Swastika
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Revision as of 12:52, 9 December 2009
The swastika is a cross-like emblem with angled arms, found in many cultures throughout the world.
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Swastika in various culture
Swastika-like images have been found throughout ancient cultures. Most notably, it was a fertility symbol in India and other countries, and has positive connotations in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and some other faiths. The Hindu swastika was and is an emblem of a faith-based set of constructs, but apart from that it is fairly harmless.
The most common Buddhist swastika has anticlockwise arms and can be seen at numerous temples in the far east, although the clockwise swastika, more commonly associated in the west with Nazism, also appears in some religious iconography.
In North America petroglyphs have been found with the swastika symbol. There is not yet consensus regarding the meaning of the symbol or if it even shared meaning across Native American cultures. The state of Arizona paid homage to this heritage on its state highway markers of the 1920s and 30s.[1] During World War II, the Arizona Department of Transportation began installing state highway markers sans swastika.[2]
The swastika, in conjunction with the Star of David, is used in the Raëlian movement. They believe that the whole symbol represents the infinititude of space and time. However, the Raelians eventually changed their symbol when the Israeli government prohibited them from building an embassy for their alien gods in Jerusalem. Who knows why?
Stigmatization of the swastika
While the swastika was originally a relatively harmless symbol, Hitler and the Nazis appropriated it, and as a result turned it into an emblem of racism. As a result, it is one of the most recognized symbols in the world. Such is the power of the emblem to provoke, any shape vaguely resembling it is often deemed to be one, and its owner or designer accused of being a Nazi. Most of the time, this is actually no different to the face of Jesus appearing on a cheese sandwich.
In Germany
Displaying a swastika of any sort is banned in Germany, to the point where even anti-fascist use of it is illegal. Germany has recently attempted to get the European Union to pass new laws instituting a similar ban across the EU, but in this were not successful due to the objection of Hindus. The swastika remains in traditional use in the East, where it is not stigmatized, and the Hindus were concerned that the new laws would restrict their religious freedom.
Displaying the swastika in Germany is usually illegal. The only exception is if it is done for the purpose of arts, teaching, research or other pursuits aimed at staatsbürgerliche Aufklärung [civic enlightenment].
The swastika is also used as a symbol in Germanic neopaganism, and there is a movement among Germanic neopagans to "rehabilitate" the swastika as a religious symbol rather than a racist one.[3][4] Many Asatru websites display a banner containing the swastika along with the tagline, "Heritage Not Hate."
Swastika in Finland
The swastika has always been popular in Finland. It has been the symbol of the Finnish Air Force since 1918 and is a State symbol as well. After WWII Air Force planes and symbols don't show it anymore, as requested by the Allied coalition. It survives though in badges, awards, symbols. Even the Presidential Order of the Cross of Liberty showcases a swastika. Many paintings by the national painter Gallen-Kallela include the symbol, which means that prior notifications and arrangements must be made when they are loaned to exhibitions abroad.
External links
- Reclaim The Swastika
- Accidental swastikas in architecture:
- Swastika building
- Swastika in the roof of the H.H.H. Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (The light streaming in is due to gaps incorporated into the roof's design.)
- The world's scariest girls' hockey team (circa 1916)
- An evil tote bag
- Somebody who didn't quite understand the message...
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ Computer-generated image of pre-World War II Arizona state highway marker.
- ↑ Computer-generated image of post-World War II Arizona state highway marker.
- ↑ The Odinic Rite on the swastika
- ↑ The Northvegr Foundation on the swastika