Night Jasmine / Parijat / Harshringar — blooms at night, falls at dawn creating fragrant carpet. Krishna's sacred tree. State flower UP and WB. Dengue Ayurvedic use.
Night Jasmine / Parijat / Harshringar — रात को bloom, dawn में fragrant carpet। Krishna का sacred tree। UP और WB का state flower। Dengue में Ayurvedic use।
Night Jasmine (Nyctanthes arbor-tristis) — Parijat or Harshringar — is one of India's most sacred and most poetically celebrated flowering trees. Its small white flowers with orange stems fall to the ground every morning at dawn — the tree blooms at night and sheds its flowers at sunrise — creating a fragrant carpet of white and orange blossoms beneath the tree each morning. This daily cycle of nocturnal blooming and dawn shedding has inspired countless Indian poets, and the tree holds profound significance in Hindu mythology as the divine tree of paradise brought to Earth by Krishna. The fragrance of Parijat flowers — intense, sweet and slightly spicy — is one of India's most cherished natural scents.
Night Jasmine (Nyctanthes arbor-tristis) — Parijat / Harshringar — India का most sacred और most poetically celebrated flowering tree। Small white flowers with orange stems — रात को bloom, dawn में fall। सुबह fragrant white-orange carpet। Hindu mythology में Krishna का divine paradise tree। Parijat flowers की fragrance — India's most cherished natural scent।
🌸 What is Night Jasmine / Parijat? — Complete Information
| 🔬 Scientific Name | Nyctanthes arbor-tristis |
| 🌿 Common Names | Night Jasmine, Parijat, Harshringar, Coral Jasmine, Tree of Sadness |
| 🇮🇳 Hindi Names | पारिजात (Parijat), हरसिंगार (Harshringar), शिउली (Shiuli — Bengal) |
| 👨👩👧 Plant Family | Oleaceae (Olive family) |
| 🌍 Origin | India and Southeast Asia — native to India |
| 📏 Size | 3–10 meters — shrub to small tree |
| 🌱 Type | Perennial deciduous to semi-evergreen shrub/tree |
| ✅ Toxicity | Non-toxic — flowers, leaves used medicinally |
🙏 Sacred & Cultural Significance
💧 Night Jasmine Care — India Specific
- Collect fallen flowers each morning: Parijat flowers fall fresh and fragrant at dawn — collect immediately from the ground before they wilt in the sun. Used for temple offerings, potpourri and fragrance. The fallen flowers are considered pure — not contaminated by being touched while on the plant.
- Semi-shade for cooler regions: In North India's hot summers, Parijat appreciates some afternoon shade — it is naturally a forest understory plant in its native range. Full sun is fine in coastal and South India where temperatures are more moderate.
- Medicinal significance: Parijat leaves are used in Ayurveda for arthritis, sciatica, fever (particularly dengue fever management) and as an anti-inflammatory. The leaf decoction is a traditional fever remedy used across India.