Zara, one of the world’s biggest and most influential international fashion retailers, owned by Spanish fashion group Inditex, has apologized and renamed its cow leather yoga mat; which protesting Hindus called “highly inappropriate”.Inditex Communication & Corporate Affairs, in an email to distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, who spearheaded the protest, wrote: “We apologize for the misunderstanding. This was certainly not our intention. At Zara and Inditex, we are committed to treating all people, beliefs and cultures with respect.”
This mat made from cow leather, priced at $399, which was “FOLDABLE LEATHER YOGA MAT” before the Hindu protest, is now “FOLDABLE LEATHER GYM MAT”.
Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, thanked Inditex and Zara for understanding the concerns of Hindu community, which thought that such a product was insensitive.
Rajan Zed suggested that companies should send their senior executives for training in religious and cultural sensitivity so that they understood the feelings of customers and communities when introducing new products or launching advertising campaigns.
Rajan Zed had earlier said that this Zara “foldable leather yoga mat” seemed ridiculing and offending two serious concepts of Hinduism—cow and yoga—and was hugely insensitive to Hindu feelings.
Scenario of yoga (profound, sacred and ancient discipline; introduced and nourished by Hinduism) being performed on a mat made from a slaughtered cow (the seat of many deities, which was sacred and had long been venerated in Hinduism) was painful to Hindu sentiments; Zed had indicated.
Inditex, which claims “leverage the power of fashion to create positive change in the lives of people, societies and culture at large”, should not be in the business of religious appropriation, sacrilege, mocking serious spiritual practices and ridiculing entire communities; Rajan Zed had noted.
Zed had also urged Inditex, its CEO Óscar García Maceiras, and its Board of Directors Chair Marta Ortega Pérez, to be serious about its claim of “fashion that moves the world forward—through the most inspiring experience”.
Profit should never come at the cost of religious dignity. Global corporations should exercise cultural and religious sensitivity and recognize that respect for the sacred beliefs of millions was far more valuable than any fashion statement; Rajan Zed had said and added that faith was not a fashion accessory.
Hinduism was the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about 1.3 billion adherents and a rich philosophical thought, and it should not be taken frivolously. Practices/concepts/traditions of any faith, larger or smaller, should not be ridiculed at; Zed had stated.
Yoga, which found reference in world’s oldest extant scripture Rig-Veda and other early Hindu texts, was considered union with God, one of the six systems of Hindu philosophy, and a means for transforming consciousness and purification of the Self and attaining liberation. It involved withdrawal and its objective was the state of blissful liberation; Rajan Zed had pointed out.
Inditex, whose history goes back to 1963, headquartered in Arteixo (Galicia), is one of the world’s largest clothing retail groups which reportedly operates in about 214 markets worldwide with 5,460 stores and has a major online global presence. “The customer is at the heart of our unique business model”, it states.
