Harish Rao
CHICAGO: Hugely upset Indian Americans across the country have pitched with the Chicago headquartered e-commerce firm Pixels to withdraw products depicting Lord Ganesh as “gangsta”, calling it “highly disgusting and sacrilege.
It was shocking for the community to see highly revered deity Lord Ganesh displayed on various products sold on Pixels website; apparently smoking a blunt (marijuana cigarette wrapped in a hollowed-out cigar), carrying pistol in one hand and Ciroc (French Vodka) bottle in the other, with cannabis leaf glued to his forehead.
E-commerce companies should not be in the business of sacrilege, religious appropriation and ridiculing entire communities, it iscontended. It was deeply offensive to show immensely venerated Lord Ganesh as a “gangsta” (member of an inner-city street gang); observed Rajan, President of Universal Society of Hinduism.
Lord Ganesh was meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to be mocked at and paraded in a reimagined version as “gangsta” for mercantile objectives. Inappropriate usage of sacred deities or concepts or symbols or icons for commercial or other agenda was not okay as it hurt the devotees.
Hinduism is the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about 1.2 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.
In Hinduism, Lord Ganesh is worshipped as God of wisdom and remover of obstacles and is invoked before the beginning of any major undertaking.
Pixels, founded 2006, which claims to be “world’s premier online art marketplace”, has 16 global production facilities. About two-dozen “Gangsta Ganesh” items sold on its website included yoga-mat, duvet-cover, beach-towel, shower-curtain, etc.
