Marathi Literature Unlocks Ecological Secrets of Western Maharashtra
Before the urban sprawl of Pune and surrounding areas transformed the region, what was the true nature of western Maharashtra's landscape? Was it covered in dense, impenetrable forests as many romanticize, or was it actually an open savanna ecosystem? While scientific evidence has long pointed toward the latter, convincing the public has remained a challenge. Now, two ecologists have turned to an unexpected source to bridge this gap between scientific fact and public perception: the rich archives of traditional Marathi literature.
Bridging Science and Culture Through Literature
Ecologists Ashish Nerlekar and Digvijay Patil embarked on this unique research journey, recognizing that scientific data alone often fails to resonate with local communities and policymakers. "People misunderstand the history of our landscape. They romanticise the past and assume everything was forest at some point. When they see grasslands, they think something went wrong," Nerlekar explained. This common misconception persists despite substantial evidence from fossil pollen studies, animal remains analysis, and evolutionary research that consistently indicates India's tropical savannas are ancient, stable ecosystems rather than degraded forests.
The researchers realized that to shift public understanding, they needed evidence that felt culturally familiar and accessible. Their innovative approach involved mining centuries of Marathi texts for ecological clues, transforming literary works into historical environmental records. "Many see it as an offbeat source of data," Nerlekar acknowledged, but this unconventional methodology has yielded compelling results.
Folklore as Ecological Documentation
One particularly revealing example emerged from a folk tale describing the founding of Kolvihire village near Jejuri in Pune district. The narrative follows Valhya Koḷi, a robber who undergoes spiritual transformation to become the sage poet Valmiki. As a symbol of this metamorphosis, leaves sprout from his former weapon—a stick that grows into a specific paḍaḷa tree, which the story claims still stands in Kolvihire today.
Beyond its moral teachings, this tale provided researchers with precise geographical and botanical details. The naming of a specific tree species tied to a known location demonstrates how such texts preserve reliable ecological information. Furthermore, the story reflects a sequence of human settlement typical of savanna landscapes, describing the arrival of hunting communities like the koḷis, followed by pastoral groups including the gavḷis and dhangars. This progression mirrors ecological transitions from hunting to grazing-based livelihoods, which align with open landscapes capable of supporting pastoralism rather than dense forests.
Methodical Textual Analysis Across Centuries
The researchers published their findings in an article titled "Utilizing traditional literature to triangulate the ecological history of a tropical savanna" in the October 2025 edition of People and Nature, a journal of the British Ecological Society. Their comprehensive analysis spanned nearly 750 years of Marathi literature, from the 13th to the 20th century, examining diverse sources including sant biographies, devotional poetry, oral folklore, women's grindmill songs, and myths associated with local deities.
Their methodological approach was rigorous and systematic. "Our starting point was Stories of Indian Saints: Translation of Mahipati's Marathi Bhaktavijaya by JE Abbott, which we were reading a few years ago when we stumbled onto the idea of using this kind of literature as ecological records," Nerlekar revealed. They initially noticed repeated references to specialist plant species and descriptions of open landscapes, which later evolved into a structured research framework.
The team implemented multiple filters to ensure data reliability. They restricted their analysis to Marathi literature, excluding Sanskrit and Urdu texts, and focused specifically on seven districts of western Maharashtra: Nashik, Ahmednagar, Pune, Satara, Sangli, Solapur, and Kolhapur. Eastern Maharashtra regions like Nagpur were omitted because they already possess multiple independent lines of fossil evidence.
The most crucial filter involved georeferencing. Any poem, song, or narrative that praised trees, landscapes, or religious imagery without being tied to a specific location was excluded. "We retained only sources that were firmly embedded in place, such as founding myths of specific locations in western Maharashtra, where religious narratives are intertwined with detailed descriptions of the surrounding landscape," Nerlekar emphasized. This stringent approach eliminated much material but significantly increased confidence in their findings.
Revealing Continuity in Landscape Ecology
Another compelling example comes from a 'dhangari ovi'—traditional poetry of the dhangar community—narrated by a shepherd from Chitalenagar in Solapur district. The song describes Lord Khaṇḍoba caring for an impossibly large flock of sheep and lambs at Kolvihire. While the numbers are mythic, the setting reflects reality: large-scale sheep grazing requires open grasslands with abundant fodder. By placing such scenes in devotional songs linked to actual locations, the research demonstrates that grazing and open landscapes were long-standing features of these regions, not indicators of environmental degradation.
Perhaps the most striking discovery was the remarkable continuity observed across centuries. "What surprised us most was the consistency. We expected to find open canopies, given the other scientific evidence, but we did not expect the landscape to remain so stable over at least 750 years. The dominant tree species described in these texts are still around, and in similar proportions," Nerlekar noted.
Academic Validation and Broader Implications
Kundlik Paradhi, assistant professor in the Marathi department at Savitribai Phule Pune University, highlighted the significance of this research approach. He noted that folk literature in Marathi and other regional languages has traditionally been interpreted symbolically or devotionally, but this study reminds scholars that these texts are also grounded in lived landscapes and environmental realities.
This pioneering research demonstrates how cultural archives can serve as valuable ecological records, providing insights that complement scientific data. By making complex ecological concepts accessible through familiar cultural narratives, Nerlekar and Patil have created a powerful tool for environmental education and policy communication. Their work not only clarifies the historical ecology of western Maharashtra but also establishes a methodology that could be applied to other regions, potentially transforming how we understand and preserve diverse ecosystems through the integration of scientific and cultural knowledge systems.
