Surely you've seen one of those little trees called Bonsais that many people care for with devotion. The technique to create them was perfected around 700 AD. when arriving in Japan from China. Its cultivation suppresses the physical development of the tree to create tiny specimens exactly the same as they would have been in nature and at the same time it has spiritual benefits for those who perform this delicate work. Join us to know 10 Curiosities about Bonsais, physical and spiritual .
10 Curiosities about bonsai
1. The word Bonsai in Japanese means simply "Grow on a tray" ; originally comes from the Chinese name of this art that was "punsai".
2. It is an art that basically consists in cultivating trees and plants controlling their size in a way that is much lower than they would naturally. For this, techniques such as pruning, transplanting, pinching or wiring are used.
3. He arrived in Japan from the thousand-year-old China , where it was practiced for 2,000 years, about the year 700 AD. and the Japanese perfected that art by polishing techniques, styles and tools.
4. The genetics of bonsai does not imply that they are dwarf plants. Virtually any tree can serve, although those with the small leaf are preferred.
5. Bonsai trees are classified by size. The largest, the Imperial measures between 152 and 203 cm. and the smallest the Keshitsubo between 3 and 8 cm.
6. They can also be grouped according to styles and include some traditional ones such as "vertical formal", "informal vertical", "inclined", "waterfall", "semi-waterfall", etc.
7. One of the curiosities about bonsais is that he and his pot are an indissoluble whole because as his own name indicates "cultivated on a tray." The tree has to be in line with the pot or container according to their age and also according to the type of tree that is.
8. For Taoists its spiritual benefits are undeniable since the bonsai condense the energy of nature. They are a symbol of eternity and the representation of a link between heaven and earth, that is, between the divine and the human.
9. For the Zen Buddhism which was developed mainly in Japan, the art of bonsai is the expression of the relationship of man and nature in a framework of universal respect and also, the contemplation of these small trees helps in meditation.
10. The Shintoism , which is based on the veneration of the "kamio", spirits of nature, connects directly with the practice of bonsai to which he attributes as Zen Buddhism the welfare of the contemplation of nature, the love that derives from the care of something natural and the proximity to the supreme beauty.
Did you know these curiosities about bonsais ? Did you know that they were given as a gift on very special occasions? Have you ever cultivated one of them? Do you think that there really are these spiritual benefits in doing so? Tell us about your experience! If you want to know more about curiosities of trees we invite you to read the post: Some trees explode, commit suicide or scream, did you know?