Bryan Luu

Dr. Monteiro
Soc 100
Eastern University
Cow reverence has long since been a cultural norm in most of India
where there is a dense Hindu population. In some regions it is against the
law to slaughter cows. Even during times when food is scarce and people
are barely surviving with the resources they have, cows are still not used for
food. Essentially, spiritual values are prioritized over human life. Many
people, especially in the Western hemisphere, see this ideology as
nonsensical and inefficient. However, anthropologist Marvin Harris, argues
that cows play a much bigger role in Indian society than simply a religious
icon.
It is important to note that Indian society runs largely on agriculture as
a sustaining source of food. Since tractors and other modern farming tools
are lacking in India, cattle are the primary vehicle of working the field.
Farmers use oxen and bulls to plow, seed, and harvest their fields. If his
animal dies, the farmer essentially has no tools with which to farm. He
cannot eat; he cannot feed his family, and he cannot make any income.
Female cows are held to an even higher position than bulls because they can
produce more oxen or bulls. Though the cattle population is large, there are
still not enough cattle to service Indias 70 million farms. In addition to being
an agricultural need, cattle provide both fertilizer and energy fuel through
their dung. Indian cattle return 17% of the energy they consumer compared
to the meager 4% from US cattle. For this reason, nearly 100% of cattle
dung is recovered in India. Harris emphasizes that if India switched from
natural fertilizer to commercial fertilizer and coal, expenses would rise by a
huge factor. In this perspective, cows are important for the survival of the
Indian family through agriculture and provide fertilizer and fuel in an
affordable manner.
The reality of Indian peoples dependence on cows highlights why the
cow is sacred. Harris writes, Like all concepts of the sacred and profane,
this one affects the physical world; it defines the relationships that are
important for the maintenance of Indian society (p10). Dysfunction
concerning the cow also means dysfunction concerning the people. Not only
is the cow directly involved within Indian society, it plays a role in their
identity as a Hindu people as well. Hindu India was once invaded by a
Muslim nation in 800 A.D.; in efforts to separate themselves from the
invaders, they took pride and emphasis in their restriction of beef eating,
going against the culture of their invaders. Events like these illustrate how
the cow is significant in Indian individualism and how that further builds upon
its sacredness.
In terms of ethnocentrism and cultural relativism, this article is inclined
more to the side relativism than ethnocentrism. The author opens by stating
how most westerners view the Indian culture as illogical and

counterproductive. However, he rebukes that statement by explaining how it

is a surface level observation and fails to show true understanding of the
Indian way of life. At this point in the article, the author switches over to a
cultural relativistic lens in which he describes cows as how natives see them.
He describes native interactions with the cow as opposed to a foreigners.
Rather than a sense of counter-productivity, the reader begins to empathize
and sees reason for the sacredness of the cow. On the other hand, the
ethnocentric view of the Westerners portrays Indian society negatively to the
reader. Because ethnocentrism comes with a biasness that often prevent
deeper understandingas demonstrated in this articleit is clear why the
sociologist prefers to understand cultures based on their own unique terms
and experiences.