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“Mother Cow is in many ways better than the mother who gave us birth. Our mother gives us milk for a couple of years and then expects us to serve her when we grow up. Mother cow expects from us nothing but grass and grain. Our mother often falls ill and expects service from us. Mother cow rarely falls ill. Here is an unbroken record of service which does not end with her death. Our mother, when she dies, means expenses of burial or cremation. Mother cow is as useful dead as when she is alive. We can make use of every part of her body-her flesh, her bones, her intestines, her horns and her skin. Well, I say this not to disparage the mother who gives us birth, but in order to show you the substantial reasons for my worshipping the cow”
These are the words of Mahatma Gandhiji. There is a high spirit of reverence for cows across the Hindu society. This can be traced back to the fact that early man was pastoral and his livelihood was based on domestic animals such as cows and goats. The Rig-Veda honors the cow as a sacred animal in many of its verses too. The usage of dairy products such as ghee – clarified butter, in performing sacred yajnas and pujas stands as testimony to the kind of worship that cows received during the Vedic age. Kamadhenu or surabhi is the sacred bovine goddess for Hindus. She is said to be a form of Shakthi. All the gods are said to reside in kamadhenu which gives its owner all prosperity and wealth. Her four legs are the scriptural Vedas; her horns are the triune gods Brahma (tip), Vishnu (middle) and Shiva (base); her eyes are the sun and moon gods, her shoulders the fire-god Agni and the wind-god Vayu and her legs the Himalayas. It is also mentioned that there are 33 crores of devathas are situated at various parts of the body of a cow. So worshiping a cow confers to worship of 33 crores of devas.
The divinity of cows is mentioned in one of the earliest sacred texts in Hindu history, the Rig-Veda. The Rig-Veda confers the suffix matha to five beings on earth because of the high reverence with which they should be treated.
1) Deha-Maatha (one’s own mother who gave birth to your body)
2) Go-maatha (Cow)
3) Bhu-maatha (The earth)
4) Jagan-maatha (Goddess Shakti, the creator of this world)
5) Veda-maatha (The Vedas)
Even today a house with a cow is considered a prosperous one because a cow provides not just for her calf but to all those who surround her.
Kamadhenu – The Divine One
Kamadhenu, the ancestor of all cows is regarded as a divine wish fulfilling cow. It is said in the Vedas that all Gods, Goddess, including the Trinity has their abode in the cow. It brings good fortune to those who worship the cow. Also worshiping mother Kamadhenu or Cow helps in cleansing them of their sins committed in this birth and the previous one. Many gems, animal and gods appeared when the Gods and Demons churned the milky ocean. One such animal is Kamadhenu. This divine cow has the capacity to fulfill the very thought of a desire. There are lots of legends about the origin of Kamadhenu. One of them is that kamadhenu rose from the ocean when the asuras and devas churned the ocean to get amritha. There is also another story that says that brahma drank too much of amritha and when he belched surabhi was born from his breath. According to Krishna purana, Krishna and radha were in each other’s company in the garden when they suddenly thirsted for a drink. That is when Krishna created the cow kamadhenu to quench their thirst. It is also legend that when they were drinking milk the pot fell down and broke which gave birth to the cosmic milk ocean kshirasagara. From kamadhenu many cows emerged which were given to the gopas and gopikas as gifts.
There are no temples for Kamadhenu separately but in almost every temple there is a Goshala which takes care of a few in-house cows and performs arathis and pujas on special occasions chanting Cow Mantras. Feeding of cows is said to be a good deed in Hinduism.
The western society might consider them as nothing but walking ham burgers but in a Hindu society, cows are given much honor. Even amidst the chaos of city life one can spot cows here and there. Hindus volunteer to feed them and protect them. Even temples give shelter and protect stray cows.
Cows are a constant presence in our society. We are dependent on them for milk ghee butter and even the cow’s urine is considered to be very sacred in Hinduism. In all auspicious functions cow’s urine is sprayed in the surroundings. There are still houses in the villages of India that use cow dung as the disinfectant to clean their houses. The uses of cow are manifold; at every point in its life it serves many purposes for mankind. Right from food articles such as milk butter ghee, for agricultural purpose also its urine and dung are used as effective disinfectants.
The Rig Veda (4.28.1; 6) reads. “The cows have come and have brought us good fortune. In our stalls, contented, may they stay! May they bring forth calves for us, many-colored, giving milk for Indra each day. You make, O cows, the thin man sleek; to the unlovely you bring beauty. Rejoice our homestead with pleasant lowing. In our assemblies we laud your vigour.” This speaks of the necessity of cow and milk in the ancient society.
While some scholars may argue that early Hindu society was a beef eating one. In The evolved one today, most might not harm cows and bulls. Krishna one of the most venerated gods in Hinduism is brought up in a pastoral community and he is often portrayed as the patron of cows. One of his names Govinda literally translates to one who satisfies the cows.
The importance of milk and dairy products in our daily lives is what puts cows on such a high pedestal. The cow is a symbol of the Earth, the nourisher, the ever-giving soul. The cow is so generous, taking nothing but water, grass and grain. It gives and gives and gives of its milk, it does not feed its calf well but it feeds mankind right from little children to old people. One can even call the cow a surrogate mother for all of us. Cow’s milk is also highly nutritious and energy rich.
All our ancestors were a typical pastoral community and that could have been the reason why we hold cattle with such high regard. But it is our duty to protect all animals not just cows. Cow slaughter has been banned in a few stated as of now. It was Gandhiji’s vision that all cows should be protected and taken care of in goshalas. He considered cow protection the greatest virtue to come out of Hinduism. Cows are the most docile un-animalistic animals on earth. They are sensitive, generous, gentle creatures nothing short of what a human can be but they are more useful than most human beings are to the society.
