cow protection in ISKCON

[Guest guest]

Dear Garuda,

Hare Krsna, All Glories to Srila Prabhupada,

I just read your letter tonight and thought I was going to bed shortly but I

gotta let you in on some things..

And there is alot of things but I don't think I'll cover it all in one

letter. I couldn't cover it in 30 letters. As a matter of fact I could over

flood you with stuff in reference to this letter you sent to CHAKRA.

I live at one of those farms that take in money from the city dwellers.

Now I completely don't see any real preaching in this way and don't agree

with this system as for a dependant survival. If you were to tell other

farmers to stop killing their cows (which is the main cause of so much kaos)

They might retort: " well I would have to also get a fund from city dwellers

to keep my cows fed and protected".

This is what they would see from an off stand point. You would have to give

them a new life style and system in dealing with the cows so that they can

get the real picture at least for economics; then Karma and ect.. So much to

preach.

SOOOO, its best to take the huge enthusiasm that you so posses and put it to

use in becomming an example in showing this life style of depending on the

cows and Oxen which is the focal point of Srila Prabhupadas teachings and

the same to KRSNA who is residing in the everlasting pastimes on THE PLANET

of THE COWS ( not mules)....

When you make it back to GODHEAD you will be surrounded by cows..

THis is Krsna's main concern and the Vedic scriptures scream for protection

of the Cows and the Bulls.

I know you may have become kindled to use of mules, which can grow just as

many things as oxen but this is not preaching anything excecpt draught

farming. You can also use Water buffalo and asses and horses, Giraffs and

many other animals but this is not the object of our mission; even though it

may not be in full flowing effect right now. I've encountered some number of

individuals whom just point bad fingers on whats going on instead of helping

the situation. I need you.. I need your help to change this crap and right

now I'm draggin alone thus far..

Its not the OXens fault that they are not engaged. And we, the aspiring

devotees are the ones who populate the farms and can engage them. This is

our fault. There are no individuals hardly interested in engaging the oxen

that reside on the various North American ((usa-matterialist; motor car

civilization)) farms.

This is a revolution!!! I need individuals like yourself to help me fight to

fullfill Srila Prabhupadas mission..

 

 

Now,, Let me tell you a little about OXen..

I know Varshana Maharaj works with horses. Actualy there are still some of

his harness parts here. (Kind of ragedy though..)

 

No disrespect to Mules, they are very strong, much stronger than horses.

But I can show you Oxen that will pull your mules backwards.

Have you ever seen 2 mules head butting eachother and shoving one another

around for fun?

Have you ever seen a 3000 pound Mule?

It sounds that you've never seen anything or heard anything about oxen

farming.

For start in my experience plowing takes far greater power to pull than it

does to pull a sickle bar mower. If you have different experience then there

is something wrong with your mower..

The #6,#7,9, and so on are just model numbers for the mowers in reference to

what years they were produced. you will notice that the lower numbers are

the older mowers.

Now because some breeds of oxen walk much slower than horses they have to

pull a different gear ratio. There are sickle bar mowers which have stamped

below the model number " HIGH GEAR " ; These are the mowers that many oxen

pull which you doubted and with only one person driving the oxen while

riding on the mower.( which you thought could'nt be done.

I have many pictures that I will have to send you. I also use oxen with

these mowers alone, along with many devotees and karmis.

The only reason for leading by the nose is when the oxen are not trained,

you just drag there nose around. Anyone would follow ther nose in that

situation.

I have vidios of oxen doing many tasks and also many pictures.

I have a vidio of two matajis driving oxen on their first day. Of course the

team was already trained. I tell you, your realy in the dark about oxen.

It may be true about Krsna and the goats but I never herd such a thing.

Actualy it has been long known that goats not only eat thorny bushes but

also everything and all the way down to the nub and is the major cause of

the arid condition of south east Asia. Not to mention stool from sheep and

goats if accidentaly consumed by cows will make them extremly sick. They

have small pebble type stool and could easily be ingested by accident.

 

Ox power is realy popular and has been for many generations of families

living in the NE of the US. There are many publications that come out

monthly about oxen, horses and mules doing logging and farming.

There is nothing that I'm aware of that an Ox can't do that any mule or

horse can do. But I do know of some things that an Ox can do nuturaly that a

horse or mule cannot with out special equipment or just don't..

One is working wet soil.. there feet are not equipt for this.

You will never see a mule working a rice patty.

And you'll never see a mule survive the heat that some oxen can handle.

just look at the Zebu..

As well some animals cannot handle the sevier cold. look at a pair of high

landers.

I'm just trying to let you in on some things that it seems you are unaware

of and also took a position of being unfavorable twards oxen by saying that

they are incapable which is completely wrong 108%..

 

So this is our mission, is to protect cows and oxen, not mules and horses.

I'm begging you..

 

If you want to see the reason for some neglect on the part of the farm

projects not prospering or the non-engagement of the Oxen, this is our

faults only.. We are not mature enough as a non- matteralist movement as

Srila Prabhupada has instructed.--- You must see the history of things to

point your finger and when you search back you will see a different

prospective.

If you are only taking care of your team of OXen or mules, its very easy to

produce the ammount of hay for the winter needed.

But to try to produce hay for 100 cows with only one team is completely

impossible. Iscowp, Balabhadra Prabhu can easily produce enough hay for his

own oxen and cows, but he has also taken on the responsibility of the

temples cows because of lack of man power in the temple for the herds. So

for this reason he accepts donation and hay from the outside, which is

completely understandable and a must. Just as well I except donation ( which

I'm not into) to protect the industrial size herd on this farm. I don't

though buy the hay, which was done prior, but I use it to buy bale string

and gas and maintenance for the tractors and equipment to produce our own

hay. This year I will produce our own grain. I also had a /No machine/ ox

power/ and hand power garden which will triple in size this year. And soley

for the purpose of feeding the village and No business. I have sold some

veggies to house holders to cover the cost of the seeds and am saving seeds

as I learn the plants seeding processes. "Industrial", breeds more

industrial and brings disease.

better to lose the this which is the program here. NEED hands who are

compitent and ready to make the change, for real, all the way..

 

Its not OX power that has failed us; Its we that have failed to fully

implement OX power...

There are many historys of different projects to look at. In the big picture

you will see the projects climbing in there acheivments twards maturity,

some faster and some slower.. And then you will see a sudden fall of the

whole movement and its no mistery. Srila Prabhupada left..

No one to guide anymore is the deep thought from within so many.

And loss of confidence for us the conditioned Westerners, to carry on in the

same powerful way. But actualy Prabhupada left knowing what would happen, so

don't think for even a minute that this is not the case.

This is how we will mature.. As Prabhupada said: "Your love for me will be

shown by how you cooperate with eachother..."

 

You know its much easier to place a yoke on the ox and just go. You have to

put so many harnesses on the horses and its very costly.

If you learn the art of yoke carving you can do it practicaly and teach the

tradtion to the generations to come. We must give speciial protection for

the cows and Oxen, it says nowhere about any other animals. If you don't

find a way to engage them you will find a way to kill them..

This farm is in the prime country land of the Amish. There used to be open

house here and they and other local farmers would come and see the ox

deminstrations and other things on the farm. but their main concern was the

OXen.. it is 10 or 12 years now since that era and I still hear the Amish

talk about the Oxen here. We had them in Awe from whatching how the oxen

were trained so well. I had an Amish man talk my ear off about the oxen when

he reconized where I was from..

Even I was in Awe at how he was in Awe...

 

Every once in a great while they still pop in to see if anything is going

on. Their Grandmaster ( leader ) loved us and we had regular visits by the

Amish. We were the teachers.. Devotees...

Now it needs to be again.. but for real.

Not half in and half out, all in..

There is no question of Braminical culture where there is no cow protection.

Krsna's main concern is the comfort of the cows even before the Brahmanas.

Cow protection means engaging the Oxen. This is pleasing to Krsna and its

very wise to please God himself. For everything receives benefit..

This is a promise.

 

It sounds like you are a good earthworm for this mission, its just a matter

of getting a few in one arena to make great progress for sustainable farming

and living in Krsna consiousness or nick name

" simple living and high thinking" which it sounds is in your heart and is

also in mine as well. This is a prophacy of Prabhupada and will happen, and

it is here at Gita Nagari were it will take place and spread all around the

world in consitration, its just who will be the ones to start the quest. If

you feel you have the juice then you are more than welcome to check things

out here.

I hope this is recieved well with you.

stay in touch.

your servant, Derek- -GN-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

>Cow protection in ISKCON has taken many forms over the life of movement.

>Today we are stuck in a simple cow retirement program where there are large

>donations being generated from city dwelling devotees to pay for hay and

>grain to feed the cows, and tractors are being used to do any serious work

>needed to be done on the Krishna farms. (I am mainly speaking of North

>America).

>

>I spoke to the Prabhu in charge of New Vrindaban self-sufficient farming

>and he remarked that 50% of his time is being spent maintaining a barrage

>of gas-powered tools that aid his efforts. H.H. Varsana Swami reminds me

>that Srila Prabhupada said: "the tractor is the killer of the Ox."

>

>In my pursuits for self-sufficient farming and cow protection, I decided to

>start from scratch. Hastened by Y2K, I spent two years preparing for

>something I have wanted to do all my life, farm with draft animals. I moved

>to Kentucky from my cushy suburban preaching situation in Florida and

>bought land in a farming rural community. The land is in the national

>forest on a spring-fed, protected river. There are lush meadow farmlands,

>caves, small mountains and waterfalls. The winter snow is mild.

>

>After searching for 13 years for such a place, I knew I had found a sweet

>place to start. There I sought help from my good friend and Prabhu, Varsana

>Maharaja (who I feel is the most capable for training and raising draft

>animals), and after discussions based in logic I was convinced to go with a

>large pair of draft mules.

>

>The problem in North America is that because of the snow (which is rarely

>found in India), one has to cut hay and grow corn to store for the winter.

>Wheel-driven gears pulled by either horses or mules, not oxen, turn the

>Number 7 hay cutter. Oxen can plow and disc/harrow. They may be able to

>pull the Number 9 hay cutter, but I doubt it. The gears have to go a

>certain speed so the machine doesn't bog down.

>

>Once one accepts the draft mule/horse prospectus, many other items of

>helpfulness become apparent. Mules are the strongest draft animal, pound

>per pound, and their endurance in the heat is unparalleled. They are

>unjustly called stubborn, because actually they are extremely smart, and

>therefore act to avoid problems (when trained properly). They can be used

>as transportation by horseback or wagon and are able to be used by a single

>driver to work the whole plethora of implements. Oxen, because they are

>steered from the nose (when novice oxen or drivers are employed) are in

>need of a two-man team (one steering in the front one working the

>implement). In the old days that was okay because there were extra men and

>children who had nothing to do but work the fields. Nowadays you're lucky

>to scrape one man together who is interested, let alone can drive any oxen

>expertly, which is what it takes to do it single-handedly.

>

>The foundation with draft mules/horses is a great way to start an "Amish"

>Krishna type farm-- a way to get off on the right foot without ever

>employing tractors. Lord Sri Krishna used to herd goats with His cows. The

>goats would eat the underbrush/stickers and the cows would clean the grass

>fields. This is called a symbiotic relationship. In my short discussions

>with some devotees, I got sauced for using mule power instead of ox power.

>"What happened to Ox power?" they would say. I would answer them "Yes, what

>happened to Ox power!" Why aren't they being used full time? Why are we

>relying heavily on outside donations to feed them in the winter? Who has a

>plan to change this fall within the ISCOW program? The draft mules can grow

>food, grain and hay for Krishna and his devotees, as well and the cows and

>mules!

>

>I am confident after my research and driving mules for a year and a half

>that it is possible to have rural "Amish" type Krishna farms in America and

>elsewhere with no electricity (except solar) and all those other

>adaptations that will keep devotees disconnected from the "grid".

>

>My unfortunate scenario is that the community that I share with (although

>nice vegetarian/healers) is not made up of devotees. I have since sold my

>last pair of mules and am out in the world looking for a way to manifest

>such a Krishna farm so Srila Prabhupada can give shelter to myself and

>other devotees. I still have all the harnesses and implements, old time

>tools, more organic seeds and processing equipment. I went all the way for

>Y2K and am quite proud of it. It made me do in 2 years what would have

>taken me 10 years to accomplish.

>

>Now I am on a mission to start a kind of devotee farm. For me it has to be

>a fresh start--building to perfect a self-sufficient model for an

>eco-village where all creatures are part of lord Krishna's lila. The

>medicine is threefold: (1) Getting back to (serving) the earth,(2) Getting

>back to (serving) each other (and all of Govinda's creatures), and (3)

>Getting Back to Godhead! I strongly feel that this is where the movement

>needs to go to make the 10,000 year stretch that is predicted by lord

>Caitanyadeva, as well as the total medicine (or horse pill, as we say) to

>fix this misguided world (which is divided from the above 3 things).

>

>One day the cities will fall. One Native American teacher once told me

>"each one step we take will be like a hundred hard steps not too far in the

>future, so make everything you do count." It is up to each new generation

>to come up with inventive ideas to forward this movement, and Krishna is

>the doer, so I'll end here. Please e-mail me for encouragement

>garudadasa I hope to offer these efforts, however meager or great

>they may be, at the lotus feet of my spiritual Master H.H. Hridayananda

>Goswami.

>

>Your servant,

>

>Garuda dasa

>

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