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HONOLULU, HAWAII, August 11, 2004: Some Buddhists are so concerned about the name of a new Waikiki bar that they have started a writing and telephone campaign to proprietors, politicians and community groups. The Buddha Bar, in the former House of Hong restaurant in Waikiki, opened Thursday. Some Buddhists find the name offensive. “This is an inappropriate name and is a show of disrespect towards Buddhism,” wrote Barbara Brennan in an e-mail sent to Buddhists and others. “The ignorance of the proprietors and their efforts to create a ‘catchy’ name for their establishment shows disregard for our religious community.”



In a news release, the bar’s developers, James R. Tennant and Victor Venson, say they are veterans of the nightlife scene in several cities, including San Francisco, where another Buddha Bar draws crowds to hear the latest in techno and electronica music. In a telephone interview last night, Venson said he has heard the objections, but said the owners did not intend to offend anyone. He said there are many Buddha Bars across the world, although the Waikiki location is not associated with them. “They see this as that we’re serving people liquor in the name of a religious symbol or concept,” he said. “But I see this as we offer people a good time to come here and enjoy themselves in a nice atmosphere, which I think is very positive.”



Bloom alerted Poranee Natadecha-Sponsel, president of the Hawai’i International Buddhists Association, who is from Thailand. Bloom noted that members of some Buddhist sects do not drink liquor, and that some might consider that the name of a bar was culturally insensitive. Natadecha-Sponsel has fired off e-mails of her own. “Several individual Buddhists have already contacted me to express serious concern about the new ‘Buddha Bar,'” she wrote in an e-mail, which was forwarded to The Advertiser. “The general consensus seems to be that this is an inappropriate name and any Buddha images inside are inappropriate, indeed offensive to the religion of Buddhism. The e-mail noted protests persuaded Victoria’s Secret to scrap the image of Buddha on one of its bikinis [HPI adds: as did Hindu protests scrap bikinis with Hindu deities in UK].



Natadecha-Sponsel urged people to write letters, call the bar during business hours and let the Liquor Commission, other agencies and political groups hear their concerns. “Perhaps non-Buddhist religious leaders and organizations might be willing to protest in solidarity with their Buddhist brothers and sisters,” Natadecha-Sponsel wrote. “Surely, Christians would find it offensive if this establishment were called a Jesus Bar or Christ Bar, and had images like a crucifix or a statue of Mary inside, and likewise for other religions such as Islam.”

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