The Wishing-Trees
Ten kinds of tree that gave a world everything it needed — drink, vessels, music, light, wreaths, food, ornaments, houses, clothes — and, when they failed, the hundred crafts it took to replace four of those gifts. The other six were never replaced.
In the lands of enjoyment, and in the first three ages of every half-turn of the wheel, nobody works. Ten kinds of kalpavṛkṣa stand in the land and give what is asked. Hemacandra names them and says what each gives: Madyāṅga drink, Bhṛṅga vessels, Turyāṅga music, Dīpaśikhā light, Jyotiṣka light, Citrāṅga wreaths, Citrarasa food, Maṇyaṅga ornaments, Gehākāra houses, Anagna clothes. Two of the ten give light, and the text says only that both give light without equal; the tenth is Anagna in the Prakrit sources and Anaṅga in Johnson's reading. That is the whole economy: ten trees, no fields, no trades, no property.
It ends slowly. Through the third age the trees' powers, in Hemacandra's words, deteriorate very, very slowly, and the twins develop a sense of ownership in them — the first quarrel. Seven kulakaras arise to keep order with three laws that are only words: hā, mā, dhik. The last of them, Nābhi, is the father of Ṛṣabha.
And Ṛṣabha, before he renounces, teaches what a world without trees needs. He makes the first vessel of clay, and the potters begin; then carpenters for houses, painters for their walls, weavers for cloth, barbers for hair — five crafts of twenty parts each, a hundred; fields and fire; the seventy-two arts to Bharata, eighteen scripts to Brāhmī, arithmetic to Sundarī. The map ties each craft to the tree it replaced, where Hemacandra ties them: vessels, houses, clothes, food. Drink, music, light, wreaths and ornaments have no craft recorded in their place, and the map leaves those six trees unattached.
Measurements and counts
| Trees | 10 kinds |
|---|---|
| Gifts | drink · vessels · music · light ×2 · wreaths · food · ornaments · houses · clothes |
| Kulakaras | 7 — Śvetāmbara |
| Their laws | hā · mā · dhik |
| Crafts in their place | 5 × 20 = 100 |
| Gifts replaced by a craft | 4 of 10 |
| Source | Hemacandra I.2 · Jambūdvīpaprajñapti 20 |
Connected
Anagna
The 10th of the ten wishing-trees: it gives clothes — Johnson reads the name Anaṅga.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 10th. It gives clothes — Johnson reads the name Anaṅga. When the trees failed, Hemacandra records weavers taking its place.
| Gives | clothes |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | weavers |
Bhṛṅga
The 2nd of the ten wishing-trees: it gives dishes and vessels, like keepers of storehouses.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 2nd. It gives dishes and vessels, like keepers of storehouses. When the trees failed, Hemacandra records potters taking its place.
| Gives | vessels |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | potters |
Citrāṅga
The 6th of the ten wishing-trees: it gives wreaths of many colours.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 6th. It gives wreaths of many colours. When the trees failed, no craft is recorded as taking its place — the map leaves it unattached.
| Gives | wreaths |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | nothing recorded |
Citrarasa
The 7th of the ten wishing-trees: it gives food of many kinds.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 7th. It gives food of many kinds. When the trees failed, Hemacandra records fields and fire taking its place.
| Gives | food |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | fields and fire |
Dīpaśikhā
The 4th of the ten wishing-trees: it gives light — the name is a lamp-flame.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 4th. It gives light — the name is a lamp-flame. When the trees failed, no craft is recorded as taking its place — the map leaves it unattached.
| Gives | light |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | nothing recorded |
Gehākāra
The 9th of the ten wishing-trees: it gives fine houses, instantly.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 9th. It gives fine houses, instantly. When the trees failed, Hemacandra records carpenters and painters taking its place.
| Gives | houses |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | carpenters · painters |
Jyotiṣka
The 5th of the ten wishing-trees: it gives light — the name is a luminary.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 5th. It gives light — the name is a luminary. When the trees failed, no craft is recorded as taking its place — the map leaves it unattached.
| Gives | light |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | nothing recorded |
Madyāṅga
The 1st of the ten wishing-trees: it gives sweet drink, as soon as asked.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 1st. It gives sweet drink, as soon as asked. When the trees failed, no craft is recorded as taking its place — the map leaves it unattached.
| Gives | drink |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | nothing recorded |
Maṇyaṅga
The 8th of the ten wishing-trees: it gives ornaments, at will.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 8th. It gives ornaments, at will. When the trees failed, no craft is recorded as taking its place — the map leaves it unattached.
| Gives | ornaments |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | nothing recorded |
Turyāṅga
The 3rd of the ten wishing-trees: it gives musical instruments, sounding together.
One of the ten kinds Hemacandra names, in his order the 3rd. It gives musical instruments, sounding together. When the trees failed, no craft is recorded as taking its place — the map leaves it unattached.
| Gives | music |
|---|---|
| In the trees' place | nothing recorded |