Lotus Flower: Symbol and Tattoos

Lotus Flower: Meaning

"I am the being, who in spite of my miry surroundings, have remained untouched and stood up to be the exemplar of beauty and purity."

If the lotus could speak it would have said these words and bragged about itself which is so unlikely for the humble lotus. It has been the symbol of detachment from worldly desires and illusions according to the Hindu religious scriptures. It symbolized purity in the true sense of the term in spite of its seed being the stagnant water. Lotus symbolizes Life ever renewed and revitalized when it peeks out of the muddy waters every morning.

The flower has been a part of legends and almost every culture, civilization and religion in the world took up Lotus to teach something or the other to the multitude. According to the Egyptian mythology, Lotus was the flower to be created out of the inert fluid chaos of the world, Nun and the sun God, Atum walked out of it to spread his light allover the Cosmos. One of the versions also suggests that the Sun God emerged out of the petals of the flower as Ra. In Egypt it is rightly taken as a symbol of genesis, revival and restoration.

Though Buddhism adopted the concept of "Om Mani Padme Hum" – a hymn that celebrates the ‘jewel in lotus’-the essence and spirit being invested in the core of all mankind, which can glow into radiant brightness if he can save himself from the debris of life.

Christianity has White lily as the equivalent of Lotus, related to Mary the Virgin mother, signifies chastity and fecundity. Doesn’t "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" echo "Om Mani Padme Hum"?

Lotus as a Symbol
Lotus as a flower symbolizes the journey and advancement of the soul through the realization of the material world to be one with the supreme soul.

In Hindu Mythology, the utterance of first,’om’ brought forth the first "golden lotus" and the lotus is also the seat of Brahma (the creator), thus making it a strong creation archetype. The stalk of lotus originating in Vishnu’s (the preserver) navel also presents it as the umbilical cord in the creation of universe. Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity and Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge are also seated on lotus.

Not only in Egyptian and Hindu mythology is it a strong symbol, in China as well, Lotus is a symbol of creation. It also represents the seventh month. It also symbolizes unbreakable relationships taken from the concept of the flexible stalk of the flower.The color of the flower also contributes symbolically, like the white lotus means purity and transcendence; pink lotus signifies the supreme One, the Great Buddha and Goddess Lakshmi; red lotus expresses compassion and passion; blue signifies the supremacy of the eternal over the temporal.

It is said that Tutenkhamen’s body was covered with blue lotus when his tomb was opened in 1922.Lotus also reminds of Tennyson’s poetic marvel ‘The Lotos Eaters’ where the seamen reach the island and get arrested in the self induced stupor of lotus nectar.

Tattoos

A new and radical way of rediscovering the significance of this very symbolic flower is getting Lotus tattoos done and it is person specific as to how he /she wants to interpret it. Tattoos nowadays make a strong style statement and give an insight into the person’s psychological labyrinth. Preconscious mind is revealed through the choice of tattoos a person gets done. Lotus Tattoos can frequently be seen on people. Introspection leads to some such conclusions:

• Modern life is an eternal quest to know what an individual really wants and emerging successfully from the war waged with one’s own self. A lotus tattoo can imply one such successful emergence or life in general as to grow from the earthly mud and arrive as something more meaningful than just beautiful.
• Lotus tattoos are also popular with people who have seen hardships in life and have come out successfully.
• Among the Japanese tattoo artists, lotus tattoos are equally popular as the Koi fish tattoos, at times they can be found together as well. The Lotus tattoo can be considered as an eastern equivalent to the Rose.
• Some find lotus tattoos an example of a dormant seed that lies under mud and muck and bursts into life under sunlight like the light of optimism, spirituality and knowledge can suddenly light up an individual’s whole being.