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Re: Sri VenkatEsaa suprapaatham

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K. Srinivasan • October 25, 1995 


>Date: Wed, 25 Oct 1995 11:13:45 -0700
>From: mani@srirangam.esd.sgi.com (Mani Varadarajan)
>To: prapatti@srirangam.esd.sgi.com, "Sampath Rengarajan" 
>Subject: Re:  Sri VenkatEsaa suprapaatham
>
>Sampath Rengarajan writes:
>* In Tamil
>* "ko" "Cow" vinthan is one associated with cows is also a popular deriavtion. It
>* (such tamil translation) has nothing to do with the govindaa [...]
>
>While Govinda may have many other meanings, the one associated
>with cows is not from Tamil. This is a very old Prakrit and
>Sanskrit derivation.  In fact, Gaudiya Vaishnavas (such as
>Hare Krishnas) believe Govinda the cowherd to be an eternal name 
>of the Lord since their name for paramapada is Goloka, where
>Krishna is present as in Brindaavan.
>
>Mani
>

"kO" in Tamil is King and not Cow. "go" in Sanskrit is "cow".
"kO  il"  is the house of the "kO". (il = house in Tamil. illu in Telugu I think.)
God is the ruler, king etc., of the universe. So "kO" refers to God also.

There are many places in the pasurams where "kO" "kOn" etc.
are used to refer to  the Almighty, God etc.

In fact, even "kO dhai" is "kO" (God in Tamil) + "dhai" (from Tamil "thaa" give or  Sanskrit "dhattha" give)

Thus Andal "kOdhai" is "the one given by the God" and not "given by Cow".
Just like "kO il" is not "gO il" (which will be a cow shelter).

Unfortunately, the "majority" will say "Go dhai" and derive it from "Sacred Cow" in Sanskrit.

Srinivasan K