PLUR is \u201ca set of principles that is associated with the rave culture<\/a>\u201d and, beyond raves, certainly a respectable moral compass. I was thinking that, even if I soured on rave culture over time, reminding myself to live PLUR would never be something I\u2019d regret. I\u2019d found my \u201cforever message\u201d and wanted it as a tattoo.<\/p>\n The most simple tattoo would be to use the symbols associated with each word, something like this:<\/p>\n There are nuanced interpretations of these symbols, and they can be adjusted accordingly, but you get the idea. In doing some research I found several examples of PLUR tattoos like this one:<\/p>\n Clearly the idea of PLUR as a tattoo was nothing unique, but any tattoo is also very personal, so I was happy with this in concept. I then floated this idea with my tattooed friends at work to a positive response. Then one of them, who is also a designer, suggested that the symbols should be stylized to make it more personal to me and my tastes. I asked what she had in mind and she asked if I\u2019d welcome some ideas. We agreed and off she went to design something for me.<\/p>\n As the days passed and turned into weeks, I hadn\u2019t seen any ideas from her, but she continued to note that she was making progress. She also asked me many questions about personal inspirations, which both gave me the impression that she was taking this project very seriously and that she was making it into something more that just PLUR. I was getting excited to see where this was going, and since I was in no rush, patiently waited and answered her questions along the way.<\/p>\n Roughly two months had passed and she told me she was ready to present her ideas to me. She started by taking me through a five page<!> PDF<\/b> of inspirations, symbolism, and meanings. I must admit that I was a bit overwhelmed, but also truly fascinated that she had put in, not only so much effort, but also so much thought<\/em>! Here is an abbreviated version of her research covering only the symbols and meanings that made it into Life\u2019s Direction<\/i>. I\u2019ll start with the four symbols representing PLUR as that was the origin of this entire work.<\/p>\n In addition to providing its primary meaning of peace and these additional meanings that only make the olive branch even more relevant to me, it is artistically something more interesting to work with in a composition than a traditional peace symbol. The nice thing about art, and especially tattoos, is that you can personalize symbols as much as you\u2019d like. The unalome is a Buddhist symbol representing the path to enlightenment and the path that each individual takes in their journey. The bottom spiral represents the formative years when one goes backward nearly as much as forward. At some point the middle section is reached as life gently ebbs and flows forward with more purpose. Finally, the path gets straighter and straighter as enlightenment is approached.<\/p>\n When the spirals are clockwise, they represent the male journey and, when reversed, female. Often shown side by side, this can represent the joint path of a couple. And with this interpretation, I use this as my symbol for love<\/b>. In Life\u2019s Direction<\/i>, the upper portion is missing and instead replaced with the triskellion (described below<\/a>) as this is where I am currently in my journey. Sometimes the Unalome is shown with a Lotus Flower near the top representing adversity and the triskellion in my usage can represent this as well.<\/p>\n The Yin Yang represents the inextricably linked opposites in our world that allow complete balance, and in PLUR is the accepted symbol for unity<\/b>. While I\u2019ve used the traditional PLUR symbol, Life\u2019s Direction<\/i> plays with the imagery by using it only as a background. And instead of black and white, each side is stylized with additional imagery. In fact, traditionally the white section represents the male polarity and the black section, the female polarity. I\u2019ve played with this in that what would be the black section includes content that represents my wife\u2019s impact on my journey.<\/p>\n Some rope is included in Life\u2019s Direction<\/i> to represent ascension<\/b>, as in \u201cto ascend to a higher place.\u201d Rope also represents help and the possibility of climbing to new summits in waking life. And, when formed into a shape such as a lasso, rope can also represent abundance<\/b>. On a practical level, rope is also representative of at least two of my personal hobbies as a specific component of these activities.<\/p>\n There is a compass in the body of Life\u2019s Direction <\/i>occupying the section of the Yin Yang that is often representative of female energy. It represents direction <\/b>and guidance<\/b>, and is placed in the female space as an indication of how important my wife has been in my journey. She has often provided the guidance in my life when I was either straying off course or drifting with no course in mind at all.<\/p>\n Additionally, the compass shown points cardinal East. According to the Zodiac, East represents the earth sign Taurus<\/b>. Native Americans believed that East represented salvation<\/b>. And the Celts said East indicates new growth<\/b>. Finally, the Chinese used East to represent sincerity<\/b>, love<\/b> and compassion<\/b>. Hence, the compass in Life\u2019s Direction<\/i> is as dynamic as the full work!<\/p>\n When looking for inspirations, my designer friend asked me many questions and one was, \u201cwhat is your spirit place?\u201d I instinctively answered with New Zealand. I\u2019ve only been there once, but it is the place I feel most connected to in a spiritual way. Perhaps because it\u2019s the most natural and unadulterated place I\u2019ve ever been, it just feels so pure. I have no idea if I\u2019d actually want to live there long term, but the power of the place does call to my spirit. In Life\u2019s Direction, the male section of the Yin Yang is filled with a nature scene to represent New Zealand; the mountains, clouds and pure water representing the natural beauty of this place. I\u2019m also reminded that P\u0101ua shells come from the water of New Zealand.<\/p>\n Finally, the silver fern (Cyathea dealbata) has come to embody the spirit of New Zealand. According to M\u0101ori legend, the silver fern once lived in the sea. It was asked to come and live in\u00a0the forest to play a significant role in guiding the M\u0101ori people. M\u0101ori hunters and warriors\u00a0used the silver underside of the fern leaves to find their way home. When bent over, the fronds\u00a0would catch the moonlight and illuminate <\/b>a path through the forest.<\/p>\n It is often represented as an unfurling frond, named Koru, which symbolizes new life, a new\u00a0beginning. The fully unfolded fern frond means life and tranquility, and it\u2019s a symbol of M\u0101ori pride.<\/p>\n After taking me through all of the inspirations, she finally showed me a sketch:<\/p>\n Admittedly, we needed to talk through this since so much is going on, but I was immediately drawn to this concept. And the fact that this is original art from a friend makes it that much more special.<\/p>\n When this was shown to me, another friend at work saw it and immediately said, \u201cI know the artist you should use! Eva at Bang Bang!\u201d And since I didn\u2019t know one tattoo artist from another, I was happy to have a referral. Then I looked up Eva\u2019s work and I was hooked! Her profile says, \u201cSpecializes in illustrative miniature fine art\u201d and, while I didn\u2019t know it at the time, this was exactly what I was looking for in a tattoo, miniature fine art<\/b>. Here is one example and Eva\u2019s Gallery<\/a> if you want to see more.<\/p>\n I took the sketch and an abbreviated document of inspirations to Eva for a consultation. Eva is Turkish and has some limitations with the English language. Yet even through the limited words that were spoken during the consultation, I knew she was the right artist for this job. Thankfully I\u2019d been prepped that Bang Bang is an expensive studio and Eva is on the high-end, still. Because when the estimate was presented, it would have otherwise been quite shocking! For a work of art that will be on my body forever, it\u2019s worth it.<\/p>\n Eva books up about 3 months in advance for anything other than the simplest tattoos, but near the holidays there were some openings, so I was able to book my appointment only 4 weeks after the consultation. I was told that it would be a 3-4 hour session and that when I arrived we\u2019d spend some time reviewing and modifying the final design, before Eva would sketch it for transfer to my arm and then begin the inking.<\/p>\n She had the design on a laptop and with digital tools we were able to easily make some minor adjustments to the final design. Satisfied, I was sent to the waiting area in the basement and shown where drinks and snacks were available. Finally, it was time to ink.<\/p>\n Eva lead me to a table where I was to lay on my back. I thought I\u2019d be seated, but Eva noted that for the forearm, it would be too low for her to sit and work. It made sense, but I was disappointed that it was now difficult to watch her work. Oh well, as my friend said, \u201cyou rarely end up in the position you expect for the inking.\u201d<\/p>\n When Eva actually began, it took a few minutes to acclimate to the feeling of the needle, but it was never all that painful. For the first hour I listened to the loud hip hop playing in the studio and texted with friends. A little over an hour in, we took a break and I thought it would be the first of many, but it turned out to be the only one (Eva did say I could suggest a break at any time). After the break, I put in earbuds and listened to mindless podcasts while Eva worked. What seemed like an hour later (but was more than two<!>) she stopped and I thought we were taking a break. She was done! Here is the final product:<\/p>\n Afterwards, my wife asked about the pain and I said, \u201cIs it odd to say that I liked it?!?\u201d And this, my friends, may be why folks get addicted to tattoos – there is something both meditative and thrilling about the experience itself. And, in the end, you\u2019ve (hopefully) got a beautiful work of art to enjoy for years to come. I know that I do!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Life\u2019s Direction For a long time my wife and I have talked about tattoos. We both really appreciate them and neither of us had any, mostly because we couldn\u2019t think of what we might want to have on our bodies forever. About 6 months ago, I began to settle on an idea, and now my … Continue reading “Life’s Direction (a Tattoo Origin)”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":72,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Lifes-Direction-edit.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/payxYU-v","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":105,"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31\/revisions\/105"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/null-1.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n![\"null-4.jpeg\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/null-4-2209182867-1545598374259.jpeg\")
<\/p>\nOlive Branch for Peace<\/b><\/h2>\n
![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/image-3309110367-1545597452527.png\")
Not only does the olive branch symbolize peace<\/b>, it also symbolizes harmony<\/b>, hope<\/b> and even victory<\/b>. Before winners in the Olympics wore medals, they wore wreaths fashioned from olive branches. But, the symbolism of victory dates back even further to Athena in Greek mythology<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/image-6.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\nUnalome for Love<\/b><\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/image-7.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/b><\/h2>\nYin Yang for Unity<\/b><\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/image-8.png\" "\\"\\"")
<\/b><\/h2>\nTriskellion for Respect<\/b><\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/image-9.png\" "\\"\\"")
The triskellion (or triskele) has many different meanings, uses, and names, as well as a wealth of different visual representations. In all cases, it represents three concepts, all in motion, all having a meaningful interrelation to the others. Some are very cyclical like Life, Death, Rebirth<\/b> others coexist such as Spirit, Mind, Body. <\/b>These are also the two examples that resonate with me. There is also a modern and hidden meaning in a specific style triskellion that represents the BDSM community and that one is Safe, Sane, Consensual<\/b>. To me, this is the one that most ties the symbol to its PLUR meaning of Respect<\/b>.<\/p>\nRope for Ascension<\/b><\/h2>\n
Compass for Direction <\/b>and Guidance<\/b><\/h2>\n
New Zealand for my Spirit Place<\/b><\/h2>\n
Silver Fern for Illumination<\/b><\/h2>\n
Concept and Tattoo Artist<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/null-5.jpeg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n![\"null\"](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/null-2-1791938982-1545597499176.jpeg\")
<\/p>\nThe Final Tattoo<\/h2>\n
![\"Life's](\"https:\/\/www.tjscafe.com\/eclectic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Lifes-Direction-edit.jpg\")
<\/p>\n