A response to the painting of a swastika across the college tennis courts (April 2001)

Dear Fellow members of the Trinity Community

The past week was one of great importance in the life of persons of the Jewish and Christian faiths, observing a week of Passover and Holy Week ending with Easter respectively. In both these traditions the observances called for reflection on the evil of mistrust and hate, and the redemptive power of forgiveness and reconciliation between human beings and human beings and God.

It appears that on Sunday the 15th April, even as Christians were celebrating Easter, a symbol of the triumph of good over evil, some person or persons had painted another symbol, the Swastika across the four tennis courts opposite Ferris Athletic center.

The Swastika is an ancient symbol. It is an equilateral cross with arms bent at right angles, all in the same direction, usually the right or clockwise. Before this symbol gained notice because of its use by Adolf Hitler as the symbol of Nazi Germany, the Swastika had a long history. It was a religious symbol used by many cultures including the Navajo Indians, Buddhists, Jains and Hindus. It is widely dispersed in the ancient and modern world. The Swastika was a symbol of prosperity and good fortune. It originally represented the revolving sun, fire or life -- a “wheel of life” or “Sun-Wheel”; the four points of the compass, the four winds, and humankind itself. Many interpretations have been given to this ancient symbol. The word itself is derived from the Sanskrit swastika which means, “conducive to well-being”. It is commonly a symbol of prosperity and good fortune. The oriental interpretation of the symbol has been that of a “Sun-Wheel”, with the right handed version being for “life” or the Sun, and the left-handed version being for “death” or the Moon.

In 1935, the black swastika on a white circle with a crimson background became the national symbol of Nazi Germany. The major difference between the ancient symbol and its use by the Nazis is that on Hitler’s insistence the left-handed version was used and it is at a slant, while the ancient swastika rested flat. Today, this symbol has come to represent intolerance, hatred, evil and anti-Semitic sentiments. Whenever the symbol is painted in a public place, as on our tennis courts, we see again the emergence of hatred and evil.

We should abhor such hatred and evil if that was the intention of those who painted it. There is no room in our community for such anger and hate. If the person or persons responsible for this act are members of our community we implore you to seek help. The rest of us choose to turn away from the hatred intended by this symbol and make it instead a reminder to us of its ancient meaning of forgiveness, peace, prosperity, the goodness of life and well-being.

In peace,

Nihal de Lanerolle
College Chaplain