folks,
i have seen many a folks do things, 'in name' ie go through the process, to claim that they have done such and such thing.
i am somewhat gratified that somebody brought up the issue of a 6,000 ruppees கோதானம் which ends up with the butcher. personally, i do not see anything wrong with that, for one man's poisson is another one's poisin.
but we are bringing the issue of faith and the significance of an animal whose supposed sanctity has been drilled into our psyche. much as we have evidence that the true brahmins of yore enjoyed the flavours of beef and horse, we as a community, have eschewed such practices to an extent, that we venerate the animal.
i had a மொட்டைப் பாட்டி living across the street, who used to come rushing out of the house, to grab the pee of the cow and shower it all over her head. much to the amusement of all of us. but that was her faith, and no one stopped her from doing it. i think she equally odd stuff with cow shit, but that is not to be told in a forum.
the veneration of animals, comes in different levels. vegetarians of our community do not simply enjoy putting an end to life, just to consume it and only to see it discarded the next day, though one cannot quite differentiate vegetable waste from that of an animal one.
nowadays, many in the west, if they see the abattoirs, would probably turn away from meat eating. most of the meat is packaged, just like our vegetables, clean and attractive to look. god knows what goes in process, to make it such, but i was told that chckens and cows, bred for meat, do not have much of a life.
in india, however even during my last visit a few months ago, the butcher shop is still out in the open, the flies having a field day with the meat, and the purveyors of the same making some effort to ward them off, while the emptors blind to the flies, eagerly arguing for a cut of the dead meat along with the fly eggs and fly waste. so be it. i think from an hygiene point of view, nobody in india should eat meat.
back to the sacred cow. if you or your loved ones want to donate a cow - there are three ways i think this can be solved. the first, ofcourse, is to go the whole 18 yards, buy the choicest jersy cow, and seek out carefully a cowkeeper who would relish and treat her like a beloved lover. there is satisfaction all around.
the next best thing is to baby cow. i think these may not be expensive. also, there is not much market in india, i think, for veal, which is milk fed baby cows, which are a speciality item for food in the west.
lastly, give some cash and a doll of a cow to some poor guy who will appreciate the cash and throw the doll in the garbage, or if he has a daughter or neice, will give it to her for play.
but let us not play the hypocritic game with our God and selves, that we give one toothless, lame, one blind eyed, senile animal, which in its earlier life resembled a bovine, but now an apology for something resembling a 'cow', throw it at some unseen individual, and proclaim loudly to the world that we performed கோதானம்.
i have a relative who summed up our faith into thre 'C's - convenience, cash and comfort. let us make an effort to wiggle out of these bed of lies.
thank you.
