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Goshala — Care of the Cows
Twenty and more desi cows — Malenadu Gidda, Punganur and Hallikar — kept at the kshetra, cared for through old age, their milk offered in the temple's own worship.
What this work involves
Gavo vishvasya matarah — the cow is mother to the world. The goshala keeps twenty and more cattle at the kshetra, every one of them a desi breed. Three varieties stand in the shed: Malenadu Gidda and Punganur, among the smallest cattle in the country, and Hallikar, the draught breed of this part of Karnataka.
They are given fodder, shelter and veterinary attention through the year, and they are kept through old age rather than only for as long as they give milk. That last part is the whole of what makes this a goshala and not a dairy. Other animals that come into the temple's care are looked after here too.
The herd is part of the temple's worship rather than something beside it. Milk from the goshala is offered in the daily abhisheka, and gomaya and gomutra from it go into the panchagavya the rituals call for — which is why the cows are kept to the standard the sanctum is.
Gopuja, gograsa and godana are performed here and devotees are welcome to take part. Feeding the cows by hand is the seva most families ask for, and children are put to it first.
At a glance
- 20+ cows in the herd
- All desi — Malenadu Gidda, Punganur, Hallikar
- Milk offered in the daily abhisheka
- Gopuja, gograsa and godana
- Kept through old age
In pictures
What it looks like
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Would you like to help?
The gurukulam teaches free of cost and the kitchen serves whoever arrives — both carried entirely by what devotees give.
Give now by UPI or bank transfer, with an 80G certificate if you need one. Or write to the office to sponsor a particular day of annadana, offer time during a festival, or ask what is needed most — those take a date and a person rather than a payment.