Ganesha gaffe: Vancouver yoga wear company apologizes for Lord Ganesha-inspired design on pants
Credit to Author: Tiffany Crawford| Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 20:57:39 +0000
A Vancouver yoga wear company has apologized to the Universal Society of Hinduism for a Lord Ganesha-inspired design on a pair of leggings.
Jullianna Charlton, owner of NoMiNoU, responded to a statement Tuesday from the society that said the design and the use of the symbol for Om on yoga pants was “highly inappropriate.”
She apologized for any misrepresentation, and said NoMiNoU’s intention is to celebrate different cultures from around the world and support emerging artists. The company pays artists from many different cultural backgrounds to design original art on the clothing.
This photo shows an image on a pair of yoga pants made by a Vancouver company that has upset some Hindu followers.
Shabeena Helsley, who was raised in India and was commissioned to create the artwork on the pants, said the image evokes the philosophy of love, peace and unity, and that she did so with awareness and respect for her own culture.
While inspired by Lord Ganesha, the art was not a direct image and was loosely reminiscent, she said. The design also uses aspects of nature such as leaves, flowers and vines.
“The designs are created with the highest regard, respect and consideration for my culture, a source of pride and in the spirit of celebration. I am proud to share the spirituality and sanctity of my cultural heritage and invite awareness of the power and bring honour to our culture,” said Helsley.
President of the Universal Society of Hinduism in Nevada Rajan Zed said that Lord Ganesha is highly revered in Hinduism and was meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and “not to adorn one’s legs.”
He said the “inappropriate usage of Hindu deities or concepts or symbols for commercial or other agenda” is not OK. He also took issue with the use of the Om symbol, which he said is the mystical syllable used in Hinduism to introduce and conclude religious work.
He said appropriate usage of Om symbol will be fine with Hindu devotees, but it is insensitive to use it inappropriately, which includes being displayed on yoga pants.
Rajan Zed, president of the Universal Society of Hinduism in Nevada.
Zed asked for an apology, which NoMiNoU provided the same day. She said the leggings are no longer available for sale on the website.
Charlton, however, disagreed with Zed about the use of the Om symbol, which is ubiquitous in the yoga world. The symbol, which is also significant in Buddhist religious practice and in yoga, is used by many yoga clothing companies, and can be found on yoga mats, T-shirts, active wear and on the walls of yoga studios everywhere.
Zed said the trivialization of the symbol of Om in the commercial sector is disturbing to many Hindus around the world.
“Hindus are for free artistic expression and speech as much as anybody else if not more. But faith is something sacred and attempts at trivializing it hurt the followers,” he said.
He added that in Hinduism, Lord Ganesha is worshipped as god of wisdom and remover of obstacles and is invoked before the beginning of any major undertaking.
Helsley said the design was not intended to be disrespectful to anyone, and the pants are designed for those who practise and honour yoga.
“They are not on shorts, swimsuits, underwear, flip-flops, or placed at the feet or other parts of the clothing that would show disrespect,” she said.
“The underlying issue may be cultural appropriation, where the sanctity of the symbols may not obviously be recognized or respected, but in this case the yogis purchasing the items are practising the honourable tradition of yoga, which itself is a recognition and celebration of the sacred.”
She added that the company’s name NoMiNoU is meant to show unity and that “we are all one.”
Om is a sacred sound and a spiritual symbol in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. The meaning varies between schools and traditions but is usually chanted in spiritual practice.
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