Animals in our lives
By: K S S Pillai
Animals have played an important role in man’s life since his appearance. As he was a hunter in the beginning, his main food was animal flesh.
Later, when man became religious, some allowed him to kill animals for food, while others viewed animals as God’s creations and asked him to treat them kindly. While giving him dominion over animals, He also gave man a responsibility to care for them.
People who believe in reincarnation treat animals with kindness, as the dead can take the form of any animal species, believed to be 84 lakhs. That belief also leads to compassion and non-violence towards animals, leading to vegetarianism.
Some religions have animal-faced deities like Hanuman and Ganapati, and animals like the mouse and lion as the vehicles of gods. Lord Vishnu’s Dashavatara includes animals like fish, tortoise, and boar, while animals like cow, elephant, tiger, and lion are considered sacred and spiritually evolved.
Our country has no dearth of animal lovers, as witnessed by the recent outcry when the Supreme Court directed the Delhi government to catch stray dogs, forcing the court to amend its earlier judgment. A famous actor faces a court case for wearing a necklace with a tiger’s tooth at the end.
The number of people living alone has increased. They keep pets like dogs and cats for company, necessitating the opening of several animal hostels, shops selling things needed by them, and veterinary doctors. Some keep caged birds as pets, and some are even used to predict our future.
The consumption of non-vegetarian food has been steadily increasing. While some practised it secretly in the past, even women have become bold enough to cook it or go to non-vegetarian restaurants openly.
Man has been using animal power in various sectors for centuries. I was fascinated during my childhood with decorated horse-drawn vehicles of the rich and bullock-drawn carts of others. Animals were also used extensively in farm operations.
Our compassion for animals has also created problems. Some industries using animal parts as raw materials are facing a shortage of raw materials due to the ban on the killing of some animals, resulting in their closure and unemployment. Many states in India have banned the killing of the cow family for food.
In such places, the owners of the unproductive animals let them loose on any unfenced land. This has been causing several accidents, some fatal. Groups of stray animals occupy the middle of roads at all hours, hampering the movement of vehicles. Fighting animals have taken many lives. The problem is kept alive as some people feed them regularly for different reasons, and even touch them reverently.
One cannot expect people to be kind when their income depends on animals. In tourist spots, elephant rides are offered to tourists for a price. Donkeys with sores on their bodies are forced to carry loads for long hours without even sufficient food. Camels are used to give rides to holidaymakers at beaches where the climate is unsuitable. There are umpteen such cases.
There used to be snake charmers with snakes in small baskets, who were forced to perform in public. Animals like monkeys are dressed like humans. Though circuses are almost extinct, mainly due to stringent laws, animals like elephants, lions, monkeys, and bears were used to attract spectators.
Long periods of training that included physical torture, keeping them hungry, preceded their exposure to the public. That is the case with animals serving security agencies, police, military, and such organisations.
It is a source of comfort that some philanthropic institutions are looking after non-productive cows and other animals. They provide shelter and medical facilities to them, taking contributions from the public and let them die a natural death.
The problems of animals are far from over. With the increasing human population, we have been encroaching upon animal habitats, causing many issues that need solutions.
Patches of forests that were the habitats of wild animals have been converted into farmland. When those animals destroy those farms, the authorities give firearms to the farmers with permission to use them. Several animals also lose their lives when they come into contact with electrified fences around such farms.
(The author is a retired professor of English. A regular contributor to ‘The Kashmir Vision’, his articles and short stories have appeared in several national and international publications)
