A wishing tree in an Indian village
This is a ‘wishing tree’. Many cultures have them. I’ve seen photos of trees with ribbons or bright scraps of cloth tied to the branches. Each strip of cloth represents a wish. In the case of this particular tree which is in Poshina, a village in Gujarat India, the wish is represented by the clay horses clustered at the foot of the tree.
The Maharajah told us many instances of wishes coming true. Making the wish was complicated, not just a matter of purchasing the clay horse and placing it under the tree. You had to buy the horse in the village where the potter had been making them for years. This custom is not just for tourists, although tourists participate. Then you had to get the horse ‘blessed’ as we Catholics say. Then there was something else you had to do…it took at least two days to complete the ritual it seemed to me.
The wishing tree done as a Van Gogh
. I don’t know if the red cloth tied to the branches are ‘wishes’ or not. They could show that the prayer was answered as is done in some European Roman Catholic churches. They place little metal mementos on the statue of the saint whose help has been efficacious.
We were here at evening so the light was perfect for us. It was only a matter of composition. Although nearby there was a farmer plowing with a team of bullocks. Smoke was wafting over him and the animals. I chose the wishing tree because I thought the farmer would be plowing for a while, but I was wrong. His field was the size of your patio and when I finally turned my attention to him, I had time for only a couple of shots.
A village farmer in Gujarat India