Hello Retro, Mike, all,
We are all non-arahants. I think there is agreement that the Buddha taught that unwholesome intentional actions (kamma) accumulate in unpleasant results (vipaka). Maybe not immediately, but certainly.
Retro said: It's interesting... after reading quite a few suttas, I'm becoming increasing convinced that these random stray cows are simply a literary device to provide an opportunity for the Buddha to detail the status of a bhikkhu (e.g. arahant, non-returner) to others (bhikkhus, and in turn, us). There's a certain standardness to them.
This would probably be an unwise conclusion Retro ~ there are 200 million cows in India roaming free. At the time of the Buddha there would still have been huge numbers - as today - roaming narrow laneways between buildings, walking freely along footpaths, blocking traffic, sitting at cross roads and in main shopping centres. They are regarded as holy, and are not chased even in the centre of large commercial cities.
As one who has been tree-d by a cow - a cow that had personally known me and been fed, patted, stroked and groomed daily for three years by me - I understand how even a small cow with determination can kill a human being (my experience was with a beautiful brown-eyed, long-lashed small jersey house-cow).
We knew she was pregnant, but, unbeknownst to my family and I, my cow had given birth to a calf and hidden it in long grass. As some of us were walking down towards the creek, she appeared out of the scrub bellowing like a maniac and clearly intent on harming us. We still had no knowledge that she had calved, but appreciated that she wasn't mentally herself at that moment. The three of us sprinted towards the trees, found one with low branches, and climbed it like experienced chimpanzees - it's amazing what real fear will do. We spent two hours perched in the tree, while the rampaging bellowing cow thundered up and down below us. Eventually she calmed down and went away. By this time we had realized by physical signs that she had given birth. We quietly got out of the tree, climbed over the fence to the next door property and went home to a strong cup of tea. The cow was back to her normal quiet loving self the next day and brought the calf to show me. But, under the influence of hormones, if I had fallen or not temporarily had the speed of an Olympic runner, she would have killed or seriously wounded me. The cows in India are much larger than she was.
This article may be helpful also - if it can happen so frequently in the U.S.A. with no cows roaming free, then you can understand the large number of deaths in Inda where 200 million roam free.
The image of cows as placid, gentle creatures is a city slicker’s fantasy, judging from an article published on Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which reports that about 20 people a year are killed by cows in the United States. In some cases, the cows actually attack humans—ramming them, knocking them down, goring them, trampling them and kicking them in the head—resulting in fatal injuries to the head and chest.
Mother cows, like other animals, can be fiercely protective of their young, and dairy bulls, the report notes, are “especially possessive of their herd and occasionally disrupt feeding, cleaning, and milking routines.”
The article, in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, discusses 21 cases in which people were killed by cattle from 2003 to 2007 in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska.
http://tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com/200 ... rous-cows/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
So .... how many more are likely to be killed in India where the large cows wander the main highways and roads in the centre of cities? Very similar to the standard reports heard daily on your local television news of the number of people killed that day by cars on the roads. You wouldn't call that a literary device for (insert reason). .... Just a different cultures and different dangers.
metta
Chris