swastikas
Hooked cross symbols
Swastikas is the plural of swastika, an ancient symbol of intersecting lines bent at right angles.
For millennia the swastika appeared across cultures—Hindu, Buddhist, Native American—as a sign of good fortune or sacred geometry.
Its adoption by Nazi Germany as the emblem of fascism and genocide has made it, in Western contexts, a symbol of hate and antisemitism: Vandals spray-painted swastikas on the synagogue.
The symbol retains its original spiritual meanings in parts of Asia.
Ancient Indian spiritual tradition
- BuddhismEnlightenment-seeking Eastern religion
- JainismIndian religion emphasizing nonviolence
- auspiciousnessState of favorable signs
- SanskritAncient Indo-Aryan language
good fortune · temples · religious · ancient · spiritual · clockwise · prosperity · blessing
Nazi genocide of Jews
- genocideSystematic annihilation of a people
- HitlerNazi Germany's totalitarian leader
- Third ReichHitler's totalitarian German state
- antisemitismBigotry toward Jewish people
concentration camps · fascism · World War II · white supremacy · propaganda · Nuremberg · Aryan · persecution
Carvings on natural stone
- artifactsHuman-made historical objects
- NeolithicFinal prehistoric stone-tool era
- Bronze AgeEarly metalworking civilization period
- excavationAct of unearthing
Troy · ancient Greece · Germanic · Norse · pre-Columbian · Navajo · Celtic · motif
Hinduism
Ancient Indian spiritual tradition
- BuddhismEnlightenment-seeking Eastern religion
- JainismIndian religion emphasizing nonviolence
- auspiciousnessState of favorable signs
Sanskrit · good fortune · temples · religious · ancient · spiritual · clockwise · prosperity · blessing · ritual
Holocaust
Nazi genocide of Jews
- genocideSystematic annihilation of a people
- HitlerNazi Germany's totalitarian leader
- Third ReichHitler's totalitarian German state
antisemitism · concentration camps · fascism · World War II · white supremacy · propaganda · Nuremberg · Aryan · persecution · atrocities
petroglyphs
Carvings on natural stone
- artifactsHuman-made historical objects
- NeolithicFinal prehistoric stone-tool era
- Bronze AgeEarly metalworking civilization period
excavation · Troy · ancient Greece · Germanic · Norse · pre-Columbian · Navajo · Celtic · motif · pottery
swastikaspeace signs
V-shaped hand signals
doves · Stars of David · olive branches · rainbow flags · rainbows
swastikaslotus flowers
Floating sacred blossoms
mandalas · crosses · crescents · Stars of David · sacred hearts
- swastika symbolCross with angled arms