As such what is happening with the Hindu deities is most unfortunate and
undesirable. Unless the people of India, particularly the Hindus, are conscious of the
happenings and are determined to protect the dignity and honour of Hindu deities at any cost,
Hinduism will face its worst days ahead. This is to be realized that the way, the pictures of
Hindu deities are used on packing and advertising materials in India; it is something unique
in the world. Perhaps nowhere in the world the pictures of the deities, prophets or saints of
any religion are misused as it happens with the Hindu deities in India. So we have to be
careful in our attitude and treatment towards our own deities. At present it appears as if
double standard is maintained for the pictures of Hindu deities, particularly when some
pictures of the deities are worshipped at home and at the same time a large number of
pictures of the deities are discarded by the people as waste without feeling guilty or sad. In
fact, the pictures of the deities, small or big, kept at home or at temples, placed on the packets
or on the pages of newspapers, whatever their size may be and wherever they are, they should
be respected. But the opposite is happening in India. It seems, as if the deities are feeling
helpless being under the mercy of human beings. The people have so much got used to seeing
the pictures of the deities being discarded or left uncared that they have almost lost the
sensitiveness to feel that actually too much injustice is being done to the deities. They neither
react nor protest. If some sensible persons protest, it has little impact on the mass. Even some
persons console themselves saying that the dishonouring treatments are done unknowingly.
So God will excuse them. But committing such an act again and again, that too for years
together, cannot be acceptable.
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Actually it is due to printing of excessive number of pictures of the deities, particularly
on discardable objects, that the values of the deities have gone down. Their importance is
reduced. So in order to restore their value, dignity and honour we have to reduce the number
of prints of the pictures of the deities. At the same time awareness about these incidents is to
be created among the people of India. So let us see as to what can be done to restore the
dignity and honour of Hindu deities in different areas, where dishonouring treatments are done
to the deities. Given below are some remedial measures which may be considered.
Remedial Measures to Restore the Honour and Dignity of Hindu Deities
(1) It is natural that all packing materials, from packets to gunny bags, advertising
materials such as plastic carry bags & pamphlets and newspapers are treated as
waste sooner or later and are discarded. As such, when divine pictures of Hindu
deities are placed on such materials and these materials are discarded, the Hindu
deities are automatically and unnecessarily subjected to humiliation and dishonour.
Under these circumstances, the pictures of the deities should not be placed on such
materials. So the practice of placing Hindu deities on the packing and advertising
materials as mentioned above should be stopped. The remedial measures, which
may be taken in case of newspapers, will be discussed separately later on.
(2) It is also natural that the other advertising materials such as posters, signboards,
banners and hoardings are generally pasted/ fixed/ hung in the open. As such when
pictures of the deities are placed on such materials, the deities are left neglected and
are exposed to air & noise pollution accompanied by the wrath of nature. So the
deities, placed on these advertising materials, are not only treated unfairly but also are
left unprotected from the adverse situations, which is undesirable. As such the
pictures of the deities should not be printed on the advertising materials as mentioned
above.
(3) It is an old tradition to keep the pictures of Lord Ganesh, Shiva & Parvati, Rama &
Sita and Krishna & Radha on the marriage invitation cards, which is considered
auspicious. But most of the people discard them after the occasion is over in the same
spirit, they do with packing materials, thus dishonouring the deities in all possible
ways. This indicates the ungratefulness of the people. The people should be made
aware of the result of this undesirable act. They should be advised to dispose of the
cards in an honourable way, as it is done to the clay idols of the deities after
worshipping them. Similarly, other invitation cards, old calendars and Diwali &
New Year Greeting cards, bearing pictures of the deities, should be disposed of in
the same manner. The people may be allowed to continue using pictures of the deities
on these items with the hope that it will be easier for them to take care of the deities
on these items in a new situation, when printing of holy pictures of the deities on
discardable items like packing & advertising materials will be stopped and printing of
holy pictures will be restricted in newspapers reducing the total number of holy
pictures. However, the pictures of deities should not be printed on envelopes, lottery
tickets, bus tickets, ferry tickets, receipts, cash memos, vouchers and visiting
cards as these items are discarded sooner or later.
(4) The Hindu deities should not be taken lightly at any time and be treated as mere
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playthings. Representations of the deities in disgraceful, distorted and undignified
manners in idols, posters, advertisements and paintings, in the name of creativity or
freedom of expression, should be stopped. Nobody should be allowed to make a
mockery of Hindu deities, to deviate from the mentions of Hindu religious texts and
to hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindus in any form of expressions such as
visual arts, performing arts and literary works. Enjoying freedom without accepting
social responsibilities is condemnable.
(5) Before keeping or installing the idols or pictures of the deities at a particular place,
one has to consider if the place is worthy for the deities or not. Also one should not
have mala fide or selfish intention behind installing the deities on that place. As such,
the practice of placing the idols and pictures of the deities on glazed tiles at the
corners of staircases of office and bank buildings, not for religious ground but for
checking the betel-chewers from spitting on the wall, is an undesirable act. In the
same way placing of the idols at small temples at roadside, build on encroached
Government land at noisy, smoky, dusty and dirty areas in the towns, only to protect
the illegal shops built beside the temples, is equally undesirable. In fact, the deities are
treated here as dolls and are misused. As such, both the practices should be stopped.
The idols, placed in the open on the temples, gates and buildings of today for the
purpose of beautification of these structures, are neglected and exposed to pollution
and wrath of the nature just like the deities, placed on signboards and banners etc.
The deities should not be left uncared and unworshipped anywhere. As such, the
experts on Hindu architecture have a final say, whether the idols should be placed in
the open or not. Some people place the idols, pictures or symbols of deities on
begging plates and carry them from person to person to beg for money. Here the
placing of the deities as well as the intention behind the act is devaluing the dignity of
the deities. So this old practice should be stopped. Another new tradition of wearing
saffron T-shirts with pictures of Lord Shiva by the kavadias or just wearing
fashionable T-shirts with colourful pictures of different deities by the stylists, thus
posing themselves as devotees, should be discouraged because, sanctity of the deities
cannot be maintained when one eats, sleeps, works and goes to toilet wearing dresses,
depicting the deities on them.
(6) Of course there are some other areas where we have to pay some attention. They are
magazines, stickers and decoration materials where pictures of the deities are used.
Many people preserve the magazines like books for good articles and informations.
Unlike newspapers very few pictures of the deities are placed on the pages of
magazines. Still then care should be taken to print a limited number of pictures of
the deities judiciously in the magazines. Whenever people feel to dispose of or sell
the old magazines as raddi, they should at first remove the holy pictures of deities
and preserve them or dispose of them in an honourable way. The stickers bearing
pictures of the deities are also popularly used. However they should not be used outside
the vehicles where they are exposed to dust, mud, smoke and rough weather. They
should be used indoor and in limited numbers. When the old stickers are coming out,
they should be carefully removed and disposed of in an honourable manner. The
decoration materials, bearing pictures of the deities and used during festive occasions,
should not be discarded as waste after the festivals are over. They should be disposed
of in an honourable manner. In fact, the pictures of the deities should not be overused
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on decoration materials, which are beautiful by themselves. So carefulness has to be
maintained on every item bearing pictures of the deities if at all we love and respect
them.