Today I saw my first urban cow. Every travel program I’ve ever seen about India has made mention of the ubiquity of free-roaming cattle. Whether it’s a small village in Uttar Pradesh or a bustling metropolis like Mumbai, the novelty of unattended cows against the backdrop of modern life grabs the western imagination.
In Mumbai, all of the cows I saw were very much attended to. In fact, all of the cows I saw in the city limits were tied up, not roaming loose.
I asked about this.
Geeta’s daughter, Reshma, told me that temple attendants tie the cows outside the temple entrances, and devotees pay money to feed them as an act of worship.
It’s not that they are worshipping the cows, it should be understood, rather it is believed that by paying homage to the cow you are worshipping or praying to 1,000 deities – because the cow is sacred to all of them.
In this way, the cow becomes a conduit – a pathway for devotion to travel from the devout to the divine. And the cows don’t seem to mind.
