Outcry Over Boatload of Animals

Great loss to human society
excerpt from Conversation with Dr. Theodore Knuepper, Vrindaban, November 6, 1976

Endangered Species

Save the Cow Hansadutta das

GUEST: There's an organization of people who are very concerned about people killing whales and baby seals. HANSADUTTA: But they themselves are killing cows and eating them. GUEST: A cow is raised specifically for the purpose of being murdered. Isn't that worse? Doesn't that make it a more heinous crime? HANSADUTTA: More heinous or less heinous, killing is killing. Suppose I kill your father or your small brother. What is the difference? Will you think, "It is better to kill my small brother"? more

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Prabhupada: Knowledge is knowledge. It may be Indian or American. It doesn't matter. Just like university. Some student from India goes to university in America to study higher knowledge. So that means that because he has gone to America, that is American knowledge. Knowledge is knowledge. So they should take on this background, but they are thinking that we are spoiling their children, brainwashing, controlling the mind, because against their principle, against their uncivilized way of life: meat-eating, illicit sex, intoxication. This is uncivilized life. Why a man, civilized man, shall eat meat? He can prepare so many nice things. He has learned how to produce food, food grains. When they are uncivilized—there is no food; they do not know how to grow food—they can eat animal in the jungle. But if after becoming civilized, if you are eating the same thing, then what is the difference between civilization and not civilization? You have learned. And especially in your America you can get all nice foodstuff. You have got sufficient grains, sufficient fruits, sufficient vegetables, sufficient... Everything sufficient. Why you should eat meat? This is uncivilized life. They could not give up the uncivilized way of life. And when you teach that "You become civilized. Give up this all nonsense. Don't eat." "Oh, it is brainwashing." You see? We are teaching them to become civilized, and they are taking it brainwashing.

Dr. Kneupper: Is that a teaching of the Bhagavad-gita, that one should not eat meat?

Prabhupada: Yes. Not... Meat-eating is third-class man's eating. It is not denied. Amedhya. But to give us our life, don't kill cows, because it gives you milk, very substantial food. If you want to eat meat, you can eat the hogs and dogs. But don't kill the cows. Krishi-go-rakshya-vanijyam [Bhagavad-gita 18.44]. This is special. It is not forbidding meat-eating, but don't eat cows' flesh. That is loss. It is a great loss to the human society. If they do not have sufficient milk production, then their brain will be dull. They will not be able to understand subtle things. Therefore it is better to avoid it. But if you cannot avoid, you can eat some inferior, useless animals. But don't touch the cows. This is Bhagavad-gita. Krishna says go-rakshya [protect the cows]. He never says, "Pig rakshya." You can eat pig. You can eat the goats, the lambs. There are so many small useless animals. They are eating dogs also. The Chinese people, they eat dogs. So you can eat dogs, hogs, so many other animals. But don't touch the cows. This is God's instruction. And they are advertising that "These Hindus, they are so fool, they are worshiping an animal, a cow." They do not know what is the economic value of this cow. In the beginning of your life you want milk immediately in the morning. And you are killing the mother? You are civilized? Do you think? You take milk up to the point of death. In South Africa, before killing the cows, they drag out milk and then send it. Milk is important, but because they are uncivilized, they do this. You take milk. Instead of killing, you prepare so many nice things from milk which is good for brain, good for intelligence. But they do not know because uncivilized. Foolish fourth-class men. So we are trying to bring them to become first-class men