It is a small-sized dry-seasondeciduoustree, growing to tall. It is a fast-growing tree: young trees have a growth rate of a few feet per year. The leaves are pinnate, with an petiole and three leaflets, each leaflet long. The flowers are long, bright orange-red, and produced in racemes up to long. The fruit is a pod long and broad.
History
Historically, dhak forests covered much of the Doaba area between the Ganges and the Yamuna, but these were cleared for agriculture in the early 19th century as the English East India Company increased tax demands on the peasants.
Use
It is used for timber, resin, fodder, medicine, and dye. The wood is dirty white and soft. Being durable under water, it is used for well-curbs and water scoops. Spoons and ladles made of this tree are used in various Hindu rituals to pour ghee into the fire. Good charcoal can be obtained from it. The leaves are usually very leathery and not eaten by cattle. The leaves were used by earlier generations of people to serve food where plastic plates would be used today.
Usage in leather
The gum is known as Bengal Kino and is considered valuable by druggists because of its astringent qualities and by leather workers because of its tannin.
Culinary use
The gum from the tree, called kamarkas in Hindi, is used in certain food dishes.
Patravali plate
In villages of many parts of India, for example in Maharashtra, this tree provides the leaves that are used either with many pieced together or singly to make a leaf-plate for serving a meal. Up until a century ago, a would-be-son-in-law was tested on his dexterity in making this plate and bowl before being declared acceptable by the father-in-law-to-be.
Dye
The flowers are used to prepare a traditional Holi colour called "Kesari". It is also used as a dye for fabric.
Literature
References to this tree are often found in Punjabi literature. The Punjabi poetHarinder Singh Mahboob employed its symbolism in his poems. In Rudyard Kipling's short storyBeyond the Pale, he says of the dhak: The flower of the dhak means diversely "desire", "come", "write", or "danger", according to the other things with it. The tree was also featured in The Jungle Book in the story Tiger! Tiger! as the tree Mowgli instructs his wolf-brother Grey Brother to wait under for a signal that Shere Khan has returned. The first sloka of the Sukla Yajurveda speaks about the Palasa tree. The Palasa tree branch is cut and trimmed by the Adhvaryu priest who performed the practical part of sacrifice, the day before a new moon or a full moon, and used it to drive the calves away from cows whose milk was to form a part of the offerings for the next day's special ceremony.
Cultural associations
In West Bengal, it is associated with spring, especially through the poems and songs of Nobel LaureateRabindranath Tagore, who likened its bright orange flame-like flower to fire. In Santiniketan, where Tagore and Vishalnarayan lived, this flower has become an indispensable part of the celebration of spring. The plant has lent its name to the town of Palashi, famous for the historic Battle of Plassey fought there. In the state of Jharkhand, palash is associated with folk tradition. Many folk literary expressions describe palash as the forest fire. The beauty of dry deciduous forests of Jharkhand reach their height when most trees have shed their leaves and the Palash is in its full bloom. Palash is also the State Flower of Jharkhand. It is said that the tree is a form of Agni, the God of fire and war. In Telangana, these flowers are specially used in the worship of Lord Shiva on occasion of Shivaratri. In Telugu, this tree is called Modugu chettu. In Kerala, it is called plasu, chamata or vishalnarayan. Chamata is the vernacular version of Sanskrit word harinee, small piece of wood that is used for agnihotra or the fire ritual. In most of the old Nambudiri houses, one can find this tree because this is widely used for their fire ritual. Tamil Brahmins have a daily agnihotra ritual called Samidha Dhanan, where barks of this tree is a main component for agnihotra, and this ritual is very essential for brahmacharis during the first year of brahmacharya. In Theravada Buddhism, called Medhankara – මේධංකර, Butea monosperma is said to have been used as the tree to achieve enlightenment, or Bodhi, by Lord Buddha. The plant is known as කෑල in Sinhala.
Other names
Flame-of-the-forest is otherwise known as bastard teak, parrot tree, chichra tesu, desuka jhad, dhaak, palaash, chalcha, kankrei, chheula , palash , kesudo , palashpapra, Muthuga , kinshuk, polash Bengali, pauk, polāx in Assamese, porasum, parasu, muriku, shamata, modugu , khakda, kela, ploso, palash, semarkat api. In Sanskrit, the flower is extensively used as a symbol for the arrival of spring and the colour of love. Jayadeva in the Gita Govinda compares these blossoms to the red nails of Kamadeva or Cupid, with which the latter wounds the hearts of lovers. The imagery is all the more appropriate as the blossoms are compared to a net of kimsuka flowers. In a completely leafless tree, the blossoms look like a net. The following stanza is translated here by Barbara Stoller Miller, for kimsuka blossoms, she uses the common name "flame tree petals":
