ome Ramazan, there is a flood of advertising campaigns selling goods by leveraging religious values.

As a deeply religious society, we take pride in our devotion, often positioning ourselves as more devout than others with similar beliefs. Yet, reducing the sacred to a mere marketing gimmick feels almost offensive.

If nothing else sells, religion does. It permeates everything—from politics to everyday conversations. Even beyond commercialisation, there is an ongoing competition to display religiosity, often through the overt observance of rituals. These rituals are worn like badges of honour, with constant lip service paid in the hope of divine rewards in the hereafter.

Be it food, detergent or fabric, the selling point is often tied to religion—be it the emphasis on cleanliness, the endorsement of certain foods, or the significance of wearing head coverings in a particular way.

One wonders whether the purpose of religion is to boost sales and improve marketability or if it holds something far more profound and essential. The trivialisation of sacred values has been happening for a long time, and its reach continues to expand.

People willingly accept this exploitation in the name of religion. And if they do, who can come between marketers and their enormous profits? Yet, it is disheartening to witness the constant reduction of faith into a tool for commercial gain.

Perhaps the most genuine way to uphold religious values is through one’s conduct. But with such a vast gap between words and actions, this seems to be an impossible task.

Politicians, too, play the religious card, making promises they never intend to keep, manipulating faith for political mileage. Instead of creating a society grounded in the values religion seeks to instil, faith is rebounded as a marketing strategy and a tool for electoral gains. Religious values are brazenly flaunted for personal advantage.

A sacred text is recited, and instead of reflecting on its meaning, it is followed by an advertisement for a drink or a travel discount. We seem eager to prove that religion is a complete code of life—even if that means using it to sell products and reinforce a profiteering mind-set.

Perhaps the most genuine way to uphold religious values is through one’s conduct. But with such a vast gap between words and actions, this seems like an impossible task. This disconnect leaves ample room for those seeking to exploit religious sentiment for financial gain.

So, we wait for the next Eid, when an unseemly scramble for the hides of sacrificial animals will unfold once again—perhaps another reminder that personal salvation has taken precedence over building a just and ethical society.

The writer is a Lahore-based culture critic