What Are You Doing for Cow Protection?

By HH Sivarama Swami

Krsi goraksya vanijya. Krsi means ploughing or agriculture and goraksya, cow protection. These are the staples of society, this is what people live on. All living entities subsist on grains. So the ksatriyas may direct and instruct people, the brahmanas may perform their yajnas, but if they don’t eat then giving shelter or instruction is not going to work.

That eating is therefore the most essential aspect of life and this is why the vaisyas and their assistants, the sudras, are so integral that the other castes think that they are the most important people, because it is actually they who are feeding. Of course the vaisyas think that the brahmanas are the most important because they are taking the result of their work and offering it back to the Lord.

Srila Prabhupada said that this very common type of exchange was there but the responsibility of this goraksya, is it the duty of just some people? Some very very exclusive people? Is it the responsibility of all vaisyas, or is it for all grhastas or all devotees?

My proposition is that it is everyone’s responsibility. Just like everyone’s responsibility is chanting Hare Krishna, watering Tulasi devi, reading Bhagavatam. Similarly part of our common dharma is to protect cows. This is something that you see ingrained in communities like Bhaktivedanta Manor, where they have to limit the amount of cows they receive as gifts, and be very careful about the type of food that is offered to the cows, because to a greater or lesser degree all the devotees see the protection of cows as their dharma.

It is everyone’s dharma: the cow is our mother, she gives us milk while all over the rest of the world cows are being butchered, slaughtered, abused, and taken advantage of. Vaisnavas must take it as their responsibility to protect cows. Now, how do you protect cows? Does that mean that you have a cow on your balcony in downtown Singapore? No, that type of cow protection is actually cow abuse. You cannot just keep your own cow.

Cows only give milk if they have calves, which means you have to constantly have calves, which means you have to have a herd, and that is a full time business. So how is it that individuals should protect cows? They should in some way or another be connected to ISKCON’s herds. Srila Prabhupada established cow protection for instance in New Vrindavan, Gita Nagari, or as we have done here in Hungary at New Vraja-dhama. These herds are not the sole responsibility or duty of the local devotees in those places, they are the responsibility of the devotees and congregation of the local country. It is their responsibility to contribute to the cow protection, to donate towards the maintenance of the cow, to come and do some cow seva, and when they come to the temple they should bring some bhoga for the cows, to find out what items are needed by the cowherds. And the cow herds.

Cow protection is everyone’s business, it is everyone’s responsibility. This is being written down as varnasrama dharma. If one does not contribute or participate directly in cow protection then he should know that he is neglecting his dharma, he is neglecting his dharma. In other words he is adharmic.

This is in my view the greater picture of what varnasrama means. Varnasrama doesn’t mean that we simply philosophise about a way of life, but what are the duties of varnas and asramas, what are the duties that are common for all Vaisnavas, for all humans. And one of them is the protection of cows, just like chanting Hare Krsna is a common responsibility as mentioned earlier.

So, similairly, cow protection is a common responsibility for everyone. It doesn’t necessarily always occur to us, and even when it does, it’s difficult to get devotees interested. More difficult than getting devotees to do sankirtan, more difficult than getting someone to cook in the kitchen or be temple president, is to get devotees to be cowherds. To make devotees work with the cows, bulls, and oxen and to make that their life, it is very difficult for devotees to do this. “I am an educated person, I have this diploma and you want me to take care of cows? You want me to do that thing that God does? You want me to do that activity that is going on in the spiritual world?”

And that is what is going on the spiritual world. That is what is going on where we are going–at least where I want to go is where there is only gopas and gopis. The whole social identity is based on go, on cows. There are milkmaids and there are cowherd men. And if we are not willing to be milkmaids and cowherd men here in the material world, if this service is beyond us and we cannot forsee how we are going to dedicate our lives to working with the cows, then were are we going? Then you had better look for somewhere other than Braja. Then you had better go to Dwaraka or Vaikuntha, where that is not a compulsory, integral part of life.

Because in the spiritual world, in Goloka Vrindavan, Krishna goes out every day to tend cows. And yet it is so difficult to get devotees to be cowherders, to see that this is a respectable future, and to stick with that service. Because once again, cow protection is something that we talk about as being against the principles of slaughtering the animals. We don’t believe in slaughtering the cow, we don’t believe in eating the meat of the cow, cows should be properly protected. But, when it comes to properly protecting the cows, are we willing to do it? Are we actually willing to dedicate our lives to taking care of cows? Or are we willing to participate and support the protection of cows?

Therefore, we should ask: “What am I doing for protecting my mother? What am I doing to sustain cow protection in my zone? It is my responsibility, my duty as a Vaisnava. Am I performing my dharmic duty?”

“If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian.” Paul McCarthey

On our Birth our mother breast fed us for a period of time. Then for the rest of our life we are fed by cows, without even feeding their calves. After squeezing out even the last drop of its milk, humans slaughter it for its meat.

India has a rapid rise in slaughter houses of cows from about 350 to 36,000 in span of thirty years.This is the official number.Don't know what is unofficial number.

The highly merchandised of the slaughter houses are ALKABIR ( Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh), FRIGORIFICO ALLANA (Aurangabad), Hind Industries (Aligadh), Allana Sons (Delhi, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra), Devanar ( Maharastra). They employ inhuman process and torturous way of getting meat and skin.

The animals agonies start long before they are dead. They are brought to Alkabir in trucks, from far away distances. For economy, 20-25 huge buffalos are stacked up in each truck. Nobody cares to feed them food, or even water while in transit. They are packed so tightly in the truck, that they are hurt by each other. By the time they arrive, they are no more capable of standing on their own feet. Their tails are cut and chilli powder is rubbed into their eyes to make them move.

They are brought into the final ground, where at least a thousand animals are stored. This is their last open air. They are kept here for four days, hungry and thirsty. Then their legs are broken and eyes poked, so that a 'certificate' can be obtained about their uselessness. The hunger and thirst of four days cause the hemoglobin to move from blood in to fat. The meat with higher hemoglobin fetches better prices.

Now these animals are pushed into washing showers. Extremely hot water (200 degrees!) is sprayed on them for five minutes, to soften their skins, so they will be easy to remove. The animal faints at this point, but it is not dead yet.

Now it is hung upside down with one leg, on a chain-pulley conveyor. Then half of the neck is slit. This drains the blood, but does not kill the animal. After death, the skin swells thick, which sells for a poor price. But the skin of a live animal is still thin, which has better economic value. On one side the blood is dripping from the neck, and on the other side a hole is made in stomach, from which air is pumped inside. This causes the body to swell, making it easier to peel the skin. After removing the leather, the animal is cut into four pieces: head, legs, body, and tail. The machines remove bones, and pack small pieces of meat into cans for shipping. Most of the importers are Gulf Countries.

Right now, there are 36,000 slaughterhouses (official number), of which 10 are highly automated, where daily 250,000 animals are hacked.At this time the population of buffalo s in the country is only 75 millions, and cows 200 millions. Alkabir alone is licensed to kill 600,000 a year, but Deonar (Mumbai) is licensed to kill 2,500,000 a year, in addition to 120,000 cows and 60,000 buffalo's. Kolkata located slaughterhouse kills 1,200,000 cows and buffalo's per year. These are just official numbers for a few large facilities.

We hereby request the Government of India and Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) to enforce a complete ban on slaughtering of cows and ban the Slaughtering houses Alkabir, Frigorifico allana , Hind Industries.

Thousands of bulls, cows and calves are brutally slaughtered everyday in this sacred land of India which include strong and healthy ones also.


Laws, rules and regulations are violated at every step during the process. Slaughter houses run by municipalities are meant for ending those animals' life whose survival is not good for them and who are totally not fit to survive. They are meant to give deep sleep to these animals, so that they can die peacefully.

Unfortunately, today municipalities under Government's control have converted them into meat factories killing innocent and healthy ones too with different procedure, so that they can earn better price for their blood, meat or beef.

Cows, bulls and calves are among those killed very brutally. Their painful journey starts right from pickup from the original point by butcher/transporter who carries them to the slaughter house. This is the first step of law violation. The animals are transported in cruelly overcrowded lorries. Many are dead, mangled and wounded although the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act specifies the space provided per cow should be no less than 2 square meters, and specifically, the national law allows no more than six cattle per lorry. These laws, too, are ignored More details.

By the time they are delivered at Slaughter House, they are mangled and wounded badly. Many of them die in transit. Probably this cruel procedure is done purposely, so that the Slaughter House people have excuse to declare them unfit for living and therefore certifying for slaughter.

One can not imagine what kind of pain our mother goes through at that time. It is shame on humanity that the whole life she feeds her milk in so many ways to us and one day she is handed over to slaughter houses for killing her and supplying her blood, bones, skin and beef etc. to various profit making companies for sake of money involving a huge amount of corruption.

Their incessant cries and screams displaying the intolerable pain, neglected by man-made laws, demands justice from the civilized human society that currently treats them no better than commodities More details. People who are involved in this business do not know cultural heritage of this Shri Krishna's sacred land. We can not in our life time repay the cost of milk fed to us by our first mother (who gave us birth) and second mother (our beloved cow).

Whole of life our cow mother feeds us as well as our new generation with her milk and once she becomes old and hence not able to produce milk she is sent to slaughter house for a painful end on the ground that she has become old and sick and is of no use now.

Can we do the same thing with our old mother who gave us birth. One would say No. Then why with cow mother. We are forgetting the message of love (prem) taught to us by Lord Shri Krishna, who is the true lover of cows. The pain does not end here.

Today our dairy industry on the other hand gives so much pain to cows and buffalos to get more and more milk using so called modern techniques. Find in detail how our cow mother and buffalos are being treated by today's dairy industry.

Every year we celebrate Janmashtmi and decorate our temples and do pooja but we forget our cow mother crying at slaughter houses seeking our help in saving her life. At one side, we are allowing our cows to be slaughtered and on the other side we are celebrating Lord Shri Krishna's birthday.

Do you think this is fair ? Every body knows that Lord Shri Krishna loved cows a lot. Lord Shri Krishna will truly accept our pooja on the day, when we totally stop killing cows.

There is a strong need to totally ban on cows, bulls and calves slaughter immediately repeat immediately in India. Now one may ask why only cow, why not goat, pig or chicken. Are they not killed brutally or they have no feeling of pain? It is a genuine question to be asked.

We all of us know that there is always a pain when you hurt anybody. So all of them feel pain. Stop killing and eating them. Just for the sake of taste, we are not supposed to brutally kill any body. Give everybody your love (PREM) which automatically brings non-violence (AHINSA). Be vegetarian and live happy and joyful life and let others live the same.

There has to be a start for any initiative. Be aware of some facts-more details. Let us start with a ban on slaughter of our sacred mother cow. Love all and let every one enjoy on our sacred land. Everyone has right to live happily.

It is our country. We select the ruling Government here with majority. A majority of people in India is always in favour of complete ban on slaughtering of cows, bulls and calves. Even if we look at the economic front in our country, we find that more than 70% of India's population depends directly or indirectly on cows more details. Its killing means a murder of our rural economy. Then all efforts of rural development are wasted.

Our rural economy depends upon cows. It is suggested that all these animals on their natural death be cremated on Electric Machines which will help us to fight global warming in future. They also have the right to a peaceful end. It is expected from our Government to make at least one Electric Cremation Machine in each district.

Instead of killing our mother cows, Government of India must encourage our dairy farms spread all over India involved in producing various products based on bye products like Cows' Urine, Dung(GOBAR) and milk, to increase their production.

Education on Gou Palan to farmers, villagers and Gou Palaks must be added in the programmes being already run for Praur Shiksha in the country by our Government. Government must listen to their problems and provide them better infrastructure, facilities and support so that this one of our most potential fields flourish. The cow owners who are financially poor need more attention to be supported in this respect, so that they are not forced to hand over their cows to be slaughtered.

Instead of making new Gaushala, people can buy land for Gochar for existing Gaushalas for feeding the cattle. This will be a big solution to natural feeding problem for the cows. So many people have already come forward this way. A lot more is still to be done.

Our farmers must switch to organic fertilizers based on cow dung (GOBAR). This can easily be done at their level itself. They can easily be trained to make organic fertilizer from GOBAR and cow urine. This way there will be an encouragement to our farmers to become GO PALAK instead of making so many new Gaushalas in villages resulting cow slaughter later on for one reason or the other.

Now one major question arises. How to care the cows when they are unable to produce milk or become old. Ours is the land of Lord Shri Krishna and we all are attached to emotional sentiments and our family responsibilities, where we do care our family till the end of life. If we educate ourselves and others to do SEVA of such cows, there are so many ways open.

Our initiative is important. Even at the stage when cow is unable to give milk, she is willing to give you lot i.e. valuable urin and gobar. A big potential is ahead based on cow's urine and gobar in our rural areas such as GOBAR Gas, GOBAR products like Dhoop Battis, Soap, Pesticides, Insecticides, Medicines, Organic Fertilizers based on urine and GOBAR etc. There is a need to take initiative by cow owners and our Government.

We also request our Sants who perform their PRAVACHANS all over the country to highlight importance of Cow and Cow SEVA in their PRAVACHANS and guide people to follow the path of LOVE (PREM) shown by Lord Shri Krishna on this sacred land.

The medicines made of Cow Urine, GOBAR and Ghee are amazing and very effective. We must encourage use of these medicines and take initiative to encourage dairy farms producing these medicines. You may view some of them here.

Before it is too late, join together now and make a loud appeal to stop slaughtering and imposing a complete ban on cow slaughter and exporting cows from our country. Make representation to our Government of India whom we have selected.

In your area, if you see any injustice to cows, please do not hesitate to immediately report to the concerned authorities.

Torture of Cows in India

While going along the national highways, we can see minimum 30 cows dumped in a lorry and taken miles together without a sip of water, food and care. They are so badly dumped that they are unable to move its head or legs. What a tragedy?

More they dump more economical for them for transportation of cows. If the roads are bad, still more struggle and suffocation happens to them which tortures all along the way. Not more than 5 or 6 should be loaded on a single lorry, which should be loaded with grass, water and other required items for them. But do we see such an arrangement done for these cows?

It is a totally intolerable gesture done by merciless men who are after money they get from these sacred cows. Their milk, flesh skin fetch lakhs and lakhs of rupees. But they are uncared and savaged like cheap creations. No! No it is intolerable. Slash this! Stop this! Let rules &regulations come forward to put an end to this disgraceful gesture.

Let us see what is happening in the slaughter houses and in streets to the cows! Oh! Oh! Horrible! Horrible! Disgraceful! Merciless!! Mind boggling scenes! Unbearable incorrigible tortures!

Are we Indians! Are we really true believer of non violence! Are we all stupid silent spectators of this violence to a very kind and very noble creature which looks after us and nurtures us from birth to end of our life?

Are we sensible! Are we not morally responsible for this butchering menace! Are we not responsible by not stopping this?

When a tiger is shot or hurt a big hue and cry is seen in parliament and in the press. When a lion is hunted even then a big scene is created amongst the elites. When a deer is hunted imprisonment and court orders are thrown on the individual who ever he may be.

But also when a sacred cow is tortured, butchered and battered no one raises a voice! No one issues notice! No one raises it in the parliament. No one writes it to the press. No one reports for legal action! No one is sensible enough to make a hue and cry for this noble cow! What a pity! What a disgrace! What a meaningless citizens? What an in insipid rules & regulations? What a pathetic blood shed activity it is, that nobody cares? Totally ignored murder! Totally lawless killing and torture!

From the 3 southern states alone, about 20 lakh cattle are taken to Kerala every year for slaughter, where Beef is 40% staple food and the products are exported.

**There are 7000+ unlicensed abattoirs in Kerala. The butchers for a fair price buy the cattle from calves, to milch animals including healthy bullocks.

These animals are tied by neck and made to walk without food or water for miles together, or transported in lorries with a single rope passing through their noses in tightly packed rows or bundled one over the other with their legs broken by iron road.

Every cow is killed in full view of others waiting in horror. An iron pipe is inserted deep into the throat followed by a sharp iron rod to cut off the wind pipe and food pipe, and when the cow is struggling for breath and blood is gushing, lime water is pumped into the stomach to gain extra meat weight. Then starts skinning while alive and cutting out other parts.
By killing one animal, the benefits they drive are; Hide :Rs. 3500 and above depending upon the animal

Beef : about 350 to 500 kgs @ Rs 70/kg

Blood and liver : sold to pharmaceutical companies

Bones : sold to sugar factories / pharmaceutical units

Bone marrow : sold to dog feed manufacturers

Fat: bought by detergent, oil, ghee manufactures

• Before every milking, the cows and buffaloes are injected with a hormone “Oxytocin”, which cause immense uterus pain.
• Nature has blessed the new calf with an enzyme “Rennet” to sustain in the initial days, but this is also sliced out from its stomach for manufacturing cheese.
• The cost of mutton and beef is Rs 70 and 250 respectively, and hence largely adulterated.
• Due to indiscriminate mass slaughtering over the years 64 out of 96 swadesi Indian breeds have been totally wiped out.
• The laws to prevent cruelty to animals are in force in the states, but are largely ignored.

Example: Transport of cattle for slaughter is prohibited. For any other purpose, only 6 animals should be transported in a lorry – but 30 to 40 are transported.

• Certain acts like twisting tails; testicles etc are non bailable offences punishable under sec. 428/429 of IPC.
• Before killing, the cow should be fed well, and a veterinarian should certify its health. Other cows should not see the killing. The cow’s eyes should be injected, or a high volt current should be given to desensitize the animal before killing, and no skinning or cutting should be done before the death is complete.
• On many occasions, even the cows given in “godhana” after the death of a Hindu is also sold ultimately to the butchers. At times, Cows offered to temples are also diverted for slaughter by the vested interests.
• Certain worms present in beef enter the human brain and proliferate and cause a dangerous conditions viz. Neuro cysticercosis’ which may prove fatal also.
• For manufacturing very expensive leather, a full pregnant cow is made to stand in a small cement tank, hot water is poured till tail level and some persons beat it with rods. Out of fear and gruesome treatment, the cow delivers and the fetus is pressed into the hot water and the skin of the calf is peeled out and processed in the same temperature. Also, the leather from 5 such cows side to be very soft is used in the upholstery of one expensive car.
• These cows and buffaloes produce milk their own calves like our own women. But, on most occasions, the calves are killed immediately after birth not only to rob the milk but also to capitalize on their skin and meat. Cows are extremely intelligent with a strong bondage for their calves. They can identify a beef-eater by smell when approached and feel uneasy while passing by a slaughter – house.

But, in our only land of Lord Sri Rama, Lord Krishna, the great Buddha, and SRI MADWACHARYA, even a few thousands of these cattle are not taken care of in their old age. The plight of the dry cows and the old cattle is miserable and are subjected to a lot of cruelty. Due to socio – economic reasons and ignorance, some sell these unproductive animals to butchers who in turn make hefty profits by selling their skin, meat, blood, liver and bones.

We, the real beneficiaries of the stolen milk, consciously are bound to protect these known mothers and help in proving a peaceful living.