea sets to allure people. Even the tea consumed never had sugar in it initially. It has become integral over time due to various reasons, mostly concerning economic benefit. With the discussion of the sugar, Dr Sahi clarifies, “The crystals of the brown sugar and the normal sugar are not so different. Brown sugar is just one step less processed than normal white sugar. It is the raw sugar that is quite healthy and preferably consumed when compared to the processed sugars.” Lastly, the discussion came to indigo the cultivation of which was reduced in India after the Germans found an artificial way of producing the blue colour, thereby making the Indigo trading less exploitative, Dr Sahi concludes by mentioning that plants go unnoticed in history and general conversations but were one of the primary reasons for many wars, & crimes while also being the reason for prosperity, wealth, & health. ConclusionsI have personally enjoyed the trip to the botanical garden of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology this time. It turns out that the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology would offer these sessions once every month. If any of you are interested in learning more deeply, as I have not even scratched the surface, you can contact them at http://www.botanik.kit.edu/garten/.
I must admit that this was the only productive task I have done during this whole trip, but mentally, I am in better spirits visiting Mr & Mrs Sahi. Hopefully, everyone is trying their best, too. Take care & stay safe. Comments are closed.
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