It has been years since I started noticing Bhagwan being used for political and social statements. Though I am okay with it to a certain extent, some limits must not be crossed. The most absurd examples of such distortions come during Ganesh Chaturthi, and Navratri, where either Bhagwan Ganpati or Maa Durga idols are distorted, or pandals are used for social or political statements.
If you are making an idol around the theme of Earth giving a message to save Mother Nature, it is totally fine until and unless you are not distorting the original idol. However, people love to go overboard for some reason and think they are doing something extraordinary. Above all, the media and so-called open-minded Hindus promote their propaganda (I am calling it propaganda because it is what it is).
Shaping a political leader as Maa Durga or shaping Bhagwan Ganesha in the form of a film character is not only against the very nature of the festival but also highly derogatory towards our Bhagwan. You may not agree with me but stay here for a few minutes, read towards the end and then think if you are right or wrong.
Today, I am going to talk about the trend of making Chocolate Ganesha, submerging it in hot milk towards the end of the festival and distributing chocolate milk among the less privileged. Though it may sound “like such a noble and eco-friendly” idea to many, I would like to explain why you are absolutely wrong and should stop such practices right away. Notably, this practice has been going on for years, and most of the credit for this ill-thought practice goes to Harjinder Singh Kukreja, a chef from Ludhiana.
Punjab: Ludhiana-based restaurateur, Harjinder Singh Kukreja, has prepared a Ganpati idol with chocolate; says, ‘it took us 10 days & 20 chefs to make this 65 kg sculpture. We’ll immerse it in milk & distribute the chocolate milk as ‘prasad’ among poor children’. #GaneshChaturthi pic.twitter.com/05H6IcdQpr
— ANI (@ANI) September 13, 2018
Recently, a Food Vlogger, Chahat Anand, published a video on her Instagram account where she was sitting in a restaurant and pouring hot milk on the Ganesha idol. The video got viral, and following the criticism, the video was deleted by the vlogger. However, instead of apologising for what she had done, there were two stories justifying the act that again attracted sharp criticism and led to the deletion of those stories. The very active food vlogger has been silent since then on her social media accounts.
Hey food vlogger @chahatanand what exactly are you doing ? Who has give you the rights to do such nonsense things on the name of creativity. Apologize or be ready to face the consequences 😕 #Ganeshotsav2022 pic.twitter.com/3xrhw1Qx74
— P!YU$H S (@SpeaksKshatriya) August 30, 2022
While there has been a lot of criticism, there is a section that supports the act. Here are the arguments they have in places and the counters.
‘There were no ill intentions but a genuine desire to save the planet’
Okay. This is a very good argument considering the mess Plaster Of Paris idols create following the visarjan. Majority of the people who oppose the practice of chocolate Ganesha often do not find an answer to this argument. But the thing is, if you are so considerate about the planet, why not promote eco-friendly clay-made Ganesha with eco-friendly colours? There are some people who made Ganesha using Gau Gobar which is also a good option. Both clay and Gau Gobar are eco-friendly and do not harm the environment.
But what is the logic behind making it out of food items and then distributing pieces of it or milkshakes as prasadam? There is no sane explanation for it. None. If you are saying it is eco-friendly, why not clay or Gobar? If you are saying it will go to the poor, why not just make the milkshake and distribute it? Why do you have to make a “statement” on a Hindu festival? The reason is simple. You want PR. You want to be seen as some progressive Hindu who is “socially responsible”. Nope, I am not going to ignore your ignorance. If you have the money to spend on Chocolate Ganesha, it will be better to buy food items, make the chocolate milkshake and distribute it. You will be able to reach out to at least double the number of people by simply making the milkshake.
Notably, Chahat tried to justify her act and deemed the critics as trolls. She later deleted those stories too.
‘The idol was not meant to be worshipped, so it is not Bhagwan’
This is the most illogical argument I have seen on social media. First of all, in the case of the Ludhiana chef Harjinder Singh Kukreja, Chahat Anand and any other who promotes chocolate Ganesha on his or her social media profile categorically suggest that the chocolate idol should be worshipped. So the argument meets its painful fate right here.
Once you have done pran pratishta of an idol, it becomes Bhagwan. Even if you do not know how to do a pran pratishta and start worshipping the idol, it becomes Bhagwan. There are countless stories where Bhagwan blessed their bhakts with small gestures. Once an idol is Bhagwan, you must give respect. You do not go out and eat your Bhagwan.
One more counterargument is that when you buy an idol from a shop, are you okay with stepping on it before it is placed in a Mandir?
‘Bhagwan is our family member. We should be allowed to worship in our way’
Another beautiful argument, but it does not hold any ground. Yes, Bhagwan is our family member. But tell me one thing. Tomorrow I will send you replicas of your parents, children, spouse and other relatives made out of chocolate. Will you be okay with snipping off their head and eating it? Will you be okay with chewing the chocolate replica of your family member while the person is sitting right in front of you? If not, how can you do it to your Bhagwan, whom you worship and treat like an elder? I literally dare you to do the same with any other religion and see how they react.
I feel the shivers to even think if Kukreja had decided to do the same with a Sikh symbol. Instead of choosing Ganesha, he should have done it with the Sikh symbol, and then I would have sat back and witnessed the mayhem with a bucket of popcorn. But he did not. He knows the consequences.
‘People make Bhagwan-shaped Rangoli and decorations’
You do not step on Rangoli. You do not eat the decorations. Ideally, a visarjan of the items used for decorations and Rangoli should happen if you have made Bhagwan out of it. You cannot just wipe off Bhagwan-shaped Rangoli. It is disrespectful and very bad in taste. No one stops you from making Rangoli but make sure to do the visarjan. Do it by the book.
‘We drink water where visarjan happens’
Okay, that is a good argument but tell me something. Do you know what Awahan and Visarjan are? What do they signify? When you do Pran Pratishta of an idol, you call an Ansh or a part of Bhagwan to reside in that idol. After the pooja, you do the Visarjan, which is basically saying goodbye to Bhagwan and sending the Ansh that you had called back to their Dham or Home. The moment idol touches the water and clay gets mixed in the water, the Ansh of Bhagwan leaves the idol that then becomes the part of Dharti or Mother Nature. This is the process. Pouring hot milk on Chocolate Ganesha and then consuming it is NOT Visarjan. It is disrespectful to Bhagwan.
There are some people who say such idols to spread social messages are being made for decades. Here is one example.
In maharashtra, people make Ganesh statue in variety of ways. When India won 2011 world cup, almost every city has one Ganesh Statue with world cup in hand.
— Wrath (@Wrath1994) August 31, 2022
Thats how modernity and religion can coexist. Thats how Sanatan Dharma remained alive for 3000 years pic.twitter.com/ijqeHfO83r
I can only tell such people that if something wrong has been happening for decades, that does not mean you have to continue. There is a need to correct the course. By the way, you would not find an ancient idol of Ganesha or any Bhagwan being used to “spread the social message”. It is high time we correct our mistakes. In the end, I can only say with folded hands to stop disrespecting Bhagwan. Find another way to satisfy your urge to get viral on social media.
