Sweetness

Sweetness

Adds its smiling touch to life without making a fuss.

Momordica charantia

Momordica charantia, known as bitter melon, bitter gourd, bitter squash, or balsam-pear, has names in other languages which have entered English as loanwords, e.g. goya from Okinawan and karela from Sanskrit.

Small slightly fragrant light yellow saucer-shaped flower with five soft rounded petals and a tiny centre of light orange anthers; borne singly from the leaf axils. An annual vine with deeply lobed leaves and warty edible fruit.

Common name: Bitter Gourd • Assamese: কেৰেলা karela • Bengali: করলা karala • Gujarati: કારેલું karelu • Hindi: करेला Karela, कठिल्ल kathilla, परारु poraru • Kannada: ಹಾಗಲಕಾಯಿ haagalakaay •Konkani: काराते kaaraate • Malayalam: കയ്‌പ്പ kayppa, പാവയ്ക്ക pavaykka • Manipuri: কারোন অখাবী Karon akhabi • Marathi: आंबलें ambalem, कारली karali, कारेती kareti • Mizo: changkha • Nepali: अमला amala, करेलो karelo • Oriya: changkha • Sanskrit: कारवेल्लकःkaarvellakah, कटिल्लः kathillah, परारु paraaru, सुषवी sushavi, ऊर्ध्वासितः urdhvaasitah • Tamil: இராசவள்ளி iraca-valli, பாகற்காய் pAgakkai • Telugu: కాకర kakara • Urdu: کريلا karela

Botanical name: Momordica charantia Family: Cucurbitaceae (Pumpkin family)

Synonyms: Momordica muricata, Momordica zeylanica, Momordica charantia var. muricata

It is a tropical and subtropical vine of the family Cucurbitaceae, widely grown in Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean for its edible fruit. Its many varieties differ substantially in the shape and bitterness of the fruit.

Bitter melon originated in India and was introduced into China in the 14th century.

Bitter Gourd is a herbaceous, tendril-bearing vine, growing up to 5 m. It bears simple, alternate leaves 4-12 cm across, with 3-7 deeply separated lobes. Each plant bears separate yellow male and female flowers, about 2-3 cm in diameter. Male flowers, more numerous, have a yellow center and conical base, while female flowers have a green center and small bump at the base. The fruit has a distinct warty looking exterior and an oblong shape. It is hollow in cross-section, with a relatively thin layer of flesh surrounding a central seed cavity filled with large flat seeds and pith. Seeds and pith appear white in unripe fruits. The fruit is most often eaten green. Although it can also be eaten when it has started to ripen and turn yellowish, it becomes more bitter as it ripens. When the fruit ripens and turns orange and mushy, it is too bitter to eat. It splits into segments which curl back dramatically to expose seeds covered in bright red pulp.

Mahalakshmi

MAHALAKSHMI

Integral Wealth of Mahalakshmi
Wealth in all domains and all activities, intellectual, psychological, material, in feeling and action.

Nymphaea

White Water lily

Large showy usually very fragrant pure white flowers with a golden centre and with numerous narrow pointed or rounded petals, many prominent erect stamens and four petal- like sepals; borne singly on long stems, either floating or held above the water. An aquatic rhizomatous herb with large floating peltate leaves.

All wealth belongs to the Divine and those who hold it are trustees, not possessors. It is with them today, tomorrow it may be elsewhere. All depends on the way they discharge their trust while it is with them, in what spirit, with what consciousness in their use of it, to what purpose. SRI AUROBINDO

Nymphaea

Nymphaea /nɪmˈfiːə/ is a genus of hardy and tender aquatic plants in the family Nymphaeaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution. Many species are cultivated as ornamental plants, and many cultivars have been bred. Some taxa occur as introduced species where they are not native, and some are weeds. Plants of the genus are known commonly as water-lilies. The genus name is from the Greek νυμφαια, nymphaia and the Latin nymphaea, which mean "water-lily" and were inspired by the nymphs of Greek and Latin mythology.

Water-lilies are aquatic rhizomatous perennial herbs, sometimes with stolons, as well. The leaves grow from the rhizome on long petioles. Most of them float on the surface of the water. The blades have smooth or spine-toothed edges, and they can be rounded or pointed. The flowers rise out of the water or float on the surface, opening during the day or at night. Many species of Nymphaea display protogynous flowering. The temporal separation of these female and male phases is physically reinforced by flower opening and closing, so that the first flower opening displays female pistil and then closes at the end of the female phase, and reopens with male stamens. Each has at least 8 petals in shades of white, pink, blue, or yellow. There are many stamens at the center. Water-lily flowers are entomophilous, meaning they are pollinated by insects, often beetles. The fruit is berry-like and borne on a curving or coiling peduncle.

Occultism

Occultism

Truly blossoms only when it is surrendered to the Divine.

Pancratium zeylanicum

Medium-sized highly fragrant white funnel form flower with six pointed petals, a large central cup and a long narrow green corolla tube; borne in one- to three-flowered umbels very close to the ground. A low perennial bulbous plant with narrow linear leaves.

Pancratium zeylanicum is a bulbous perennial herb, which grows in India and on the islands of the Indian Ocean east to insular Southeast Asia. It has been collected from India, Sri Lanka, the Maldive Islands, the Laccadive Islands, Borneo, Java, Maluku, Sulawesi and the Philippines.

Pancratium zeylanicum is known commonly as "rain flower". It is sometimes grown as a hothouse container plant. It does not have a rest period unless water is withheld. It propagates by producing offsets and seed.

The pollinator is a moth with a very long proboscis. Flowers are white with narrow tepals and long teeth along the margin of the staminal corona.

Pancratium zeylanicum is a small tropical species from Asia: India and the Islands of the Indian Ocean. Rain induces flowering and development of the glossy foliage. The flowers are particularly graceful. It is a tender plant, so, except in tropical climate, it must be grow in pots indoors or in warm greenhouse during autumn-winter-spring and put outside during summer. The small bulbs may be planted in 10-15 cm (4-6 inch) pots in soil with good drainage. The plant has a rest period only if water is withheld.