Mythological Forests in India are not the forests of imaginations. These forests were once existed in Indian subcontinent, which included the modern Indian main land, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sumatra, Java, Laos, Thailand and Srilanka. Some of the mythological Forests in India are Kalpavriksha Forest, the Forest of Brindaban, Dandakaranya, Dvaita Forest (which is mentioned in Indian epic Mahabharata), Baikunthapur (now located in West Bengal), Naimisha Forest (mentioned in Indian epic Mahabharata), Madhu Forest, and Kamyaka.
Dandakaranya
Dandakaranya is a physiographic region of India. This forest spans over the central and eastern parts of India. In modern India, it covers the Indian states like Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and some parts of Jharkhand and Odisha. It covers a vast area of about 35,600 square miles and encompasses the Eastern Ghats Mountain Range in India in the east and the Abujhmar Hills in the west along with parts of the Indian states Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh. Dandakaranya stretches to about 200 miles from north to south and 300 miles from east to west. It has been the home to the people belonging to Gond community.
Kamyaka Forest
Kamyaka forest is mentioned in the Indian epic Mahabharata. It is now extinct. The geographical position of Kamyaka Forest was at the head of the Thar Desert, near the lake Trinavindu. Kamyaka was once a wide-ranging forest on the banks of the Saraswati River. It is the place where the Pandavas retired, on the occasions of their second exile. Kamyaka forest was situated on the western boundary of the Kuru Kingdom, on the banks of the Saraswati River. It lay to the west of the Kurukshetra plain. It contained within it a lake called the Kamyaka Lake.
Dvaita Forest
Dvaita Forest is an ancient forest which was located towards the south of Kamyaka Forest and comprised a beautiful lake known as the Dwaita Lake surrounded with vivid blooms. It is mentioned in Mahabharata, that this forest had a delightful view and hosted diverse species of birds and other fauna. Dvaita Forest was situated on the south-western outskirts of Kurujangala and spanned over the whole of the Kuru Kingdom.
Baikunthapur
Baikunthapur forest region has its ancient origin- from the time of Lord Krishna. This forest region is extended from the south of the foothills of Himalayan Mountain range in India, between the Mahananda River to the west and Tista River to the east. The main towns in the area are Siliguri and Jalpaiguri. The forests are partly in the Darjeeling district and partly in the Jalpaiguri district.
Naimisha Forest
Naimisha Forest is one of the ancient forests in India. It now serves as a pilgrimage centre in northern part of India. Now it is located very close to Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. Naimisha Forest is mentioned in the Indian epic Mahabharata and another holy text of Shiva Purana, the book of Lord Shiva.
