Cultural Attitude Towards Animals in India

Cultural Attitudes Towards Animals in India

India has long held the cow to be a sacred animal (hence the famous phrase 'sacred cow'). But the attitude of Hindus towards cows has often been described as perplexing and irrational by Westerners, particularly given the high rates of poverty in the nation. It is not uncommon to see cows wandering through the streets while starving people beg, causing observers from other ethnicities and faiths to wonder why Indians do not slaughter the cows for food. Even an Indian anthropologist, M.N. Srinivas, an Indian stated: "Orthodox Hindu opinion regards the killing of cattle with abhorrence, even though the refusal to kill the vast number of useless cattle which exists in India today is detrimental to the nation...the large animal population is more a liability than an asset in view of our land resources" (Harris 1)

According to Orthodox Hindu doctrine: "the cow is our mother, it's our duty to protect her...We do this because we believe in what the cow represents in our country, our culture and in the Hindu religion" (Rezvani, Gottlieb & Hennigan 2012). The earliest Vedic scriptures contained some provisions for cow slaughter as part of religious rituals, but "by 1000 A.D., all Hindus were forbidden to eat beef" (Harris 2). The reasons for this are uncertain, but cows do provide a vital function in traditional Hindu agriculture as sources of milk and as oxen for plowing (Harris 2). Cow dung can also be used for fuel. Hindu farms are still dependent upon oxen for plowing, particularly given the instability of the weather which often requires immediate action when conditions are favorable. The loss of an ox can mean the loss of a farm, and without cows, a family cannot breed more oxen (Harris 3). During dry seasons, families often allow their cows to wander at will and forage for food.

However, with modernization, attitudes towards cows are changing. There is increased demand for cow beef in the Middle East, and many Indians believe that it is foolish to sacrifice the potential to export the product. "Cow beef could be a very lucrative business in India,' said Dr. S.K. Ranjhan, the director of Hind Agro Industries Limited, who believes that religious attitudes may stand to change once the extent of business opportunities are realized. 'I think five-to-10 years from now, people won't be so scandalized by the sale of cow beef'" (Rezvani, Gottlieb & Hennigan 2012). Although India officially has laws against cow slaughter, there is a thriving illegal trade in beef. An "estimated 1.5 million cows, valued at up to $500 million, are smuggled out of India annually, which some analysts say provide more than 50% of beef consumed in neighboring Bangladesh" (Rezvani, Gottlieb & Hennigan 2012).