Zen and the Art of Marketing
Via The Worst Horse, this headline in Time magazine -- "The Zen Machismo of Bruce Willis." And what is "Zen machismo," you ask? I haven't the foggiest idea.
This ties into a recent blog post on "Pop Zen" by Evelyn Cash at BeliefNet. She points to a number of products with "Zen" in their names, from tea to MP3 players. I can sort of see the tea, but MP3 players?
And then there are the pop-spirituality books with "Zen" in the title. I found one called Zen Miracles -- some might say that's almost an oxymoron -- and another on chakra Zen incantations. I've messed around in Zen for more than 20 years and never heard of Zen chakra incantations. I don't think there is such a thing.
I have found Zen nightclubs and Zen spas. There are miniature Zen waterfalls and Ryoanji-style miniature Zen rock gardens, complete with miniature rake. People really buy that stuff?
Clearly, the word "Zen" evokes something in pop culture that advertisers and publicists find appealing -- something cool and exotic at the same time. This is harmless, I suppose.
However, this feeds into the problem I wrote about a couple of days ago, that in the West Buddhism is not taken seriously as religion. It also suggests that hardly anyone in the West knows what Zen is
Comments
And, this is one reason why I think secularization can be a problem.
Lise
Secularization does not equal marketing. Buddha as an image is marketed as much as christian imagery of doves and crosses. Zen, itself, has long entered the lexicon of the Western mind to mean simple and sharp. Not much you can do about that.
But the topic of Buddhism not being taken seriously as a religion is true in many communities (Asian and Non-Asian). I still see eyes roll when I mention that I am going to sit on Sunday morning. “But you can do yoga at home” was the response I recieved when I mentioned that I do sit with a sangha instead of going to church.
My comment on secularization was referring to the unfortunate trend in the West towards taking bits of Buddhism and turning them into whatever fits one’s personal agenda or ideas, not about marketing. . .
Lise
Great post Barbara. I think that might be the last article from Time Magazine that I’ll ever read. Time’s quality of writing is now somewhere in the vicinity of People Magazine. Too bad because Time used to be a great periodical. Impermanence I suppose. The word Zen is a huge trendy pop culture favorite and unfortunately the meaning of the word will no doubt be lost upon people who’s only culture is pop culture. To me Zen will always be the Sanskrit word for meditation, which through my practice is defined as a “simple” discipline that leads to greater harmony with the universe.
To me it’s deeply ironic — and a bit sad — that the word “Zen” is being used to feed the addictive/consumerist mental habits of craving, repulsion & ignorance — which in authentic Buddhist contexts would be recognized as the lynch-pin of samsara.
My reading is that “Zen” is used in these contexts as a synonym for “calm.”
My reading is that “Zen” is used in these contexts as a synonym for “calm.”
Yes, & with the explicit or implied promise that the way to access that state of calm or peaceful joy, etc. is to purchase this or that product …. hmmmm …. maybe it works for some?
My reading is that “Zen” is used in these contexts as a synonym for “calm.” And marketing is a synonym for lying for money?
What would the marketing/advertising industry look like, if the ad reps & publicists were expected and inspired to work in a way that was in alignment with Buddhist Right Speech? It’s almost hard to imagine — we’ve strayed so far afield.
To quote the [pop] artist Bush from the song of the same name: “Everything Zen, I don’t think so.”