Cow in Hinduism

Due to the multiple benefits from cattle, there are varying beliefs about cattle in societies and religions. In some regions, especially Nepal and most states of India, the slaughter of cattle is prohibited and their meat may be taboo.

Cattle are considered sacred in world religions such as Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, and others. Religions in ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, ancient Israel, ancient Rome, and ancient Germany held similar beliefs.

Majority of scholars explain the veneration for cows among Hindus in economic terms, which includes the importance of dairy in the diet, use of cow dung as fuel and fertilizer, and the importance that cattle have historically played in agriculture. Ancient texts such as Rig Veda, Puranas highlight the importance of the cattle. The scope, extent and status of cows throughout during ancient India is a subject of debate. According to D. N. Jha, cattle including cows were neither inviolable nor revered in the ancient times as they were later. A Gryhasutra recommends that beef be eaten by the mourners, after a funeral ceremony as a ritual rite of passage. In contrast, according to Marvin Harris, the Vedic literature is contradictory, with some suggesting ritual slaughter and meat consumption, while others suggesting a taboo on meat eating.

The Chandogya Upanishad (~ 800 BCE) mentions the ethical value of Ahimsa, or non-violence towards all beings. By mid 1st millennium BCE, all three major Indian religions – Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism – were championing non-violence as an ethical value, and something that impacted one's rebirth. According to Harris, by about 200 CE, food and feasting on animal slaughter were widely considered as a form of violence against life forms, and became a religious and social taboo.

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