The middle-aged woman who insisted 'the customer is God' in front of a deity
It is a hopelessly ridiculous story, but
it is a true story.
Please enjoy this as a break from the series.
About three times a year, including New Year's, I sell
amazake and daifuku at a certain shrine in Tokyo.
Serving customers is stimulating once in a while, and
given the nature of the shrine, almost no one complains.
A shrine is not a place to come to complain, but
a place to come to report to or pray to the gods, so
almost everyone comes with a pure heart.
A middle-aged woman who has the wrong idea
Due to the location, there is also a temple next to the approach.
In other words, the neighbor is a temple.
A woman who stopped by that temple didn't seem to be taken seriously,
so she came trotting over to the shrine.
At that time, I was a daifuku vendor.
At the shrine, I say "hello" to everyone who stops by.
The woman didn't even look at the daifuku,
and suddenly started talking.
It was long, so to summarize the main points:
・She wasn't taken seriously at the temple
・Who do they think they are?
That was the content.
Well, it was an astonishing story, but
I listened without refuting her.
And while fuming, she said this.
"Depending on how you look at it, I'm a customer who went to the trouble of coming here, right?"
"Since I'm a customer, I'm God, right? Isn't it strange to not take me seriously and drive me away?"
A customer at a temple?
A customer at a shrine?
Generally, we call them worshippers, right?
If you call them "worshipping customers," they would be praying or buying amulets, right??
Even if they buy something sold at the shrine, they are still worshippers.
And, a customer without paying a single cent??
To me, she just looked like an annoying visitor, but I didn't tell her that lol
Worshipping customers generally refers to those who buy things at places like ours that sell daifuku on the shrine grounds, but
even after complaining so much, she didn't even buy any daifuku lol
Now, the important point I want to convey in this story is...
The originator of 'the customer is God'
Who said 'The customer is God' first?
Tell me, AI!
With that said, here is the answer I received.
The phrase 'The customer is God' originated from words spoken in 1961 by the Showa-era national singer Haruo Minami. Later, the manzai trio Lets Go Sanbiki popularized it as a gag.
Oh, so it was Haruo Minami's statement from 65 years ago.
By the way, what is the true meaning of this phrase?
Tell me more, AI.
Haruo Minami's original intention and the history of how the phrase spread are as follows.
1. Original meaning: 'The mindset of a performer'
For Haruo Minami, the 'customer' referred to the audience, and it was a phrase expressing his stoic attitude toward his own stage performance, meaning 'to clear away distracting thoughts and perform the best art with a pure heart, as if praying before God.' It never meant 'the customer is superior, so anything is permitted.'
In other words, it means showing your best self, as if performing before God.
It is about the mindset of standing on the ultimate stage of a performance before God.
That is what it means.
In other words, it is about presenting yourself with sincerity, not that the customer is superior.
Let's continue to look at the AI's explanation.
2. Establishment in society: The 'Lets Go Sanbiki' gag
In the 1970s, the manzai trio 'Lets Go Sanbiki' repeatedly used it as an impression gag, saying 'This is Haruo Minami. The customer is God,' which made it a buzzword known to everyone in Japan.
3. The gap with current usage
Originally, it was a phrase showing the humility and resolve of a singer, but as time passed, it changed into the mistaken interpretation that 'the customer who pays money is superior.' Today, it is sometimes used to justify excessive demands or complaints (a factor in customer harassment).
It is sad how times change,
even though Haruo Minami showed sincerity,
it became 'the customer who pays is superior.'
It is a very unfortunate story that a beautiful sentiment has become a stock phrase for harassment.
Incidentally, when interpreted legally, a customer is a contract partner,
and in a contract, both the seller and the buyer are equal, each bearing obligations and holding rights.
The customer has an obligation to pay the price and the right to receive the product (goods/service), while the seller has an obligation to provide the product and the right to receive the price.
This is equal for both parties.
One can clearly understand how the phrase 'The customer is God' is being used incorrectly,
both legally and in terms of the original context.
You should think carefully about how to deal with someone who acts superior while brandishing 'The customer is God' like a pseudo-authority.