TEXT 7
gavo vrsa vatsatara
haridra-taila-rusitah
vicitra-dhatu-barhasrag-
vastra-kancana-malinah
SYNONYMS
gavahthe cows; vrsahthe bulls; vatsatarahthe calves; haridrawith a mixture of turmeric; tailaand oil; rusitahtheir entire bodies smeared; vicitradecorated varieties of; dhatucolored minerals; barha-srakpeacock-feather garlands; vastracloths; kancanagolden ornaments; malinahbeing decorated with garlands.
TRANSLATION
The cows, the bulls and the calves were thoroughly smeared with a mixture of turmeric and oil, mixed with varieties of minerals. Their heads were bedecked with peacock feathers, and they were garlanded and covered with cloth and golden ornaments.
PURPORT
The Supreme Personality of Godhead has instructed in Bhagavad-gita (18.44), krsi-go-raksya-vanijyam vaisya-karma-svabhavajam: Farming, cow protection and trade are the qualities of work for the vaisyas. Nanda Maharaja belonged to the vaisya community, the agriculturalist community. How to protect the cows and how rich this community was are explained in these verses. We can hardly imagine that cows, bulls and calves could be cared for so nicely and decorated so well with cloths and valuable golden ornaments. How happy they were. As described elsewhere in the Bhagavatam, during Maharaja Yudhisthiras time the cows were so happy that they used to muddy the pasturing ground with milk. This is Indian civilization. Yet in the same place, India, Bharata-varsa, how much people are suffering by giving up the Vedic way of life and not understanding the teachings of Bhagavad-gita.
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