Of Yaks and Horses; & Heena of Bua Rani. By Chander P Mahajan On the eve of my departure from Cardiff (U K) for Paris via London, way back in 1983; Lord Vijay, my cousin, sounded me of the likely ‘horse meat dish’ in waiting at, his wife, Isable’s parents Dastarkhan. France’s taste for horse meat dates back to when 18th Century revolutionaries seized the fallen aristocracy’s horses to sate their hunger. The French eat horse meat because it is edible, accessible, and they don't have any taboo related to meat or horses. The top eight countries consume about 4.7 million horses a year. ‘To the Tibetans the horse represents a very sacred animal, thought to be a spiritual communicator, messenger, and carrier. It symbolizes stamina, endurance, beauty, elegance and freedom and will bring these things to the owner.’
“We usually call ‘Lung-ta’ as a Tibetan name of Wind Horse. Yak is a significant animal of Tibet.” says Tenzin Norbu, Chief Representative of Tibetan Community in Himachal. ‘When I was ill to ride a horse, my followers helped me on to the broad back of a *dzomo which is an equable animal with an easy gait.’ H H Dalai lama recollects in his memoirs of Escape. (My land My people) "Yak" is usually used for both sexes, with "bull" or "cow. The tail is long and horse like, females have four teats, bulls reaching weights of up to 1,000 kilograms. Domesticated yaks have been kept for thousands of years, Yaks may live for more than twenty years in domestication or captivity, primarily for their milk, fiber and meat, and as beasts of burden. Their dried droppings are an important fuel, and are often the only fuel available on the high treeless Tibetan Plateau and the adjoining terrain of Himachal Pradesh. Somehow these shy creatures manage to sustain themselves on the stunted grass roots which is all that nature provides in those parts. They do not eat grain. Contrary to popular belief, yaks and their manure have little to no detectable odour. Yak's wool is naturally odour resistant. They are used to draw ploughs also. Yak's milk is often processed to a