the swastika

I recently revised the banner for this website, trying to put together a group of images that reflect the things that I like to write about:  South Asian religion, politics, society.

The left most picture in the banner is a sculpture of the Hindu god Shiva, engaged in his "mahanata" or great dance.  I took the photo when I visited Elephanta Island in Mumbai.  But when I first made the banner, I had used a different image in that spot.  It was a photo taken at a Jain temple, of a hand making a design that is common in Hinduism: the swastika.

In Hinduism, the swastika is considered very auspicious.  Its used on lots of religious decorations and has complex and varied meanings.  I frequently saw it painted above doors.  Jains often make a swastika out of rice in front of idols at the temple, like in the picture above.  A worshipper at the temple told me that to her, it represents life itself; its simultaneous unity and multi-directionality.

And that's what I was thinking when I put the symbol in my banner.  I had selected a picture of the minaret of a mosque that is striking for its clean lines and simplicity, characteristics that invoke the Islamic faith.  I also wanted something that represented Hindu philosophy, and this picture of a hand forming a swastika seemed perfect.  But my Dad took one look at the banner and said, "you can't put a swastika on your website.  What are you thinking?"

And its true.  It was a surprising oversight on my part.  The symbol has been so thoroughly co-opted by the Nazis and their racist ideology, that it just can't be used in an array of pictures to represent Hinduism to a Western audience.  Having recently spent a couple of months in India, I momentarily forgot this... and forgot that most visitors to my website might react badly to the image.  I was particularly surprised because, just a few months ago, before I spent a lot of time getting to know India, the Nazi symbolism would have jumped out at me.