The Cat

[Lars Martin Fosse]

At 06:38 29.01.98 -0500, you wrote:
>I would like to add support to Gopal's statement from the experience of my
>own family.  Since my grand-mother's time, we always had cats in the
>family, and I, as well as my wife, practically grew up with cats.  We have
>continued to have cats here in Michigan.  The first thing my daughter did
>last year after she got married is to go and get a cat.  Growing up in
>Pune in the Brahmin community, it was more common to have cats as pets
>than dogs.
>                                Madhav Deshpande

I would like to ask a question concerning pets. As an Indologist, I "grew
up" with the idea that dogs were regarded as impure by Hindus, and that
Hindus for this reason did not keep dogs as pets. (Having seen the stray
dogs of Benares, I somehow found this attitude rather understandable). But
here you tell us that people in Pune (presumably Hindus, most of them!) keep
both cats and dogs. I have also seen pure-bred dogs kept as pets in
Bangalore, but I am curious: How does this square with the idea that dogs
are impure? Is the question of caste involved here (as in : brahmins don't,
kshatriyas do)? Or did  I get this completely wrong?

Best regards,

Lars Martin Fosse


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