Gods Among Us?

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     Don't you wish you could see your favorite celebrity, just once? Even if just for a second, look at their house, maybe even just stand in the spot where they stood, see something they looked at with their own eyes? Although it is intended to be used in a religious context there is a word in Indian Hindusim, "Darśan" that refers to this kind of seeing. In Darśan: seeing the divine image in India, Diana Eck explains that religious seeing or Darśan is a sort of worship that happens by looking upon holy items, places and people. For example Eck states that Hindus often go on pilgrimages to different sacred locations as "sacred sightseers" just to look upon the home of a god or goddess, a statue, a blessed city, and so on. Eck's description of the way people used to flock to Mahatma Gandhi just to "take his darśan" (Eck 5) is what reminded me of modern day celebrities. Society has deemed celebrities important and even getting the chance to look at one feels like a once and a lifetime opportunity because of the intimate connection of being able to see something up close and personal. Even just getting to see something they touched or owned is like having personal connection for the moment with the person, where you can acknowledge that you live on the same earth have been to same places, that they are a real person. Sounds very similar to the way that Hindus connect with their deities if you ask me, maybe we should rethink the way we see other human beings. They're not Gods. 

















Comments

  1. Jonathan Brumberg-KrausApril 28, 2022 at 6:12 AM

    I think your analogy of gods to celebrities in the context of darsan is spot on!

    ReplyDelete
  2. SaachiMay 12, 2022 at 8:38 AM

    I also think this comparison you have drawn is so compelling. I would take it a step further and say fan culture in and of itself is developing to be a new kind of religion, with various celebrities mimicking the stance of a deity. This is most prominent in the music industry, where fans buy apparel and merchandise pertaining to the artist and their latest albums and even have specific chants (the songs created by the artist). Its very interesting to see how this phenomena has gained traction over the years, and how as we as a modern society as smoky moving away from traditional ideas of religion, are unknowingly adopting a new version of it.

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