Independent Indian: Work & Life of Professor Subroto Roy

Renford Bambrough would have been delighted by my starting this dialogue on Reason Religion Ethics and yes Economics, in the context of current conflicts too, as well as celebrating his Centenary in mind too. In 1979 he had been invited to speak in Iran but that came to be postponed sine die with the Iranian Revolution, and he published eventually “The Scope of Reason: An Epistle to the Persians”; he sent me a copy which I will try to upload sometime.

Grok: In Hinduism, animal sacrifice (bali) has indeed declined sharply over centuries—Vedic-era rituals shifted toward grains and symbols amid the bhakti movement’s emphasis on ahimsa, with texts like the Bhagavata Purana discouraging it in the Kali Yuga. Many traditions now use coconuts, fruits, or vegetables instead, though it persists in some Shakta and folk practices. Judaism practiced Temple sacrifices biblically but ended them after the Second Temple’s destruction in 70 CE (no central altar possible). Modern observance is symbolic, like the Passover shank bone. Islam prohibits idol worship (shirk) but requires qurbani (animal sacrifice) during Eid al-Adha to commemorate Ibrahim’s devotion—meat is shared with the needy. It’s not for atonement but thanksgiving and charity.

SR What’s it with Red Cows or Red Bulls etc?

Grok: The “Red Cows” (technically Red Heifers) you’re asking about are a very specific biblical ritual in Judaism that’s gotten a lot of attention lately because of its link to the Temple Mount / Al-Aqsa tensions we were just discussing in the context of Passover animal sacrifices.
aljazeera.com
Biblical roots (Numbers 19)
In the Torah, God commands Moses and Aaron to take a perfect red heifer (Parah Adumah in Hebrew):
A young female cow (heifer) that is entirely reddish-brown (no even a single white or black hair),
Never yoked or worked,
Without any blemish.
This heifer is slaughtered and completely burned outside the camp (traditionally on the Mount of Olives, in view of the Temple). Its ashes are mixed with spring water, cedar wood, hyssop, and a scarlet thread to create a special purifying liquid. This mixture is the only way in Jewish law to cleanse people (especially priests, or Kohanim) from the ritual impurity caused by contact with a dead body—the strongest form of impurity (tumah). Without it, no one can enter the Temple or perform most sacred rituals.
britannica.com
It’s not a regular sacrifice for sin or festivals like Passover lambs/goats—it’s a one-of-a-kind purification rite. Tradition says only nine such heifers were ever used in all of Jewish history, the last one before the Second Temple was destroyed in 70 CE.
en.wikipedia.org

thetorah.com

templeinstitute.org
(Above: Historical and artistic depictions of the ancient red heifer burning ritual.)
Why it matters today
To rebuild a Third Temple on the Temple Mount (where Al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock now stand), Jewish law requires ritually pure priests who can handle the vessels and perform the services. The red heifer ashes are the missing piece—no ashes, no full Temple service possible. That’s why certain religious groups (like the Temple Institute) see finding and sacrificing a qualified red heifer as a critical step toward restoring the Temple.
oneforisrael.org
In 2022, five unblemished Red Angus heifers were flown from Texas ranches to Israel (a joint effort involving the Temple Institute and some evangelical Christians). They’ve been raised in a secure location in Shiloh in the West Bank. As of 2025–2026, several are still considered eligible (no disqualifying hairs or defects). There have been practice ceremonies, including a high-profile burning of one heifer in July 2025 in northern Israel (some debate whether it was just rehearsal or the real thing). Rabbis and officials have visited the herd recently.
religionnews.com

templeinstitute.org

jpost.com
(Above: Real photos of the Texas-imported red heifers in Israel.)
This has fueled huge controversy. Palestinian and Muslim leaders see it as part of a broader push by some Israeli settler and Temple activist groups to eventually replace or disrupt the Islamic holy sites on the Mount—exactly the backdrop to the Al Jazeera report and the settler attempts at animal sacrifices during Passover that started this conversation.
cbsnews.com
Some reports even link the arrival of these heifers to escalations around October 2023.
“Red Bulls” or “etc.”?
You’re probably generalizing from the red cows/heifers (female). There’s no major “red bull” ritual in mainstream Judaism (sacrifices were usually bulls or rams for other purposes, but not specifically red ones for this rite). In ancient Hindu Vedic/Puranic traditions, a red bull could be chosen as a valuable offering to the fire god Agni, but that’s unrelated to the current Israel/Al-Aqsa discussion. The “red cow” phrase in the news almost always means the biblical heifer.
wisdomlib.org
In short: It’s a rare, ancient purity ritual that some see as a prophetic “green light” for rebuilding the Temple—hence all the headlines tying it to the very same tensions over animal sacrifices at the holy site. It’s one more piece of the puzzle from the Grok post you linked earlier.

SR What?! That’s grotesque in 2026. My 2004 public lecture in England demands progress in religion, definitely the “demythologyzation” demanded by Renford Bambrough (whose Centenary year is 2026