Believing In the Magic Of Significant Markers

I got my first tattoo about 5 years ago and it marked a turning point in my life. I had researched designs and their significance and was happy with my choice. It is smaller than a quarter, located on my inner left wrist and easily covered by my watch band. I was catching up with an old friend and upon showing it to her, she asked if it was a “gateway tattoo”. The comment surprised me as I never really thought of myself as a “tattoo person”. I dismissed the question thinking I was “one-and-done” with the ink, yet here I am, having been under a tattoo needle 6 times in 5 years.

Owning It

Each of them has significance to me and marks something I want to carry forward in my life.  My tattoos are not merely decorative, they remind me of turning points and the commitment to who I am becoming; these visual reminders of my evolution are powerful. 

Sacred Ink

My most recent tattoo was a protective blessing tattoo called a Sak Yant. It was given to me on my birthday in Thailand. I arranged for a meeting with a Buddhist Monk, or Ajarn who spent time with me and asked about about my life, my goals and my challenges. We discussed some of Buddha’s teachings and he started working on his personalized design for me.

Each Yantra is unique to the bearer. In my case, he created a beautiful unalome incorporating 4 languages and sacred symbols representing strength, passion, compassion, success, love and happiness, among other things. I loved it! The next question was where to put it. I had given a lot of thought to where I would like this Yantra to go and decided it was between the back of my shoulder or my forearm. Once he revealed the design, I knew I wanted to see it every day and the choice to put it on my right forearm was sealed. With the location squared away, he proceeded with ceremony using the traditional “stick and poke” method. The actual tattoo was completed in under 6 minutes. Chants and prayers “sealed” in the power and a sprinkle of Holy water transformed my new marks into the blessing.

Wearing It With Pride

Obviously, this is a pretty visible spot, and this is definitely not a small tattoo! It is fair to say that people in some of my circles would frown upon such things. I even helped draft HR policies forbidding them back in the day. This might have given me pause before, but being in the back 9 of my life, and having been through some things, I am less concerned about what others think. What I do with my body, and how I choose to honor significant events is really only my business.

This Yantra is not only a protective blessing, it also represents an ongoing commitment to my own personal development journey. Perhaps that commitment to myself IS the blessing- Why would I hide that?  

Live & Learn

If I could go back would I do them all the same? The answer is no, there are some tweaks I would make to 2 of them. Like ALL of life’s experiences there are learnings along the way. Things I would do differently now, and that’s kind of the point. It’s ok to be reminded of that too.

Live. Learn. Grow. Repeat.

Receiving my Sacred Ink & Celebrating my Birthday in Chiang Mai, Thailand. January 2020