Why Hindus consider the banyan tree a symbol of eternity, and science agrees

The banyan tree holds deep cultural significance in India, viewed as a symbol of eternity, wisdom and longevity in Hinduism and associated with Lord Shiva and Vishnu. Villages have used banyan trees as meeting places for festivals and storytelling since ancient times.

Science offers a biological explanation for that symbolism. Unlike other trees that grow from a single trunk, banyan trees form aerial roots on their branches that descend to the ground and thicken into woody secondary trunks over time. A single banyan can produce hundreds of secondary trunks, becoming one organism spread across several acres. If the primary trunk is destroyed or dies, the tree survives through its secondary trunks — a process of constant renewal that makes it nearly impossible to tell which trunk was the original.

The tree’s roots also keep it firmly planted, helping it endure storms and harsh winds, while its ability to regenerate new roots helps it recover from ageing, climate conditions or human intervention. A fully grown banyan also functions as a complete ecosystem, with its wide canopy sheltering birds, bats, squirrels, monkeys, reptiles and insects, and its figs feeding wildlife year-round, especially when other fruit is scarce.

Some banyan trees alive today are estimated to be 400 to 500 years old, having stood through kingdoms rising and falling and cities disappearing, though accurately ageing them remains difficult since the trunk keeps regenerating.

Image: Wikimedia Commons/by McKay Savage