Yantra tattooing

Yantra tattooing (Thai: สักยันต์; rtgs: sak yan;Khmer: សាក់យ័ន្ត; Burmese: တက်တူးထိုး) is a form of tattooing that originated among the Tai tribes of southwestern China and northwestern Vietnam over 2,000 years ago, according to Chinese chronicles of the time. It consists of sacred geometrical, animal and deity designs accompanied by Pali phrases that offer power, protection, fortune, charisma and other benefits for the bearer. Today it is practiced mainly in Thailand, and to a lesser extent in Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar.

Sak means tattoo in Thai, and yan is the Thai pronunciation for the Sanskrit word yantra, a type of mystical diagram used in Dharmic religions.

Sak yan designs are normally tattooed by ruesi (the Thai form of rishi), wicha (magic) practitioners, and Buddhist monks, traditionally with a metal rod sharpened to a point (called a khem sak).

Tattoos believed to offer protection and other benefits have been recorded everywhere throughout both mainland Southeast Asia and as far south as Indonesia and the Philippines. Chinese chronicles describe yantra tattooing among the Tai cultures of southwestern China and northwestern Vietnam at least 2,000 years ago. Over the centuries the tradition spread to what is now Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and parts of Myanmar. While the tradition itself originates with indigenous tribal animism, it became closely tied to the Hindu-Buddhist concept of yantra or mystical geometric patterns used during meditation. Tattoos of yantra designs were believed to hold magic power, and were used much like the kolam tattoos of India. For these people, religion is closely tied to the notion of magic, health, and good fortune.

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