Suresh Shah
CHICAGO: Global yoga gear company Manduka, headquartered in El Segundo (California), has announced it will not produce yoga towels carrying reimagined images of Hindu deity Lord Ganesh following strong objection by Indians across the country.
It was deemed highly inappropriate and insulting to the religious sentiment and belief of Hindus across the globe. The protest was spearheaded by Rajan Zed, president of Universal Society of Hinduism.
Taylor of Manduka Customer Care wrote to the Universal Society of Hinduism, saying “Out of respect for our global community, we will no longer produce new versions of the products in question.” He further said, “Thank you for bringing your organization’s concern to our attention. We consider our community in all that we do and work diligently to ensure we never compromise our products, community or each other… Our reputation, as the world’s most respected yoga brand, was built by operating at the highest level of integrity.”
The Hindu community at large appreciated Manduka for understanding the concerns of Hindus who felt that the image of Lord Ganesh on products like towels was highly insensitive.
Rajan said a formal apology from Manduka CEO to the upset Hindu community would go a long way in mollifying the hurt sentiment of devotees, since the company sold Ganesh yoga towel in the past also. Manduka needs to withdraw its yoga towels depicting reimagined images of Lord Ganesh selling on its website or other online retailers or shops, he added.
Lord Ganesh was highly revered in Hinduism meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to sit/stand on or put feet/buttocks/legs/body on or to absorb/wipe one’s sweat. Inappropriate usage of Hindu deities or concepts for commercial or other agenda was not okay as it hurts the devotees.Any trivialization of Hindu deity is disturbing to the Hindus world over.
Manduka, whose tagline is “Made for you, made for yoga.” and whose history goes to 1997, claims to make “the world’s finest athletic performance products, including yoga mats, towels, bags, props and men’s & women’s fitness apparel”. It runs “project:OM”, whose tagline is “Creating a Better World”. Manduka claims that its quality is “still unmatched in the marketplace”.
Thank You For Your Vote!
Sorry You have Already Voted!
