- Sak Yant
Sak yant ( _th. สักยันต), also called yantra tattooing, is a form of sacred tattooing practiced in Southeast Asian countries including
Cambodia andThailand .Sak yant are normally tattooed by
Buddhist monks orBrahmin priests. The most famous temple in the present day for Yant tattooing isWat Bang Phra in Nakhon Chaysri, Nakhon Pathom Province, Thailand.The
Yantra designs that already existed inHindu India were adapted by theKhmer asBuddhism arrived from neighbouring India.Fact|date=February 2008 Records have shown that the tattoo dates back toAngkor times.Fact|date=February 2008 Different masters have added to these designs through visions received in their meditations. Some Yant have been adapted from pre-BuddhistShamanism and the belief in Animal Spirits that was to be found in theSoutheast Asia n sub-Continent and incorporated into the Thai Buddhist tradition.The script used for Yant designs is ancient Khmer and
Pali .In
Cambodia , the tattoo is used for self-protection. Cambodians believe ayantra has magical powers that ward off evil and hardship. Thetattoo is particularly popular amongst military personnel. The tattoo supposedly guarantees that the person cannot receive any physical harm as long as they follow certain conditions. A person is supposed not supposed to talk to anyone for three days and three nights after receiving a yantra. Another alternative is to follow the fiveBuddhist precepts which are you cannot kill, steal, cheat, be intoxicated by alcohol or lust over women.Yant designs are also applied to many other mediums, such as cloth or metal, and placed in one's house, place of worship, or vehicle as a means of protection from all kinds of dangers, or against illness, to increase wealth or attract lovers etc.
Gallery
External links
* [http://www.cambodianscene.com./index.php?target=article&title=magicmasters Khmer Protective Tattoos: History and Role in Modern Society]
* [http://www.leisurecambodia.com/Leisure_Cambodia/No.17/tattoo.html Leisure Cambodia]
*http://travelhappy.info/thailand/thailand-tattoo-temple-wat-bang-phra/
*http://www.arjannoo.com/References
[www.sak-yant.com] Spencer Littlewood Sak Yant Thai temple tattoos (www.sak-yant.com)
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