Sri Krishna and the Cows

What To Tell Your Child About Cows

Among English-educated Hindus, beef eating is fast becoming the norm. How can a child who has never been told stories of Bhagavan Krishna think fondly of cows?

On the occasion of Janmashtami, talk about Shri Krishna and the cows to your children. Some resources to get started: 

1. Here is a cartoon for the littlest ones about how Krishna and Balarama took care of the wish-fulfilling cow Kamadhenu. In the Bhagavad-Gita chapter 10, verse 28, Sri Krishna says that among all cows, he is the Kamadhenu.

2. Story of Bahula-matha, the cow that is always shown with Shri Krishna.

3. Visit gaushalas and give children a hands-on, close-up experience of cows. Kids naturally love animals. While modern children see dogs and cats all around as pets, make it a point to take them to visit gaushalas so they can see cows and calves too. If you live in India, many gaushalas welcome kids even to celebrate their birthdays amidst natural surroundings. Look at this video of the Art of Living gaushala in Bengaluru. If you live in the USA, Texas has a gaushala you can visit as a family. Here is the link to an article about the Texas gaushala.

4. Watch the beautiful Sanskrit movie Punyakoti with your children. This movie captures ancient India with easy Sanskrit dialogues, stunning colors, and beautiful music. It will appeal to kids of all ages. Punyakoti is another name of Bahula Matha.

5. In contrast to the cruel practice of commercial dairy farming popularised initially in western countries, there is a unique natural habitat for cows in Gujarat. Please read about it and discuss with your child what cows mean to the Hindu civilization.

6. Children will be interested in knowing about the International Society for Cow Protection (ISCOWP).  Read about it here.

A child who has seen cows and calves, and has been raised on stories of Shri Krishna, will develop a sensitivity for this most gentle of all creatures, the cow. Impress upon your children that a true Hindu never eats cow meat because we consider the cow as gau-matha, the mother who feeds us.