Hearing the term “Cow Protection” people typically have one of two reactions. Some think protection is for endangered species and since there are lots of cows, it’s better to concentrate on the giant panda or the blue whale. Others think it may be some pagan worship of animals, the “sacred cow” image.

The actual philosophical reason for cow protection is very simple. First of all, all living entities should be protected from slaughter and other violence at the hands of humans. In the Vedic tradition, cows are worshipped as mothers. According to the scriptures, there are seven mothers: atma-mata (one’s own mother) guroh patni (the wife of one’s teacher) brahmani (the wife of a brahmana) raja-patnika (the wife of the king) dhenu (the cow) dhatri (the nurse) and prithvi (the Earth) are all considered mothers. Just as a child feeds on the breast milk of the mother, human society takes milk from the cow. The bull is also considered the father of human society because just as the father earns to feed the children, the bull tills the earth to produce food grains. So, to kill cows means to end the human civilization.

A civilized man is, therefore, expected to give all protection to the bulls and cows. But, today, people are becoming more and more uncivilized by neglecting such instructions and they are encouraging cow killing. In Rig Veda it is said: gobhih prinita matsaram: one who is desirous of killing the cow is in the grossest ignorance. Instead of killing the cow and eating its flesh, civilized men must subsist on various milk and agricultural products.

Here are some ways to protect cows:

1. Target the school curriculum books- In school books, we tell kids to adopt a healthy lifestyle. We put stress on good diet and regular exercise. How about telling the kids the economic and environmental costs the country has to pay for eating meat and the benefits of not eating it? Most of the lifestyle-related ailments have meat eating as the root cause. People who stick to a vegetarian diet suffer less from ailments like heart problems, hypertension, kidney infections, diabetes, obesity, and liver problems.

2. Encourage books and movies on cows- The Americans have zillions of books and movies on animals they love. They have movies on dogs, horses, lions and even dolphins. The Black Beauty is world famous. Munshi Premchand wrote Heera aur Moti -the story of two oxen who loved their owner and wouldn’t part with him. We should have more such stories.

3. Have cow parks in the cities- Have designated city parks where stray cows can go. Residents and kids should be encouraged to visit these parks and feed the cows.

4. Create cow gift shelters- Gifting a cow can be a cumbersome undertaking. There’s a nice park in Delhi where you can dedicate a tree to your loved one’s memory, or gift the tree for a birthday. You can pay the park caretakers to take care of the tree and people can visit their tree whenever they want to.

The same concept can be applied on cows. When a cow is gifted, the person who receives the cow doesn’t have to take the animal home. He or she can keep the animal in a shelter. For a monthly fee or a one-time fee, the cow can be kept in the shelter and people can visit their cow whenever they want to.

5. Start an “Adopt a Cow Campaign”- It’s like the gift concept, bit in order to take care of a cow there’s no need to wait for someone to gift it to you. One can adopt a stray cow and then that cow can be put in a shelter.