CHICAGO: In a recently released Marvel comic “Uncanny X-Men (2018-) #5”, X-Man apparently destroyed sacred ancient Sree Padmanabha Swamy Hindu Temple in Thiruvananthapuram (India), as part of his efforts to “save the world”.
“I cleansed the world of its fake houses of worship and false prophets”, X-Man declares after apparent destruction of this temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, which finds reference in Hindu Epics and Puranas.
Leading a protest, Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism, said that it was very hurtful to the Hindu community when a popular platform like Marvel labeled a sacred and highly revered Hindu temple as a fake house of worship.and urged Marvel to apologize for hurting the sentiments of Hindu devotees.
Hinduism is the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about 1.1 billion adherents and a rich philosophical thought and it should not be taken frivolously. Symbols of any faith, larger or smaller, should not be mishandled. Besides hurting the sentiments, such misrepresentation created confusion among non-Hindus about Hinduism, Rajan Zed noted.
Comics publishers should be more sensitive while handling faith related subjects; as these being a powerful medium, left lasting impact on the unsuspecting minds of highly impressionable children, teens and other young people, Zed added.
New York headquartered Marvel Entertainment, “a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company”, claims to be “one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy-five years”.
X-Man, a fictional superhero in Marvel Comics, first appeared reportedly in 1995. Burbank (California) headquartered The Walt Disney Company, a diversified worldwide entertainment company, had reportedly annual revenues of $55.1 billion in its Fiscal Year 2017.
