What's In A Symbol?

By: Shariq Khan.

Relating to a greater identity has been a human tendency since before this race even evolved from its ape-form. Of every greater identity that a person relates to, religion is the most strongest and most widely followed. Perhaps not relating to a religion is also a greater identity now.

A greater identity is like, so to say, the purpose of its followers’ lives. Therefore, symbols – mediums of exhibition of that purpose – also serve a greater purpose.

Every symbol is an open declaration of one’s identity. They not only serve as mobilizing agents for a crowd, simultaneously they also serve as demoralizing agents for those affiliated to any other identity. The war is on to unfurl symbols at the highest points to achieve the symbolic superiority and with it the literal dominance. Exhibiting a symbol on every nook and corner settles upon the subscribers of it the sense of power and the satisfaction of belittling the followers of any other symbol.

The Hindu Samajotsava 2015 in Managalore saw the unification of a community and propagation of messages through symbols as the medium. Picture Courtesy: Daiji World.

The real danger lies there. A symbol can be exhibited easier than a name. To create an army, a symbol holds ultimate importance and a name is insignificant. Symbols can mobilize and weaponise crowds into wars and revolutions. If perhaps Shakespeare had stood on an Indian street today looked down upon by a million different political and religious symbols, he would have asked ‘What’s In a Symbol?’