Cactus blossom near Shimla, India

Tall century plant with plate-like multiple-blossom flowers on a scrubby hillside.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Swami Krishnananda captured the images on this page in July 2019, near Shimla, India. He wrote to EarthSky: “Yesterday, on my daily walk, I saw this cactus blooming from far away, and decided to go near to enjoy its beauty. I had to climb hard up a hill to reach it. As the photos will show, it was worth the adventure.”

Tall plant with yellow blossoms against dark hilly background.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Swami Krishnananda commented: “There are three different varieties of cacti in this region near Shimla. This one takes several months to bloom fully, starting with the long shoot.”

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Close-up of cactus blossoms.

2 yellow flowers against a dark background.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Closer still.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | “Here we see a crimson sunbird feeding on the nectar,” Swami Krishnananda wrote.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | He wrote: “And these bees were feeding on the nectar, too. Once the blossom is over and wilted, the cactus seems to have fulfilled its life’s purpose and dies. The same thing is said to happen to us human beings. Once God’s purpose of blossoming the Sahasrar Chakra is done, the body perishes within a week or so. Jai Guru!”

Bottom line: A photo essay of a walk up a hillside near Shimla, India, closer and closer to a cactus blossom, with thoughts on impermanence.

Eleanor Imster

Eleanor Imster has helped write and edit EarthSky since 1995. She was an integral part of the award-winning EarthSky radio series almost since it began until it ended in 2013. Today, as Lead Editor at EarthSky.org, she helps present the science and nature stories and photos you enjoy. She also serves as one of the voices of EarthSky on social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter and G+. She and her husband live in Tennessee and have two grown sons.