As thou has set the moon in the sky
to be the poor man’s lantern,
so let thy light shine in my dark life
and lighten my path;
as the rice is sown in the water
and brings forth grain in great abundance,
so let thy word be sown in our midst
that the harvest may be great;
and as the banyan sends forth its branches
to take root in the soil,
so let thy life take root in our lives.

This blessing has its origin in the Indian Hindu context. The banyan is a tropical fig tree that bears fruit continuously. I am told figs have higher quantities of fibre that any other dried or fresh fruit, so the fig’s life-sustaining qualities really are extraordinary.