I the coastal state of Kerala in India, near the town of Thirichittapara, 78-year-old P. Gopalakrishna Swamy has converted what was once a rocky hill top into a garden of rare species of trees.
“I purchased an acre from a Dalit family,” he said. “In return, I had to buy a piece of land and house for them at a nearby place.” Swamy dug a twenty-feet deep well to ensure a constant supply of water, and this pit has been sufficient to fulfill his and his trees’ needs thanks to the monsoon. Swamy also had to lay a layer of mud on the hill top since its bare rock wouldn’t allow plants to take root.
The species of trees include the bael tree, sandalwood, red sandalwood, white dammer, bodhi tree, eliocarpus ganitrus, the seeds of which are used to make the rudraksha mala, sacred fig, Indian laurel, and African cherry. The rudraksha is especially rare since it usually grows in Nepal and parts of South-east Asia, and in a few spots in the Western Ghats.
Swamy retired as an employee of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation 23 years ago and now lives alone on the hill top. He even set up a Hanuman temple on the hillock 16 years ago. “I wanted to experience the bliss of solitude and meditate under the shade of rocks,” says Gopalakrishna. “I rarely leave the hill to meet my friends and relatives.” But Swamy has financial woes. “I have also not collected any money from anybody,” he says. “So far, I have used my retirement benefits.”
Swamy wishes to pass on his expertise about these rare trees. Pointing towards a tree called “Punk”, he says sitting under it helps one live longer. He is ready to cut its branches, to hand them out to visitors.
“Even if my plants get destroyed, they will grow somewhere else,” he says, pointing at a dried-out Rudraksha tree. “My aim is to serve Mother Nature without making complaints or demands. Standing on the top of the rock, I can see the sunset with the left eye and the sunrise with the right one.”