A little thought upon a piece of research that I had done a couple of years ago regarding the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857. And since it's August, there is no better time than this to cast it.
The English anthem either says "God save the Queen" or "Jesus, Kill the Cow!" We have all learned through the ages that Jesus never preached to subdue other religions in the name of slaughtering innocent creatures!
During the 'First War of Independence in India', the Britishers enforced upon us the need to use Enfield Pattern 1853 rifle-musket that was sophisticated and in tune with the latest trends. However, the cartridges were greased with either pig fat or beef tallow that hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindus and Muslims in India. When the Indian Soldiers refused to use the rifles, there was wide-spread agitation and Mangal Pandey was the first was break out in the open. Soon it spread to other parts of the country like a wildfire and millions of people were killed due to the very reason of rebelling against using such cartridges thus upholding their religious rights. Later the British resented any violence on their part and stated that they'd asked the Indian Soldiers that opposed to using the Cartridges made of beef and pork by asking them to replace with vegetable oil that they could grow on their own if they liked. I thought Jesus said Education and Scientific Progress with Industralisation should make for Peace, Prosperity and Wealth. Being a more educated and technogically forward nation, I am sure they knew of all the techniques to cartridge making - why kill the cow then?
Jesus was born in a manger, Krishna was a cowherd.
Why not employ a thousand famers into producing more vegetable oil? Why kill the cow that symbolises innocence, purity and milk-giving capacity? Shouldn't the educated and industralised set examples for the world to follow? Why kill the cow at the cost of inexpensive, abundant and highly-employable vegetable oil that grows so freely on the fertile Indian fields?
India is an agricultural economy. Majority of our economy survives and depends on agriculture that forms a bulk of our exports also. It took them too long to realise that India had abundant cows and milk-giving capacity that could not be harnessed, so better kill the farmer. Better not get into vegetable oils, because the cows need to be taught a lesson anyway. So what did the poor farmers do, my friend?
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