In response to queries about the tilaka marking, one can say that Krsna wears a similar mark on His forehead. The bottom part of the tilaka is meant to resemble the leaf of a tulasi (basil family) tree, a banyan tree, a pipal tree, a bamboo tree and a lotus bud. Also, the tilaka mark symbolizes that the wearer subscribes to the ‘simultaneously one and different’ philosophy of Vaisnavism.