Nelumbo nucifera, also known as Indian lotus, sacred lotus, bean of India, Egyptian bean or simply lotus, is one of two extant species of aquatic plant in the family Nelumbonaceae. It is often colloquially called a water lily. Under favorable circumstances the seeds of this aquatic perennial may remain viable for many years, with the oldest recorded lotus germination being from that of seeds 1,300 years old recovered from a dry lakebed in northeastern China. It has a very wide native distribution, ranging from central and northern India (at altitudes up to 1,400 m or 4,600 ft in the southern Himalayas), through northern Indochina and East Asia (north to the Amur region; the Russian populations have sometimes been referred to as "Nelumbo komarovii"), with isolated locations at the Caspian Sea. Today the species also occurs in southern India, Sri Lanka, virtually all of Southeast Asia, New Guinea and northern and eastern Australia, but this is probably the result of human translocations. It has a very long history (c. 3,000 years) of being cultivated for its edible seeds,[3] and it is commonly cultivated in water gardens. It is the national flower of India and Vietnam (Wikipedia) Thank you for your visit and comment, good day to you Le Lotus sacré ou Lotus d'Orient (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.) est une plante aquatique de la famille des Nélumbonacées. Ce lotus est la fleur sacrée dans les religions orientales (bouddhisme, brahmanisme) dans lesquelles les divinités sont représentées sur un trône en fleur de lotus. Le lotus sacré est la fleur nationale de l'Inde. Noms communs : lotus sacré, lotus des Indes, lotus Magnolia, fève d'Égypte Synonymes : Nelumbium nelumbo (Druce), Nelumbium speciosum (Willd). Il ne faudrait pas confondre celle ci avec Nymphaea caerulea, le nénuphar bleu, aussi appelé lotus sacré ou lotus bleu, qui est celui représenté par les hiéroglyphes égyptiens[réf. nécessaire]. Le Nelumbo nucifera a été introduit en Égypte par les Perses autour de 500 av. J.-C.1 Une autre plante du genre Nelumbo est également cultivée, c'est Nelumbo lutea (Willd.), le lotus d'Amérique, à fleurs jaunes.(Wikipedia) Merci pour votre visite et votre commentaire, bonne journée