Thai Sak Yant Tattoo - A Cross Between Art and Mysticism

After living in Thailand for so long there are still so many things that still fascinates me to this days.Thai tattoos is one of them. There are many types of tattoo styles in Thailand; tigers, leopards, Buddhist sans script with a temple background, deities and even a few medieval images such as dragons and phoenix.

But the most coveted of all Thai tattoos are called Sak Yant. Sak means to tattoo and Yant means sacred prayers.

The bearer of a Sak Yant believes he (or she) as the powers of Superman. For a true Sak Yant one must search out a specialized Monks and Brahmin priests. But there are rumors of mystical hermits in the hills north of Thailand that can provide the ultimate tattoo.

In a way, having a tattoo is like having a lottery ticket. Having the right one can bring wealth, superpowers, love, physical and spiritual protection or all at once.

Thai tattoos are made up mainly of letters, sans script to be precise and usually contained in a temple type shape.

Getting a Sak Yant tattoo doesn't involve just walking through a door of a tattoo parlor and plopping yourself down on a cushioned armchair. You have to search out a specialized monk or Brahmin priest. Then you will have to go through a ritual offering prayers and incense for a successful tattoo.

There are plenty of tattoo parlors across the major centers throughout Thailand with modern equipment. Take a walk through Khao San Road and you'll find at least 8 scattered around in the area. These types of establishments will be able to provide you with virtually any design you can imagine because most are staffed with talented artists. And they'll charge you a 1/3 less than what would normally pay back home.

But the most prized tattoos such as a Sak Yant must be done through an arcane process which involves a single 3 foot long bamboo inked needle jabbed repeatedly into the bearer's skin. Some of the tools of the trade resemble medieval torture devices. Most describe that the process is slightly more discomforting then getting one from a tattoo machine. However, if the Sak Yant is done properly from well qualified artists then the bearer will enter a trance where pain and discomfort is not an issue.

A Sak Yant to the uninitiated may think it's just a jumble of nonsense mixed with geometric shapes arranged randomly. That is definitely not true at all. All of the intricate symbols and images are inked with purpose and order. If one single mistake is made then the powers of the tattoo are rendered useless.

Many holy images such as temple spires and sacred text are inscribed on the skin creating balanced symmetry that can only be performed by someone skilled and dedicated.

On the surface Thais seem are devout worshippers of Buddhism with a slice of Animism and a hint of Hinduism. Their belief system is best described like the layers in an onion. And when you peel back all the layers you will find at the core that Thais are in fact really superstitious.

Take a walk anywhere in Thailand and you'll see locals bearing necklaces with pendants. These are actually amulets which are essentially magic charms. Some are small and some are large. All amulets are assumed to be blessed, but the most valued amulets are ones that contain bones, skin or hair from a revered Buddhist monk. Obviously those types of amulets are rare and much valued.

The value of a Sak Yant is exactly the same way. You can have one done by a monk using regular ink which is then blessed, which is the option most tattoo enthusiast would go for. Or you can actually search out a specialized monk or Brahmin priest tattoo artist who has the bones of a holy monk on hand, ready to mixed with the dye.

Regardless of the ink used the process of receiving a Sak Yant tattoo involves a ritual where one must offer prayers and thanks. Kind of like opening up oneself to receive the powers that is about to be bestowed upon him or her. Thai music is played and the tattoo artist may be heard chanting sacred prayers in order to enhance the bearer's powers.

Though just like Superman, the bearer of a true Sak Yant can lose his powers. There are rules that usually require abstinence that are prescribed by the tattoo artist must be adhered to or else the bearer's tattoo will be rendered useless. And in severe cases death.

I met a guy working in a dive shop in Phuket. He is Thai but he was raised in the USA. He said his friends got into a fight in a bar. One of them was slashed in the back with a machete. But guess what? There was no injury. Not even a nick or a scratch on his back or the fine delicate art of Sak Yant inked on his entire back.

After working in Thailand for so long I often hear similar stories not just from Thais in bars and clubs but from business professionals with Western education. I'm not going to discount most of my friends and co-worker's stories. On the other side of the coin I'm not going to believe that a tattoo containing a dead monk's bone and skin underneath one's skin can make one invulnerable.

Take a good look at Muay Thai boxers. Most have some type of Sak Yant inked on them. Even they get beaten to a pulp. Though most believers would just argue that one's Sak Yant is more powerful than the others. When you hear that kind of answer you might as well follow up the debate with which came first the chicken or the egg?

Until the day that someone can fully prove that a Sak Yant can perform as advertised is the day I'll strap on my hiking boots and head to the hills up north looking for a mystical hermit and have him ink me with a Sak Yant from head to toe..