While I was planning my trip to Southeast Asia, I stumbled upon some information on Sak Yant (which means sacred tattoo, tattooed and then blessed by monks). Now I’ve contemplated getting a tattoo for the longest time, but I am very indecisive and I didn’t know what would mean so much to me that I would be fine looking at it on my wrinkled body in 50 years. With Sak Yant tattoos, traditionally the monk who is doing it picks it for you, and places it where he chooses based on your aura or something like that, so you have no say in design or placement. After going out the previous night and getting to bed at 2am, which should probably be frowned upon, we awoke at 4:30am to leave for the temple (after some research, we decided on Wat Bang Phra, since it was a couple of hours away from where we were staying in Bangkok).
Samantha knew she wanted one for sure, so we arrived and we’re taken by a man to buy 70 baht’s worth of incense, cigarettes, and I think it was candles, as an offering. Anxiously waiting, I contemplated further on getting it, and during the 2 hours we waited, I still wasn’t sure. We had to give an additional 25 baht offering each in a tray, and both of us presented it to the monk. Luckily, a man was there who was getting another Sak Yant as well translated for us, and said that traditionally, the first Sak Yant to get would be the Gao Yord on the base of the neck, which gives the bearer protection against accidents, bad people, and bad luck in general (although there are many different interpretations, the basic meaning is protection).
I held Samantha’s shirt down and stretched her skin while the English-speaking Thai local did the same, so as to make the tattoo more precise and help the monk avoid touching a woman’s bare skin (which is prohibited). Now Samantha has several tattoos in various places, but she said that this one was pretty painful compared to the rest, especially due to the fact that it is done by hand with a very long, very thick metal pole-looking thing. It had to continuously be dipped in ink, which is said to be made of a mixture of Chinese writing ink, palm oil, and snake venom. All this while, the Thai local explained to me the significance of this Sak Yant, while also discussing the protests in Bangkok with the monk (which Samantha and I were witness to and even walked through during our time in Bangkok). Samantha was a champion and did not cry while she was getting inked, and after the 15 minutes it took to get her tattoo, it was my turn.
By this time, I still had not decided whether I was going to receive a Sak Yant with black ink, or the invisible palm oil. As I sat down, the Thai local asked me which I wanted, and I asked him meekly, “what do you think, ink?” I think what I meant to ask was whether the tattoo would hold the same significance in palm oil, but I was so nervous sounding that the Thai local nodded and said “ink” in agreement, and before I knew what was happening, I felt the painful jabs of the metal tool into my spine. Now don’t misunderstand me, I knew I wanted a Sak Yant, I just wasn’t sure if I wanted it in obvious dark ink in all of its lifelong permanence when I could have palm oil. It was pretty painful, especially at the base of my neck, but I have a high tolerance for pain and have never cried from it (knock on wood!), and after 3 broken arms, a motorcycle accident, and surgery, this tattoo wasn’t so terrible.
The Gao Yord Sak Yant
After the monk finished with each of our tattoos, he spent a moment praying over them, which is supposed to seal the magic inside of it. We bowed our thanks to the monk and thanked both him and the Thai local generously in Thai, and left with burning and stinging necks. We checked out each other’s tattoos, praising the lines and each others’ heroic receiving of the jabs. We had trouble getting back to Bangkok, since I cannot plan for anything and wifi was nowhere in sight, but luckily a wonderful Thai woman who didn’t speak a lick of English let Samantha and I hop into the back of her pick-up and gave us a ride to the bus stop. I want to reiterate to everyone how absolutely lovely and friendly people are in Southeast Asia, more often the people not located in big cities. It gives me hope for humanity.
Once we arrived back at the hostel, I was able to check out my tattoo for the first time in a mirror and with the help of a camera. At first, I was appalled that the first few spires are visible if my shirt is low enough (because I would rather not have any tattoos that show in everyday clothes, for career purposes), but it will definitely not be visible in a uniform shirt either way. The more I looked at it, and even now, almost a full month after receiving it, I keep falling more and more in love with it. I had realized that I may not prefer the design, or even the placement of it, from the beginning; I had gotten it more for the meaning, as a memento, and because I am extremely interested in studying Buddhism, so the design didn’t really faze me since that wasn’t the purpose of it. But now I love it and am extremely happy that I decided to go ahead with receiving a Sak Yant!
KZinSEA 