Centuries-old poems, songs, and sacred stories from western India are helping scientists solve a modern ecological mystery. Credit: Shutterstock In the oldest known writing in Marathi, a language spoken by millions in western and central India, a 13th-century religious leader named Cakradhara points to an acacia tree as a symbol of death and rebirth. While his words were meant to convey spiritual meaning, they have taken on new significance centuries later. Researchers now say that writings