Respect for all forms of life
For Hindus, life is sacred. All forms of life must be respected, whether human, animal or vegetable. This is based on the belief that Brahma, the Creator God in the Hindu trinity, is present in every particle of the universe. Every element that surrounds us, living or not, is there for a reason chosen by the Creator God. This concept appears in the Upanishads, the philosophical texts written between 800 and 500 B.C. that form the theoretical basis of Hinduism. The Svetasvatara Upanishad speaks of Brahma as follows: "His being is the source of all beings, the seed of all things [...]. He is the God hidden in all beings, even in the folds of their souls. He lives in everything and observes everything Added to this belief is an acute awareness that everything in the universe is interconnected, that beings need each other and form a chain. Remove one link and the chain breaks. Jainism, a religion with a strong presence in Rajasthan, goes even further. It advocates non-violence and absolute respect for all forms of life, in order to lead people to the path of enlightenment. The Jains believe that everything is endowed with a soul, whether it's living beings, the air we breathe or the water we drink. Consequently, they follow a strict vegetarian diet. They only eat fruit and vegetables that grow above ground, because this way they don't kill the plant. The Bishnoi, a Vishnuite community, live mainly between Jodhpur and Bikaner. They follow the 29 precepts laid down by guru Jambeshwar Bhagavan in the 15th century, which place ecology at the heart of daily actions. His concepts are set out in the "Shabda-Vani", a text of 120 verses indicating the spiritual path to follow. These include "if you express your strength by molesting animals, the end of your life will be painful" and "if a tree can be saved, even at the cost of someone's head, it's worth it". Jambeshwar Bhagavan places the preservation of nature above human life. This injunction took a turn that marked the history of Rajasthan. In 1730, the maharaja of Jodhpur sent soldiers to cut down trees in the surrounding area in order to renovate his palace. The men turn up in Bishnoi villages, which beg them not to cut down the trees, as this is contrary to their principles of life. The maharaja confirms his order and the soldiers start clearing the land. Amrita Devi intervenes, wrapping her arms around a tree, followed by other women and girls from the village, then by the men. The soldiers, respectful of the royal order, slash trees and Bishnoi indiscriminately. 363 people were killed. On learning of this, the maharaja, impressed by the courage of the Bishnois, ordered that the areas where they lived should become sanctuaries, and that no trees or animals should be taken or even harmed on their territory. More recently, the Bishnoi had Bollywood star Salman Khan sentenced to 5 years' imprisonment for taking part in an illegal hunting party in 1998, when he shot two antelopes.
The tiger, the star of Rajasthan
The undeniable star of wildlife in the region is the Bengal tiger, which attracts tourists in droves to Ranthambore National Park. The world's largest cat proliferated in India until the advent of the Mughal Empire. In the 16th century, Emperor Akbar introduced the concept of trophy hunting, which he practiced on the back of an elephant. The game occupies a beautiful place at the imperial table, where about forty meat dishes are served for the same meal. Emperor Jahangir had his hunting exploits recorded. During his first 12 years of reign, he killed 86 tigers and lions. But it was the British who introduced tiger hunting on a large scale. After the battle of Plassey in 1757, which put them in control of India, they offered a reward for every tiger killed. The idea was to rid the countryside of wild animals that were dangerous and therefore useless for the economic exploitation of the country. Eager for hunting parties that they considered as an elitist leisure, the English modified the practices of tiger hunting. From now on, they place themselves on the back of an elephant or a platform installed in a tree and make rabatteurs responsible for locating and flushing out the tigers to bring them back to them. The pictures taken of high ranking British personalities and their hunting record, often substantial, are not to be counted. Each Viceroy of India made it his mission to beat the record of the previous one. The maharajas were not to be outdone and boasted of their exploits. If the maharana of Udaipur killed 500 heads, the nawab of Tonk was proud to count 600. The maharaja of Kota was known to have customized his Rolls Royce Phantom with searchlights for night hunting and a machine gun. It is estimated that between 1875 and 1925, 80,000 tigers were killed. In 1947, at the time of the Independence, there were only 40 000 left. In 1972, a first national census counted only 1,872 cats. Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister, promulgated a law to protect wildlife and established 29 sanctuaries in the country. Project Tiger " is launched to save tigers from extinction. The program brought the population back to 3,500 by the early 1990s. But the destruction of the habitat outside the reserves and the poaching on a large scale put the species in great danger again. The Sariska Reserve had no tigers left in 2004. After the reintroduction of the species, there were 20 in 2018, while Ranthambore is looking forward to 81 by 2021. Long a subject of controversy, the counting of tigers is now done with the help of camera traps. The cameras are placed at strategic locations and are triggered by movement in front of the cell. As each tiger has a different coat, with distinct stripes, the images are carefully studied, which avoids counting the same animal twice.
The fauna of Rajasthan
In addition to the tiger, Rajasthan's wildlife is diverse, particularly in the Aravalli mountains and Ranthambore National Park. In the latter, you'll be able to observe thecheetal or spotted deer, the sambar deer, the Indian bison with its white "socks"(gaur), thesloth bear, thestriped hyena, the fox, thewild boar, thejackal and the wild dog. Smaller mammals include mongooses, prized for killing snakes, andflying fox. The southern region of Rajasthan, particularly between Udaipur and Pali, is home to a population of around 600 leopards. They can regularly be seen near the Jawai lake. Monkeys can be found in large numbers just about anywhere, particularly in nature reserves and on the outskirts of isolated fortresses. In Rajasthan, there are two easily recognizable species: the rhesus macaque with its red buttocks and the long-tailedlangur with its silvery hue. Semi-desert and desert regions are populated mainly by Benettii gazelles(chinkara), cervicapres antelopes(blackbuck) with long, twisted horns for the males, and nilgaurs(nilgai), a half-horse, half-cow antelope. These species are easy to spot around Jodhpur and Bikaner.
Rajasthan is also a haven for many migratory birds in winter. The best place to see them is in the marshy area of Keoladeo Ghana, an extraordinary bird sanctuary with a worldwide reputation. This former hunting reserve of the Maharaja of Bharatpur was declared a National Park in 1982. Over 370 different bird species can be observed here, including many varieties of heron and duck,painted stork, ibis and cormorants in their hundreds. If you're lucky, you may even catch a glimpse of the Indian hornbill and its funny beak. Birds of prey are also present, with ospreys, peregrine falcons and several varieties of eagle. Among the passerines and small birds, bulbuls make a hell of a racket, timalies display their beautiful colors, quail hide in the tall grass... The luckiest visitors will see the rare Siberian crane, which flies over the Himalayas in autumn to reach the milder climate of Rajasthan.
The flora of Rajasthan
The vegetation in western and north-western Rajasthan is very poor, due to the desert climate and the absence of watercourses. It consists mainly of xerophytic plants, includingarwal(Cassia auriculata), babul(Acacia arabica),akaro(Calotropis procera) and tumbo(Citrullus colocynthis). A few rare oases provide a little fruit (oranges, bananas, mangoes), but most bushes are of little use other than a little shade and firewood. The pods of the khejri(Prosopis cineraria) are used in the local cuisine(ker sangari), and the desert tribes know the virtues of the hundred or so medicinal plants. The Aravalli mountains, which cross the state along a south-west-north-east axis, are home to vast forests where teak grows, once widely used in the manufacture of furniture and timber for havelis and Rajput palaces. Around 70 different varieties of tree have been recorded in Ranthambore National Park, including peepal, banyan(Ficus indica), dhak and khajur. The high-altitude surroundings of Mount Abu are home to flora not found elsewhere in Rajasthan, such as wild roses, orchids and ferns.
