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Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Krsihna is Kamadenu among The Cows


Courtesy Gajanan Krishna Maharaj ( Bhagyanagar)
Lord Krishna states in Srimad Bhagavad-Gita: chapter 10, verse 28 dhenunam asmi kamadhuk
dhenunam-among cows, asmi-I am, kamadhuk-the wish fulfilling cow
Among cows I am the wish fulfilling cow.

In this verse Lord Krishna reveals that among cows He is manifested as the kamadhuk meaning kamadhenu the original wish fulfilling cows known as the surabhi cows. Just who and what are the surabhi cows and how thesurabhi cows attained such an elevated and exalted position that they are able to represent a portion of the energy of the supreme Lord Krishna will be revealed in the following information given in the Anusasana Parva of the Mahabharata by Krishna Dvaipayana Vyasa.

The surabhi cow descended from the spiritual worlds and manifested herself in the heavenly spheres from the aroma of celestial nectar for the benefit of all created beings. The direct descendants of the surabhi cows are the sacred cows from the continent India which are uniquely distinguished the same as the surabhi by the beautiful hump on their backs and the wonderfully soft folds of skin under their necks. Since all cows in existence in the world today are factual descendants of the sacred cows of India they are all holy as well and should always be lovingly cared for and protected with the highest esteem and greatest respect. One should never cause harm to cows in any way even in a dream and one should never ever even think of eating the flesh of cows as there is no action more sinful in all of creation then cow killing.

Cows are the mothers of all creatures. Cows are verily the mothers of the 33 crores of demigods that administrate creation in the material existence throughout all the universes. Cows are the goddesses of the gods and the refuge of all auspiciousness. Cows bestow every kind of happiness and for these reason they always are worshippable. Cows are the support of all the worlds for by their milk they nourish terrestrials beings and by their ghee offered in sacrifice they nourish the denziens of the celestial realms. Nothing superior to cows.

A cow should not be owned by one who is a killer of cows or a seller to killers of cows, by one who is unrighteous, by one who is sinful, by one who is untruthful in speech, and by one who is outside of the Vedic culture nor should cows ever be given to one such as these. Gifts of cows should be made after ascertaining and determining the qualification of the receiver. Cows should never be given unto those whose residence they are likely to suffer from fire or sun. Cows should always be given away accompanied by their calves. Those cows who have been rescued from situations of distress or have been received from humble farmers unable to continue to take care of them properly are considered to be most auspicious.

One should never show disrepect for cows in any way nor should one feel any repugnance towards the urine and dung of a cow because these things are also pure. When cows are grazing or laying down relaxing one should never disturb or annoy them in any way. Cows should never be killed in any type of sacrifice or slaughtered in any way for food as the killing of cows constitutes the most heinous of all sins in existence.

Cows are the foremost of all creatures in all the worlds. It is from cows that the means for sustaining the worlds has established. Cows are auspicious and sacred and the bequeathers of every blessing. Cows benefit humans with milk, yoghurt, cheese, butter and ghee. The Vedas have stated that the milk of a cow is equivalent to ambrosial nectar and that ghee derived from cows milk is the best of all libations poured onto the sacred fires of brahmins.

Cows of various kinds and diverse colors are always worshippable. They are the foremost of all creatures existing in all of creation. Morning and evening one should bow ones head in reverence to cows. One should never show any disregard to cows in any way but should always show them respect. When one awakes in the morning one should always remember cows. Before falling to sleep at night one should always remember cows. Cows are always auspicious. Cows are also fragrant. The wonderful scent of the amytis agallochum emantes from out of their sacred bodies.

Cows are the great refuge of all creatures. Cows constitute the greatest source of blessings for all creatures. Cows are the past. Cows are the future. Cows are the source of evolution and eternal growth. Cows are the root of prosperity. Whatever is given to cows always produces good fortune and is never in vain. It is solely and exclusively from the ghee of cows that the sacred rituals prescribed and authorised in the Vedas are empowered and able to be performed. Without the presence of cows ghee there is no possibiity of performing sacred rituals that will gratify the 33 million demigods who are responsible for universal management. Neither will the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna be pleased and satisfied. Ghee comes exclusively only from cows from whom flow offerings of milk and milk products. Thus cows verily establish the purity of all sacred rituals and constitute the very essence of performing all sacred activities being the very source of sacred activities.

Cows represent sacred acts themselves and without cows there can be no performance of any sacred act. This is the pure, sublime and supremely exalted position and pre-eminence of cows above all creatures in all the worlds. One who knows the pre-eminence of cows and the selfless service cows render to all creatures and does not protect them affectionately is a sinner and offender and their destination is certainly hell. Cows are equal to the rays of the sun that travel through the universe giving light, warmth and nourishment.

In previous yugas the Vedic injunction was given jiyaite pare yadi tabe mare prani veda-purane ache hena ajna vanethat means in the Vedic scriptures known as Puranas there are injunctions declaring that one can take the life of a living being only if they are able to revive it back to life again by chanting Vedic mantras. But we find that this injunction has been terminated in todays age of kali yuga by the Brahma-Vaivarta Purana where it is stated that in the present age of kali yuga it is forbidden to kill cows under any circumstances.

Cows are equivalent to our mothers for when the mothers milk has dried up the cow gives her milk unselfishly to noursih and strengthen us. How can one who has ever drunk cows milk justify the killing and eating of such a mother as the sacred cow. One should never even in one's mind do injury to a cow or ever think of harming cows as well as bulls. One should show all respect and compassion for cows and sincere reverence should be offered unto them all without reservation.

Those who fail to give cows reverence and protection and choose to foolishly oppose and whimsically ignore the injunctions of the Vedic scriptures by selling a cow for slaughter, by killing a cow, by eating cows flesh and by permittings the slaughter of cows will all rot in the darkest regions of hell for as many thousands of years as there are hairs on the body of each cow slain. There is no atonement for the killing of a cow.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

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?”

Sunday, November 28, 2010

The Cow


COW


The friendly cow all red and white,
I love with all my heart:
She gives me cream with all her might,
To eat with apple-tart.

She wanders lowing here and there,
And yet she cannot stray,
All in the pleasant open air,
The pleasant light of day;

And blown by all the winds that pass
And wet with all the showers,
She walks among the meadow grass
And eats the meadow flowers.

Talking Picture

When will this Dharma Bhoomi, Deva Bhoomi be free from such a demoniac activities!! Krishna please help!!!!

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

“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.

Stop Slaughter of Holy Cow on Bakri-Eid in the Name of Religion


Article submitted by Sree Mahesh Agarwal, President A.P.Goushalala Federation

Cow is highly sacred animals to Indians. They worship cow along with other God Goddess equally. But to violate the religious feelings of Hindus a large number of Cows & Calves are being slaughtered on Bakri-Eid by Muslim community. No religious provision is there in “Islam” or “Quaran” regarding the slaughter of Cows on Bakri-Eid. The plea is categorically rejected by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in a case of state of West Bengal v/s. Ashutosh Lahiri and others. In this case one another case was also quoted M. H. Qureshi & others in the state of Bihar, (A.I.R. 1958 Sec. 731) in which the Hon’ble Court has clearly ruled that slaughter of Cows on Bakri -Eid day cannot be considered to be a part of essential religious practice and that is the reason why protection of Article 25 is not available for enabling slaughtering of cows on Bakri-Eid day.

Even though it is not so essential for Muslims sacrificing Cows, they are being slaughtered on Bakri-Eid day only with a view to damage the sensitive religious feelings of Hindus. Not only a Bakri-Eid but also on other days also large number of Cows and calves are being slaughtered while violating the (i) A.P. Prohibition of Cow Slaughter and Animal Preservation Act, 1977 (ii) PCA Act 1960, (iii) A.P. Motor Vehicle Rules.

At the time of slaughtering the Cows no animal slaughter rules were followed. They were slaughtered in a mob at a time and on same place though they are animals. They also feel pain, stress, heat cold, thirst, hunger.

Animal Welfare Organization in A.P. was working hard for the strict implementation of the above mentioned Act. Members of various Animal Welfare Organisation were helping the police department by providing information about the illegal transportation and slaughter of Cows.

Unfortunately, nobody came forward to complaint regarding the illegal slaughtering of Cow. If any one complained to any concerned authorities, the authorities were not taking any action and said that they will face religious problems from the Muslims and majority of these officials have no knowledge of PCA Act 1960 & their responsibilities.

Except taking temporary preventive actions on Bakri-Eid, slaughtering of Cows is not successfully resisted, but so many other problems are arising.

Now it is suggested to take hard preventive actions at least 15 days before the Bakri- Eid. Then no religious problems will arise and law and order may not be damaged. In this connection Director General of Police, District Collectors, Secretary, Road Transport Authority, Director Animal Husbandry were contacted but of no use.

Director General of Police issued a circular asking all the police station to form teams for stopping of cow slaughter but not a single case has been booked in this regard since the issue of circular.

Not only on Bakri-Eid in regular days also there are thousands of cow slaughter in and around Hyderabad.

We are of strong opinion that nearly 25000 cows will be slaughtered only on Bakri-Eid in Hyderabad itself.

If the concerned authorities implement the preventive measures at least 15 days before the Bakri-Eid, slaughtering of cow can be prevented peacefully and successfully. Animals markets shall be made close down for 15 days up to Bakri -Eid.

If anybody finds anybody slaughtering cow or its progeny they can contact Mr. Mahesh Agarwal, President A.P.Goshala Federation on 9394005600 or mail him on police4animals@gmail.com

Monday, November 15, 2010

What does Your Milk Contain? Is it Karma Free?


Veil: (Veal is the meat of young cattle (calves). Though veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, most veal comes from male calves of dairy cattle breeds. Veal has a tender texture.)

Every time we buy milk from unprotected cows we are helping and financing the maintenance of the dairy industry which is based on exploitation and abuse against the defenseless animals. And all the process is executed on an unethical groun...d and disregards any respect for animal life.
So that milk is all tinged with high degree of violence.

Explanation:
In order for a dairy cow to produce milk, she has to keep having babies. When the cows have female calves, they’re likely to grow up to be dairy cows like their mom. When the cows have male calves though, many of them are taken away from ...their moms right after they are born to be raised as veal.
These babies are put in tiny wooden stalls all by themselves. They’re chained at the neck so they can’t turn around or move more than a step forward or backward. All they can do is stand up and lie down. This is done so that they don’t develop muscles so that their meat stays very tender. Twice a day they are given some liquid food. This food contains chemicals that will help the babies survive under these awful conditions. Except for feeding time, they are all alone. This is very hard on babies who are meant to be in a herd with their moms, aunts, cousins, etc. These babies never get to play or graze or feel the sunshine of their backs or be with their mothers. They spend their entire lives in the dark in little stalls until they’re big enough to be killed and turned into veal – usually around 16 weeks old (about 4 months).

Next time you buy your milk Pl. make sure that the cows, Bulls & the calves are protected for life. For such supply in Hyderabad and Secunderabad In Andhra Pradesh, India Pl. contact us at goumata@gmail.com