Showing posts with label Zionism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Zionism. Show all posts
Monday, September 29, 2014
The Star of David its Origin and its Meanings
The Star of David - Can we uncover its original meaning?
It has a geometric, abstract, origin. It is made up of
two triangles which interlock in such a unique way, that it seems, despite
being two-dimensional, that each side of one triangle goes above or below the
side of the other triangle. The same impression on the viewer is created by the
symbol that is comprised of two interlocked squares. The origin of these two
symbols is the circle. If you have eight points on the circle and you connect
each second point with a line - you get the interlocked squares, and if the
circle has six points and you connect each second point with a line - you get
the Star of David.
The importance of this distinction is that it rejects natural, concrete,
forms, which are called the Star of David, and look like the Star of David, but
you do not see where the two triangles are interlocked. Snowflake is not a Star
of David in spite of having six vertices, as well as the crown of the
pomegranate, and the same goes for the lily flower, the star in the sky, and
certain species of cactus in which the
Star of David is revealed when the stem's width is cut.
The abstract geometric origin of the Star of David, is compatible with
the idea that is expressed in the biblical story of David and Goliath's war.
David initially rejects the shield and armor that Saul offers him. Then he says
to Goliath: "you come to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield:
but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of
Israel, whom you has defied" (1 Samuel, 17:45). David's shield in this case is God, and the same goes for the
book of Psalms, whose creation is attributed to David. David turns a few times
to God as his protector, such as: "The LORD is... my shield and the horn
of my salvation" (Psalm 18:2).
There are also abstract shapes which are called the Star of David, and
look like a the Star of David, but do not integrate its two triangles:
full "Stars
of David" as the yellow badge, or as the seven stars in Zim logo, and
empty "Stars of David", in which only the external outline appears,
as the symbol of the IDF.
The two triangles of the Star of David do not integrate also when you
put two opposite triangles one on top of the other. The triangle that is close
to the viewer can be with the apex up or down, and the meaning attributed to
these symbols by members of the Zoroastrian religion is or of victory of the
good over the evil or of the victory of the evil over the good.
For the Greeks the geometric origin of the Star of David is noticeable
because its name, Hexagram (six-shape), is part of a series of names of
geometric shapes that end up with the suffix "shape" (gram) that includes
the shape of five, pentagram, seven, septagram, and eight- octagram (two integrated squares).
.jpg){kind=link}
The Pentagram and the Hexagram are made not only from interlacing shapes, but also from triangles built on an internal frame: Hexagon in the case of the Hexagram and pentagon in the case of the Pentagram. No wonder people got mixed between them and in many cases gave them the same name- Solomon's Seal.
The Menorah is Symmetrical: what you see in the right you see in the left,
and what you see in the front you see in the back, but the Menorah is a Menorah as
long as it stands, and the Star of David is the Star of David even when put
on its head, or if it is tilted on its side. This feature of the Star of David
contributes to the meaning of the unity of the opposites because it integrates
the opposites: right and left, up and down, front and back.
the Menorah is more concrete than the Star of David because is a replica
of the vessel used for lighting, while the shield of David - is purely
abstract.
Everyone knows that the Magen David is a symbol related to King David,
but many do not know this symbol preceded King David in hundreds and perhaps
thousands of years. It appears in all its glory in a number of Minoan seals created at the latest in 1700 B.C. These seals were found in archaeological
excavations in Festus Palace, Crete. Later the Star of David appears in
different cultures in other palaces and on other seals. Due to its appearance
in palaces the Star of Davids gets the meaning of majesty, and its appearance on stamps results in
its nickname, Seal of Solomon,
attributed to King Solomon. Solomon's Seal is also the name of the pentagram, the
pentacle.
The Bible describes Solomon as the wisest of all the wise men who preceded
him. With or without King Solomon the Star of David appears as a symbol of
wisdom and education in Nepalese culture, where it is drawn on signs in public
schools framing the drawing of an open book.
In the book Ecclesiastes, which is attributed to King Solomon, appears
the following verse: "I provided myself with male and female singers...
male and female devils (Ecclesiastes
2:8). Talmudic sages understood from this verse that the wisdom of Solomon
included its rule on demons. In other legends appears the tool used to control
these demons - a ring on which was engraved the Star of David, or a pentagram, or
the name of the Lord. The Bible
also tells about the sins of Solomon who built temples for many of the foreign
gods of his wives, and thus was associated with his seal over the generations
the significance of the work of the stars and constellations, reinforced by the
Christian name the Star of David instead of the Shield of David. Ethiopians
believe the founder of their dynasty was the son of the Queen of Sheba and King
Solomon, and therefore they adopted the star of David as one of the symbols of
the royal family, and set the five-pointed star on their flag.
The meaning of majesty fits with the meaning of holiness. Both God and
king are one single center unto which the eyes of the people are raised, and
from which they derive their unity. The combination of the majesty and holiness
is expressed in Jewish prayer by God's pronouns: "Our Father our King' and
'King of Kings'. Reinforces this meaning of the sanctity of the Star of David
its appearance as a decoration in synagogues, churches and mosques, starting
from the fifth century C.E. and in illustrations of the Bible and the Koran
starting from the tenth century C.E. Majesty and holiness, serve the main
significance of the Star of David as a symbol of protection, because people
expect from God and from the king to protect them from their enemies. The
Hebrew name "Shield of David" also reinforces this meaning, since
shield is a weapon designed to protect. it is no accident that protection is
also the main significance of the logo of the MDA. interestingly the figure of
David (without shield and without David's shield, just with the name) appears
in the Greek Roman period on charms
designed to protect. Such amulets evolved in Kabbalah circles, where they added
a "protection package" that included the names of angels, names of
God, and combinations of letters.
Magen David as a symbol of protection is associated with messianic
significance because of the prophecy about a Messiah from the House of David who
will protect the people of Israel in the end of days, just as King David and
King Solomon of Israel defended the Israelites during their prosperous period
of rule. According to the Talmud, Rabbi Akiva interpreted the biblical verse: "A
star will come out of Jacob" (Numbers 24:17) as predicting the birth of Bar Kochba. Following this interpretation, apparently, Christians interpreted the same verse as predicting the coming of their messiah, Jesus Christ.
The Star of David is far earlier than the birth of not only David, but
even of the appearance of Judaism. The fact that it was borrowed and imported from
neighboring cultures, started the study of the Star of David, because the first
researchers did not understand who allowed such a symbol to enter the
synagogues. Solomon's seal connection to idolatry caused them to question
whether a Jew wearing a Star of David around his neck is committing a sin.
These questions did not bother Zionists, most of whom were secular. They were
responsible, in the end, that we have the Star of David on the flag of Israel.
It is worth remembering that for hundreds of years before Zionism the Star of
David was popular and beloved by the religious, but when the Star of David
symbol became significant Zionist symbol, some religious leaders who were
opposed to Zionism ordered to remove it from the synagogues. Zionists found the
Star of David inside synagogues and on top of them, where it served as a symbol
of protection, and they changed its designation to a national symbol. In the
seam between nationalism and protection the Star of David has also served as a
representative of the Jewish religion, and especially in Christian art. It
appears several times in paintings or sculptures showing a blindfolded female
figure representing the synagogue, along with a female figure representing the
Church. Similar meaning of the distinction between Jews and Christians
influenced the custom of marking graves in cemeteries where soldiers of
different faiths were buried when the graves of Jewish soldiers bore the Star
of David while tombs of Christian soldiers bore the crucifix.
Today, the Star of David arouses resistance among many Israeli Arabs,
who feel that the shield of David represents only the Jewish citizens of
Israel. After the War of Independence, the Star of David symbol became an
outcast in some defeated Arab countries, and many Stars of David that were
there in the past have been broken or removed.
The Interlacing of the triangles in the Star of David received for the
alchemists the meaning of the unity of the opposites. Fire and water are
examples of opposites. Water Turn off the fire. Fire vaporizes the water. In
one triangle alchemists represented the fire and in the other - the water. In the Star of
David the meanings of fire and water complement each other instead of fighting
each other. Thus this symbol gets the meaning of peace and of acceptance, of
two that are one, of two opposing triangles that create something new, Star of
David, which contains both, but each one in itself is not half of it. In Hebrew
the words for peace and acceptance, as well as for Solomon (in the Seal of
Solomon) - come from the same root.
From the significance of fire and water for the alchemists the star of
David developed in the Middle Ages as a symbol of alcoholic beverages and of wine
houses, and the brandy was perceived as Fiery Water, a combination of water and
fire. Interestingly, approximately two thousand years previously were Stars of
David engraved on the handles of pots of wine in Gibeon, Israel.
More than a thousand years after its appearance as a single symbol in
the seal at the Festus Palace in Crete the Star of David appears in dozens and
perhaps hundreds of places throughout the Roman Empire, accompanied by a
variety of symbols, including protection symbols like the Pelta (Amazons'
Shield) and the pentagram. Protection symbols accompanied to the Roman Magen
David strengthened its significance as a symbol of protection. The Pentagram
served for the Pythagoreans as a symbol of health, and around its five vertexes bore the letters of
the Greek word for health, Hygeia, from which is derived the word hygiene,
which includes among its letters, incidently, the Hebrew word for protection -
Hagana.
The Christian period coincides with the end of the Roman period. The
Christian Star of David continues, often, the Roman style, and it has those
same groups of symbols, but with the addition of a cross.
In the Muslim period we can already find Stars of David in a similar
style centered by the Muslim crescent.
And among the Indians the idea of the Star of David as a
frame was adopted and they added into its center the letters Om. Another incarnation of
this idea can be seen in the Zionist period of the Star of David, when in the
center appears the word Zion. all these graphics are continuing a very popular idea in the Roman
period when the center of the Star of David was often occupied by a rosette
with six leaves - vegetable motif which originated, apparently, in a geometric
shape.
On antisemitic Nazi, anti-Israeli cartoons, the Star of David appears,
usually, when it is clumsily drawn manually (not using a compass and ruler) on or
near a grotesque figure of a Jew or an Israeli. This star is functioning as a
substitute of the word Jew or an Israeli. Often these cartoons have an element
of originality and invention as, for example, a Star of David made from spider
web, or from the barbed wire fences surrounding Gaza.
Invention of new models appears also in the Muslim Star of David.
Muslim, like Jews, have a prohibition on making sculpture and image, and their
artistic passion was expressed in geometric decoration, which included, among
other things, Stars of David.
Original Jewish way to circumvent the prohibition of making sculpture
and figure was the micrographic Star of David which was usually built from verses, and
not from lines.
In summary, the Star of David is currently used mostly as a Jewish
symbol, but its origin is not Jewish. We are talking here about an abstract,
geometric symbol, whose most prominent component is the interlacing. This
component influenced throughout history only marginal phenomena as alchemy and the wine
industry, but, without any agreed explanation, the Star of David was used in
the last thousands of years in different cultures as a symbol of protection. In
Judaism it was used as a symbol of protection mainly because of its name,
David's Shield, and not because of its shape. In the last hundreds of years its
designation changed and it became a religious symbol, and then a national
symbol, and today it is used in both these meanings at the same time, when the
meaning of protection is still remembered only by its name, David's Shield.
Click to see more:
accompanying symbol,
Alchemy,
Christian,
meaning,
Solomon’s seal,
Zionism
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Human Star of David
Human Star of David
Summer Camps at the Former Soviet Union
CC Picture courtesy of "The Jewish Agency for Israel" (c) from Flickr
Click to see more:
Zionism
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Zionist Congress 1900
Stars of David appear on this delegate card for the 4th Zionist Congress in London
Courtesy of
isotype75
From Flickr
Click to see more:
Zionism
Monday, December 01, 2008
Magen David Made From Branches
Magen David Made From Branches
Magen David Made From Branches appears on a hand made improvised gate erected in 1900 for a national celebration in Rehovot. I noticed that in these B &W photos from the beginning of the last century the stars of David are usually hand made while most of the current Jewish stars are industrial products made by designers.
Picture is courtesy of Dobush
Magen David Made From Branches appears on a hand made improvised gate erected in 1900 for a national celebration in Rehovot. I noticed that in these B &W photos from the beginning of the last century the stars of David are usually hand made while most of the current Jewish stars are industrial products made by designers.
Picture is courtesy of Dobush
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Herzl Sign
Two small white Magen David emblems on blue background are carved in the Herzl Memorial sign at the house were he was born in Budapest in 1860.
Photography: Tamar Hayardeni
Copyright: Tamar Hayardeni 2008
Source: Hebrew Wikipedia
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
My new Theodore Herzl Group on Flickr
Recently, I got a few dozens well-selected images of Theodore Herzl from Graphic designer Hayim Shtayer who collects such images for many years, I thought it could be a magnetic center for many other Theodore Herzl enthusiasts, so I opened a group in Flickr dedicated to Theodore Herzl items - see:
http://flickr.com/groups/899548@N25/
The above photo is an invitation (from Hayim Shtayer’s collection) to an Independence Party on 2003. Caption under the blue (what else?) Magen David is: Even Herzl didn’t believe.
Copyright: Hayim Shtayer 2008
Click to see more:
Hayim Shtayer,
Herzl,
Zionism
Friday, November 14, 2008
Lexicon of Zionism
A unique design of the Magen David appears on the Hebrew Efrayim and (his son) Menachem Talmi Lexicon of Zionism, which was published in 1978 by Sifryat Ma'ariv, Tel Aviv, Israel.
Copyright: Zako 2008
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Gederah Bell
Magen David appears on the old Gederah Bell that was used to gather the citizens more than 100 years ago. The picture was shot by Ya’acov Shkolnik. Copyright: Ya’acov Shkolnik 2008
I thank Dobush from Kfar Aza and Oded Israeli for referring me to this historical image.
Click to see more:
Zionism
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Rishon Le’zion Founders
David's Shield with the Hebrew word Zion in its center appears on a 100 years old poster of Rishon Le’zion Founders
Copyright: Niza Wolfensohn 2008
Click to see more:
Zionism
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Zion Tattoo
See the Hebrew word Zion inside a Star of David on:
http://www.religioustattoos.net/Images/Star_of_David/star_of_david_5.jpg
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Israel 29th Independence Day JNF Pin
Independence Day JNF Pin jewish star Star of David Israel 29 Independence Day JNF pin is courtesy of Mr. Abraham Madeisker from Trionfo Judaica Store, 9 Dorot Rishonim St., Jerusalem.
97226232368
Monday, June 16, 2008
Invitation to Herzl Face to Face Art & Design Exhibit
I hope to visit this important exhibition, and to take pictures of the items that “mention” our national emblem, which is a synonym emblem to the image of Herzl, which means that they can replace each other in the representation of Zionism. Herzl has an enormous part in the distribution of the Star of David images, and it seems that the Stars of David graciously helped promote the image of Herzl.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Half white half blue JNF Box
blue JNF Box Star of David
Half white half blue Star of David appears on this JNF Boxfrom Avraham's private collection, Beit Zayit 38, 972779346197 972544826779.
JNF Gold Book
JNF Gold Book Star of David
Star of David appears on the JNF Gold Book certificate given to Israel Goren on 1978.
From Avraham Goren's private collection, Beit Zayit 38, 972779346197 972544826779.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Napkin Holder
Napkin Holder Stars of David
From Avraham Goren's private collection, Beit Zayit 38, 972779346197 972544826779.
About 100 years ago people decorated these napkin holders in order to show their Zionism. Today using Stars of David for decoration is even more prevalent.
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Zion Ash Tray
Star of David ashtray
Star of David ashtray from Avraham Goren's private collection, Beit Zayit 38, 972779346197
972544826779.
I guess today, after the Holocaust, it will be hard to manufacture or sell such ashtrays, since they evoke associations of WWII horrors, but when this beauty was created it was long before these events, and even long before cigarettes became notorious.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Synonymic Symbols
Herzl, meaning, Zionism, Tattoo Star of DavidMap of Israel is a separare symbol, meaning more or less the same as the Star of David. I call these symbols "synonymic symbols" and there's a whole family of them: Herzl, Western Wall, Menorah, Ten Commandments, lions, the word Zion, Srulik... These symbols tend to appear in pairs and in triads in order to strengthen their mutual message.
Copyright: Alan Miller 2008 who has a whole series of photos of the Black Widow Rock Band
Copyright: Alan Miller 2008 who has a whole series of photos of the Black Widow Rock Band
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Independence Party of the Jews 2006
Red Star of David PartyRed Star of David and the portrait of Herzl on an invitation to Independence Party of the Jews issued in 2006.
Photo by Hayim Shtayer
Copyright: Hayim Shtayer 2008
Click to see more:
Hayim Shtayer,
Herzl,
Israel,
Zionism
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Austrian Postage Stamp With a Typo
Star of David Austrian Postage Stamp
The Star of David that Herzl suggested as an emblem for the Zionist Movement appears on an Austrian postage stamp issued in 1985 to mark Herzl's 125 years birthday. The Hebrew caption is written wrongly, and this is the first time I see a typo on a postage stamp. Courtesy of Ronik from Israeli Collect Forum.
Click to see more:
Herzl,
Postage Stamp,
Zionism
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Militaristic Style Poster
Militaristic Style Poster Star of David
From Hayim Shtayer collection. Militaristic style poster that appeared, so it seems, before the 1973 War. We see many IDF emblems along with portraits of Herzl (on the yellow background of a large Star of David), Golda Meir, Zalman Shazar, Moshe Dayan and Hayim Bar Lev. This Militaristic Trend died in the 1973 War, but I see even today similar posters here and there used for decorating the Sukkah.
Click to see more:
Hayim Shtayer,
Herzl,
Zionism
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)