Thread: The Swastika....卍卍卍卍卍卍卐卐卐卐卐卐卐卐

You can only do the best you can to educate those who misinterpret.

If people continue to use the swastika in it's original context, then slowly the negative connotations will unwind.

...why does it bother you that the swastika is better known in the Western world for its more modern and - vaguely - more relevant connotations?

:/

卍 is a symbol for some Indian religion.
卐 is the correct symbol to use.

This topic is kind of pointless, too.

Originally Posted by Demon Parasite

卍 is a symbol for some Indian religion.
卐 is the correct symbol to use.

This topic is kind of pointless, too.

Yes, I was going to say something about how the Nazi's swastika was different from the original, but you have already done so. I don't know why I bother to post since you already did it, maybe I'm trying to tell everyone that I knew this beforehand in some subtle way which has now become obvious. /end [self analysis]

Interesting. Now go tell the ignorant people.

Whats the point? People don't randomly come up to me and tell me random stuff I don't know...I wish they did though, because then I would have more random, useless information floating in my mind.

Boy, do I know THIS battle. Let me tell you, it's an uphill battle, because no matter what evidence you present to the people to support the fact that the swastika was originally (and in many places, is still) used as a sign of good will, good luck, longevity and prosperity, there will always be some idiot who has to dispute it with false claims and deliberate, stubborn ignorance on the subject.

Funny to note is how the swastika was also used as an insignia for a certain company (don't remember what number) in the U.S. Army prior to the rise of Nazism in Germany. It'd be absolutely hilarious if there was one of those stubborn ignoramuses who's grandpa fought as a part of that particular company, and saw a picture of him with the swastika symbol. I bet bricks would be shat.

Originally Posted by Demon Parasite

卍 is a symbol for some Indian religion.
卐 is the correct symbol to use.

Actually, no. The Nazis used the clockwise swastika tilted at a forty-five degree angle. Both of the ones that are not tilted - clockwise and counterclockwise - are in use by Hindu and other religions as a sign of good will, good luck, etc., etc. ...

Originally Posted by Demon Parasite

This topic is kind of pointless, too.

It's only pointless to you because you obviously don't understand the importance of symbolism. Do you also turn such a blind eye to flag-burning, as well?

I think it is proper for us to put away the anger at the wrong and focus positive energy on the right and the informing people of the symbol's true meaning.

This actually goes to show how much people do not read or aren't informed of simple facts but seem to be actually influenced by symbolism and media.





Besides, you know, the swastika isn't the only thing Hilter ruined for future generations, what about the mustache? How many of that style do you see around anymore?

The swastika tilted makes no real difference, the symbol has been used by many cultures in slightly different forms.

If it's not tilted, the average person won't give a damn. They will still think it's a nazi sign.
I asked several friends today, they all said it's a Nazi symbol except for one of them, and his mom or grandma, I believe, is Indian.

The Swastiki in American Indian lore was the stylized image of the Thunderbird of legend.

Symbols/images are in themselves neither inherently good or bad it is we humans , and how we choose to interpret them that makes them so.

^Yes, but therein lies the problem. The fact that one group of people interprets a symbol differently than another group of people means that at least one of those groups will most definitely be discriminated against: in this case, those who interpret the swastika the way it was originally intended to be interpreted are being labeled as something evil (Nazis). That ain't right, in my opinion.

Let's take the U.S. flag, for example (or the flag of whatever country you come from, it doesn't matter). To us, it's a symbol of our heritage, all the values that our forefathers have fought and died for. If you learned one day that every other country in the world perceived our flag to be a symbol of evil, wouldn't it mortally offend you? That they're basically saying that our country was founded on evil, that are beliefs are wrong and evil, and that everything our people have died for in the past is all in vain?

Fact is, we live in a world where nothing is as evil as Adolf Hitler. We compare him to everything we don't like.

"Oh, Bush has made comments about wanting to be a dictator, and Hitler was a dictator...so Bush must be evil!"

Or "Man, your parents never let you do anything, and Hitler was just as restrictive to his people...your parents must be evil!"

And because Hitler represented his regime with a swastika, the Hindu family that lives down the street is evil for using it in their rituals, or for carrying swastika medallions and whatnot.

So if Hitler liked strawberry ice cream, and I like strawberry ice cream, does that mean I'm evil too?

@ClouD: It may not make a true difference, and I didn't say that it did; I was just covering the fact that the Nazis were the only group I know of that have used a tilted swastika, pretty much exclusively I might add.

And there are many more..

Originally Posted by Siиdяed

...why does it bother you that the swastika is better known in the Western world for its more modern and - vaguely - more relevant connotations?

:/

1930s Europe is only "more relevant" than present day India and Asia from a perspective of provincial megalomania, the unexamined conviction that history begins and ends within your own four walls. We here in the "melting pot" can't afford such limits on our vision; with barriers to the East dissolving and an increasing tide of ideas and warm bodies crossing the divide, clinging to a version of human history that begins in Rome and ends on a beach at Normandy will lead to miscommunication and conflict.

Originally Posted by ClouD

You can only do the best you can to educate those who misinterpret.

If people continue to use the swastika in it's original context, then slowly the negative connotations will unwind.

QFT

People don't know what they don't know. They can't come up with better answers until they're faced with the question.

Lëzen, I don't know that I've ever encountered "the other side" of this "debate;" about the most heated opposition I've ever seen is: so, what?

Originally Posted by Specialis Sapientia

And there are many more..

Nice pic!

This thread is pretty 卐

Nazis are still using this as their symbol. There's no way around it, Hitler hijacked it and it's their now. It's fairly common, they say Bush is a satanist cause he keeps showing the horns sign and some even claim that both peace sign and gesture are satanistic.

btw. swastika means wife's sister in Serbian. Plenty of room for misunderstandings there, that's why we call it "kukasti krst" (hooked cross)

I've come across this topic on two different occasions, once when reading about the 13 day moon calendar (the law of time, mayans, etc). The shape itelf is somehow formed by the way the days are arranged. I tried finding a link to the page of where I saw this, but can't at the moment.

The other time I read about the symbol representing 'good' was in reading some online material about the whole Annunaki (reptilians) conspiracy thing by David Icke. An interesting read but I never got through the whole thing. He does go into the whole thing regarding the symbol, however, and why he believes its meaning has been purposefully missrepresented.

Nice reference piece, Specialis - I didn't realize it was used across so many cultures.

Originally Posted by mysterious dreamer

Nazis are still using this as their symbol. There's no way around it, Hitler hijacked it and it's their now. It's fairly common, they say Bush is a satanist cause he keeps showing the horns sign and some even claim that both peace sign and gesture are satanistic.

btw. swastika means wife's sister in Serbian. Plenty of room for misunderstandings there, that's why we call it "kukasti krst" (hooked cross)

Sooooooooo, contemporary Nazis numbering in the tens of...tens..."own" a symbol in daily use by roughly 25% of humanity? Unless Eastern Europe is hiding a billion Nazis somewhere, the math is off.

Don't get me wrong, the Third Reich looms large in human history, but 3-4 generations later they are losing their hold on a symbol that was in wide use before, during and after their atrocities. Our increasing cultural exchange with societies that use the symbol widely makes it inevitable.

卍