Conch shell

A Conch is a sea creature, a marine gastropod. It has a shell. The animal inside the shell is often cooked and eaten. The shell is sometimes made into a form of crude bugle by knocking off the small tip of the shell to form a mouthpiece.

The Conch in Hindu Tradition

The conch is a major Hindu article of prayer, used as a trumpeting announcement of all sorts. The God of Preservation, Vishnu, is said to hold a special conch, Panchajaya, that represents life as it has come out of life-giving waters. The warriors of ancient India would blow conchs to announce battle, such as is famously represented in the beginning of the war of Kurukshetra in the Mahabharata, the famous Hindu epic. The conch shell is a deep part of Hindu symbolic and religious tradition. To this very day, all Hindus use the conch as a part of their religious practices, blowing it during worship at specific points, accompanied by ceremonial bells.

See also: Krishna

Buddhism also has incorporated the conch into its symbolism; see; Buddhist symbolism.

Conch people

A "Conch" is also slang for a resident of Key West, Florida. See: Conch Republic.

The term "Conch" is also sometimes used to refer to Bahamas natives of European decent.