3 definitions found for Ficus religiosa

Ficus religiosa n 1: fig tree of India noted for great size and longevity; lacks the prop roots of the banyan; regarded as sacred by Buddhists [syn: pipal, pipal tree, pipul, peepul, sacred fig, bo tree, Ficus religiosa]

Peepul tree Pee"pul tree` [Hind. p[=i]pal, Skr. pippala.] (Bot.) A sacred tree (Ficus religiosa) of the Buddhists, a kind of fig tree which attains great size and venerable age. See Bo tree. [Written also pippul tree, and pipal tree.]

Bo tree Bo" tree` (Bot.) The peepul tree; esp., the very ancient tree standing at Anurajahpoora in Ceylon, grown from a slip of the tree under which Gautama is said to have received the heavenly light and so to have become Buddha. The sacred bo tree of the Buddhists (Ficus religiosa), which is planted close to every temple, and attracts almost as much veneration as the status of the god himself. . . . It differs from the banyan (Ficus Indica) by sending down no roots from its branches. --Tennent.