Five Other People I Worship

“Our dear friend Yashoda, your son sometimes comes to our houses before the milking of the cows and releases the calves, and when the master of the house becomes angry, your son merely smiles. Sometimes He devises some process by which He steals palatable curd, butter and milk, which He then eats and drinks. When the monkeys assemble, He divides it with them, and when the monkeys have their bellies so full that they won’t take more, He breaks the pots. Sometimes, if He gets no opportunity to steal butter or milk from a house, He will be angry at the householders, and for His revenge He will agitate the small children by pinching them. Then, when the children begin crying, Krishna will go away.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 10.8.29)

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वत्सान् मुञ्चन् क्‍वचिदसमये क्रोशसञ्जातहास:
स्तेयं स्वाद्वत्त्यथ दधिपय: कल्पितै: स्तेययोगै:
मर्कान् भोक्ष्यन् विभजति स चेन्नात्ति भाण्डं भिन्नत्ति
द्रव्यालाभे सगृहकुपितो यात्युपक्रोश्य तोकान्

vatsān muñcan kvacid asamaye krośa-sañjāta-hāsaḥ
steyaṁ svādv atty atha dadhi-payaḥ kalpitaiḥ steya-yogaiḥ
markān bhokṣyan vibhajati sa cen nātti bhāṇḍaṁ bhinnatti
dravyālābhe sagṛha-kupito yāty upakrośya tokān

It should be understood that the people offering the criticism are quite ignorant as it pertains to the subject matter. They simply have not been exposed to much of the culture. Or perhaps their exposure has been limited, and they have drawn faulty conclusions based on the experience. Nevertheless, the criticism is so common that the following has certainly been heard by many:

“Oh my goodness, those people are so weird. Do you see what they do in the name of religion? They literally worship cows. I am not kidding you. Those animals that end up on our dinner table. Not our cats or dogs, mind you. If anyone touched them, there would be hell to pay. But yeah, those cows that we round up by the millions to be bred, fed, and then annihilated in the system known as the slaughterhouse. It is those very animals that these people worship. They are so backwards in their thinking. Can you imagine doing such a thing? What kind of religion is that? They even think that the urine and dung produced by the cow somehow have medicinal properties. This is what you get when you come from a culture so stuck in the past. No wonder these people are flocking to the more developed places around the world.”

There are several approaches to dealing with the criticism. Ignore it. Refute it through references from sacred texts. Offer insults in return, such as sarcastically asking about the unknown whereabouts of the parents of many of the children in the more modern places, about how divorce is so common that no one thinks twice about it, and about how religion is a mere formality, followed through a rubberstamp from an institution that is otherwise known for its rampant corruption.

Another approach is to consider how the worship in Vedic culture is not exclusive to the cows. The cows have a place in the family equal to that of the children, who are always protected. The animals in custody are like dependents, but what might be taken as worship is merely appreciation. That appreciation extends to many other areas in life, as well.

1. The mother

“Yup, every single day. It does not matter what she says to me. Many times, I can tell that she is upset that I am so submissive. I will not alter my behavior. I remember everything she did for me when I was young. I will never forget it. Everyone should treat their mother with respect.”

2. The father

“Yes, we had our disagreements. We had some rocky moments. It is fine, for me, because I know that he was always there for me. Do you have any idea how much strength that gives a person? To know that there is someone always behind you, ready to lend support? I will do as much as I can now to repay the favor. No one had to teach this to me.”

“Ajamila repented his negligence in performing his duty to his wife, father, and mother. It is the duty of grown-up children to render service to their aged parents. This practice should be reintroduced into present society. Otherwise, what is the use of family life? Proper family life means that the husband should be protective, the wife chaste, and the children grateful to their father and mother. Children should think, ‘My father and mother gave me so much service. When I was unable to walk, they carried me. When I was unable to eat, they fed me. They gave me an education. They gave me life.’ A bona fide son thinks of ways to render service to his father and mother.” (Shrila Prabhupada, A Second Chance, Ch 17)

3. The teacher

“The Sanskrit word ‘guru’ specifically applies to three people: the mother, the father, and the spiritual guide. In general conversation, guru typically refers to the latter, to the teacher who instructs on matters of life and death, of the identity of the individual, and how to make the most of the human experience. This instruction has a value that cannot be measured. It is as adhokshaja as the person referred to as Adhokshaja.

“I worship the guru. Always. Every day. Yesterday, right now, and tomorrow. There is no way to repay the favors, so all I can do is try to pay it forward. In other words, offer the same words of wisdom to others. Explain the eternal truths of sanatana-dharma to those who are struggling, who have lost their way, who are suffering. I will try to explain those truths in a way that people can understand. This is the least I can do to honor my guru.”

4. The controllers of nature

“This tradition dates back to the beginning of time, as we know it. We are limited in our understanding, as time is actually infinite in both directions. We follow yajna. This is the way to please the controllers of nature. You think we are crazy to honor people that we cannot see. You think we are merely making up this idea of gods, or devas, but I think it is mythology to think that the seed randomly produces fruit. It cannot be chance that configured the seed to produce exactly to specification, in a repeat manner, across thousands of years. We worship the devas because we need them; they are worthy of respect.”

अन्नाद् भवन्ति भूतानि
पर्जन्याद् अन्न-सम्भवः
यज्ञाद् भवति पर्जन्यो
यज्ञः कर्म-समुद्भवः

annād bhavanti bhūtāni
parjanyād anna-sambhavaḥ
yajñād bhavati parjanyo
yajñaḥ karma-samudbhavaḥ

“All living bodies subsist on food grains, which are produced from rain. Rains are produced by performance of yajna [sacrifice], and yajna is born of prescribed duties.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 3.14)

5. The butter thief

“You tell us to fear God. We should be in awe of His amazing power. We should be on the lookout for His wrath. We should not raise His ire, stoke the fire of vengeance with our brazen dismissal of morality and virtue. That is fine and good, but we worship God as the greatest thief of all. We worship someone who does more than sit back and watch from the sidelines.

“Rather, He is kind enough to interfere in the lives of His greatest supporters. While they are preoccupied with household affairs, He intrudes. He enters homes without invitation, sneaks into the storerooms, and takes as much butter as He wants. He offers the excess to monkeys. If things don’t go according to plan, He causes more trouble by pinching babies and leaving a mess. He does all this without shame. We worship Him for this kindness, for this love, and for this attention. We hope that He may intrude in every future lifetime that we experience.”

In Closing:

Too preoccupied to see,
But taking initiative does He.

Breaking through storeroom’s seal,
For precious butter to steal.

Perhaps then to monkeys giving,
Most famous bandit here living.

The loving mothers subtly complain,
But cherishing vision all the same.