'Super offensive': Rihanna criticized for wearing necklace of Hindu god in topless photo

Rihanna is coming under fire for wearing a necklace depicting a Hindu god in her latest sultry Instagram post.

In the photo post Tuesday, the "Umbrella" singer, 32, poses topless in purple boxer shorts with her arm covering her chest. She's also sporting large pieces of jewelry, including a necklace featuring what appears to be the Hindu god Ganesha.

"When @popcaanmusic said 'me nuh wan ya wear no lingerie tonight fa me girl'

@savagexfenty" Rihanna captioned the photo, tagging her own lingerie brand.

It wasn't long before people started commenting on the jewelry choice, with some calling it disrespectful and appropriation.

"Rihanna’s appropriation of the Hindu God Ganesha is something I never thought I’d see... " user @rhea_silver tweeted. "My religion IS NOT YOUR AESTHETIC"

"It's appalling to see how @Rihanna shamefully mocks our beloved Hindu God #Ganesha. This exposes how #Rihanna has no idea or respect for Indian culture, tradition and our issues here," user @ramkadam tweeted.

According to the Hindu American Foundation, Hinduism is a religion where god can take on different forms.

"Some examples of different manifestations include Brahma, the Creator; Vishnu, the Preserver; and Shiva, the Destroyer," the website reads, adding that "Ganesha is presented as having an elephant head."

These deities are important to religious and cultural traditions. For example, Diwali, a Hindu-originated festival celebrated in India and by the Indian diaspora, celebrates in part the goddess of wealth and prosperity, Lakshmi.

USA TODAY has reached out to Rihanna's rep for comment.

This isn't the first time Rihanna has been criticized for offending a religious community.

She apologized to the Muslim community in October 2020 after her Savage X Fenty show contained a song that featured an Islamic verse, known as a Hadith, that sparked backlash on social media for disrespectfully using sacred language, especially during a lingerie show.

In a post to her Instagram Story at the time, the "Diamonds" singer thanked the Muslim community "for pointing out a huge oversight that was unintentionally offensive in our Savage X Fenty show."

"I would more importantly like to apologize to you for this honest, yet careless mistake. We understand that we have hurt many of our Muslim sisters and brothers, and I'm incredibly disheartened by this!" she continued. "I do not play with any kind of disrespect toward God or any religion and therefore the use of this song in our project was completely irresponsible!"

Muslim text known as a Hadith was used in the song Doom by Coucou Chloe, which was featured in the show. Hadith refers to the record of the traditions or sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, according to a definition from Britannica.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rihanna criticized for wearing Hindu god necklace in topless Instagram