The expression ‘holy cow!’, which found its way into English by AD 1907 at the latest, reflects – in a patronising and paternalistic way – a general awareness in the Western World of the importance of cattle in Hindu culture. Cattle, and specifically the zebu (Bos indicus), have been considered sacred in India since at the least the Indus Valley Civilisation, and has therefore been around since before the birth of Hinduism as we know it. The origins of this veneration are unclear. Several scholars link it to the economic importance of cattle, reflected in almost every ancient culture, and specifically to the significance of dairy in the Indian diet. In this regard, as providers of milk, cattle are considered analogous to mothers, who have also long been venerated in India. Literature pertaining to the veneration of cattle exists from the middle of the First Millennium BC, and by around 1000 BC, the general Hindu trend towards vegetarianism, and the specific taboo around the consumption of beef, was well-established. Hinduism employs ahimsa, the renunciation of all violence against bipeds and quadrupeds; the killing of cattle was considered equivalent to the killing of priests (brahmin), due to their special social and religious status.

The most famous bovine in all of Hinduism is Nandi, the bull companion of the god Shiva. According to legend, the sage Shilada underwent severe penance in order to achieve a special boon: a child with immortality and the special blessings of Shiva. Shilada conducted a fire ritual (yajna), during which was born a child – not a human infant, but rather a bull calf. Nandi was immediately drawn to the god Shiva, and as he grew up, he conducted severe penance which brought him to the god’s attention. He was thereafter considered Shiva’s companion, and his mount (vahana). Nandi went on to a life of good deeds. Among the Tamil, he is considered the chief among the siddhars, those who are deemed to have attained spiritual perfection. In this achievement, Nandi expressed his spirituality to at least four and perhaps six followers, and was considered a great teacher. Other legends suggest that Nandi is a protector. Puranic myth describes his conflict with the demon (rakshasa) king Ravana, the main antagonist of the Hindu epic the Ramayana. When Ravana was waiting to meet Shiva, he acted in a restless way, reminding Nandi of the forest monkey (vanara). Nandi, the gatekeeper of Shiva’s abode, refused Ravana entry, and cursed him such that his kingdom would be destroyed by a forest-dwelling monkey. And so, as it came to pass in the Ramayana, Ravana’s kingdom was indeed destroyed by the monkey god Hanuman. And finally, for at least some Hindu, Nandi is a psychopomp, a conveyor of spirits. For the Cham People of Vietnam and Cambodia, achieving rebirth is impossible if the spirit is away from the holy land of India. According to their legends, it is Nandi who conveys their spirits on their final journey, to be reborn.

This exceptionally delicate figure of Nandi was cast in India sometime in the Nineteenth Century AD, around the period when the British took direct control of the subcontinent from the East India Company. Representing Nandi as a red Sindhi, a breed of zebu popular across India, with a less pronounced hump and dewlap than its wild cousins. Nonetheless, the sculptor has gone to great lengths to express the looseness of the skin around the neck, which is artistically arranged into folds. Nandi is depicted in a naturalistic striding pose, with head turned to one side. His large ears are shown in a flapping motion, as cows are prone to do to waft insects away from their faces. His solid, muscular body is partially hidden by a highly-decorated caparison, which bears dense foliate arabesques. Around his neck is a chain of bells, which would have served to announce his presence. His face is sympathetically cast, with kind eyes, flaring nostrils, and a mouth shown in the act of chewing.