If you have cows and if you have got land, then you till the land, get grains, and there is milk, there is fruit, there is flower. Anywhere, you can live peacefully. Whole economic question is solved.

Economic Models and Cows

Meeting the necessities of life

During the reign of Maharaja Yudhishthira, the clouds showered all the water that people needed, and the earth produced all the necessities of man in profusion. Due to its fatty milk bag and cheerful attitude, the cow used to moisten the grazing ground with milk.

PURPORT
The basic principle of economic development is centered on land and cows. The necessities of human society are food grains, fruits, milk, minerals, clothing, wood, etc. One requires all these items to fulfill the material needs of the body. Certainly one does not require flesh and fish or iron tools and machinery. During the regime of Maharaja Yudhishthira, all over the world there were regulated rainfalls. Rainfalls are not in the control of the human being. The heavenly King Indradeva is the controller of rains, and he is the servant of the Lord. When the Lord is obeyed by the king and the people under the king's administration, there are regulated rains from the horizon, and these rains are the causes of all varieties of production on the land. Not only do regulated rains help ample production of grains and fruits, but when they combine with astronomical influences there is ample production of valuable stones and pearls. Grains and vegetables can sumptuously feed a man and animals, and a fatty cow delivers enough milk to supply a man sumptuously with vigor and vitality. If there is enough milk, enough grains, enough fruit, enough cotton, enough silk and enough jewels, then why do the people need cinemas, houses of prostitution, slaughterhouses, etc.? What is the need of an artificial luxurious life of cinema, cars, radio, flesh and hotels? Has this civilization produced anything but quarreling individually and nationally? Has this civilization enhanced the cause of equality and fraternity by sending thousands of men into a hellish factory and the war fields at the whims of a particular man?

It is said here that the cows used to moisten the pasturing land with milk because their milk bags were fatty and the animals were joyful. Do they not require, therefore, proper protection for a joyful life by being fed with a sufficient quantity of grass in the field? Why should men kill cows for their selfish purposes? Why should man not be satisfied with grains, fruits and milk, which, combined together, can produce hundreds and thousands of palatable dishes. Why are there slaughterhouses all over the world to kill innocent animals? Maharaja Parikshit, grandson of Maharaja Yudhishthira, while touring his vast kingdom, saw a black man attempting to kill a cow. The King at once arrested the butcher and chastised him sufficiently. Should not a king or executive head protect the lives of the poor animals who are unable to defend themselves? Is this humanity? Are not the animals of a country citizens also? Then why are they allowed to be butchered in organized slaughterhouses? Are these the signs of equality, fraternity and nonviolence?

Therefore, in contrast with the modern, advanced, civilized form of government, an autocracy like Maharaja Yudhishthira's is by far superior to a so-called democracy in which animals are killed and a man less than an animal is allowed to cast votes for another less-than-animal man.

We are all creatures of material nature. In the Bhagavad-gita it is said that the Lord Himself is the seed-giving father and material nature is the mother of all living beings in all shapes. Thus mother material nature has enough foodstuff both for animals and for men, by the grace of the Father Almighty, Sri Krishna. The human being is the elder brother of all other living beings. He is endowed with intelligence more powerful than animals for realizing the course of nature and the indications of the Almighty Father. Human civilizations should depend on the production of material nature without artificially attempting economic development to turn the world into a chaos of artificial greed and power only for the purpose of artificial luxuries and sense gratification. This is but the life of dogs and hogs.

Happy cows for happy humankind

The next symptom of the age of Kali is the distressed condition of the cow. Milking the cow means drawing the principles of religion in a liquid form. The great rishis and munis would live only on milk. Srila Shukadeva Gosvami would go to a householder while he was milking a cow, and he would simply take a little quantity of it for subsistence. Even fifty years ago, no one would deprive a sadhu of a quart or two of milk, and every householder would give milk like water. For a Sanatanist (a follower of Vedic principles) it is the duty of every householder to have cows and bulls as household paraphernalia, not only for drinking milk, but also for deriving religious principles. The Sanatanist worships cows on religious principles and respects brahmanas. The cow's milk is required for the sacrificial fire, and by performing sacrifices the householder can be happy. The cow's calf not only is beautiful to look at, but also gives satisfaction to the cow, and so she delivers as much milk as possible. But in the Kali-yuga, the calves are separated from the cows as early as possible for purposes which may not be mentioned in these pages of Srimad-Bhagavatam. The cow stands with tears in her eyes, the shudra milkman draws milk from the cow artificially, and when there is no milk the cow is sent to be slaughtered. These greatly sinful acts are responsible for all the troubles in present society. People do not know what they are doing in the name of economic development. The influence of Kali will keep them in the darkness of ignorance. Despite all endeavors for peace and prosperity, they must try to see the cows and the bulls happy in all respects. Foolish people do not know how one earns happiness by making the cows and bulls happy, but it is a fact by the law of nature. Let us take it from the authority of Srimad-Bhagavatam and adopt the principles for the total happiness of humanity.

Economic development not the goal of life

So one who is fixed up in this conclusion, that "We shall become happy with this materialistic way of life," they cannot take to Krishna consciousness. And they do not know also that our ultimate goal of life is Krishna, Vishnu. Then why it is so? Now, andha yathandhair upaniyamanas te 'pisha-tantryam uru-damni baddhah [Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.5.31]. They have become blind. They are blind themselves, and they are also led by blind leaders. The leaders, at the present moment, leaders, they say that "Why you are going to church? Why you are going to temple? If you want your bread..." Just like in Christian religion you go to church, "O God, give us our daily bread." But the atheist class, they are propagating, "For bread, why you are going to church? You make industry, you make business, and you get bread." But actually... We were just talking that there are so many unemployment. Our Karandhar Prabhu was... No. Who was talking? Shyamasundar. Shyamasundar said that the computer... What is called, computer? It can do thousands of men's business. So they have discovered this machine. That means thousands of men will be unemployed. That is actually happening in your country due to so many machines. Now, take for example, formerly... You have seen the picture, Krishna, Vrindavana picture, Krishna's father transferring Krishna. They were going on bullock carts. No motorcar. You have seen the picture. So formerly, transport was bullock carts. The cows and the bulls, the bulls were employed for agricultural purpose, for drawing the carts. So there was no necessity of motorcar. Now you have got motor, motor-tractor. You don't want the bullocks; therefore kill them. How you can utilize them? Therefore you must have slaughterhouse to kill them. And as soon as you kill them, then you have to eat them. So this is the, I mean to say, entanglement. If you kill, then you become responsible for being killed. The subtle laws...

Therefore, without knowing our ultimate goal of life is Vishnu, na te viduh svartha-gatim hi vishnum... [SB 7.5.31]. That is our interest. The human form of life is offered by nature after so much evolutionary process. Just to understand Vishnu, God, this is the only business. But instead of attending our real business, we are trying to be happy in other ways. Then you can say that "If we are engaged in real business, then how the economic question will be solved? We have to work." That's all right, you work. But work simple. Why you have invented so much botheration? Work is there. If you have cows and if you have got land, then you till the land, get grains, and there is milk, there is fruit, there is flower. Anywhere, you can live peacefully. Whole economic question is solved. And because we have forgotten, we have missed the real point, that our life is meant for God-realization. We are simply increasing botheration. The leaders are blind; we are also blind. So they are advising that "If you want to solve your economic problem, why you are going to church? Why you are going to temple? Come here, increase business, industry. Take loan and start business." That's all. This is going on. But actually, the more we are trying to mislead this people... Because they are thinking it is all right. They are... That the social condition is becoming more and more grave. That's a fact. We are trying to solve one problem, but many other problems are coming because we do not know what is the ultimate goal of life. Because we are missing the real point.