As Hindus in the D.C. area and worldwide celebrate the five-day holiday Diwali, they want to bring back their sacred symbol: the swastika.
Niti Srivastava, executive director of the Indian Cultural Association of Howard County, described the swastika as a sacred symbol of divinity that was misappropriated by Nazi Germany.
“There are about 1.8 billion people worldwide (who) believe that swastika is a holy symbol,” Srivastava said. “It is over 10,000 years old and it is a symbol of peace and well-being, and Diwali signifies the victory of knowledge over darkness.”
It’s not unusual to see the swastika during the holy festival Diwali, as Srivastava said: “You will see the symbol in every Hindu home.”
The symbol was predominantly a religious one until 20th century Nazis in Germany took the religious image and transformed it into a highly political antisemitic tool.
Given the infamy of the image, which can no longer be displayed in some countries and is often deemed a hate symbol in the United States, Hindus have kept their sacred symbol in the shadows. Srivastava said there’s a desire to reclaim the symbol for its original purpose: peace and prosperity.
“For Hindus, this is a very meaningful and a very sacred symbol. And it’s not something that can be easily switched out with something else to replace it. It has a much deeper connection and it is a religious symbol,” she said.
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Approved ~ MJM
