Bull has enjoyed a central place in mythology cutting across many civilizations. In agrarian India it enjoyed a special place but is now in decline owing to widespread artificial insemination of cows. The photo above of a bull in an Indian town is symbolic of the waning power and majesty of the bull. I am reminded of the following poem…
“I am monarch of all I survey;
My right there is none to dispute;…
I am out of humanity’s reach;
I must finish my journey alone;…”
(With apologies to William Cowper “The Solitude of Alexander Selkirk”)
In Indian mythology Nandi bull as a separate god can be traced back to Indus Valley Civilization, where dairy farming was the most important occupation, thus explaining the appearance of various artifacts, such as the ‘Pasupati Seal,’ indicating a deity much like Shiva. More here…
Some more interesting info…”There is a reason that Shiva’s mount, the bull Nandi, is not an ox. A bull is a useless animal; he is wild, and cannot be used to do any work. But he can do one thing that an ox cannot do: he can make cows pregnant…” More here…
And then the usual question about cow and being holy.. See here…
More on bulls…”In Babylonia, figures of bull gods guarded the entrance into temples, houses and gardens (in contrast the lion of Judah was utilised extensively in the British Empire). During the Assyrian period a human face was added: at Khorsabad colossal humanheaded winged bulls were found at the palace of Sargon II.
“All over the ancient Middle East we find reference to the bull which is used as a symbol of strength and fertility as well as to bull gods. El, the supreme deity of the decadent Canaanite pantheon, was often called “the Bull El” (he was a fertility god). Baal, the god of fertility, storms, rain and vegetation is also called the Bull. Similarly
among the Hittites, Aramaeans and Babylonians, the bull gods were a dominant feature of their religions, not to mention the many bull and calf-cults linked closely to the Egyptian god Horus…” More here…
In this context this article by Devinder Sharma “Holy Cows — Acclaimed Abroad, Despised At Home” is interesting…. See here…
Some more info on bulls and dairy cattle… See here…
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.