Previous Year Question

In the Rig Veda, the term ‘Aghanya’ is used in several passages for the cow. The literal meaning of Aghanya is “one that should not be killed” or one that ought not to be slain.

Rigvedic society was predominantly pastoral, and cows possessed great economic importance. The cow was a source of food products such as milk, curd and ghee, while cattle constituted an important basis of prosperity.

The cow was important not merely as a source of food and livestock but also as a form of wealth, gift and Dakshina. The Rigvedic literature contains many prayers for the acquisition of cows, and even the term ‘Gavishti’, used for battle or conflict, originally conveyed the idea of searching for or acquiring cows.

The repeated use of the name Aghanya also indicates the developing sense of protection and special regard for the cow in Rigvedic society. IGNCA material on Vedic social and economic conditions specifically explains that the term Aghnya, meaning “not to be killed,” was repeatedly applied to the cow and reflected its special importance.