Tribal sun tattoos like this one in the picture are usually pretty cool to look at. It’s hard not to like the sharp lines and the clean symmetry. Of course that my come from my anal obsession to keep things orderly, but almost all tribal tattoos look that way to me, to a certain extent. I like those thick lines and those definitive strokes of the brush and make up such drawings. They just appeal to me. Perhaps it is the black and white thing that does it for me.
A lot of people see everything in life as black and white and without a lot of grays. He did it or he didn’t do it? He lived or he died? He walked or he stopped walking? To the black and white thinking people there are always only two answers to every question. It’s yes or no, true or false and a few others but not many. To the others out there who do not see things this way, they can talk about things for days before they decide what will be done and who is going to do it.
The sun tattoo is a prominent work of art found among all the major cultures of the world. Nearly every culture has a creation myth that explains how the sun came into being, and often times an accompanying apocalypse myth that details the end of the world, as we know it, when the sun is destroyed or devoured in some manner. Many cultures have myths that explain the rising and the setting of the sun, and this repeating cycle of light and dark has come to symbolize life and death, regeneration and reincarnation.
So, as you can see the sun tattoo is ripe with symbolism. It represents hope, life, enlightenment and intelligence. It can be a symbol of hope or a symbol of fertility. And all the other major mythological symbols of the world have some connection with the sun either directly or indirectly. The sun tattoo depicted in the picture is a perfect example of a tribal sun. The dark spiraling arms represent the circle of life and the coming together of life and death. The spiraled arms represent our inner and outer journey to God and to ourselves. Thus, completing the cycle of the sun.
It’s amazing that one of the most popular tattoo designs are of a ball of gas that is millions of miles away from Earth. Yep, I’m talking about sun tattoos, but the picture probably tipped you off in the first place. The rich mythology surrounding the sun means there is a wealth of different sun tattoo styles that can be found depicting its image. Many choose to get the sun and moon depicted together, as they are complimentary and, in some cultures, symbolize male and female power. Others choose the blocky, tribal style of Aztec suns.
The sun can also be a symbol of rebirth, so some people choose to combine it with other imagery such as Celtic knots and stars. The light and dark, good and evil symbolism are also a reason that people are so drawn to these tats. And of course, there are various tribal sun tattoo designs, like the one in the picture. Of course, I find that these are my least favorite designs of the genre because they seem so uncharacteristic of the actual sun. I like my sun tattoos to be rich in color, with shades of orange, yellow and red. But, then again who asked me?
When it comes to a sun tattoo there are almost as many different varieties of them as there are meanings for them. This one of course is a tribal sun tattoo and that is easy to tell by its looks. But that does not take anything away from its meaning or power. For the tribal cultures are one explanation of the symbolism is that the sun tattoo is that of light and knowledge that of course illuminates the darkness of ignorance. But mostly the sun represents the cycle of life.
And the get sun tattoos to remind them to live every day as if the sun were setting and to enjoy every moment possible. They once believed that when the sun goes down, life for all intents and purposes stops for a number of hours. Many tribal sun tattoos are similar in nature in as much as the lines and the design but they all look a little different and you will want to shop around and look over many of them before making up your mind on any one in particular. But once you do go and get it, be proud of it. In the end the sun tattoo stands for life itself so there can never be anything negative about having one. |
4 Mar 2009
Sun Tattoos
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