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Swastika
The swastika (/ˈswɒstɪkə/ SWOST-ik-ə, Sanskrit: [ˈsʋɐstikɐ]; 卐 or 卍) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, as well as a few African and American cultures. In the Western world, it is widely recognized as a symbol of the German Nazi Party who appropriated it for their party insignia starting in the early 20th century. The appropriation continues with its use by neo-Nazis around the world. The swastika was and continues to be used as a symbol of divinity and spirituality in Indian religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. It generally takes the form of a cross, the arms of which are of equal length and perpendicular to the adjacent arms, each bent midway at a right angle.
The word swastika comes from Sanskrit: स्वस्तिक, romanized: svastika, meaning 'conducive to well-being'. In Hinduism, the right-facing symbol (clockwise) (卐) is called swastika, symbolizing surya ('sun'), prosperity and good luck, while the left-facing symbol (counter-clockwise) (卍) is called sauvastika, symbolising night or tantric aspects of Kali. In Jain symbolism, it is the part of the Jain flag. It represents Suparshvanatha – the seventh of 24 Tirthankaras (spiritual teachers and saviours), while in Buddhist symbolism it represents the auspicious footprints of the Buddha. In the different Indo-European traditions, the swastika symbolises fire, lightning bolts, and the sun. The symbol is found in the archaeological remains of the Indus Valley civilisation and Samarra, as well as in early Byzantine and Christian artwork.
Although used for the first time as a symbol of international antisemitism by far-right Romanian politician A. C. Cuza prior to World War I, it was a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck for most of the Western world until the 1930s, when the German Nazi Party adopted the swastika as an emblem of the Aryan race. As a result of World War II and the Holocaust, in the West it continues to be strongly associated with Nazism, antisemitism, white supremacism, or simply evil. As a consequence, its use in some countries, including Germany, is prohibited by law. However, the swastika remains a symbol of good luck and prosperity in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain countries such as Nepal, India, Thailand, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, China and Japan, and carries various other meanings for peoples around the world, such as the Akan, Hopi, Navajo, and Tlingit peoples. It is also commonly used in Hindu marriage ceremonies and Dipavali celebrations.
With well-being (swasti) we would follow along our path, like the Sun and the Moon. May we meet up with one who gives in return, who does not smite (harm), with one who knows.
The word swastika is derived from the Sanskrit root swasti, which is composed of su 'good, well' and asti 'is; it is; there is'. The word swasti occurs frequently in the Vedas as well as in classical literature, meaning 'health, luck, success, prosperity', and it was commonly used as a greeting. The final ka is a common suffix that could have multiple meanings.
According to 19th century Sanskrit scholar Monier Monier-Williams, a majority of scholars consider the swastika to originally be a solar symbol.[needs update] The sign implies well-being, something fortunate, lucky, or auspicious. It is alternatively spelled in contemporary[clarification needed] texts as svastika, and other spellings were occasionally used in the 19th and early 20th century, such as suastika. It was derived from the Sanskrit term (Devanagari स्वस्तिक), which transliterates to svastika under the commonly used IAST transliteration system, but is pronounced closer to swastika.
The earliest known use of the word swastika is in Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī, which uses it to explain a Sanskrit grammar rule, in the context of a type of identifying mark on a cow's ear. Pāṇini lived in or before the 4th century BCE, possibly in 6th or 5th century BCE.
An early use of swastika in a European text was in 1871 with the publications of Heinrich Schliemann, who discovered more than 1,800 ancient instances of swastikas and variants while digging the Hisarlik mound near the Aegean Sea coast for the history of Troy. Schliemann linked his findings to the Sanskrit swastika.
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Swastika
The swastika (/ˈswɒstɪkə/ SWOST-ik-ə, Sanskrit: [ˈsʋɐstikɐ]; 卐 or 卍) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, as well as a few African and American cultures. In the Western world, it is widely recognized as a symbol of the German Nazi Party who appropriated it for their party insignia starting in the early 20th century. The appropriation continues with its use by neo-Nazis around the world. The swastika was and continues to be used as a symbol of divinity and spirituality in Indian religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. It generally takes the form of a cross, the arms of which are of equal length and perpendicular to the adjacent arms, each bent midway at a right angle.
The word swastika comes from Sanskrit: स्वस्तिक, romanized: svastika, meaning 'conducive to well-being'. In Hinduism, the right-facing symbol (clockwise) (卐) is called swastika, symbolizing surya ('sun'), prosperity and good luck, while the left-facing symbol (counter-clockwise) (卍) is called sauvastika, symbolising night or tantric aspects of Kali. In Jain symbolism, it is the part of the Jain flag. It represents Suparshvanatha – the seventh of 24 Tirthankaras (spiritual teachers and saviours), while in Buddhist symbolism it represents the auspicious footprints of the Buddha. In the different Indo-European traditions, the swastika symbolises fire, lightning bolts, and the sun. The symbol is found in the archaeological remains of the Indus Valley civilisation and Samarra, as well as in early Byzantine and Christian artwork.
Although used for the first time as a symbol of international antisemitism by far-right Romanian politician A. C. Cuza prior to World War I, it was a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck for most of the Western world until the 1930s, when the German Nazi Party adopted the swastika as an emblem of the Aryan race. As a result of World War II and the Holocaust, in the West it continues to be strongly associated with Nazism, antisemitism, white supremacism, or simply evil. As a consequence, its use in some countries, including Germany, is prohibited by law. However, the swastika remains a symbol of good luck and prosperity in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain countries such as Nepal, India, Thailand, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, China and Japan, and carries various other meanings for peoples around the world, such as the Akan, Hopi, Navajo, and Tlingit peoples. It is also commonly used in Hindu marriage ceremonies and Dipavali celebrations.
With well-being (swasti) we would follow along our path, like the Sun and the Moon. May we meet up with one who gives in return, who does not smite (harm), with one who knows.
The word swastika is derived from the Sanskrit root swasti, which is composed of su 'good, well' and asti 'is; it is; there is'. The word swasti occurs frequently in the Vedas as well as in classical literature, meaning 'health, luck, success, prosperity', and it was commonly used as a greeting. The final ka is a common suffix that could have multiple meanings.
According to 19th century Sanskrit scholar Monier Monier-Williams, a majority of scholars consider the swastika to originally be a solar symbol.[needs update] The sign implies well-being, something fortunate, lucky, or auspicious. It is alternatively spelled in contemporary[clarification needed] texts as svastika, and other spellings were occasionally used in the 19th and early 20th century, such as suastika. It was derived from the Sanskrit term (Devanagari स्वस्तिक), which transliterates to svastika under the commonly used IAST transliteration system, but is pronounced closer to swastika.
The earliest known use of the word swastika is in Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī, which uses it to explain a Sanskrit grammar rule, in the context of a type of identifying mark on a cow's ear. Pāṇini lived in or before the 4th century BCE, possibly in 6th or 5th century BCE.
An early use of swastika in a European text was in 1871 with the publications of Heinrich Schliemann, who discovered more than 1,800 ancient instances of swastikas and variants while digging the Hisarlik mound near the Aegean Sea coast for the history of Troy. Schliemann linked his findings to the Sanskrit swastika.