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General Buddhism => General Buddhism => Topic started by: dsiluvu on August 28, 2012, 09:02:56 PM
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I was recently told that tattoos / body art creates holes in our body that when we pass on, our consciousness would be directed to exit through them (more so if the tattoo was on the lower body) hence directing us to be reborn in the lower realms. Is this true? If that is the case what about people who have an accident???
What if someone had tattoos before they met Buddhism and what about those Thai monks with heaps of mantra tattooed???
Your thoughts please and would appreciate significant facts from any teaching that says it is not allowed cos as far as I have checked, there is no where that says it is wrong for a Buddhist to have Tattoos. Please enlighten me!
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Here is video I found of a Thai monk getting a traditional tattoo!
Sacred Thai Khmer Tattoo honors the teachings of Lom Phu Nai, a very famous Buddhst monk in Thailand. His grandson carries out the tradition of this sacred body art and magic. His great grandson is also an artist in this delicate meditative practice.
Sakyant Tattoo for Buddhist Monks - Ayutthaya, Thailand (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGZv1vuFnB0#)
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Upon arrival in Bangkok, on the highway that leads to the city, there is a large advertising board that says:
STOPPING DISRESPECTING BUDDHAS,
DO NOT TATTOO,
DO NOT BUY,
DO NOT SELL.
See more in this article:
http://travel.cnn.com/bangkok/visit/bangkok-tourists-disney-asked-show-buddha-some-respect-290393 (http://travel.cnn.com/bangkok/visit/bangkok-tourists-disney-asked-show-buddha-some-respect-290393)
Thus indeed, Buddha masks, Buddha tattoos, Buddha decorations... Does it really have anything left to do with honoring the qualities of a Buddha, or with refuge?
Is it ok to accept this because it may bring merit to some, or on the contrary should we actively stop this as it may bring down pretty bad karma for the perpetrators?
What to think?
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Read what the Sri Lankans think about Buddha tatoos:
Briton denies Buddha tattoo was 'disrespectful'.
Mr Antony Ratcliffe got the tattoo in Burma, and says it was not something he took lightly.
A British tourist is "shocked and upset" after being deported from Sri Lanka for displaying a Buddha tattoo on his arm, he says.
Antony Ratcliffe, 42, from Nottingham, was turned back at Colombo's main airport on Friday for allegedly showing a lack of respect for Buddhism.
The authorities are tough on perceived insults to Buddhism - the religion of the island's majority ethnic Sinhalese.
But Mr Ratcliffe says the "inoffensive" body art was meant as a tribute.
'Officer went crazy'
The Briton, a former infection control officer for the ambulance service and a keen amateur photographer, was stopped as he tried to leave Bandaranaike International Airport during a 12-hour stop-over en route from London to Malaysia.
Despite having a valid two-day tourist visa, Mr Ratcliffe said he was frogmarched to a detention area after immigration officials spotted the Buddha's head tattoo poking out from the sleeve of his T-shirt.
"As soon as he saw it the chief officer went crazy. You could see it on his face, he looked really angry and said I would have to go back to London," Mr Ratcliffe told the BBC.
An unnamed immigration official told a local newspaper that when questioned about the tattoo, Mr Ratcliffe had spoken "very disrespectfully" about Buddhism.
But the Briton says he remained calm throughout the proceedings.
"They took my passport and held me there for an hour and a half. All the time they were bringing people in to look at my arm, and they were shaking their heads.
Map of Sri Lanka
"I was explaining my case, pleading basically, and the chief officer just told me to 'shut up, shut up' and he refused to talk to me."
"I like the artwork in tattoos obviously and, due to my belief in Buddhist philosophy which I have followed for many years, I thought a quality tattoo of the Buddha was rather apt.
"It wasn't something I took lightly or did on the spur of the moment."
Eventually, Mr Ratcliffe was allowed to continue his journey to Kuala Lumpur, but faced further questioning when he landed.
"The whole experience has been a shock - it has been upsetting and a waste of my time. I'm not taking it further, but when I saw they had accused me of speaking disrespectfully about Buddhism, I had to put my side of the story", he said.
More than 100,000 British citizens visited Sri Lanka in 2012, accounting for 10% of the total number of tourists. The UK is also the country's second-largest trading partner after India.
Last year, three French tourists were given suspended prison sentences for taking photographs that showed them pretending to kiss a statue of Buddha at a temple.
In 2010, the American R&B star Akon was refused a visa after protests over one of his music videos, which featured scantily-clad women dancing in front of a statue of Buddha.
The UK foreign office offers the following caution for travellers to Sri Lanka: "The mistreatment of Buddhist images and artefacts is a serious offence and tourists have been convicted for this."
It also advises that travellers "don't pose for photographs by standing in front of a statue of Buddha".
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Personally I do not really have much problem with tattoos on the body. However there are many cases where Buddhists get very offended if they see a Buddha image tattooed on a person's body. I remembered reading the news where an English man was denied entry into a Buddhist country just because he had a tattooed Buddha image on his arm.
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I feel it is up to individual choice. In terms of how a Buddha tattoo is interpreted by others depends on the cultural context and the individual on their own beliefs, cultures and practices. However, in Thailand, it's quite acceptable for locals to have these tattoos done as they are viewed as empowering. Thailand has a tattoo tradition called 'sak yant' that has long been carried out in monasteries: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yantra_tattooing. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yantra_tattooing.) But it may be sensitive in Sri Lanka where a man with a Buddha tattoo was deported despite the fact that he personally saw it as a tribute to Buddhism: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21820476. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21820476.)
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There are quite amazing tattoo artists out there. I personally do not think there is any harm in putting Buddha images on one's body in the form of a tattoo. I guess within reason and depending on where the tattoo is of course. However to endure the pain and effort for some amazing works of art below can perhaps be seen as an offering even? Who is to say it cannot be?
(http://jetcityorange.com/buddhist-tattoos/tattoo-8.jpg)
(https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRcfACaDBrW8eL-Dtkuw67J0GyO_YcWn_fWPGp77vPc9OIK5qb26g)
(http://imgur.com/M4IrR.jpg)
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Tattoos can be an inspiration and expression for some people.while others consider tattoos as Buddhist art.
A tattoo can serve to advertise that you're a Buddhist or simply provide as an adornment that will make you feel more like an individual.
As long as the tattoo has meaning and is done with pure thought and heart - we should not be ashamed.
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"I was recently told that tattoos / body art creates holes in our body that when we pass on, our consciousness would be directed to exit through them (more so if the tattoo was on the lower body) hence directing us to be reborn in the lower realms. Is this true? " by dsiluvu
Wow ! what happens to those who have piercings or just a simple ear piercing ?? Does that affect our next rebirth ? Interesting ! I guess if ear piercing, the ear being in the upper body, if our consciousness leaves via the upper body, is beneficial to our next rebirth !
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Buddhist activists in Thailand are calling on the government to legislate against the apparent misuse of the Buddha's image for commercial purposes. It follows what they say is the rise in insulting portrayals of the Buddha, including in Thailand's flourishing tattoo parlours.
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Tatoos on our body is an art form to be appreciated or a reminder to us. However, there are many other ways to appreciate art form, and not necessarily on the body.
Whether we carry these etched mantras into the next life is questionable here.
Buddhism is a philosophy that require learning, transforming and applying it to practice to achieve the relevant results.
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Holes in the body our mind can leave at death? My gosh, so if I get stabbed in the leg or have an operation on my foot my mind will leave through the scar on its way to the lower realms. Such nonsense! Just meditate on lamrim.
If you have Dharma tattoos may they remind you and others of Dharma and encourage you to spend more time meditating deeply on the paths of sutra and tantra for the remainder of this very short life.
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I was recently told that tattoos / body art creates holes in our body that when we pass on, our consciousness would be directed to exit through them (more so if the tattoo was on the lower body) hence directing us to be reborn in the lower realms. ~~ dsiluvu
What utter nonsense!! If this were true, our consciousness would then also pass through the pores of our body at the time of death?!
A tatto is also described as " .. .. .. a form of body modification, made by inserting indelible ink into the dermis layer of the skin to change the pigment."
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/Tattoo_Temple_Joey_Pang_bobo_websq.jpg/170px-Tattoo_Temple_Joey_Pang_bobo_websq.jpg)
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Well dsiluvu, I am not sure about the the holes, the lower realms or what Buddha said about tattoos. But I do find it a bit absurd to say that our consciousness wold leave through the hole. What about piercings then? lol
Anyway, I could never bring myself to have any Buddhist related tattoos on my body. All the tattoos that I have on my body are non Buddhist related. I just find that it is not very respectful to have them on one's body. Anyway, this is just my personal thought.
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Absurd it is. I was shocked to read such comment on consciousness leaving through the holes caused by tattoos. I believe consciousness leave our body through three channels and it depends on the deeds we have done during tje lifetime and previous lifetimes. If someone who have done so much good deeds in his lifetime and all the thing he did wrong was having a tattoo on his feet. By doing that he took rebirth in the three lower realms?? LOL
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I cannot say if buddhist tattoo is acceptable or not, but its still up to individual as it is very personal. If we think the skin as just a piece of white paper to write anything we wish onto it then in my view is accceptable. But the only thing is how do we treat the tattoos such as holy images of buddha and mantras. Do we use them as a reminder to our practice, which is important....and very fundamental. Holy images manifested out of compassion as a reminder to attain the qualities of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.
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I was recently told that tattoos / body art creates holes in our body that when we pass on, our consciousness would be directed to exit through them (more so if the tattoo was on the lower body) hence directing us to be reborn in the lower realms. Is this true? If that is the case what about people who have an accident???
What if someone had tattoos before they met Buddhism and what about those Thai monks with heaps of mantra tattooed???
Your thoughts please and would appreciate significant facts from any teaching that says it is not allowed cos as far as I have checked, there is no where that says it is wrong for a Buddhist to have Tattoos. Please enlighten me!
There are other orifices on the lower body of either a male or female. Hence the consciousness of the dead person may leave via these orifices rather than through tattooed parts of the body, if it is true. I very much doubt it.
I have heard that having Buddha tattoos on the body is a sign of disrespect because of the negative things we do like slaughtering animals (butcher), copulation, etc.
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Regardless if you have a tattoo or not on your body ...is actually fine ,cos in my opinion if you are a good person then the tattoo on your body won't harm anyone. Some people who don't have tattoos on their body or even honest looking might turned out to be more dangerous..If u have a Buddha image tattoo on your body ,you have to respect it and let it be a reminder to practice the dharma well & hopefully it will plant the seeds to all who took a glance at the Buddha image .