Afly-whisk (orfly-swish)[1] is a tool that is used to swat flies. A similar device is used as ahand fan in hot tropical climates, sometimes as part ofregalia, and is called achowrie,chāmara, orprakirnaka inSouth Asia andTibet.[2][3]
InIndonesian art, a fly-whisk is one of the items that is associated withShiva. A fly-whisk is frequently seen as an attribute ofHindu,Jain,Daoist andBuddhist deities.[4][5] The fly-whisk is evident in some configurations of theAshtamangala, employed in some traditions ofmurtipuja, particularlyGaudiya Vaishnavism. It is also used as an accessory in the ritual aspects of folk performance traditions, especially folk-theater forms likePala, where it can double as a prop.
Fly-whisks are in use in parts of the contemporaryMiddle East, such asEgypt, by some classes of society,e.g., outdoor merchants and shop keepers, especially in summer when flies become bothersome. Those have a wooden handle and plant fibers attached to them. The more expensive ones are made from horse hair. In the eastern parts of the Indian subcontinent, it is made from the tail-hairs of theyak.Yakut people from Siberia use fly-whisk calleddeybiir made of horse tail both for swatingmosquitoes and as a sacred tool for shamanistic rituals.
Fly-whisks appear frequently in the traditional regales ofmonarchs andnobility in many parts of the African continent. Fly whisks, called "ìrùkẹ̀rẹ̀" inYoruba, were used by Yoruba monarchs and chiefs as a symbol of power and respect.[6] This use has sometimes carried on into modern contexts:Kenyan leaderJomo Kenyatta carried a fly-whisk, a mark of authority inMaasai society,[7] as didMalawian leaderHastings Banda, whileSouth African jazz musicianJabu Khanyile also used a Maasai fly-whisk as a trademark when on stage.[8] The fly-whisk is one of the traditional symbols of Taoist and Buddhist monastic hierarchy in China and Japan, along with thekhakkhara,jewel scepter, and begging bowl. The fly-whisk in Buddhism represents the symbolic "sweeping" of ignorance and mental afflictions. The Daoist fly-whisk is made of the root and twine of thesmilax for the handle, and the hairs are made ofpalm fiber. The Chinese fly-whisk is also used in manyChinese martial arts such asShaolin Kung Fu andWudang quan, each corresponding to their own respective religious philosophy.
A fly-whisk forms part of theroyal regalia of Thailand. It consists of the tail hairs of awhite elephant.[9]Fly-whisks were also used inPolynesian culture as a ceremonial mark of authority.[10]
In 1827, the lastOttoman ruler of Algeria,Hussein Dey, struck the French consul,Pierre Deval in the face with a fly-whisk during a dispute over unpaid French debts to Algeria. That insult became apretext for theFrench invasion of Algeria in 1830.[11]
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