Verse Text
10. dhātry-aśvatthādi-gauravam, yathā skānde—
aśvattha-tulasī-dhātrī-go-bhūmisura-vaiṣṇavāḥ |
pūjitāḥ praṇatāḥ dhyātāḥ kṣapayanti nṝṇām agham ||110||
Translation
Respecting the āmalakī, aśvattha and other things (verse 76), from Skanda Purāṇa: Human beings destroy sin by worshipping, respecting, and contemplating the aśvattha tree, tulasī tree, āmalakī tree, the cow, the brāhmaṇa and the Vaiṣṇava.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
The aśvattha tree is worthy of worship because it is a vibhūti of the Lord (explained in the Gītā). Bhūmi-sura (deva on earth) means a brāhmaṇa. Because the Lord has descended on earth as the benefactor and friend of the cows and the brāhmaṇas, they also should be worshipped by the devotees. All those other items are mentioned along with tulasī and the Vaiṣṇava to remove doubt about worshiping them. [Note: For the Vaiṣṇava, the devotee and tulasī are the most important items, but for others, worship of the brāhmaṇa or cow is more familiar objects of respect.] Among the other items, worship of the cow bestows the ultimate goal for the worshippers of Kṛṣṇa. The Gautamīya-tantra says:
gavāṁ kaṇḍūyanaṁ kuryād go-grāsaṁ go-pradakṣiṇam |
goṣu nityaṁ prasannāsu gopālo ’pi prasīdati ||
One should tickle the cows, feed them and circumambulate them. Gopāla is pleased when the cows are always pleased.
Purport (Nectar of Devotion)
Offering Respect to the Banyan Trees
In the Skanda Purāṇa it is directed that a devotee should offer water to the tulasī plant and āmalakī trees. He should offer respect to banyan tree (aśvattha), the cows and the brāhmaṇas and should serve the Vaiṣṇavas by offering them respectful obeisances and meditating upon them. All of these processes will help the devotee to diminish the reactions to his past sinful activities.