Dharma-Burger! "Karma Checks"
Big, BIG thanks to Horse reader Jaime McLeod who sends this great find, and really took the time to give it a proper writeup:
Why wait for other people’s karma to catch up to them, when you can take the law of cause and effect into your own hands?
Introducing “Karma Checks: 60 Checks for Balancing the World,” a new novelty product created by humorist Amy Krouse Rosenthal and published by Crown
Publishing Group, a subsidiary of Random House.
The bright orange pleather cover, about the same size and shape as an actual checkbook, features a vaguely Tibetan design motif, along with two Buddha faces: a serenely smiling Hotei, a.k.a. “fat Buddha,” to represent “good karma,” and a bug-eyed, demonic looking blue Buddha with his tongue sticking out, to represent “bad karma.” I can only assume the latter is meant to be Fudo Myo O, though it looks more like Bodhidharma and the Medicine Buddha got together and somehow spawned a rabid, inbred child.
Here is the copy from the back cover:
“Payback works both ways. Now you possess the cosmic power to deposit good karma into the hands of the deserving and withdraw it from every menace to society (parking spot stealers, beware). Simply fill out the Good Karma checks (preprinted to acknowledge good deeds) and Bad Karma checks (one for every typical public disturbance) and help keep the world ‘in check.’”
“Make a difference in this life – and the next – with Karma Checks.”
And here’s what the Random House’s marketing department says about this product:
“Contained in the familiar pleather checkbook holder, Karma Checks consists of two separate booklets–one for Good Karma and one for Bad Karma. The checks are preprinted with messages that apply to common daily scenarios.
Good Karma Checks are intended for acknowledging positive moments (receiving an unsolicited favor, being served by a waiter who doesn't rush the table, having an excellent conversation with a stranger), while Bad Karma Checks
are for admonishing bad behavior (talking loudly on a cell phone in a public place, chatting during a movie, stealing a
parking spot). Fun to fill out and eminently practical, the Good Karma Checks are perfect for leaving on a recipient's desk or tucking into a thank-you note. If you aren't feeling bold enough to actually issue a Bad Karma Check, at least you'll have the satisfaction of glaring at the perpetrator as you privately write one out!”
The preprinted checks include a total of 30 different messages, each featuring a concise description of the behavior that warranted the check in the “Memo” line, along with a longer explantion. While the “Good Karma” checks can be nauseatingly effusive (“When did you get your PhD in BFF?”), the “Bad Karma” checks feature some deliciously snarky tirades. For instance, the check marked “For sporting an extra-large attitude” includes the following observation: “Don’t know if this started in Paris or Milan or what, but entitlement seems to be the new black … If you really want to be a trendsetter, try this on for size: respect for your fellow man and for the basic rules of society.” Or, “For stealing the show we’re trying to watch”: “When the show stars you, we’ll gladly hang on your every word. Until then, please – oh, please – stop talking.”
I wanted to be offended by this product’s blatant appropriation of Buddhist imagery, and the propagation of what amounts to a gross misinterpretation of the term “karma,” I really did, but the more I read the contents, the more
amusing I found the whole thing. It’s clear from Rosenthal’s tongue-in-cheek tone that her intentions were all in good fun. Unfortunately, not everyone seems to get the joke. At least one major bookstore chain (which shall
remain nameless) actually sells this product in the Religion section.
...Thanks again for all of this, Jaime!
Why wait for other people’s karma to catch up to them, when you can take the law of cause and effect into your own hands?
Introducing “Karma Checks: 60 Checks for Balancing the World,” a new novelty product created by humorist Amy Krouse Rosenthal and published by Crown
Publishing Group, a subsidiary of Random House.
The bright orange pleather cover, about the same size and shape as an actual checkbook, features a vaguely Tibetan design motif, along with two Buddha faces: a serenely smiling Hotei, a.k.a. “fat Buddha,” to represent “good karma,” and a bug-eyed, demonic looking blue Buddha with his tongue sticking out, to represent “bad karma.” I can only assume the latter is meant to be Fudo Myo O, though it looks more like Bodhidharma and the Medicine Buddha got together and somehow spawned a rabid, inbred child.
Here is the copy from the back cover:
“Payback works both ways. Now you possess the cosmic power to deposit good karma into the hands of the deserving and withdraw it from every menace to society (parking spot stealers, beware). Simply fill out the Good Karma checks (preprinted to acknowledge good deeds) and Bad Karma checks (one for every typical public disturbance) and help keep the world ‘in check.’”
“Make a difference in this life – and the next – with Karma Checks.”
And here’s what the Random House’s marketing department says about this product:
“Contained in the familiar pleather checkbook holder, Karma Checks consists of two separate booklets–one for Good Karma and one for Bad Karma. The checks are preprinted with messages that apply to common daily scenarios.
Good Karma Checks are intended for acknowledging positive moments (receiving an unsolicited favor, being served by a waiter who doesn't rush the table, having an excellent conversation with a stranger), while Bad Karma Checks
are for admonishing bad behavior (talking loudly on a cell phone in a public place, chatting during a movie, stealing a
parking spot). Fun to fill out and eminently practical, the Good Karma Checks are perfect for leaving on a recipient's desk or tucking into a thank-you note. If you aren't feeling bold enough to actually issue a Bad Karma Check, at least you'll have the satisfaction of glaring at the perpetrator as you privately write one out!”
The preprinted checks include a total of 30 different messages, each featuring a concise description of the behavior that warranted the check in the “Memo” line, along with a longer explantion. While the “Good Karma” checks can be nauseatingly effusive (“When did you get your PhD in BFF?”), the “Bad Karma” checks feature some deliciously snarky tirades. For instance, the check marked “For sporting an extra-large attitude” includes the following observation: “Don’t know if this started in Paris or Milan or what, but entitlement seems to be the new black … If you really want to be a trendsetter, try this on for size: respect for your fellow man and for the basic rules of society.” Or, “For stealing the show we’re trying to watch”: “When the show stars you, we’ll gladly hang on your every word. Until then, please – oh, please – stop talking.”
I wanted to be offended by this product’s blatant appropriation of Buddhist imagery, and the propagation of what amounts to a gross misinterpretation of the term “karma,” I really did, but the more I read the contents, the more
amusing I found the whole thing. It’s clear from Rosenthal’s tongue-in-cheek tone that her intentions were all in good fun. Unfortunately, not everyone seems to get the joke. At least one major bookstore chain (which shall
remain nameless) actually sells this product in the Religion section.
...Thanks again for all of this, Jaime!
