Quote:
Originally Posted by Jim O
It was a symbol of luck dating back many centuries if not millennia. It has been used in the past by Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, Pagans, and even Jews (the floor of the synagogue at Ein Gedi, built during the Roman occupation of Judea, was decorated with a swastika).
Since its incorporation by the Nazis it has become taboo and even illegal in Western cultures.
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The term Swastika, however, is Sanskrit. Means 'at peace with oneself', zero stress, contentment. It is usual for millions of Hindus (and some of its derivative religions and cultures like Buddhism) to use the Swastika during marriage, on temple architeture, etc. But the Nazi Swastika faces a direction diametrically opposite to the Hindu original. The original stands erect at 90 degrees= no tilt. Even the 'Heil Hitler' and the attendant raising of the right hand is very ancient Hindu, a tradition that continues even today. The Indian original greet is 'Jai (whoever)', same as the Heil greet! The raised right hand (only right hand, considered to be 'clean', spiritually) is but a greeting-cum-blessing posture.
The Swastika is also interpreted as the spokes of the chariot-wheels of the Sun God. If you have seen the sun temple at Konarak in Orissa, India, you would have no difficulty in understanding this. The Indians, and from them the Aryan-hungry Nazis, had a particular obsession with the sun. Rosenberg's Der Mythos des 20.Jahrhunderts analyses ancient Indian myths and comes up with remarkable insights!
Too bad that the Nazis hijacked the perfectly innocent, even benevolent Hindu culture in their search for Aryan civilisation and gave these a bad name. Of course, Western ignorance did not help at all!
March 18th, 2008, 04:50 PM
joyarjun1
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