 Butter was
probably first created accidentally when whole milk carried in
bags was carried by horseback and
naturally "churned" while
traveling over rough terrain. The first documented mention of
butter making was in the sacred songs of the dwellers of Asiatic
India, dating back
to 1,500-2,000 B.C.E. There is historical mention of ancient
tribes creating primitive churns by horizontally agitating cow,
yak and horse milk. Butter
back then was not only eaten, but used as an illumination oil,
for medicinal purposes and also as skin coating to insulate the
tribe members from the
harsh winter cold.
The expansion of the northern Asian tribes by conquest and colonization
brought butter to the inhabitants of southern Asia. However, butter in
the southern climates could not be stored as easily as it could in the
frozen northern plains. The southerners were the first to clarify butter
in order to keep the fat from spoiling.
The Hunza tribe, who live in the remote Himalayan range
between Pakistan, India, and China, are famed for their lifespans of 115
or more. Their
vitality has been attributed to a culture-rich diet of butter,
kefir and yogurt, along with plenty of whole grains. In Hindu culture,
the cow is
sacred, and butter is the only animal fat that Hindus will eat.
The cow represents the soul, with its obstinate intellect, and unruly
emotions,
but it is also gentle and generous. The butter it gives is a
sacred offering, fuel for lamps, and treasured food.
The golden liquid
quickly gained popularity in the Middle East and was
even elevated to a sacred oil in India. In other southern civilizations,
butter was associated with the northern barbarians. It's use
was frowned upon in the city states of Ethiopia, Greece and
Rome.  In India, clarified butter is called ghee. [Read
more about making ghee.] It is the most precious substance
provided by the most sacred
beast on earth, the cow. In Hindu mythology, Prajápati, Lord of Creatures,
created ghee by rubbing or "churning" his hands together and
then poured it into fire to engender his progeny; whenever the
Vedic ritual was performed of pouring ghee into fire, it was
a re-enactment of creation.
(Butter in mythologies the world over is a symbol of semen: churning
represents the sexual act, and also the formation of a child
in its mother's womb.)
Later, during the Deluge, continues the
Indian myth, the honey-like elixir of immortality called amrita
got lost in the cosmic ocean of milk. The
gods and the demons joined forces to save it by churning the
ocean until various gods and sacred objects solidified out
like butter from the milk:
the cow of plenty, the goddess of wine, the moon, the terrible
poison which is twin-liquor to amrita, the coral tree which
perfumes the world,
the goddess of beauty holding a lotus; finally the physician
of the gods stepped carefully forward, carrying a milk-white
bowl full of amrita.
One of the hymns of the Rg Veda (circa 1500
BC) is in praise of ghee, and is intended to be accompanied
by ritual libations
of the golden substance
into fire. These are some of the words: This is the secret name
of Butter:
"
Tongue of the gods," "navel of immortality."
We will proclaim the name of Butter;
We will sustain it in this sacrifice by bowing low.
These waves of Butter flow like gazelles before the hunter...
Streams of Butter caress the burning wood.
Agni, the fire, loves them and is satisfied.
Here butter is fertilizing seed, a regenerator of riches:
its sputtering and crackling reawaken Agni himself. It also represents
the pure energy
of communal prayer and the inspiration to mysticism and poetry.
 Statues
of Vishnu and Krishna are ritually anointed with two intensely
sacred mixtures of five substances, one called pançamrita: milk,
curd (yogurt), ghee, honey, and sugar, and the other "the five
products of the cow": milk, curd (yogurt), ghee, urine, and dung.
Both of these can be used to purify people who have committed
temporarily polluting offenses, or as antidotes to poison and
disease. The lamps that
light the holiest
places in Hindu temples are wicks burning in ghee -- as are
the lamps swung in circular motions before the images of various
deities, or lit
at the great Festival of Lights in honor of Lakshmi and Rama.
Hindus rank food (high to low) as raw, superior
cooked, inferior cooked, and garbage. No one may eat "inferior" foods,
like rice and lentils, which have been touched by someone of a lower
caste than himself;
but anything "superior" may be taken from any caste except the
lowest of all. Inferior food cooked in irreproachable ghee instantly
becomes pakka, "complete" or "superior," and edible
even by a Brahmin. A traveling Brahmin who does not know who has been
touching the food available to him, must receive everything he
eats raw and still
unpeeled, unless food vendors can demonstrate that their wares
are cooked in ghee.
How To Make Ghee  Ghee
is the name for anhydrous butter fat in India, where it is
prepared in large quantities; it
is commonly mixed with the milk fat of the water-buffalo.
The full name is usli ghee, and the spelling ghi is sometimes
used, or in sanskrit ghrta. Ghee is the chief form of cooking
oil in many Indian
regional cuisines; it is also used medicinally and plays a
part in some Hindu religious ceremonies.
Samna (also samneh, samn)
is the name for butter fat in Egypt and elsewhere in the Middle
East, where it is also prepared in large quantities; it is
commonly mixed with
the milk fats of sheep and goats. It turns up in North Africa
as sman, sometimes flavored with herbs, or spiced, or aged.
Ethiopia also has a
spiced version, nit'r k'ibe.
The butter is melted and the simmered long enough to boil off all the
water, during which time it takes on a buttery taste. It is used especially,
but not exclusively, for cooking meat, and it is essential for many Indian
dishes. Ghee is the clear butter fat. By removing the albuminous curd
and water that favor the growth of organisms promoting rancidity, anhydrous
butter fat does not become rancid as readily as butter and can be stored
unrefrigerated for several months.
Here is an example recipe:
Ghee is produced as follows. Butter made from cow's milk is melted over
a slow fire and then heated slowly until the separated water boils off.
The vessel holding the butter is then allowed to cool; semifluid, clear
butterfat, which makes the finest ghee, rises to the top of the melted
butter and may be poured off, leaving the curd (precipitated protein)
at the bottom of the vessel. The curd, which still contains 50 percent
or more butterfat, may be reworked with the addition of peanut oil or
buffalo milk fat to make inferior grades of ghee.
A significant portion of Indian ghee is made from buffalo butter, but
only ghee made from cow's butter has any religious or medical significance
among Hindus. Early Sanskrit writings attributed many medicinal qualities
to ghee, such as improving the voice and sight and increasing longevity.
Ghee is used in almost every one of the numerous religious ceremonies
that Hindus observe at different points in their lives, including birth,
initiation into manhood, wedding sacrifices, and gift-giving at death.
Images of the gods are washed in ghee, and it is frequently used to light
holy lamps or is thrown upon an altar fire in sacrifice.
Also See: Real Milk - View Point From India
Related Links:
|
