India, Oct. 15 -- By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik - Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist

Few animals have shaped Hindu imagination as deeply as the bull and the cow. Shiva's mount is Nandi, the great humped bull, while the divine cow Surabhi symbolises nourishment and abundance. Yet the modern story of their descendants is full of irony. To understand this, we need a story with six bovine characters: Nandi, Billa, Surabhi, Clive, Owen and Jenny.

Nandi is great humped bull (Bos Indicus) of the Indian subcontinent, recognisable by the hump over his shoulders and the loose fold of skin beneath his neck, the dewlap. An uncastrated Nandi is powerful and intimidating. When castrated, he becomes Billa, the bullock that for thousands of years pul...