From Good Vibes to Genocide: The Origins of the Swastika

 We’ve all seen the symbol of the Swastika in the pages of ‘Maus’ in the past week. Whenever it showed up on a page, it denoted fear, power, and the telltale impact of genocide that followed the Nazis. But the real origins of the Swastika dates back about 6,000 years ago, the oldest sightings discovered in cave and rock paintings. In Sanskrit (a classical Indian language), ‘Swastika’ means well-being. Scholars have hypothesized that the symbol first originated in the Indian subcontinent and moved westward to Scandinavia, the Scottish Highlands, Finland, and other parts of Europe. Today, it is still used in a number of religions, such as Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrian faith, and many more. Greek currency, Native American healing rituals, Baroque architecture, and Iron Age artifacts all hold some trace of the Swastika. Generally, the swastika was regarded as a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck. So how did the meaning of this once innocent symbol change from prosperous to infamous? 

It all started with a misconception. Although the question of why the Swastika was chosen by Adolf Hitler is still a heavily debated upon historical subject, some historians have settled upon the theory that in the early 1920’s, nationalist German academics may have seen similarity between the German language and Sanskrit, and therefore drew a conclusion that Germans and Indians both came from a ‘pure’ lineage. Thus, Hitler chose the symbol to become the new face of the Nazi party, even putting the symbol on the official flag. Of course, not everyone agrees with this interpretation— some believe that Hitler just saw this recurring symbol and ran with it. But in the end, the terrible meaning that Hitler gave the Swastika can never be undone. In the West, it is a symbol of the beyond tortuous experience that millions of people went through, but in the East, many religions still keep it close as a symbol of good fortune.