The importance of Cow in Hindu Vedic Culture
History and Importance of Cow 1) India has 150 million cows, each of them giving an average of less than 200 litres of milk per year. If they could be fed and looked after, they can give 11,000 litres, as Israeli cows do. 2) The cow was elevated to divinity in the Rig Veda. In Book VI, Hymn XXVIII attributed to Rishi Bhardwaja extols the virtue of the cow. In Atharva Veda (Book X, Hymn X), the cow is formally designated as Vishnu, and `all that the Sun surveys'. 3) The cow, according to the Vedas, provides four products for human use: (i) Godugdha (cow milk) : As per Ayurveda, cow milk has fat, carbohydrates, minerals and Vitamin B, and even a capacity for body resistance to radiation and for regenerating brain cells. (ii) Goghruta (ghee) : The best ghee, it is, as per Ayurveda useful in many disorders. In yajna, it improves the air's oxygen level. (iii) Gomutra (urine) : Eight types of urine are used for medicinal purpose nowada...