Significance of Erabadu

Ruwini Jayawardana

Though the cuckoo is the messenger who reminds that the Sinhala and Hindu Avurudu season of celebration is near at hand when he calls to his mate, his koho koho is soon followed by the response from nature as an abundance of erabadu bloom on treetops.

Scientifically named Erithrina indica, the scarlet erabadu is also commonly known as the Indian Coral tree in other parts of the globe. The tree is considered as tropical to Asia. According to biologists edabadu comes in two species. The Yak Erabadu is also found in Northern India, high up in the Himalayas, and countries like the Java islands, Tahiti, Samoa, Myanmar and Malacca.

The crimson shaded erabadu bedecked with black seeds is a common sight in most of the remote villages of the country in April. The large tree is mostly used as fences to separate houses from the road.

Though they show signs of blossoming in early March, the flowers remain in bloom till the end of May, scattering their fragrance and colourful petals as you make your way below the boughs of the trees.

An interesting fact in connection with the erabadu flower is that one petal among the many which form a circle to join at the stem is slightly larger than the others. Flowers burst out of woody stalks at the end of firm branches.

Apart from its vibrant colours and beauty, the plant is considered for its medicinal value. The young tender leaves are used in curries as well as to make a delicious mallum, quite a favourite among those in the rural villages.

The leaves and bark of the tree are also used in Ayurvedic medicine as they believe that it holds the power to purify blood and holds the power to ease the venom out of snake bites. The flowers and leaves are also recognized as an effective pesticide.

Our ancestors also clung to the belief that the erabadu tree wards off diseases, thus making it an essential component in their gardens much like today's ginger or kohamba tree.

The erabadu tree was regarded as an omen of festivity in the North. Known as Mullu Murukku in Jaffna, a branch from the tree is planted before an auspicious time in a ceremony.

Sadly today in most areas of the island these trees have been substituted by concrete poled barbed wired fences. Walls made of brick and stone have replaced tree-lined fences. In a couple of years to come, who knows, would the future generation be deprived of setting their eyes on these crimson beauties?

Would a day come when we will have to describe the beauty of the harbinger of festivity and show pictures of the flower to our children as the tree would be no more in years to come?