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From: unni@ucla-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.philosophy
Subject: re: genetic research and hindus
Message-ID: <579@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 26-Jul-84 19:50:45 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucla-cs.579
Posted: Thu Jul 26 19:50:45 1984
Date-Received: Sat, 28-Jul-84 21:42:09 EDT
Organization: UCLA CS Dept.
Lines: 37


>
>     1) If the cow is dead- it no longer produces milk.
>
>     2) If the people were truely starving, they would eat the cow
>          (if available)
>
>     3) Most of the starving children in India are in the big cities.
>
>

George will be surprised to know the following :

-  Most cows that ROAM the streets in India do not produce milk.
-  From personal experience, there are HALF-starved kids all over India,
   particularly the big cities.
_  There are truly starving people in India.
_  They still would not eat the cows.

To an Indian, it is all very simple.  Cows are not food, any more than you
would consider cats and dogs food out here.  Although materially rather 
backward in achievement, people in India are socially and spiritually
quite developed. Eating a cow would be an enormous social disgrace.  People
would rather starve than suffer such social outrage and ( possible ) 
ostracism.  However, there is a significant burden of spiritual guilt
also attached to this act.  And that would harm your chances in the next
life ( did I mention reincarnation too ? ).  People would rather not eat
than commit such a sin.

Sometimes development is not visible at the material level.



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unni@ucla-locus.arpa