Crosses and their symbolism

[mountaingal]

Lately, I’ve been thinking about different types of crosses and how they came about, what they meant. Boy, that is one fascinating topic. Crosses have PRE-DATED Christianity, and have long been used by ancient cultures to symbolize life, the universe, the life force, etc. The four arms of a cross were seen as perfect for denoting the four elements, the four directions of the compass, and the four parts of man - mind, body, soul and heart.

Let me start with the Christian symbolism first. BTW, if anyone’s interested in the sources for the info below, just ask and I will post.

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Latin cross:
Originally rejected by Christians because it was a pagan symbol. Some earlier uses of this symbol was as a scepter of Apollo; with the phrase "Ptolemy the Savior"; and a sign of life to come in the Egyptian religion of Sarapis.
The New Testament sometimes refers to Jesus as being hanged on a tree, not a cross (Acts 5:30; 1 Peter 2:24), linking this imagery to tree-slain savior figures of Krishna, Marsyas, Odin, and Dodonian Zeus.

Passion cross This version of the Latin cross has pointed ends to symbolize the suffering of Christ.

Calvary cross:
The three steps leading up to this Latin cross represent the hill of Calvary or, more often, faith, hope and love.

Greek cross
An ancient cruciform with arms of equal length. Before Christianity, the Greek cross was an emblem of Hecate as the Goddess of Crossroads. The vertical was male, the horizontal was female.

Tau cross
The tau cross, made from the Greek letter "T", is the simplest of all crosses. It is often used as the cross of prophecy, or Old Testament cross, because it is the traditional sign that Israelites made with lamb's blood on their doorposts in Egypt on the night of Passover. A tau cross is often pictured as the pole on which Moses lifted up the brazen serpent in the wilderness.

Cross potent
Another ancient symbol of sky or sun gods, from ancient Mesopotamia, used in Christian symbolism. The cross potent (as in powerful) is seen as four tau [see above] crosses linked to represent Old Testament law.

St. Andrew’s cross
Andrew is apparently the first-called to be a disciple of Christ, and later became a missionary. He was crucified by the Romans. According to tradition, St. Andrew felt unworthy to be crucified like his Lord, so he begged that his cross be made differently. His bones were eventually removed from Constantinople to “the ends of the earth”, a settlement off the east coast of Scotland – hence the association of this cross with the Scottish people and the Scottish flag.

Crosslet

A cross formed of four smaller crosses, this form represents the spreading of the gospel to the four corners of the earth.

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Then we have the crosses that denote authority:

Patriarchal cross
This is an ecclesiastical cross that is often seen carried by the patriarchs in works of art. The upper bar represents the inscription placed on the cross by Pilate.

Papal cross
This cross is the official emblem of the papal office. It may be used by none other than the Pope himself. The three bars are sometimes said to represent the three crosses on Calvary. More probably they represent the Pope's three realms of authority: the church, the world and heaven.

Crosse pommee

The knobs, resembling apples, represent the fruits of the Christian life. Since knobs were used on pastoral staffs in ancient times as symbols of authority, this is sometimes referred to as the Bishop's Cross.

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Then we see military crosses:

Maltese cross

The Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, now commonly known as the Knights of Malta, can trace their origin to a group of monks attached to a hospice built in the Holy Lands to aid travelers visiting the Holy Land. The monks soon began providing armed escort, and were first acknowledged as a military order before formally becoming a specific religious order. They were bound by the Augustinian rules of Chastity, Poverty and Obedience, and required to abide by eight obligations (the eight points of the Maltese cross):
-live in truth;
-have faith;
-repent of sins;
-give proof of humility;
-love justice;
-be merciful;
-be sincere and whole-hearted; and
-endure persecution.

Crosse patee

Associated with the Knights Templar, a military group of monks similar to the Knights of Malta. The Knights Templar were active in the Crusades. This design is also used for the Victoria Cross medal awarded by Queen Victoria to nurses showing bravery in war.

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Crosses that seem to have a stronger than usual link to paganism

Celtic cross

One of the most ancient of cruciforms, this cross was used by the Celtic Christians in Great Britain and Ireland. The Celtic Cross was originally a Hindu symbol of sexual union, kiakra. The cross as a phallic symbol within the circle as yoni. This cross was adopted by the Gypsies. (Neo-Nazis have also adapted this cross to use as their new symbol, given the banning in many places of swastika imagery.)
This cross, as used by Christians, is often used as a grave marker.
Other symbolism of this cross relates to the four directions. East is rebirth, youth, Spring, and growth. West is knowledge, experience, Autumn, and guidance. South is vitality, vigor, Summer, and strength. North is wisdom, silence, winter, and death. The circle connects them in the cycle of life.

Crosse fourchee

This design reflects Christian piety and was popular as a decorative cross in medieval heraldry. The design is said to link to the age-old trust in the pagan magic of the forked (fourchee) stick.

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Over to Africa, we find:

Coptic cross

Apparently, this was originally a sun symbol, with the heaven in the center supported by four pillars in each direction to uphold the sky. Coptic Christians later added the four nails to identify Christ with the heavenly deity, and to suggest the blood on the nails had spread to the four corners of the world.

Ankh

The ankh is the Egyptian sign of life, only kings, queens and gods could carry it. It indicated that whoever held it had the power to give or take the life of another lesser mortal. Also called the ansate cross, it represents life and regeneration, and was adopted by Christians as a symbol of eternal life.

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Then we have the most controversial cross of all, the the swastika - described as an equilateral cross with arms bent at right angles, all in the same rotary direction, usually clockwise.

The word "swastika" comes from the Sanskrit svastika – meaning “conducive to well-being”. Until the Nazis used this symbol, the swastika was used by many cultures throughout the past 3,000 years to represent life, sun, power, strength, and good luck.



Some cultures in India make a distinction between a clockwise swastika, which means good luck, and a counterclockwise swastika, which represents bad luck.

The swastika and its variations have been found on artifacts and in documents in throughout Asia and Europe, and even made its way to Native American cultures via the Spanish explorers.

In China, it was called a wan and symbolized Bhudda’s steps.

In ancient England, a variation of it was a called fylfot because it was formerly used in Britain to fill the foots of coloured windows.


Up until the early 20th century, you could get a postcard from England with a swastika on it:


Of course, the association with Nazism has all but destroyed the positive associations of the swastika. Hitler adopted the swastika precisely because of its ancient Indian/Aryan links, from which he traced German history. He tied the symbol specifically to anti-Semitism.

Nevertheless, the swastika continues to be heavily used today in the symbolism of the Falun Gong sect in China.

According to them: When Falun rotates clockwise, it can automatically absorb energy from the universe. Rotating counter-clockwise, it can give off energy. Inward (clockwise) rotation offers self-salvation while outward (counter-clockwise) rotation offers salvation to others.

[Tuff Gong]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Pre dating all uses of the Swastika is the uses in Ancient Africa on Adrinka Cloth.
There are at least four versions of the
Funtummreku

and two versions of the Nkotimsefo Mpua

[rufian]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

And where is ours?

[rufian]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Okay, okay let me. [img]/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

St. Andrew got the idea from the Romans ha? I wonder why many of their black magic spells are like our? [img]/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img] That cross of St.Andrews is our cross path or cross road. St. Andrews was worshiped in place of the cross road guard during slavery, because of this symbol. And they thought they were playing missionaries.

Presenting the most beautiful cross of them all! [img]/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]
Oh what artistry! Oh what creativity! Oh the splender! Behold the cross of papa [img]/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] The wand and the sword. tada TADA [img]/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]



Them other crosses should be burnt, they can't compete with ours man [img]/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

[rufian]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Originally posted by mountaingal:
[qb]
Greek cross
An ancient cruciform with arms of equal length. Before Christianity, the Greek cross was an emblem of Hecate as the Goddess of Crossroads. The vertical was male, the horizontal was female.
[/qb]

Tief them tief in dem r.......... ...........

All we mathematics, now everybody believe say we can't do maths an we dumb, all we sciences, all we gods and give them new names, all we magic, now dem call it white magic, bout dem just find out say Ancient Greeks did have Voodoo dolly. [img]/forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]

Tank god me know me history and I don't come from Greece either [img]/forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]

That Greek cross damn primitive for so!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Israelites]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Here's a bit more MG:
See the SWASTIKA for what it REALLY IS:


an ancient symbol of good luck, prosperity, and long life,
used in ancient cultures such as India and China,
where it is

the central symbol of the FALUN Law Wheel.
To give you an idea of how long the Swastika has been a symbol in China, look at an illustration of comets painted on silk about 2300 years ago:


The silk was discovered during the 1970s at Mawangdui, near Changsa, in Number Three Tomb. There were 29 comets illustrated on the silk, of which the last 4 are shown above. As you can see, the last comet, on the far left, is illustrated by a Swastika. Sagan and Druyan, in their book "Comet" (Random House 1985), p. 186, say "The twenty-ninth comet is called 'Di-Xing', 'the long-tailed pheasant star'." As a comet form, the Swastika looks like a spinning comet from which jets are erupting, like Comet Hale-Bopp.

Here are some more details about the history of the swastika:
The English and German word SWASTIKA is derived from the Sanskrit word: SVASTIKAH, which means 'being fortunate'. The first part of the word, SVASTI-, can be divided into two parts: SU- 'good; well', and -ASTI- 'is'. The -ASTIKAH part just means 'being'. The word is associated with auspicious things in India - - because it means 'auspicious'. About 2500 years ago, when Sakyumuni brought Buddhism to China from India, the Chinese also borrowed the swastika and its sense of auspiciousness. In China, the swastika is considered to be a Chinese character with the reading of WAN (in Mandarin). It is also thought to be equivalent to another Chinese character with the same pronunciation, which means 'ten thousand; a large number; all' The swastika symbol has been used for thousands of years among practically every group of humans on the planet. It was known to Germanic tribes as the "Cross of Thor", and it is interesting that the Nazis did not use that term, which is consistent with German history, but instead preferred to "steal" the Indian term "swastika". As the "Cross of Thor", the symbol was even brought to England by Scandinavian settlers in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, long before Hitler. Even more interesting, the sign has been found on Jewish temples from 2000 years ago in Palestine, so Hitler was (inadvertently?) "stealing" a Jewish symbol as well as an Indian one. In the Americas, the swastika was used by Native Americans in North, Central, and South America. Since the outer arms of the swastika can point either counterclockwise or clockwise, the swastika has been used as a counterpart to the Taiji, or Yin-Yang, symbol. If you look at the outer circle of the Falun Dafa symbol, you will see that there are 4 swastikas (of Buddhas' School origin) and 4 Taiji, or Yin-Yang, symbols (of Taoist origin). The Taiji are not black and white, as those colors are a very low level manifestation. Of the 4 Taiji, 2 are red and black (from the Tao as generally regarded) and 2 are red and blue (from the School of the Primordial Great Tao, which includes the Rare Cultivation Way). If you look at all the swastikas of the Falun Dafa symbol, you will see that their arms all point counterclockwise. However, since the Falun Dafa can be seen from above and below, as well as the 8 directions indicated on its outer circle by the 4 Taiji and 4 swastikas, the Falun Dafa swastikas can be perceived to be rotating either clockwise or counterclockwise: "When Falun rotates clockwise, it can automatically absorb energy from the universe. While rotating counterclockwise, it can give off energy." In India, both clockwise and counterclockwise swastikas were used, with different meanings: the counterclockwise one is associated with the goddess Kali-Maya (mother of Buddha, associated with the Moon), and the clockwise one is associated with Ganesha (elephant-headed father of Buddha, associated with the Sun). Since the swastika is a simple symbol, it has been used, perhaps independently, by many human societies. One of the oldest known swastikas was painted on a paleolithic cave at least 10,000 years ago. Here are some references with information about the swastika: Barbara G. Walker, THE WOMAN'S ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MYTHS AND SECRETS (1983), and THE WOMAN'S DICTIONARY OF SYMBOLS & SACRED OBJECTS (1988), both published by Harper & Row; James A. Michener, THE SOURCE; Ernest Klein, KLEIN'S COMPREHENSIVE ETYMOLOGICAL DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (Elsevier, 1971); Robert H. Mathews, MATHEWS' CHINESE-ENGLISH DICTIONARY (Harvard, 1966).

[rufian]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

okay isrealites, me love fe see when everybody minding other people's business. But brother can you support me on this one? [img]/forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Originally posted by Tuff Gong:
[qb]Pre dating all uses of the Swastika is the uses in Ancient Africa on Adrinka Cloth.
There are at least four versions of the
Funtummreku

and two versions of the Nkotimsefo Mpua[/qb]

Thanks for that, Tuff Gong. I've found one version of the swastika-like Ghanaian symbol,Nkotimsefo Mpua:

. It apparently represents the talons of the eagle, and symbolizes loyalty and readiness to serve.

By the way, I read somewhere (perhaps in a Jamaica Journal), that a lot of the designs used in gates (and later burglar bars) in Jamaica trace back to African symbols. This one
is very familiar. It apparently is the sankofa symbol, for "return and fetch it" - which says it is okay (not unlucky) to return for something you've forgotten, you can always undo your mistakes.

[mountaingal]

Re: Crosses and their symbolism

Sukuna, that's a nice veve you've shown. Here's a clearer version:



Voodoo syncretizes a lot of Christianity. One could almost make a game out of counting the number of crosses in that veve.