Reflection About Mother Cow

RAMOS, Czarina Francine M.
Reflection
12 STEM 7 October 2, 2020
Upon growing up, I was exposed in different beliefs, customs, and practices. I was
told to follow this, follow that; do this, do that. As a child, I was curious and even until now, as a
teenager and someone who will soon enter the adult world. Of course, I asked them why—why
should I follow those customs, practices? Nevertheless, I was never satisfied with their answer,
“…because it’s God’s word and God’s word is the law.” Yes, I do believe in God but for my
own viewpoint, it does not make so much sense. It’s lacking. It does not really answer my
question. Instead of being enlightened, I just became more perplexed. Until then, I started being
skeptical, not only of my own customs and practices but others’ as well. I tried understanding
these beliefs, customs, and practices but failed. From then on, I began to think that they do not
really have a point. They are all nonsensical, that doing those is just a waste of time.
In congruence with what the author has said, “Practical life wears many
disguises,” I just can’t help but to agree. True enough, our lifestyle—my lifestyle—is wrapped in
myths and legends. I can say that it was already wrapped too much that I came to the point when
I don’t know what’s what anymore, to the point when I have already turned cynical to everything
happening around me. Because of the creations of these myths and legends, things and situations
that can actually be explain in a rational manner now appear to be so impossible. It is our fellow
individuals who are the ones who wrapped our lifestyle with myths, legends, and such. And I
think, these individuals overlooked consciousness which is isolated from practical facts of life.
Ignorance, fear, and conflict are the basic elements of consciousness. For me, these three are also
one of the disguises that a practical life which hinders us from better understanding our life.
Though mostly believe that consciousness is something that cannot explain itself, I on the other
hand beg to disagree. Together with the anthropologists, I choose to believe that explanation
makes up a complex reality.
I learned that human consciousness must not be treated as an object. The
disillusion that science is a commanding lifestyle of the society may only be accurate when
dealing with the subject of knowledge of nature but is immensely inaccurate in the context of
knowledge of lifestyle. As long as lifestyle is concerned, knowledge can’t be an original sin
since we are all still in original state of ignorance. Even though I grew up with people around me
vaguely answering my question about why should a person follow the customs and practices,
someone has finally stepped in and explained the actual reason behind those beliefs, customs,
and practices to me. After reading the preface down to the first chapter, I learned that there was
actually a rational explanation behind those, it is not only because of one’s god. These things—
beliefs, customs, and practices—may seem nonsensical if we will look at is just what it is.
However, if we would try to widen our mind and understanding, we will surely come to realize
that they actually make sense. In the exact same way how the love of cows were perceived as the
number one cause of poverty in India, if everyone will only see and know how the love of cow
actually contributes to adaptive resilience of human population, mobilizes the latent capacity of
human beings to preserve a low energy ecosystem, and how it is perfectly comparative with a
merciless determination to get the literal last drop of cow’s milk, their viewpoint that the love of
cow is just a major cause of poverty will probably change.
Forsooth, the preface to chapter one knocked some sense into me. At last, I was
enlightened. From someone who started to believe that these beliefs, customs, and practices do
not make sense—that they are nothing but a waste of time, I now turned into someone who
appreciates those things, someone who now perceive those things as something of great import—
something that is actually sensible. I realized that if we would only try to look into different
perspective, we would be able to recognize its other purpose/s. It can be a new opportunity that
will open new doors. It can also be something that can be used to further improve one’s system.
It might be the key to success which one country was looking for. It could be anything we want
to as long as we would try to work on it, make use of it, and maximize its capacities. By the same
token, I realized that no matter how weird, unusual, unorthodox, or however we will choose to
describe a certain practice is, it still has its own relevance and on the grounds of this, it must be
respected to a greater extent in the same manner as how I chose to follow my own beliefs and
customs despite of the fact that I am already in the midst of doubting it. Also, for the other side,
these beliefs, customs, and practices are considered something sacred and in great significance so
if we want them to respect, honor, and take into consideration our own beliefs, values, customs,
practices, and traditions, we must give it to them beforehand. These differences in beliefs,
customs, and practices are not and should never serve as a hinder to anything. Hence, they must
be the junctions that will connect people or community together.
Indisputably, bolstering up an open mind and widened understanding are

essential. Through these, we will be able to unleash shackled doors which were not even opened
once. These will give rise to new beginnings and maybe someday, new successes. Only with
these, we will be able to behold the beauty, relevance, and value of one’s beliefs, customs and
practices.

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RAMOS, Czarina Francine M.

Indisputably, bolstering up an open mind and widened understanding are

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