Sacred Animals of India. monkey. Symbols of india - monkeys Message about monkeys in india

Ecology

The fauna for Hindus is an integral part of their religious beliefs, many four-legged animals are for them real deities who are revered and afraid to offend. Some animals are especially associated interesting and even funny stories which I would like to talk about.

Dogs of India

Canine Pregnancy Syndrome

Dog bites are a worldwide phenomenon, but in the west many stray dogs receive rabies vaccinations. In India, of course, no one does such vaccinations, so there are more than enough accidents from the bite of infected dogs.

India has more stray dogs than any other country tens of millions of them attack people. According to very rough estimates, about 20,000 people die every year from dog attacks in India.

In rural areas, a rumor has spread that if a person is bitten by a dog, her embryo begins to grow in his body, in other words, with the help of a bite, dogs can impregnate a person (and not only women)!

Dog pregnancy syndrome has become a real hysteria among the population with a low level of education, which in India abounds. Those bitten swear that they feel the movements of the fetus inside them and even start acting weird eg bark.

Instead of going to a doctor, these people mostly turn to sorcerers who offer them Mystery Fetal Resorption Medicines. Only after that the bitten person more or less calms down.

Monkeys of India

Sacred animals take advantage of their position

Like some other peoples, Hindus consider monkeys to be sacred animals. That is why they are very condescending to the fact that thousands of rhesus monkeys calmly roam the streets of cities, climb into houses, spoil property and steal.

These animals are incredibly dangerous because bite hard. Hordes of monkeys run amok in settlements. For example, the situation in cities such as New Delhi, generally catastrophic, so sometimes they try to set traps on the streets. However, these animals are so smart that they are easily bypassed.

In 2007, newspapers wrote about one tragic case. Some Savinder Singh Baiva fell from the balcony and crashed, trying to repel the attack of the hated monkeys. Although people are attacked daily by macaques, citizens do not stop feeding them. Looks like the problem is still there will remain relevant.

pig toilets

Pigs have a reputation enough dirty animals, however, they boast excellent mental abilities. Hungry pigs can eat almost anything, including garbage and human excrement.

In Goa there are so-called pig toilets- small stone buildings-toilets for people, which are connected to pig sheds. Through the holes, what gets into the toilet gets into the barn, and pigs gratefully accept "treats".

In the old days, these structures were used for hygiene, but with the advent of plumbing the need for them has largely disappeared. Some of these toilets are still in operation in India.

indian birds

Indian Sip Crisis

Indian Sips from the genus of vultures are by nature predatory scavengers. Huge wings allow them to make circles in the air for several hours. Their beaks are designed to tear off chunks of flesh from prey. Despite all these awesome qualities of vultures, they play an important role in the ecological cycle helping to process carrion.

Even 20 years ago, there were a huge number of these birds in India - flocks of vultures circled in the air, making the sky black. But by 1999 their numbers have dropped substantially due to a mysterious kidney disease. By 2008 the number of sips decreased by 10 percent. Later it turned out that the birds died because of the medicine - diclofenac(painkiller, which is on a par with aspirin and ibuprofen).

Hindus deeply revere cows and if they notice any signs of pain in them, they pump them with diclofenac. After the death of animals, vultures usually eat their corpses.. Despite the fact that vultures have one of the most advanced digestive systems on the planet, they are unable to process medicine.

India bans giving diclofenac to animals in 2006, but it is still widely used. The disappearance of Indian vultures threatens with great disaster: wild dogs and rats that spread pathogens will take their place. Vultures in this sense are irreplaceable predators, since all harmful substances in their stomachs are destroyed.

Indian tigers

killer cats

When tens of thousands of these large tabby cats lived in India, they were dangerous, so the locals knew very well that at night you can't go far from the fire to avoid becoming prey to predators.

Hunting for tigers is a serious matter, as a predator is not so easy to kill. Even a tiger wounded in a vital organ may not die immediately. A wounded beast can run away and then attack weaker prey. Tigers often attack people, suspecting nothing.

famous Champawat tigress killer was considered one of the most dangerous predators, it had over 400 deaths. In 1907 the legendary hunter Jim Corbett finally put an end to her chaos.

There are relatively few tigers left in India today, according to the World Wildlife Fund, about 3200 big cats. Every year, these creatures kill dozens of people, especially in Sundarbans, mangrove forests, where about 500 tigers are found.

There is an assumption that bad water makes tigers irritable and unnaturally aggressive. The fishermen who come to these places wear face masks on the back of the head because tigers love to attack from behind.

Indian elephants

Drunkenness in the animal kingdom

We can't stop admiring elephants - the largest land mammals, which have great intelligence. Elephants can resemble humans: some especially intelligent representatives even they can draw real pictures, as well as imitate human speech. Just like us, elephants sometimes want to drink something intoxicating.

In 2012, a herd of elephants from 50 individuals drunk alcoholic drink from the flowers of the tree maduka. After drinking about 500 liters of alcohol, the elephants became violent and destroyed dozens of houses in the village. Dumurkot. After a few hours, they left the village, leaving behind the strongest destruction.

This isn't the first time elephants have been involved in drunken brawls. The problem has become so widespread that in some areas, fences hung hot chili peppers in the hope that he will scare away the elephants. It is known that chili peppers are the most spicy, so intruders at the sight of them try to stay away.

Fish of India

Dangerous underwater predators

Catfish can reach impressive sizes, but these fish usually do not cause thoughts of danger. In the Kali River in India, South Asian giant catfish who is blamed for the deaths of several people.

According to Indian customs, after death, the human body is burned, and all that remains is thrown into the river. Giant catfish feast on these human remains. On such a diet, fish can reach incredible sizes - up to 70 kilograms. There is no doubt that they are involved in the mysterious disappearances of bathers.

Although catfish do not have a reputation for being such dangerous predators as sharks, fish the size of a man can easily grab a swimmer by the leg and pull him to the depth, drowning him.

Lions of India

Rare endangered species

In India, there are not only tigers, but also other big cats. Rare Asian lions live in the national park Gir forest in the west of the country. Once these animals could be found not only in Africa, India and the Middle East, but even in Europe - in Greece and Hungary!

Today, the number of lions has been reduced to a minimum. Gir lions exist only about 400 individuals, and are separated from their African relatives by tens of thousands of years of evolution. Indian lions are slightly smaller than African lions, and their manes are not as lush.

Unfortunately, there are so few of these predators left that they are forced to resort to inbreeding, which significantly weakens their immunity. Any epidemic or even forest fire can completely destroy the entire population. A small group of lions have been relocated to a neighboring state to preserve this rare subspecies.

Rats of India

Holy Temple of the Rats

A rat that has climbed into the house can panic all household members. These animals are uninvited guests for our dwellings. It turns out that in some parts of India, rats are not only not afraid, but even revered as sacred animals.

in the temple Karni Mats in northern India (state Rajasthan) live thousands of rats, which are protected and fed. According to legend, Karni Mata was a Hindu saint - the incarnation on Earth of the goddess Durga. When one of Mata's stepsons drowned, she began to pray to the god of death, Yama, to return her son to her. Pit turned all of Mata's children into rats.

In the temple of Karni Mata today lives, according to the ministers, about 20 thousand rats who feast on milk kindly provided to them by believers in large vats. Among the huge number of gray rodents there are a few whites, who are considered the incarnation of Karni Mata herself and her sons. To see these albinos is considered a great success.

The temple is open to the public, but far away not all tourists dare to get into it: rats are everywhere, and they are not at all afraid of people. Moreover, only barefoot is allowed to enter the temple grounds.

Enemies of dangerous cobras - mongooses

A story about Riki-tiki-tavi Kipling is not an invention at all. King Cobra- one of the most dangerous snakes on the planet. She has a curious feature: a cobra can rise up and even look into the eyes of a person of average height, while she emits a frightening hiss and widely inflates her hood. In one bite of a cobra so much poison that it is enough to kill 20 people. However, even such a dangerous beast has enemies.

mongoose- small cute animals the size of a ferret. However, these animals turn out to be very dexterous predators: they are fast, agile and can kill a cobra or any other snake with incredible agility.

They have protection against deadly poison, therefore, even after being bitten by a cobra, they do not die, however, they are so good at hunting that the snake just does not have time to bite them. They begin to dance from side to side in front of the snake, jumping deftly when the snake tries to strike. At the right moment, the mongoose grabs the snake by the head and kills it.

People who are not initiated into Hindu beliefs are usually extremely surprised to see how monkeys feel at ease in Indian bazaars. They climb everywhere, drag fruit and other food from the shelves, and no one drives them away - on the contrary, it seems that they are expected here as dear guests. Such honors are awarded to Hindus living in India and Sri Lanka, a monkey hanuman langur (Semnopithecus entellus). Some of them ravage fields and gardens, while others who live in temples are brought food by the locals themselves.

Hindus have every reason to revere monkeys: according to their ideas, the monkey god Hanuman miraculously saved the wife of the god Rama, Sita, from the encroachments of the demon Ramana. Rama is one of the supreme Indian gods, and Hanuman was honored to be his associate. Hanuman is also considered the patron of the arts and healing.

This deity is worshiped by millions of Hindus, and his images can be found in many Hindu dwellings. Temples are erected in honor of Hanuman - other pilgrims on the way to such a temple even try to imitate the behavior of monkeys, thereby showing the greatest respect to their idol. During religious festivities, bright, colorful processions of thousands of believers move through the streets, carrying images of the monkey god. The participants in the celebrations are seized with trembling excitement, and, as one of the witnesses of such a spectacle wrote, "no one refused to give alms to the numerous beggars sitting along the streets."

According to the ideas of the Hindus, the one who settles in the resting place of the monkey Hanuman will soon be overtaken by death. There are special "clairvoyants" who are invited to find out if the remains of a monkey are resting on the site chosen for building a house.

It goes without saying that among believing Hindus, insulting a sacred monkey is considered a grave sin, which some irresponsible people take advantage of, “inviting” monkeys to “annoy” an enemy or a quarrelsome neighbor. To this end, they pour rice on the roof of his house. The monkey instantly understands what's the matter, and climbs for a treat. And since rice grains inevitably roll under the tiles that cover the roof, the monkey breaks it off in search of a treat, thus causing decent damage to the objectionable. And try to touch her!

Monkeys of the genus Langurs ( Presbytis) are considered the fastest primates on earth, capable of running at speeds up to 40 kilometers per hour. They can also jump from one tree to another 15 meters away. When a monkey gives birth to a baby, the newly-born mother is immediately surrounded by many females, obviously delighted with the addition to the family. The cub is strikingly different in color from the adult monkey. In these monkeys, there were cases of killing cubs when a strange male came to the place of the head of the family. Some scientists explain such cruel behavior by the fact that females who have lost offspring become more quickly ready for the resumption of sexual life, because they no longer need to feed the cub with milk. According to scientists, the male knows about this and destroys the offspring left by the previous father.

Another interesting monkey from the genus of langurs is the ordinary proboscis, or kahau ( Nasalis larvatus), found in the marshy forests of Borneo. Some biologists consider it the most extravagant of all monkey species. The male has an amazing nose, reaching 17 centimeters in length and hanging below the chin. Exact explanations for this miracle of nature have not yet been found, but it seems that the long nose serves as a resonator for the characteristic loud “call signs” reminiscent of “kahau” (hence the second name of the proboscis). And the locals call this monkey "blanda", as they called the first Dutch colonists.

Monkeys can also be found in some temples in Nepal, but here the Rhesus macaque is held in high esteem ( Macaca mulatta). Around other Hindu temples, whole crowds of these tailed creatures roam freely. They say that people settled sacred monkeys in temples two millennia ago - since then they have been living there, generation after generation. Currently, about 300 Rhesus monkeys permanently reside in the famous Pashupati Temple in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. Do I need to explain how free life they lead in this sacred place for Hindus. What they just do not feed: and rice, and peanuts, and pumpkin! When they go out for a walk, people vying with each other offer them sweets. Sacred monkeys are under the reliable protection of Nepalese laws.

Rhesus macaques can also be seen in the Buddhist temple in Swayambhu - apparently, in ancient times, these animals came here from the forest, and when people fed them, they decided to stay here forever.

In the Indian capital of Delhi, there are new guards of peace and life of citizens. These are tailed langur monkeys. No one but them can cope with macaques, which have recently been increasingly attacking people.

Religion forbids Hindus from harming these animals. But everything is in balance in nature, and it turned out that dangerous macaques are very afraid of long-tailed langurs and do not dare to approach them.

Elite suburb of New Delhi. Every day from 8 to 17 a security guard named Sunil works here. He walks around the district, menacingly raising a two-meter tail and sometimes exposing fangs. His partner Anish tells how these inhabitants of the Indian jungle - langurs - were called to the service.

“The authorities were looking for trainers for the captured monkeys. I trained him, we worked together and have been patrolling this territory for several years now - he drives the monkeys away from here, I drive the onlookers away from him,” says the trainer.

The guard langur appeared in the area after the most famous human-monkey fight in India. On a beautiful glass balcony, a respectable man in his fifties was reading a newspaper. Suddenly, a noise was heard, the owner was thrown from the second floor onto the asphalt, and he died on the way to the hospital. The newly elected vice-mayor of Delhi was killed, the attackers were macaques.

This tragedy showed that macaques are dangerous neighbors even for the most senior Indian. Now in the center of Delhi alone, the population of primates is about 20,000 animals - this is more than in many Indian national parks. Their native home, the jungle, is increasingly crowding the big cities, so the red-faced monkeys, as they are called here, go to these very big cities for food, and the Hindus cannot refuse them this.

Monkeys in India are considered the earthly incarnation of the god Hanuman, therefore they are no less sacred than, for example, cows. They cannot be driven out, beaten, and even more so killed, monkeys can only be appeased. For example, a banana. And how then to deal with their invasion? Force them to protect themselves, came up with Indian veterinarians. No kidding. We have to mix oral contraceptives in macaque food, fortunately, human ones are quite suitable.

But either due to the fact that hormonal drugs are expensive, or because not all of them reach the addressees, the program was quickly curtailed. The fertility of primates did not decrease at all - in Delhi they began to raid the Indian parliament and even visit the presidential palace, gnawing wires and rushing at officials. The Supreme Court stood up for civil servants and ordered the mayor's office to find a new solution.

“There are 200-300 monkeys in my area. And they already know me by sight. They see and run away. But I can’t relax and shut up even for a minute - they will attack. Therefore, every evening my voice sinks,” says Mahendr Harisankar.

And in the tourist city of Agra, the monkeys turned everything upside down.

"We have a cage here. For people. Previously, there was none, and tourists came here in the afternoon heat and enjoyed the view of the Taj Mahal. Monkeys also came to steal food. Such meetings are a risk for the tourist. They often end in bites," he says restaurant owner Ankit Saraswat.

Indian doctors have found that monkeys can carry up to 40 infections. This rooftop restaurant, like many others in Agra, is empty - few people like the view of the Taj Mahal from behind bars. And the owner can only joke, they say, the macaques showed who is the boss here.

We continue, friends, acquaintance with the animal world of India. In this article, I want to tell you about another sacred animal of India, revered no less than the Cow - about the MONKEY.

In India, monkeys are considered sacred. According to an old legend, Hanuman (a monkey) stole delicious mangoes from the garden of a mythical giant and gave them to people. The monkey was caught and sentenced to be burned alive, but she managed to put out the fire and stay alive. When extinguishing the fire, she burned her face and hands, which remained black. This legend prompted the Indians to refer the monkey to a number of sacred animals, and even living gods. Entire temples are built for them, where they are revered and cherished. And the locals and peasants patiently endure all their pranks that these nimble animals do in gardens and plantations. It is forbidden to hunt monkeys, and the locals
The inhabitants open their houses wide open before them, and in the gardens they grow their favorite fruits.

According to the ancient Indian epic Ramayana, Hanuman, the son of a monkey and the wind god, helped the god Rama defeat enemies and return his wife Sita, who was kidnapped by the evil king of the island of Lanka, Ravana. Hanuman easily flies across the strait separating India from Ceylon, finds Sita hidden there and returns it to Rama. For his devotional service, Rama showered Hanuman with gifts and rewarded him with eternal youth.

There is another legend that the monkeys helped the god Vishnu. The inhabitants of the country were oppressed by a terrible giant, and Vishnu entered into a fight with him. But, one was unable to cope with the enemy, then he called for help the monkey people, and defeated the Giant. Also, therefore monkeys are sacred animals in India.

They also treat monkeys living in sacred temples with privileges. Many tourists love to feed the monkeys and take pictures with them. Animals are so accustomed to being fed by people that they brazenly beg people for food, and if they don’t get what they want, they become aggressive and may even bite. Monkeys have become so bold that they climb into houses, spoil things and food, and sometimes even steal small animals. In a year they eat so much food that this amount would be enough to feed 10% of the country's population, about 50 million people!!!

These are heat-loving animals, they live mainly in countries with a hot climate. In India, there are over 40 million individuals. Basically, these are macaques - rhesus.

These are thin-bodied monkeys, small in size, with a tail that is longer than its entire body. There is a brush at the end of the tail. A monkey with yellow-white fur and a black tuft pulled over his face in the form of a hood. Because of this black hood, the Indians consider the monkey sacred. The mass of these animals ranges from 2.5 to 8 kg. The ears and face are hairless. They feed on ripe fruits, leaves, insects, and do not disdain planting on agricultural plantations - cereals, rice, peanuts, coffee beans and coconuts. A family group of macaques can contain from 3 to 80 individuals!!! The hierarchy of relationships is based on maternal kinship. The herd is ruled by females who remain in the herd until old age. And the males, having reached puberty, are forced to leave the herd. Sexual maturity in monkeys occurs at 3-4 years, the pregnancy of females lasts about 180 days. As a rule, one, less often two cubs are born, which remain near the mother until 1.5 - 2 years.

All monkeys are easily tamed. They live not only in zoos, they are even kept at home. Getting used to people, monkeys often adopt the habits of people and simply amaze with their intelligence and ability to imitate. Tamed trained monkeys often appear on television and act in films. Tamed monkeys are able to perform various tasks of people. In Thailand, for example, tame macaques have long helped people in the collection of coconuts, and even surpass people in this skill, because a person sometimes cannot distinguish a ripe nut from an unripe one, and monkeys do it unmistakably.

They can also provide serious services to scientists - botanists in the collection of herbariums in the tropics. Easily climbing the highest and thinnest branches of trees, the monkeys, at the command of a person, break off and bring him the necessary leaves, branches and flowers. The Singapore Botanic Gardens has a monkey nursery where several animals have acquired the profession of plant hunter. They are able to find rare plants in the impenetrable jungle if they are shown a branch or leaf of this plant.

And yet we should not forget that for all their intelligence and ability to imitate people, monkeys do not at all have the same consciousness as a person and are not able to think like a person. The basis of the mental activity of animals, their behavior, are, first of all, instincts, innate and conditioned reflexes.

The primitive thinking of animals with a high level of intelligence, close to human, including monkeys, is thinking with specific images, called pre-linguistic. For animals, signal stimuli that cause mental processes in the brain can only be direct stimuli - these are olfactory, visual, sound, gustatory and thermal effects.

That's how funny they are, monkeys. But, at the same time, smart, quick-witted and insightful.

It is not for nothing that they are considered SACRED ANIMALS OF INDIA.

I invite you friends to watch a wonderful cartoon in HD quality based on the ancient Indian epic Ramayana.

Many inhabitants of the post-Soviet space imagine the monkey as a sweet and docile creature. The reason for this is good fairy tales and cartoons from the times of the USSR. Meanwhile, Rudyard Kipling was largely truthful when describing the insidious Banderlogs.

Thailand has long been especially popular with Russian-speaking tourists. India has not been far behind in this respect for some time now. But among the polite Indians and smiling Thais, there are more and more locals who are much less friendly. Active deforestation in these countries has led to the fact that an increasing number of monkeys are moving to cities. Having found a good forage base and favorable conditions for life and leisure there, the animals establish themselves in a new territory and begin to multiply randomly. At the same time, both Thais and Hindus traditionally give monkeys a certain sacred status, so we are not talking about shooting emigrants from the jungle. And measures such as sterilization give a disappointing result.

Abusing permissiveness, the monkeys of India and Thailand diligently damage state and private property, break television antennas, and gnaw through communication wires. Moreover, the researchers noticed that primates are capable of deliberate, deliberate hooliganism. In the process of creating nasty things, they act secretly, constantly look around and are ready to give a goose. A separate woeful topic for conversation is monkey kleptomania. Macaques, monkeys and other furry brethren steal not only food, but also human things that are absolutely useless for animals. Flocks of monkeys arrange devastating raids not only on the gardens of villagers, but also on houses, and even on apartments. There are cases when in India hordes of monkeys literally captured entire villages. It should be noted that if the locals are more or less capable of repulsing the aggressors, then tourists in this war have a much more difficult time. In the first half of 2013 in the Thai province of Krabi, 600 people suffered from monkey attacks, of which 450 were foreign tourists.

The greatest nuisance primates can cause is physical attack. City monkeys, of course, are not capable of ferocious reprisals in the spirit of an angry male gorilla - they are not the strong ones. But bites or scratches will require serious treatment from the victim: a minimum of tetanus vaccinations. Therefore, tourists should adopt some simple tricks, which, by the way, work great with our quite European dogs. From the main: do not provoke primates. If your child is used to teasing monkeys in the zoo due to your oversight, then keep in mind that both in India and Thailand, animals are not fenced off with bars, they walk wherever they want and do what they want, defying laws, codes and other regulations local administration. Don't smile at cute monkeys! Copying in many ways human facial expressions, primates do not recognize smiles, for them a smile is a demonstration of teeth, a grin. There is no need to be afraid of excessive monkey attention and take off running - for a flock this can be a signal to attack. To drive away the tailed hooligan, sometimes it is enough to take a stick - the monkeys will realize that they will now be beaten and will go in search of another victim. If a monkey is persistently trying to take away a sandwich that you recklessly decided to eat right on the street, the reasonable solution would be to simply give the food away. There are cases when a lone monkey, trying to take away fruit or chocolate from a tourist, received a slap from him and immediately gathered a whole gang of associates with screams. Therefore, do not try to beat beggars - it is not only unethical, but also dangerous. You should be especially careful if you are interested in a whole pack led by a leader.

Photo: stuartshepherd.co.uk

It happens that insolent monkeys simply surround the tourist and do not let him pass. In this case, a valiant throw of a banana (or any food product) as far and to the side as possible will help. The flock will briskly rush for prey, and you will be able to retreat under the guise. Also, it will not be shameful to turn to any local passer-by for help - primates clearly separate tourists from natives. Some guests of India said that extortionate monkeys are especially afraid of the police and escape from the scene of a crime with one form of official uniform. It is also a smart decision to follow the warning signs about the dangers of feeding monkeys. Treat one cute animal - get several dozens of people who want to get no less goodies. And despite the fact that the primates are accustomed to the generous gifts of tourists, they will brazenly terrorize any guest of the country for food. Watch children especially carefully and be always there: monkeys can take children for partners for playing, and during such "fun" scratches and even bites are not ruled out.

Photo: isastudentblog.wordpress.com

It will take a lot of work from you to keep your things. Monkeys not only skillfully steal on the streets, they can easily enter housing, and they have enough ingenuity to get into, for example, a refrigerator. Keep in mind, even if you have settled on a fairly high floor of the hotel, this will not become a hindrance for the monkey. And going out to the balcony of the fifth, for example, floor to admire the morning Delhi, do not be surprised to stumble upon the demanding look of a macaque waiting for you. Thieves confidently open backpacks and bags, the zipper is no longer a hindrance for them, they deftly tear off any jewelry from their hands and neck. Be ready to meet monkey criminal gangs not only in the middle of a park or boulevard, but also in cafes, supermarkets and even government offices.

Be careful during the photo shoot: cute monkeys may willingly pose, but then steal the camera as a fee. Going on a city tour, remove all items of clothing that can be grabbed and torn off: belts, waistbands, phone cases, purses. Take care of your hats; monkeys do not wear hats and caps, but do not miss the opportunity to rip them right off their heads. If you wear glasses, be prepared for the fact that some monkey intends to appropriate them. Women should not use bright and shiny hair clips - monkeys often grab them for unknown purposes. Hold any valuables tightly to you; if the furry villain fails to steal the item using the surprise factor, he will most likely run away. If you use a car when visiting India, leave it in the parking lot, remove the wipers, the antenna and hide everything that the monkeys can tear off inside the cabin - they will definitely try.

Photo: framework.latimes.com

In many countries of the East Asian region, monkeys behave decorously and well-mannered. But when visiting the cities, resorts and beaches of Thailand and India, be prepared to face monkey lawlessness. And do not be deceived by appearances: a cute and funny animal can cause a lot of trouble.

Photo: thecrowdedplanet.com