Sacred Fig

Ficus religiosa

Also known as Bodhi Tree, Peepal, Pipal, Ashwattha, Bo Tree

At a glance

Family

Moraceae (the fig and mulberry family)

Type

Large deciduous to semi-evergreen tree

Parts used

Bark, leaves, and ripe fruit (the small figs)

Size

Often 50 to 100 feet tall, with a broad, spreading crown and long, trailing aerial roots

Bloom

No showy flowers. The tiny blossoms form invisibly inside the young green fig, which ripens to a deep reddish purple

Habitat

Native to the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia, growing along roadsides, riverbanks, temple courtyards, and village squares in warm, humid climates

Acquisition

Grow

Traditional remedies in HerbSense

Key benefits

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Traditionally used for skin healing

Traditional support for digestion

Historic wound care applications

Deep cultural and spiritual value

Traditional uses

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Few trees carry more weight in human history than the sacred fig. It was beneath one of these trees in Bodh Gaya that Siddhartha Gautama is said to have sat in meditation and reached enlightenment, and its descendants are still tended as living shrines across Buddhist and Hindu communities today. Long before it became a religious icon, though, it was already a fixture of household Ayurvedic medicine, where the astringent bark, the broad heart shaped leaves, and the small ripe figs were each turned to their own traditional purpose, from soothing skin to settling the stomach. In many villages, no part of the tree was considered ordinary, and even its shade was thought to carry a kind of quiet blessing.

How to grow & use it

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Pairs well with

✦Turmeric
✦Licorice root
✦Neem

Substitutes

✦Banyan bark (Ficus benghalensis)
✦Plain black tea, for a comparable gentle astringency

Choose it when

“For the quiet, unhurried calm of a temple courtyard, steeped into a single cup.”

Did you know?

The tree still growing at the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya today is a direct descendant of the original Bodhi Tree, grown from a cutting of a cutting passed down over more than two thousand years, including one famously sent to Sri Lanka in the third century BCE that survives there still.

Safety

The milky latex in sacred fig's bark, leaves, and unripe fruit can irritate skin and may trigger a reaction in people with a latex allergy. Traditional bark preparations may add to the effect of diabetes medication, so caution is warranted.