If history is distorted, then your present and the future also become dark. The biggest problem with India is that our history has been badly twisted, that is why Indians are either cut off from their roots or not ready to accept the reality. They have lost their sense of right and sometimes this hinders their ability to fight for the truth.
Let’s talk about the pious symbol ‘Swastika‘, which is an ancient and greatly auspicious symbol of the Hindu religion. It has been used at our temples, in our religious and cultural rituals, in entrances to our homes, and in our daily life.
But unfortunately, most of the Indians think that Swastika is similar to Hitler’s Nazi party symbol. The Nazi symbol is known as Hakenkreuz or the hooked cross, and it is an infamous symbol due to atrocities committed by Nazi Army.
Now Canada’s NDP party is trying to put an explicit ban on swastikas and other “loathsome” hate symbols. NDP House Leader Peter Julian says he is looking at reintroducing a private member’s bill that aims to ban the sale and display of hate symbols in Canada, like the swastikas and Confederate flags flown at a trucker convoy in Ottawa over recent days.
NDP party is led by Jagmeet Singh, the well-known Khalistani supporter, and anti-Indian element on Canadian soil. They are misleading the people and putting parallels between Swastika and the Nazis’ hooked cross and trying their best to ban the Swastika symbol.
The bill seeks to “prevent the display or sale of symbols or emblems such as the Nazi swastika and the Ku Klux Klan’s insignia, flags such as the standards of Germany between the years 1933 to 1945 and those of the Confederate States of America between the years 1861 to 1865 and uniforms, including the German and Confederate States of America military dress of those periods, as well as the hoods and robes of the Ku Klux Klan”.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service warned in 2020 that neo-Nazis and white supremacists are among the extremist groups that are using the collective social trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic to spread disinformation and conspiracy theories aimed at radicalizing others. There were multiple instances of Nazi flags, Confederate flags and Canadian flags marred by swastikas flown by individuals in the crowd.
This matter has been taken up by the Indian Government, and India’s Consul General Apoorva Srivastava has formally flagged this issue to the Government of Canada and shared with them the petitions received from Canadian groups in this regard.
This attempt has been slammed by the Hindus in Canada, an Indian-origin Canadian lawmaker Chandra Arya has urged the people of Canada and the country’s government to distinguish between the Swastika’, an ancient and auspicious symbol for Hindus with the Hakenkreuz’, a 20th century Nazi symbol of hate and not to put the two in the same league.
Speaking on the floor of the Canadian Parliament last week, Arya said that in the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit, Swastika means that which brings good luck and well-being.”
This ancient and greatly auspicious symbol of the Hindu religion continues to be used today at our Hindu temples, in our religious and cultural rituals, in entrances to our homes, and in our daily life. Please stop calling the Nazi symbol of hatred Swastika, he said.
Arya is an MP from the Nepean constituency of Ontario province. He was elected to represent the Nepean seat in the House of Commons in the 2015 Canadian federal election, and he was re-elected in the 2019 election.
CoHNA lauded the efforts of MP Arya
The Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA) conveyed its gratitude to the MP Arya for taking a firm stand on this extremely important matter for over half a million Canadian Hindus and close to two billion Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and others for whom the Swastika and its equivalents are deeply sacred and auspicious, said Nikunj Trivedi, president of CoHNA.
CoHNA is running a Swastika Education and Awareness Campaign since 2020. It has partnered with Buddhists, Jain, Jewish, and indigenous groups to ensure a better understanding and mutual respect around this ancient and sacred symbol.
As part of these efforts, CoHNA recently organized an interfaith dialogue with Jewish, Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu leaders to highlight multiple perspectives on the topic and discuss ways to move forward.
Well, we think such coordinated efforts can demolish any effort to demean Hinduism and Hindus anywhere in the world. Here the key is to stay united and aware, only then we can prevent such propaganda against us.
