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Re: ARTICLE: Protest the Gap!
In article <ghenDy7Eq3.82E@netcom.com>,
GERALD J. LA CORTE <l23@hopi.dtcc.edu> wrote:
|>: I went shopping yesterday with a friend, and I noticed that The Gap,
|>: in their recently created line of scents, has a new fragrance called
|>: "OM - the sixth scent".
|>
|>It really just shows you how much the "New Age" culture has butchered
|>Hinduism.
Generally with the full aid of the Hindus.
|>First, the '60s culture and they turn yoga into asanas where
|>even if I say meditative yoga, Americans still think I practice asanas.
|>I think the popularization of OM/AUM is actually the second
|>desecration I've heard. (Yoga / Asanas was the first slandar.)
|>
|>Where I used to live there was a certain New Age store that was popular
|>with the Indians with whom I used to work. I was curious about the
|>avatars and the Indians said that New Age was Hindu.
That last clause explains a lot.
|>I went to the store,
|>the manager, neither assistant manager, nor any of the three working staff
|>knew what / who an avatar was.
In the quest to "make" Hinduism a universal religion (as opposed to a
religion with universal answers), many Hindus have basically given up
on any sort of discrimination of ideas. So, if it's not Christian and
not Muslim, it's Hindu. Needless to say, this doesn't help Hinduism,
except in the "sheer numbers" category.
|>The the public, om is already not much more than a piece of jewelry, like
|>the cross, the ankh, or the yin-yang. Yoga is already nothing more than
|>asanas to the public. I'm curious as to how far the debasement will go.
|>Shiva Nataraj is already not much more than a living room decoration to
|>some
I recall being at an Indian graduation party, and in the kitchen of
the hosts, there was this large Deity of Ganesha. Kitchen altars
aren't uncommon in Hindu homes. What was really interesting was that
in front of the altar there was some counter space, and this was where
the plate of appetizes (Tandoori chicken pieces) was placed. The
alcohol, however, couldn't fit there as well, so it was somewhere
else. I found the placement a little humorous, but since I probably
would never see these people again in my lives (I was visiting a
friend and got invited along to this party), I didn't mention it.
|>: P.S. If they don't act to change the sign, have a bunch of friends
|>: show up with pickaxes and shovels, and tell the manager that you
|>: believe that their particular Gap was built on top of a very important
|>: site for Hindus, and should they not wish to cooperate, you'll
|>: "liberate" their store.
|>
|>Now, now, Vivek, I don't think that's necessary ;|. Besides its really
|>much more American to create a fake Hindu terrorist group and throw bricks
|>through their front window ;). We are trying to communicate with
|>Americans.
Or we could go for self-immolation in front of Gaps in malls just to
prove our point. However, self-immolation has generally become passee'
in India, and the new protestors generally prefer suicide bombs.
|>Actually, the only right response would be to write letters, say every
|>month, to The Gap and the perfume manufacturer.
|>
|>Of course you could always say its an American Indian burial site -
|>Americans won't know the difference - well, some would. ROTFL
Neither would Indians. I recall seeing an article on another newsgroup
by one of the Hindutva crowd which said that the Native Americans were
practicing Sanatana Dharma before Columbus wiped them out.
What was that you were saying about Hinduism and New Age?
-Vivek
