 This leaf has the ability to absorb highest amount of solar rays. If you put it on water, the stem will always point towards the north. Human activity could be taken to another level by consuming this leaf. You will see it will not let you sleep. Its stem is so sensitive that it becomes a source of perception. Sadhguru, this is from Saunan who wants to know, what is the significance of beetle leaves when they are also in the garden? Oh, that means you didn't eat it. You know, people look at soot on the beetle leaf and tell future or read. So, there is a culture where the lamp soot is collected on the… on the beetle leaf. Maybe many of you don't know what is a beetle leaf. In India, it's very important. It's a very good digestive. It is alkaline in nature. If it… if you have any consumed small quantities of poison in the food that you've eaten, it neutralizes all that. Any acidic poisons are neutralized, including cobra venom. It could neutralize that and to some extent it's not that it will completely prevent, but it brings down various aspects. So, at the end of the meal, people consume this vettalai or villai dalai or thambul. In a martial culture, if… if somebody picks up the tamil pakku, it means he's taking on a risky endeavor. He's willing to face the enemy head-on. It's like a suicide mission. Today, in modern city, in the urban areas of India, in the… in the crime gangs, they call it supari. That means I've picked up a supari on you means I'm going to come and assassinate you. So there, it just… the word spreads. There's a supari on him. Whoever kills him will get the supari. It comes with a price, of course. So, this is coming from a… a much ancient usage of if I pick up the thambul, that means I'm ready for a suicide mission. These two things have been related that human activity could be taken to another level by consuming this leaf and that leaf works only if it has at least an inch of stem. If you cut it close, it doesn't have the same thing. This leaf, I know almost any leaf can be used, but this particular leaf, if you put it on water, the stem will always point towards the north. You know this? If you put it in the water, in still water, it will naturally turn this way and put a point to the north. So if you're lost in the forest, you have a thambul pakku with you, you put it there in the water, it shows you which way is north. Once you're north, you know all the other directions, I believe. Beetle leaf and perception have been connected because it… it is a neurological stimulant, nervous stimulant rather. If you consume it, your nerves will go into mild like that. So your neurological complexity and neurological activity and your perception are directly related. Why a human being is able to perceive things a lot more than any other creature is, we have the most complex neurological system. Actually, you should hear better, you should see better, you should smell better than any other creature. But living in cities, it's been dulled down. If you lived in nature, these things would be very, very alert, just like that. You would be far better than most creatures in terms of smelling, seeing, hearing, everything. But it's dumbed down because of excessive impact of both visual, auditory and olfactory. Everything is overloaded living in a urban society. Because of that, it's kind of gone down. Otherwise, if a human being lives in nature, he has the highest level of five senses. Because we have the most complex neurological system, a little hype on that, you naturally perceive. So whatever tools which are used for perception, always there is a Vettal Paku. Vettale, definitely there. So Devi, Hanuman and various other gods and goddesses are always covered with this particular leaf. And then this leaf is used. See, anything that touches anything leaves a certain imprint. Right now you're sitting here. If we bring your dog after you've gone, he knows where you are sitting, yes or no? No, I'm not saying you that smelly but a dog would find out, isn't it? Where you have been sitting, it'll not get confused. It will know where you were sitting. That means you left something. So any contact, you always leave something and take something. This is what we call as runanabhunda. This is why a yogi who wants to grow, a yogi who wants to not get confused with different types of imprints usually avoids physical contact. And if you try to shake his hands, he does this because unnecessary contact is not necessary. Simply it'll confuse your perception. Depends what you wish to do. If you are desperate for human contact, then whoever you see, you go grab them, you grab them. But if you're fine within you, you're looking how to enhance this life, then you want to minimize the contact because too much contact will cause aberrations in your ability to see life the way it is. Now Vethalpaku or Vethale particularly enhances that. So anything connected with Devi always is related to Vethale. This is strange for, you know, because many Indians fight with this because they don't know what it is. So they think they must place the leaf, the point towards the goddess. Now always the stem towards the goddess. It looks like it's being offered to you, but that's what it is, it is for you. Because a beetle leaf stem is capable of perceiving things. Beetle, nut and this leaf are used together so English people started calling it beetle leaf. It is not a beetle leaf, it is Vethale. Paku is separate. So this leaf has the ability to absorb highest amount of solar rays per square inch compared to any other leaf. That's why it grows only in shade. It cannot take sunlight because it absorbs too much. So because of this ability to absorb particularly its stem is so sensitive that it becomes a source of perception and it has a pointer towards the north and if you consume it, it enhances your neurological system and in turn your perception. And if it's been touch in, it's been in touch with Devi or its stem is pointing towards Devi, it also absorbs whatever is her quality and then you want to put it into your system, that is the idea. Or people just put it on their body. Some people put it to their Manipura car, Anahata or Vishuddhi. Don't do these things because that needs a certain preparation, but you can consume it. Not every day, maybe once in a way if you want, you can consume it, definitely you can see there's a little up. It is a stimulant unlike coffee or tea. It is not aggressive like that, but it works. If you have a heavy meal and then eat a beetle leaf, then you will see it will not let you sleep, but at the same time you don't feel hyper activated. A gentle activation of the neurological system happens. So it's been in use for a long time and beetle leaf also, there is a tradition you should never tear it vertically because the spine of the beetle leaf is very important. You should not tear it vertically. If you want to share it, if the leaf is like this, you must cut it like this, but never cut it like this. So this, for this metaphorically, there is a story. There was a king called Jarasandha. Jarasandha was a very powerful man and ruled with an iron fist. He was in the eastern side of India. He had ambitions to spread across his kingdom. So Krishna didn't want that to happen. They went there incognito, kind of, but then they revealed themselves. Then Jarasandha was a great wrestler and a warrior. So when they invited him for a duel, he said, you choose whichever way you want, I'll fight with you. So Krishna said, you will have to wrestle with Bhima. Jarasandha was as strong as Bhima and as skilled as Bhima, so he said, fine. So they got into a wrestling match. They say this match went on for 13 days. Maybe they slept in the night, but 13 days match went on without a decision. Both were absolutely exhausted. They could barely stand up. Both were so exhausted, but nobody was defeated. Then Krishna just sat there looking at Jarasandha. Whatever you do, the guy doesn't die. What is it? He looked at it. Then he saw that he had a boon. Unless he's thrown into two pieces, he will not die. So Krishna was sitting there eating beetle leaf and nut. He took a beetle leaf. Out of sheer frustration, Bhima looked at him. What am I supposed to do? I'm finished. That guy is not dying. I won't give up. It's going on endlessly. What to do? Krishna took the beetle leaf and split it vertically. The next thing that Bhima did was he held his two legs and split him up and threw him on two sides of the arena. He died. So splitting the Vethalay in vertically is a wrong thing to do in the homes. It's never done that if you want to share it, you always break it in half like this. Because probably this is just a story to tell you, but the important thing is the most important part of the leaf is the spine. So if you share it with somebody, they must also get a piece of the spine. If you tear it this way, you may get it or they may get it. Both will not get it. So when you break it like this, both will get the spine and the stem in some way. So that's the reason why beetle leaf and devi are very connected, because both are for perception. Both are for enhancing human perception.