Before its corruption by the Nazi party, the swastika was a powerful symbol for the four-fold measures of the world, as seen in the cross. The only real difference between the swastika and the cross is that the swastika represents the Wheel of Fire, or energy in motion.

To the Hindus, the swastika is the sign of Pisces -- the sign later adopted by Christianity for Jesus, who was put to death on a cross. This is but one of many examples where world faiths borrow, one from the other. Unlike the Nazis, however, most cultures that so borrow at least perpetuate the sentiment of the original symbol.

To the alchemists, the swastika represents the two principle energies that act in the world: Electrical (upright bar) and Magnetic (horizontal bar). These energies -- like all energies -- are dynamic and are thus represented as being in motion. Were the swastika to spin quickly enough, it would become a circle. One of the goals of the alchemists is to symbolically turn the swastika into a circle: To turn the divergent energies of the world into something truly infinite.

Perhaps a lasting testament to the inherrent evil of the Nazi party is that such a sacred symbol should forever now be taboo in the West. Instead of using the swastika, most modern alchemists and mystics will now employ either a simple cross or a cross defined with tiny dots where the swastika's arms would be.