In plain words
In Tamil this was called ‘Māṭṭu Poṅgal’. That is, the festival of cattle. What does paśu mean? People say that being a paśu means mere stupidity. No, no; the vision turned toward Paśupati is what was named ‘paśu’. There is Nandi, for one. Where is Nandi's gaze? It is on Īśvara alone. It is not on Prakṛti. Though it is a beast, people regard it as a form of Parameśvara, bow first to Nandi, and then bow to Īśvara.
Cattle, birds and beasts have a spirit of sacrifice that men are losing
Hanumān was a monkey. Though a monkey, he had no thought in him but the thought of God. While the monkey of those days drew close to divinity, the man of today is going very far from God. Cattle, birds and beasts too are teaching man many lessons. Everyone knows this. Birds lay eggs, hatch them and raise their young. But the parents feed the young only until their wings have grown. Once their wings have grown, they leave them. ‘From now on live by your own independence. Our responsibility goes only this far. You have the strength to fly anywhere. So depend on your own strength. You must not depend on us,’ the birds teach their young, and they set them free. Cattle feed their young with milk and care for them in many ways until they have strength of their own. Once the young know their own strength, they leave them, saying, ‘Earn your own food; do your own duty.’ But the man of today goes on earning still more, and keeps earning for his son even till he is grown: “My dear boy! Stay right here with me, and I will stay with you,” he says, and they see to it that they are never parted from one another. Though born a man, with Sujñāna and Vijñāna, man fails to develop the spirit of sacrifice.