All about Tattoos

“Endorphins are natural pain relievers that flood the body in response to pain.” Sounds boring?

Well I’m drugged… by my endorphins because of tattoos. I have three tattoos already, from the first one I had until the last one I’ve said to myself that it’s going to be the last, but it’s the adrenaline rush that I get from the pain that makes me want to have more and the feeling of expressing myself in a different manner. Each of my tattoos has a different meaning may it be personal matters, a work of art, or a significant happening in the past. What matters most is that I love what I’m doing and that’s why I chose this topic.

                Tattoo came from the Tahitian word “tattau”, which means “to mark”. Some scientists say that some markings on the skin of the Iceman, dating from about 3300 B.C., are tattoos.  But it was rediscovered by James Cook in 1769, when exploration brought them into contact with Polynesians and American Indians. They are a variety of early tattooing methods in different cultures. Many Indian tribes tattooed their bodies and faces simply by pricking, Arctic and Subarctic tribes made needle punctures through which a thread coated with pigment was placed underneath the skin, and the Maori people of New Zealand applied wood carving techniques to tattooing.

                Each culture has different ways of doing the process of tattooing, but the real question is why do they do it? For some people it may be a form of expression or a form of symbolic cultural practice. History shows us that tattoos served many different purposes. For early European men with dangerous professions, they tattooed anchors or miner’s lamp in their forearms to signify protection. In the Egyptian culture, tattoos served as an amulet. For the Maori tribe of New Zealand tattoos on the head served as marks of high status. African groups use tattoos as cultural symbols on women after giving birth to a male heir. Modern Japanese tattoos served as works of arts for the sake of craftsmanship and spiritual awakening. Buddhist monks made marks as a symbol to show contempt for the oppressors. And some Moroccan women tattooed their hands as a symbol of eternal happiness, prosperity and fertility.

                Over the years, reasons for tattooing may have changed, but the designs and shades still represent something different to each individual. In today’s modern culture, tattoos mostly represent a work of art, or a dream, it may also be someone’s devotion to their loved ones. Some do it for the adrenaline rush they get from the pain of the needles puncturing the skin, the attention they get from others, or simply freedom to express own feelings in a different manner.