Living Root Bridges

Deep in a lush, green jungle, where the air is thick with mist and rain falls like a soft drum, I stretch across a rushing river. I can hear the water tumbling over smooth stones below me and the happy chirping of colourful birds in the branches all around me. Sometimes, gentle people walk across my back. I can feel their bare feet tickling my tangled skin, which is woven like a basket. They trust me to hold them safe as they cross from one side of the river to the other. I am not cold like stone or splintery like wood. I am strong, but I am also gentle. That’s because I am not made of wood or stone. I am alive. I am a Living Root Bridge.

I was created by the wise Khasi and Jaintia people who live here in the hills of Meghalaya, in a country called India. Hundreds of years ago, around the 1500s, they needed a way to cross the rivers that became wild and powerful during the monsoon season when it rains for months. They knew that a wooden bridge would quickly rot in the damp air, and a metal bridge would rust away. They looked around at the amazing jungle and had a brilliant idea. They saw the strong, searching roots of the Ficus elastica tree, which hung down from its branches. Instead of cutting the tree down, they decided to work with it. Patiently, they guided the young, flexible roots across the river, sometimes using hollowed-out tree trunks to help them grow in the right direction. It took a very long time for me to be ready. For 15, sometimes even 30 years, the people cared for me, weaving my roots together until I was strong enough to hold a person’s weight. I was not built in a day. I was grown with love and wisdom that was passed down from parents to their children for many, many years.

Other bridges get old and weak. Their stones crumble and their metal rusts. But I am different. Every day that passes, I grow stronger. My roots dig deeper into the soil on the riverbanks, and they grow thicker and tougher, weaving themselves into an even stronger pathway. I am a true part of the jungle. Green moss grows on my arms, and tiny insects and little creatures find cozy homes in my nooks and crannies. I am a perfect picture of how people and nature can work together. Since the early 2000s, visitors from all over the world have come to walk across me and see how special I am. I teach them that some of the best things are not made quickly. By being patient and working in harmony with the world around us, we can create wonderful things that last for a very, very long time.