Indian god statue at Calgary zoo offends Christian group

Ashwin Shukla Navami, Kaliyug Varsha 5111

By Jamie Komarnicki, Canwest News ServiceSeptember 26, 2009

Calgary: A dancing elephant statue at the Calgary Zoo has kicked up controversy after a Christian group condemned the figure as an inappropriate religious icon.

Zoo officials say they have no plans to replace the Ganesh statue – which has stood near the elephant enclosure for at least two years – despite calls for its removal from Concerned Christians Canada.

The group sent a letter to the zoo earlier this week, calling the statue an image of a Hindu god that has no place in the publicly funded zoo.

"The zoo is not a place of religious expression,” said Concerned Christians’ chairman Jim Blake.

"Whether you’re a believer of any faith or an atheist or agnostic, if you’re a non-Hindu, it’s a god that does not represent your views.”

The issue first arose after the Concerned Christian group was approached by some zoo visitors upset over the elephant statue.

Grahame Newton, the zoo’s director of corporate services, says the Ganesh statue isn’t a religious icon, rather a cultural symbol that shows the tie between the elephants and Asian culture.

"It was actually chosen more (as) a symbol of how animals and cultures tie closely together,” he said.

An anonymous donor supplied funds for the statue several years ago in memory of her late father, who worked and travelled extensively in Asia, Newton said.

Although Newton acknowledged the statue’s religious ties, he said Ganesh also holds a wider interpretation as a cultural symbol, much like the eagle in the United States.

"It certainly is important to the Hindu religion, but it’s also very much a cultural symbol, and that was certainly the intent here.”

The artist who created the statue was also asked to strip certain religious symbols associated with the god, he added.

Newton called the Concerned Christians’ approach the views of a very small minority.

"We don’t cater to any particular religion.”

Blake said if the statue is not removed, the zoo should be willing to incorporate other religious displays.

"It’s not my favourite way of going about it, but we can approach the zoo to see if they are willing to put up, for example, a Noah’s ark or perhaps other artifacts from other faiths,” Blake said.