Reflection
Semiotics is the study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation. Ferdinand de Saussure is one of the chief founders of semiotics. He was a Swiss linguist who was responsible for creating the sign signifier and signified concept. Another person from the same epoch of semiotics is Charles Sanders Peirce, an American philosopher who is responsible for introducing the concept of his triadic model. According to him anything and everything is a sign as long as someone interprets it, having a meaning other than of its own. ‘a sign… [in the form of a representamen] is something which stands to somebody for something in some respect or capacity. It addresses somebody, that is, creates in the mind of that person an equivalent sign, or perhaps a more developed sign. That sign which it creates I call the interpretant of the first sign. The sign stands for something, its object. It stands for that object, not in all respects, but in reference to a sort of idea, which I have sometimes called the ground of the representamen’ (Peirce 1931–58, 2.228). The interaction between the representamen, the object, and the interpretant is referred to by Peirce as ‘semiosis’ (ibid., 5.484).
Signs can be broken down into two part:
Signifier(sound-image): are the physical form of a sign.it can be a sound, word, or image that creates a communication.
Signified: is the concept that a signifier refers to.
The above-shown image is the icon of Instagram we see on our phones. This physical image here becomes the signifier.
After seeing this icon many things may come to one’s mind. It could be an idea of an app for building relationships, an app for blogging, to become famous, maybe for dating or finding jobs, and so on. These varied concepts which may come into one's mind are known as signified.
According to pierce a sign needs an interpretant. A person may interpret this logo as just an arrangement of circles and boxes. Or just understand this as a representation of a camera, but not the logo of a social media platform.
Ganesha (the elephant-head god) in Hindu mythology holds an important place. The only god who is worshipped before worshipping any other god. The god of wisdom, purity, power, and positivity. The god is also worshipped before starting any new thing.
The appearance of the lord is surely very different from that of the characters from Greek mythology. This god does not have six-pack abs or a human face with a Chiseled jawline unlike those from western countries’ mythology.
Ganesha is imagined from decades as a fat, with a varied number of hands-on elephant face, one-toothed, with Manny laddoos, and his companion, Mushaka- the mouse. But to our further understanding, Ganesha images and idols not only hold unique physical characteristics but also those characteristics have different hidden symbolism associated with them.
The large head is the symbol of wisdom, thinking big, and intelligence. Those large years are to listen more, trunk symbolizes higher adaptability and efficiency. One tusk signifies his sacrifices for good. Mushak his mouse shows that one’s desire must be in control. His weapons signify that one must conquer his ego and pride. His large belly is the symbol of prosperity and to digest both good and bad.
Similar symbolism could be seen in the images of other characters from Indian mythology and each character’s physical appearance hold a hidden and meaningful symbolism.
REFERENCES:
- Contributors to Wikimedia projects. “Semiotics — Wikipedia.” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 18 Dec. 2001, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiotics.
- Google Image Result for Https://Upload.Wikimedia.Org/Wikipedia/Commons/Thumb/e/E7/Instagram_logo_2016.Svg/1200px-Instagram_logo_2016.Svg.Png. https://images.app.goo.gl/2dGvR2MURtAK2XZj8. Accessed 5 Mar. 2021.
- Google Image Result for Https://Www.Thespiritualindian.Com/Wp-Content/Uploads/2015/11/Symbolism-of-Ganesha.Jpg. https://images.app.goo.gl/jSxwnDgpeKHdcVeo6. Accessed 5 Mar. 2021.
- “Lord Ganesha Symbolism — Wordzz.” Wordzz, https://www.facebook.com/WordZzs, 21 Aug. 2016, https://www.wordzz.com/lord-ganesha-symbols/.
- “Semiotics.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/science/semiotics. Accessed 5 Mar. 2021.
