There is a dungeon level in the original Legend of Zelda video game which is shaped like a manji -- which, I'm sure, must have given some folks pause when they saw it on the game maps.
The swastika is also known as the gammadion or crux gammatica. Both of these latter names derive from the Greek letter gamma; if you stick four capital gammas together at ninety-degree angles, you get a swastika. (Compare the term "pentalpha" for the pentagram.)
A related Greek symbol is the triskele or triskelion, which is a three-legged swastika. It appears to have been first used as a symbol of athletic victory: three running legs conjoined at the hip, denoting constant speed or endurance or some such.
Swastikas in clockwise and counterclockwise can be found in the [Unicode] character set at positions 5350 and 534D hexadecimal.
When first plane (Thulin D) was brought to just founded Finnish Airforce at 1918 by Swedish count Eric Von Rosen, there were already blue swastikas in the wings. The reason was that when machine was manufactured in Umeå in Sweden, von Rosen just wanted to paint his family lucky symbol, which was blue and straight swastika, on the plain.
Main difference between one used by nazis and the Finnish one is that Germans used black one which was tilted 45 deg compared to Finnish.
After the war the swastika was removed from active use due its similarity to Nazi symbol and was replaced by white circle with blue circular stripe inside. Still it's used in some Air Force flags to honour the memory of count von Rosen.
(1) Floor of the cathedral of Amiens, France, featuring interlocking black and white swastikas in a striking design. The swastika was known to the Romans, and through them was known in Europe in medieval times. It seems likely the Romans became aquainted with the swastika by trade with the peoples of Asia Minor, Mesopotamia, and Persia, who in turn might have been in direct contact with India.
(2) Interlocking swastika design etched onto metal wall panels of the subway cars in Seoul, South Korea (seen by myself in 1997). These designs, which are also common in Japanese art, feature alternating clockwise and counter-clockwise turning figures. These patterns are perhaps associated with Buddhism, which originated in India although it is not much practiced there these days.
As you know, variants of the swastika are widespread in art around the world. It is an interesting pastime to look for examples in advertising or architecture; perhaps your college library or police station has a row of interlocking swastikas (a Roman architectural motif, I believe) on it.
The swastika is an old Navajo motif, appearing frequently in Navajo weavings. Since the Navajos stopped using swastikas (or "whirling logs" as they called them) after the symbol was appropriated by the Nazis, the appearance of the symbol dates a Navajo weaving to before 1935, when the Nazis officially adopted the symbol.
The symbol also helps date architecture in the Southwest. Prior to World War II, the swastika was borrowed for decoration of "Pueblo Revival" architecture. Thus, there are a lot of old buildings in the Southwestern United States festooned with swastikas. Extant examples in Downtown Albuquerque include the Kimo Theater (1927) on Central (Historic Route 66) , and the old federal courthouse on Gold Avenue. The courthouse, a Works Project Administration building from the 1930's, has excellent examples of WPA-era murals, and many swastikas in the Southwestern-style details of its architecture, and carved in the furnishings of the grand court room on the top floor.
Sources:
Aigner, Dennis J.; The Swastika Symbol in Navajo Textiles (DAI Press, 2000).
Pre-WWII Arizona Highway sign with swastika: http://mdo20.tripod.com/az/az64.jpg
Detail of decoration of Kimo Theater, Albuquerque, New Mexico:
ITSUTSU-WARI MIGI MANJI xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx MITSU-WARI HIDARI MANJI XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
A short discourse on the different rotations of swastikas:
I have recently had the experience of being told, by two different intelligent and sensible people, that the direction a swastika is 'rotating' changes its meaning -- specifically, a swastika with right-pointing arms* is evil, and means that you are on the side of Hitler, while the left-pointing swastika has a rich history as an emblem of All Things Good And Happy. This is bunk.
The right-pointing, or 'Nazi' swastika has, in earlier times, been used in a number of contexts, including, but not limited to:
"The word swastika means auspicious in the Sanskrit language and hence is used to symbolize the welcoming of auspiciousness and driving away evils. The symbol also represents the changing of the universe around the unchanging nature of God".**
"...when anyone has done a kindness to a Scout it is their {the scout's} privilege to present him -- or her -- with this token of their gratitude, which makes him a sort of member of the Brotherhood, and entitles him to the help of any other Scout at any time and at any place." ***
Another list, just as long, could be made of cultures that used the left-pointing swastika, but I think that most of the main uses have been covered in the other writeups in this node. Suffice to say, swastikas are generally Good Things, with rather unique exception of the black swastika on a white background on a red field.
* It is debatable which way a swastika is 'meant' to spin; the previous WUs in this node have already managed to give inconsistent accounts of what a Nazi swastika looks like. Because of this, I will not be using the damnable terms clockwise and counterclockwise. Instead, I will use the terms left- and right-pointing. To avoid any possible confusion, here are pictures. The 'Nazi' swastika looks like this:
Right-Pointing Swastika _ |_|_ _| |
If you were to reverse it, it would look like this:
Left-Pointing Swastika _ _|_| | |_
** http://www.hindunet.com/faq/hindufaq/cache/12.html *** http://www.pinetreeweb.com/bp-can3.htm **** www.eskimo.com/~bpentium/articles/swastika.html www.heathenworld.com/swastika/
Swas"ti*ka, Swas"ti*ca (?), n. [Also suastica, svastika, etc.] [Skr. svastika, fr. svasti welfare; su well + asti being.]
A symbol or ornament in the form of a Greek cross with the ends of the arms at right angles all in the same direction, and each prolonged to the height of the parallel arm of the cross. A great many modified forms exist, ogee and volute as well as rectilinear, while various decorative designs, as Greek fret or meander, are derived from or closely associated with it. The swastika is found in remains from the Bronze Age in various parts of Europe, esp. at Hissarlik (Troy), and was in frequent use as late as the 10th century. It is found in ancient Persia, in India, where both Jains and Buddhists used (or still use) it as religious symbol, in China and Japan, and among Indian tribes of North, Central, and South America. It is usually thought to be a charm, talisman, or religious token, esp. a sign of good luck or benediction. Max Müller distinguished from the swastika, with arms prolonged to the right, the swavastika, with arms prolonged to the left, but this distinction is not commonly recognized. Other names for the swastika are fylfot and gammadion.
© Webster 1913.
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