Program(s):
As a Rhetoric & Media studies major, I love to look at the nature of communication surrounding cultural phenomena, and as an Environmental Studies minor, I have learned the best way to do so is by situating research around a specific object of discussion. While traveling in India, I am researching the cow as an intersection point of religious, political, and social discourse. This animal has a special place in Indian culture, as it is revered in the Hindu tradition (the religion that encompasses the majority of the country), which is expressed in specific practices such as not consuming beef. Yet, my preliminary research on cows led me to find out that India is simultaneously among the world’s top exporters in the beef industry. This fact, along with other contradictions, allowed me to recognize some deep complication about the protection and use of cows in India. Many religions other than Hinduism are present in India that do not revere the cow in the same way, such as Islam. Tension between these two specific religions has a long and complicated history, and manifests today in different forms including food politics and communal violence surrounding cow slaughter and beef banning.
There are many dimensions to the cow; its meat, as well as its milk, dung, skin, and labor. All aspects of the cow have both practical and spiritual applications. Although cows can be easily found wandering the streets of the cities I am staying in, I will be visiting Gaushalas (cow refuge/care centers) in Delhi, Chennai, and Varanasi to observe the cow and interact with them and their caretakers directly. Through interviews, news media analysis, and participant observation, I plan on following issues related to the cow to better understand how religion, government, and identity conflate and conflict in contemporary Indian society.
Fieldwork Accomplished in Delhi:
-Photo documentation of cows in the streets
-Collected newspaper clippings on topics such as the beef bans
-Visited Shri Radha Krishna Mandir Gaushala, and conducted two informal interviews:
---Spoke with the pandit, or priest, at the Gaushala. I had an Indian friend translate for me to get details about how the center is run.
---Spoke with a regular visitor to the Gaushala, Ajay, who talked to me about his personal relationship to the cow as "divine mother".
Fieldwork Accomplished in Chennai:
-Photo documentation of cows in the streets
-Collected newspaper clippings on topics such as the beef bans and Dadri Lynching
-Asked questions related to various dimensions of the Cow in India during our academic lectures and gained insight from scholars and professionals.
-Visited Sri Kapareeswarar Gaushala, and conducted one informal interview:
---Spoke with a regular visitor to the Gaushala, Ajay, who explained to me how the Gaushala is run, as well as the cow as a spiritual and political symbol.
-Returned to Sri Kapareeswarar Gaushala for a Gaumata Puja (Cow Ceremony), chronicled my experience and observations in detail, Conducted one Interview:
---Spoke with Devraj, a Hindu who travels to Chennai for this ceremony a couple times a month.
-Learned about cow worship in the context of a work setting at a Bronze Shop in Swamimalai, documented the space in photos
-Visited a beef stall, Burger Restaurant, and Cafe serving beef: documented their advertising