In an attempt to further associate Germany with the Aryan people he believed to be in India, Hitler translated the hakenkreuz into Sanskrit, and it was mistakenly translated as the word “swastika,” a symbol that already existed and was widely used at the time. No one can deny that there are similarities between the Nazi symbol, the hakenkreuz, and the swastika however, the belief that the two symbols are alike begs the question: where did this fallacy come from? Hitler had falsely claimed that the Aryan race was a “master race” of the Nordic peoples who had settled in India, stemming from similarities between Germanic languages and Sanskrit. The way the swastika is perceived is a misconception, however, and differs vastly from the Asian interpretation of the symbol. For much of the Western world, the swastika is a symbol of hate and oppression, respresentative of the supremacism that fueled the Holocaust.Īs a result, the swastika has been banned from many schools and tattoo artists often refuse to incorporate it into their artwork. I decided to step in and explain the meaning of this symbol in my culture and how the neighbor was displaying a sign of peace, not hatred. She said that her neighbors had a string of swastikas decorating their door, and it made her wonder why they were displaying a Nazi symbol so blatantly. This is why when a classmate started sharing a story involving the swastika, I decided to listen in. However, many Americans lack this cultural context, and only see the one side they grew up with. Since then, there have been two versions of it in my mind: the one I grew up with and the one I learned about in history class. I discovered only after moving to America that the symbol stands for something very different in Western culture.
As a fundamental part of Hinduism, it often adorned temples and homes, including mine. Growing up in a Hindu-dominated country, I was surrounded by religious icons and symbols, one of which included the swastika. The word “swastika” comes from the Sanskrit words “su” and “asti,” meaning “good” and “to exist.” From here, the symbol spread to East and Southeast Asia and eventually Europe, taking on similar meanings in those countries until Nazi Germany. The swastika is widely believed to have originated in India, commonly used in ceremonies and festivals.
0 kommentar(er)
