Gau Puja & Gau Daana

What Is It?

Gau Puja is the formal worship of the cow as Gomatha, the mother who gives without being asked. She is bathed, adorned with turmeric and kumkum, garlanded, offered fresh grass and jaggery, and honoured with lamp, incense and mantra as a living deity.

Gau Daana is the gifting of a cow into lifelong protected care. Through this seva the offering is received at the gaushala of Sripuram, where the cows live under the direct grace and protection of THE SPH.

Significance

Bhagavan Sri Krishna is Gopala, the one who tends the cows. His childhood in Vrindavan was spent among the herds, and the cow is inseparable from His form, His name and His fragrance. To worship the cow on the day of His descent is to worship Him in the manner He Himself chose to be loved.

In the Vedic tradition Gau Daana is counted among the highest of all gifts, because the cow continues to give long after the giver has forgotten the giving. The merit of the offering renews itself with every day the cow is fed, sheltered and honoured.

Benefits of Offering

Receives the blessings of Gomatha, in whom all the devatas are said to reside.

Dissolves the debt of ingratitude carried towards the unseen sources of one's nourishment.

Establishes the offerer in the current of Krishna as Gopala, protector of cows and of all who depend upon Him.

Extends direct and continuing care to the cows of the Sripuram gaushala.

When & How to Offer

This seva is offered on 4 September 2026, the day of the Krishna Janmashtami celebrations, at 12:30 AM ET / 10:00 AM IST, at Sripuram. The contribution is $1,008.

The name, birth star and gotra of the offerer are taken in the sankalpa before the puja begins. The seva may be offered in one's own name, or on behalf of family members, living or ancestral.