For the first time in 20 years, I held the Swastika in my hands during Diwali in India this year (2017) without feeling a twinge of concern.
Last year, when the priest drew out a Swastika on the wall of the entrance of my new home in India, I confess I experienced a brief moment of unease. Having lived in the United States for decades, we had purposefully disregarded this holy symbol of Hinduism, lest we were accused of supporting antisemitism. In modern times, the Swastika has long been associated as a Nazi symbol of hatred perpetuated by Adolf Hitler and German elitists. To the consternation of Hindus worldwide, for whom the Swastika is a sacred symbol, this negative perception has whitewashed what it originally represented – an auspicious sign of good luck and prosperity.
It is also a scared symbol in Jainism and Buddhism. It was unfortunately adopted by Hitler to represent his dastardly mindset of Aryan superiority in the 1900s. The Nazis considered themselves to be members of the Aryan race which they believed originated in India and Iran and co-opted the Swastika for themselves. Since then, in spite of efforts by Hindus to regain the symbol, it has stood as a sign of hatred and racism that generates revulsion and disgust worldwide. Here are ten facts about the Swastika that are lesser known.
(1) The Swastika is considered to be the oldest symbol on earth dating 12,000 years back, even before the Indus Valley civilization.
(2) The Swastika can be drawn in different styles and represents different meanings. It has been traced back to early Christianity, Arabic and Chinese culture, American Indians like the Hopi clan, Finnish and Latvian Air Forces, Byzantine art, Greek pottery, and the Vinca culture.
(3) The word Swastika is derived from the Sanskrit terms ‘su’ and ‘asti’ that together mean ‘that which is good’ or ‘all is well’.
(4) The Swastika sign represents the Kal Chakra or time wheel of 5000 years that is divided into four quadrants of 1250 years each. This cycle exactly repeats itself after it turns full wheel around the fixed center that represents God. Each quadrant denotes the four yugs or ages:
- Kalyug (iron age)
- Dwaparyug (copper age)
- Tretayug (silver age)
- Satyug (golden age)
(5) Hindus also believe that that the four arms of the Swastika stand for the four aims of human beings or ‘purushartha’:
- Dharma (righteousness)
- Artha (wealth)
- Kama (love)
- Moksha (liberation)
(6) In Jainism, the Swastika is the only holy symbol. Its four arms symbolize the four places a soul could be reborn into in the perpetual cycle of life:
- Swarg (heaven)
- Narak (hell)
- Manushya (humanity)
- Tiryancha (flora or fauna)
(7) In Buddhism, the Swastika represents the first footprint of Buddha and also symbolizes eternal cycling.
(8) A Swastika sign at the doorstep symbolizes the welcoming good wishes of the host for everyone who steps through the doors. The household or business place with a Swastika sign is believed to be the meeting point of the cross roads from the four directions. This quadruples the sanctity of the place and enhances trade, wealth, and businesses.
(9) The Hindu Swastika is composed of 17 small squares in a 5 x 5 grid. The clockwise Swastika represents the positivity of sun, truth, and prosperity while the anticlockwise represents night, Kali, and magic.
(10) If you can find a Swastika in the palm of your hand it indicates that you will live like a king.
The Swastika is not beyond redemption. We can snatch back the misappropriated legacy with patience and gentle persuasion. The divine purity of the symbol and its ageless message of well-being is simple and absolute. The reinstatement of the Swastika in its full glory and holiness is possible through education and re-education of the masses. Let it begin now.
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