Why only cows, why not buffaloes or goats or any other animal whose milk is edible for humans?
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1Are you asking for cows or you are asking why cows milk is considered sacred for gods?– Mr. AlienAug 3, 2014 at 18:04
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1@user95092 The simplest reason is that growing up, he and his (adopted) family were cowherds, but it may also be related to cows being sacred in Hinduism.– Keshav Srinivasan ♦Aug 3, 2014 at 18:42
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Lord Krishna was call Gopal in his childhood, he grew up at Gokuldham...Gopal: the protector of cows and Gokul: the land of cows...– ShamayetaAug 5, 2014 at 2:26
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1@KeshavSrinivasan, it is definitely related to cows being sacred. All 33 koti devatas reside in body of cow (native indian breed, not random hybrid jersey cows). cows' milk is necessary to make ghee, which is necessary to do yagna, which is necessary for rain, which is necessary for life/prosperity. cows are satvik, and drinking their milk (only after it's own calf has been duly fed, not modern day milk-machine-factories with artificial impregnations) makes us satvik.– marSep 16, 2017 at 18:13
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Cows dung is sued for cooking and yagyas also.. its urine is used in making of panchakavia.. cow dung and urine have sri lakshmis vishesha sannidhana.. and all as mentioned by ram they have all the devatas in the body.. the whole world depend on cows milk only.– Prasanna RSep 27, 2020 at 14:36
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2 Answers
To understand this we need to understand the importance of Cows in Hinduism. The following is an excerpt from the book, Aghora: At the left hand of God,
The cow is a perfect mother. She has four teats: one for her calf, one for guests including birds and animals, one for use in rituals and one for her master. The milk is automatically divided into four equal portions; everyone is provided for. And the cow is passionately devoted to her calf, just as a real mother must be to her child. Sometimes the mere sight of the calf makes milk flow from cow's udder; not drip -- flow...
and if the calf dies the cow refuses to give milk -- not like our water buffaloes who can be tricked with the head of a calf on stick. The buffalo is the symbol of Tamas, stupidity, dullness; the cow is pure Sattva, mental brightness...
Not just buffaloes, even your western cows will give milk whether or not the calf is still alive... What is so great about giving milk? All animals do it. The greatness of out Indian cows is that they give milk only out of an outpouring of love.That is the value of cow's milk. Won't a little of that love come through into the milk? It must.That emotion separates cows from other animals...
We are not worshipping the hide, hooves or the tail; we worship the essence...
Lord Krishna was called Gopala when he was a baby. Gopala literally means "protector of cows". There are many esoteric meaning to this word, but even the obvious meaning is beautiful. Gopala was such a lovable little baby that all the cows in the vicinity loved him more than they loved their own calves.
So, basically the answer to the significance of Cows to Krishna, in particular and Hinduism, in general is what is mentioned in the preceding excerpts.
answered Aug 3, 2014 at 17:36
As we know from history that cows were among the very first animals to be domesticated by men about 9000 BCE and for a long time cows were the major source of milk and many other milk related products for humans. They also give us many other beneficial things. Besides cows are very peaceful, docile and innocent creatures. Cows are so docile and peaceful that you can literally leave a baby with a cow for few hours and baby will be safe. Same cannot be said about any other animal. And because Hinduism itself is very old and its origin date back to tens of thousands of years and Krishna's age was around 5,000 years ago. Even at that time cows were major source of milk. So it is really very little we can do to treat cows with respect. This is the message Krishna is giving to us.
