Elizabeth has worked since 2010 as a writer and consultant covering gardening, permaculture, and sustainable living. She has also written a number of books and e-books on gardens and gardening.

While entering Mawphlang Sacred Groves, the first thing your guide tells you is simple: don’t take away anything from the forest. Not even a pebble. The advice sounds almost facile until you step into ...

In a small forested grove in Southwest Nigeria runs a river, and in the river runs Osun, goddess of love and fertility. One of a pantheon of Yoruba deities, Osun goes by many names around the world: ...

The festival of Osun-Osgobo, which takes place every year in Osogbo, Nigeria, celebrates the goddess of fertility, Osun. The festival renews the contract between humans and the divine: Osun offers ...

Assiya and Abubacker, an elderly Muslim couple, has been religiously guarding a nagathara and a sacred grove around it (Chenthara Sarppakkavu) at Vallam near Perumbavoor for more than 20 years. The ...

The sun is scorching and the newly laid road from Kasampatty village to Melur sizzles. But Manian walks barefoot, clutching his well-worn slippers in hand. On one side lies Veera Kovil, the ...

Nestled in the East Khasi Hills of Meghalaya, the Mawphlang Sacred Grove is more than just a forest—it is a living legend. Spread over lush green hills and dotted with ancient trees, this grove is ...

PALMYRA, N.Y. — On the surface, this tiny hamlet outside of Rochester seems like an unlikely birthplace for one of the world's fastest-growing religions. But it was in this small town in the Finger ...