Elements of Hindu Iconography v1.c7.33

v1.c7.33

Cow. The pious Hindu regards the cow with the reverence due to a divine being; and to him she is as dear as a goddess-mother. Worship is offered to her by some Hindus regularly on all Fridays. On certain important occasions, she is specially worshipped, as for instance, on the day following the Makara-saṅkrānti in South India. In North India, one often sees cows being freely fed in front of temples by visitors going there to worship. Every cow is to the pious Hindu an *avatāra* of Kāmadhēnu, the mythical all-bestowing cow of the god Indra.