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Swastika
SwastikaOne of the most important and widespread symbols in ancient religion, mysticism, and magic is the swastika or tetraske-lion. Essentially, it is a Greek cross with arms of equal length, each with four arms at right angles, either right-handed (regarded as a male symbol implying good fortune) or left-handed (female symbol). The right-handed form is sometimes known as gammadion, i.e., formed from joining four gamma letters. The swastika is generally regarded as a symbol of the power of the sun, and it may have been derived from a circle divided into four by crossed lines. A variation of the swastika is the Triskele ("three-legged") form, often found on Sicilian coins and used as the emblem of the Isle of Man off the coast of Britain. The swastika dates back to the Neolithic Age, when it was engraved on stone implements, but it has also been found in many cultures—in ancient Britain, Ireland, Mycenae, and Gascony, as well as among the Etruscans, Celts, Hindus, Germanic peoples, Central Asians, and pre-Columbian Americans. The Buddhists regarded it as a chakra or wheel of the law; the Tibetans called it Yun-drun or path of life. The swastika has traveled from the ancient Greek cities of Troy and Mycenae down to the 9th century in Ireland, as well as to Persia, China, North Africa, and Scandinavia. Some authorities have interpreted the swastika as a symbol of the deity during the Iron Age, and others have associated it with agriculture, compass points, and the origin of the universe. No doubt this universally diffused symbol has acquired many secondary associations in addition to its main association with the sun wheel. The name "swastika" derives from a long-established use in India, where the expression Su-asti means "Be well," implying auspiciousness and good fortune. Hindu parents mark the symbol on the breast and forehead of a baby, and a swastika formed of ears of wheat is made in the birth chamber. Hindu writers often place a red swastika at the beginning and end of manuscripts; the sign is also marked on floors and paths at weddings. There is a hatha yoga sitting position known as "Swatikasana" or the auspicious posture, in which the legs are crossed and the feet rest on opposite thighs. The use of the swastika as a Nazi symbol may have derived from German scholarship in the field of Hindu folklore and religion, distorted by such pseudo-mystical occultists as Guido von List, who originated theories of Germanic and Nordic folklore as early as the 1870s. According to List, the swastika was the symbol of a secret band of initiates called the Armanen or "children of the sun," who flourished in ancient times. It may also have been reputable scholarly discussions of the Indo-European migrations of ancient peoples and cultures that were perverted to the antisemitic doctrine of an Aryan master-race. Before World War I, the use of the swastika symbol was popular among romantic youth folklore movements like the Wandervögel. It was continued by political revolutionaries who had been Wandervögel members and by Hitler's National Socialist German Workers' Party in the post-war period. The Nazi swastika was designed by Friedrich Krohn, formerly a member of the Germanen Order, a secret order founded by followers of Guido von List. Krohn's design was adopted around 1920. Ever since, this ancient Hindu sacred symbol of auspiciousness has become inextricably associated with the perverse doctrines of the German Nazis. |
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"Swastika." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Swastika." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3403804411.html "Swastika." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3403804411.html |
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swastika
swastika (from Sanskrit svastika, ‘conducive to well-being’) An emblem in the form of an even-length cross, with the arms bent at right angles, clockwise or anti-clockwise. A symbol of prosperity and good fortune, it was used in ancient Mesopotamia, in early Christian and Byzantine art, in South and Central America, and among the Hindus and Buddhists of India. In 1910 the German poet Guido von List proposed the swastika (German, Hakenkreuz ‘hooked cross’) as a symbol for all ANTI-SEMITIC organizations in the mistaken belief that it was Teutonic in origin. The NAZI Party adopted it in 1919, incorporated it (1935) into the national flag of the THIRD REICH, and made it a symbol of German national depravity.
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"swastika." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "swastika." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-swastika.html "swastika." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-swastika.html |
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swastika
swastika (Hakenkreuz), the hooked black cross which became part of the German national flag in 1935. Its origins go back to the ancient world, in which it was a fertility symbol. In early Christian and Byzantine art it was known as the Gammadion Cross. In 1910 the German poet and ideologist Guido von List suggested it as the symbol for all anti-Semitic organizations and for this reason—and because it was thought, incorrectly, to be Teutonic in origin—it was adopted by Hitler's National Socialist Party in 1919. The word swastika comes from Sanskrit, meaning ‘well-being’. See also anti-Semitism.
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I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "swastika." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "swastika." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-swastika.html I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "swastika." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-swastika.html |
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swastika
swastika (Skt., svastika). An ancient sign said to be of solar origin and signifying good luck. The sign may be Neolithic and is found world-wide. Its Indian name comes from Sanskrit ‘sv-asti’ meaning good fortune, luck, or success. The swastika is a cross with the extremities of each arm bent at right angles. It is used as an auspicious mark on images or structures, and is often found on the chest, palms, or soles of the feet of Buddhas and Jinas. It is also used in the earliest Buddhist art which does not represent the Buddha in human form.
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DAMIEN KEOWN. "swastika." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DAMIEN KEOWN. "swastika." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-swastika.html DAMIEN KEOWN. "swastika." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-swastika.html |
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swastika
swastika. A symbol in the form of a cross of equal arms, each of which is bent at right angles. It was probably in origin a charm for attracting good luck and averting misfortune; it is found on vases dating from c.4000–3000 BC. In modern times it was adopted as the official symbol of the National Socialist Party in Germany.
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "swastika." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "swastika." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-swastika.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "swastika." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-swastika.html |
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swastika
swastika an ancient symbol in the form of an equal-armed cross with each arm continued at a right angle, used (in clockwise form) as the emblem of the German Nazi party. The word is recorded in English from the late 19th century, and comes ultimately from Sanskrit svasti ‘well-being’.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "swastika." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "swastika." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-swastika.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "swastika." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-swastika.html |
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swastika
swas·ti·ka
/ ˈswästikə/
•
n.
an ancient symbol in the form of an equal-armed cross with each arm continued at a right angle, used (in clockwise form) as the emblem of the German Nazi Party.
swastika |
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"swastika." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "swastika." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-swastika.html "swastika." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-swastika.html |
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swastika
swastika the symbol . XIX. — Skr. svastika-, f. svastí- well-being, fortune, luck.
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T. F. HOAD. "swastika." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "swastika." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-swastika.html T. F. HOAD. "swastika." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-swastika.html |
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Swastika
Swastika. See cross.
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JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Swastika." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Swastika." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-Swastika.html JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Swastika." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-Swastika.html |
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swastika
swastika
•bicker, clicker, dicker, flicker, kicker, liquor, nicker, picker, pricker, shicker, slicker, snicker, sticker, ticker, tricker, vicar, whicker, Wicca, wicker
•bilker, milker, Rilke
•blinker, clinker, drinker, finca, freethinker, Glinka, Inca, inker, jinker, shrinker, sinker, Soyinka, stinker, stotinka, thinker, tinker, Treblinka, winker
•frisker, whisker
•kibitka, Sitka
•Cyrenaica • Bandaranaike
•perestroika • Baedeker • melodica
•Boudicca • trafficker • angelica
•replica
•basilica, silica
•frolicker, maiolica, majolica
•bootlicker • res publica • mimicker
•Anneka • arnica • Seneca • Lineker
•picnicker
•electronica, harmonica, Honecker, japonica, Monica, moniker, Salonica, santonica, veronica
•Guernica • Africa • paprika
•America, erica
•headshrinker • Armorica • brassica
•Jessica • lip-syncer • fossicker
•Corsica
•Attica, hepatica, sciatica, viatica
•Antarctica • billsticker
•erotica, exotica
•swastika
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"swastika." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "swastika." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-swastika.html "swastika." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-swastika.html |
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