Religious perspectives on tattooing#Christianity

Southeast Asia has a tradition of protective tattoos known as sak yant or yantra tattoos that incorporate Buddhist symbols and images, as well as protective mantras or sutra verses in antique Khmer script. These tattoos are sometimes applied by Buddhist monks or practitioners of indigenous spiritual traditions. Traditionally, tattoos that included images of the Buddha or other religious figures were only applied to certain parts of the body, and sometimes required commitment on the part of the recipient to observe the Five Precepts or other traditional customs. Incorporation of images of the Buddha into tattoos that do not comply with traditional norms for respectful display have been a cause of controversy in a number of traditional Buddhist countries, where the display of images of this type by Westerners may be regarded as appropriation and has resulted in barred entry or deportation of individuals displaying tattoos of this type.{{Citation needed|date=December 2019}}

File:Man with a full back tattoo. Black and White image.jpg by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld]]

Some Christians take issue with tattooing, upholding the Hebrew prohibition. The Hebrew prohibition is based on interpreting Leviticus 19:28—"Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you"—so as to prohibit tattoos.

Interpretations of the passage vary, however. Some believe that it refers specifically to, and exclusively prohibits, an ancient form of self-mutilation during mourning (as discussed in the Judaism section). Under this interpretation, tattooing is permitted to Jews and Christians. Another interpretation is that it refers only to the tattooing of ink with ashes of deceased family.

Others hold that the prohibition of Leviticus 19:28, regardless of its interpretation, is not binding upon Christians—just as prohibitions like "nor shall there come upon you a garment of cloth made of two kinds of stuff" (Leviticus 19:19) are not binding—because it is part of the Jewish ceremonial law, binding only upon the Jewish people (see {{section link|New Covenant|Christian view}}).{{cite web|url=https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/what-does-the-church-teach-about-tattoos|title=What does the Church Teach about Tattoos?|publisher=catholic.com}}

{{See also|Christian tattooing in Bosnia and Herzegovina}}File:Frau aus dem Lasvatale.jpg displaying numerous tattooed crosses (19th century)]]

Catholic Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina utilised tattooing of crosses for perceived protection against forced conversion to Islam and enslavement during the Ottoman occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This form of tattooing continued long past its original motivation. Tattooing was performed during springtime or during special religious celebrations such as the Feast of St. Joseph, and consisted mostly of Christian crosses on hands, fingers, forearms, and below the neck and on the chest.{{citation|url=http://www.croatianhistory.net/etf/et02.html|title=Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina|author=Darko Zubrinic|location=Zagreb|year=1995}}{{cite web|author=Darko Zubrinic |url=http://www.croatianhistory.net/etf/et02.html#tattoo |title=Croats in BiH |publisher=Croatianhistory.net |access-date=August 3, 2012}}Customs and folkways of Jewish life, Theodor Herzl Gaster The Eastern Orthodox population abhorred this practice.{{cite journal |last=Lelaj |first=Olsi |year=2015 |title=Mbi tatuazhin në shoqërinë shqiptare |trans-title=On Tattoo in the Albanian Society |journal=Kultura Popullore |publisher=Centre of Albanological Studies |volume=34 |issue=71–72 |pages=94 |issn=2309-5717}}{{Cite book |last=Norman |first=Camilla |title=Realtà medioadriatiche a confronto: contatti e scambi tra le due sponde. Atti del convegno Termoli |date= |publisher=Università degli Studi del Molise |year=2018 |editor-last=De Benedittis |editor-first=Gianfranco |location=Campobasso |pages=63 |language=it |chapter=Illyrian Vestiges in Daunian Costume: tattoos, string aprons and a helmet}}

In Coptic Christianity, tattooing is often done to identify oneself as a Christian.{{cite journal |last1=Meinardus |first1=Otto |title=Tattoo and Name: A Study on the Marks of Identification of the Egyptian Christians |journal=Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde des Morgenlandes |date=1972 |volume=63/64 |pages=27–39 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23868136|issn=0084-0076}}{{rp|27}} During the reign of Pope Alexander II of Alexandria, monks had brands on their hand listing their monastery.{{rp|29}} The specific Coptic practice of tattooing a cross on the inside of the right wrist may have originated from Ethiopian practice, and served as a method of ethnic and religious identification in primarily Muslim society.{{rp|30}} It was seen as a reminder of one's faith and a way of making it impossible to apostatize.{{rp|30}} Tattoos marking people as Christians were also at times given punitively during times of persecution.{{cite journal |last1=Link |first1=Madeline |title=Transformed Hearts, Transformed Bodies: Christian Pilgrimage Tattoos as Products of a Ritual Process |journal=Church Life Journal |date=October 31, 2023 |url=https://churchlifejournal.nd.edu/articles/transformed-hearts-transformed-bodies-christian-pilgrimage-tattoos-as-products-of-a-ritual-process/ |access-date=22 February 2025 |publisher=University of Notre Dame}}

Latter-day Saint leaders, most notably church president Gordon B. Hinckley in 2000{{Cite web |last=Hinckley |first=Gordon B. |title="Great Shall Be the Peace of Thy Children" |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/eng/ensign/2000/11/great-shall-be-the-peace-of-thy-children |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=www.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}} and 2007,{{Cite web |last=Hinckley |first=Gordon B. |title="I Am Clean" |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/eng/general-conference/2007/04/i-am-clean |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=www.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}} have discouraged church members from getting tattoos. Latter-day Saints view bodies as a sacred gift from God,{{Cite web |title=Tattooing |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/eng/manual/gospel-topics/tattooing |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=www.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}} a metaphorical and literal temple to house the Spirit, as written in 1 Corinthians 3:16–17 and 1 Corinthians 6:19–20. Tattoos are often compared to graffiti on a temple. Apostle David A. Bednar said "the very thought of finding such inappropriate markings on a temple is offensive to all of us."{{Cite web |last=Bednar |first=David A. |title=Ye Are the Temple of God |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/eng/ensign/2001/09/ye-are-the-temple-of-god |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=www.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}} Tattoos and multiple body piercings are also considered to be part of a worldly fad of shallow individuality, and church members are cautioned to not "pay ovations to the god of style."

While past editions of written behavioural guidelines, including the 2011 'For the Strength of Youth' pamphlet{{Cite web |title=For the Strength of Youth |url=https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/ForTheStrengthOfYouth-eng.pdf?lang=eng |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704211713/https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/ForTheStrengthOfYouth-eng.pdf?lang=eng |url-status=dead |archive-date=2014-07-04 |access-date=2023-04-09 }} and the early 2022 'Gospel Topics' essays,{{Cite web |date=2022-09-30 |title=Tattooing |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/tattooing?lang=eng |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930033015/https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/tattooing?lang=eng |url-status=dead |archive-date=2022-09-30 |access-date=2023-04-09 }} contained explicit rules against tattooing, recent editions have instead contained broader directives to "honour the sacredness of your body"{{Cite web |title=For the Strength of Youth |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/eng/manual/for-the-strength-of-youth/06-body |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=www.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}} and "respect [your body] as [you] would a temple." However, the counsel of past leaders generally continues to apply today.

There are no consequences prescribed for church members who get tattoos; any discipline is up to the discretion of the member's bishop. However, those with tattoos who wish to serve as a proselytising missionary must have their applications reviewed on a case-by-case basis.{{Cite web |last=Magazines |first=Shanna Butler Church |title=Tattoos and Your Mission |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/eng/liahona/2006/03/tattoos-and-your-mission |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=www.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}} For those who convert to Mormonism, the church states that "previously existing tattoos will not prevent one from serving in the Church and receiving all of God's blessings."{{Cite web |title=Frequently Asked Questions |url=https://faq.churchofjesuschrist.org/can-mormons-have-tattoos |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=faq.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}}

Any member with a tattoo is encouraged to personally consider its removal, because on one hand "if you have a tattoo, you wear a constant reminder of a mistake you have made,"{{Cite web |title=Tattooing |url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/eng/manual/true-to-the-faith/tattooing |access-date=2023-04-09 |website=www.churchofjesuschrist.org |language=en}} and on the other hand "church members believe God loves all of His children, regardless of what they look like."

In popular culture, motivational speaker Al Carraway gained celebrity for her 2015 book "More than the Tattooed Mormon", which discusses her struggle to fit in with fellow church members as a convert with many visible tattoos.

Tattoos are not allowed culturally and religiously; contemporary tattoos are rare among traditional Hindus. Historical roots date back to the practice of Mehndi using henna (but Mehndi is different from tattoo as it is not permanent as tattoo).

File:Henna girl.jpg temporary tattoo (coloring hands) in Morocco]]

There is no direct mention of tattooing in the Qur'an.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=240}} Scholars who claim that tattooing is a sin support their view by pointing to hadiths such as one in Sahih al-Bukhari narrated by Abu Juhayfa that purports "The Prophet cursed the one who does tattoos and the one who has a tattoo done." These scholars generally do not hold the view that non-permanent tattoos such as henna are sinful; nor do they claim that converts to Islam who had tattoos prior to conversion need to get those tattoos removed.{{Cite news |last=Dodge |first=Christine Huda |date=7 August 2017 |title=A Muslim's Guide to Tattoos |work=ThoughtCo |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/tattoos-in-islam-2004393 |access-date=15 October 2017}} Turkish professor of religious studies Remzi Kuscular states that tattoos are sinful but that they do not violate a Muslim's {{transliteration|ar|wuḍūʾ}}.{{cite book |last1=Kuscular |first1=Remzi |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gQ5RCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT43 |title=Cleanliness In Islam |date=2008 |publisher=Tughra Books |isbn=9781597846080 |page=43 |access-date=15 October 2017}} Canadian Islamic scholar Ahmad Kutty claims that tattooing prohibitions exist in Islam to protect Muslims from HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, and other diseases that can be possibly transferred to people through tattooing.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=249}}

According to the Islamic Medicine Academy, natural non-permanent (such as henna) tattoos are permitted in Islam while permanent or semi-permanent tattoos are forbidden and Mohammed encouraged females to use color on their hands (by using natural medium such as henna) while males can only use henna on their hair.{{cite web | url=https://www.islamicmedicineacademy.co.uk/henna | title=Henna | Islamic Medicine Academy | date=July 15, 2017 }}

Göran Larsson, a Swedish professor in religious studies, states that there are "both historical and contemporary examples indicating that, at different times and in different places, [tattooing] was practiced by certain Islamic groups." Al-Tabari mentions in History of the Prophets and Kings that the hands of Asma bint Umais were tattooed.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=237}} Muslims in Africa, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan have used tattoos for beautification, prophylaxis, and the prevention of diseases.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=238}}

Edward William Lane described the tattooing customs of Egyptian Muslim women in his 1836 book, An Account of the Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=244}} In a 1909 trip to Persia, Percy Sykes observed Shia Muslim women had "birds, owers, or gazelles tattooed, but occasionally verses from the Qur'an" and that victorious male wrestlers and gymnasts were honored with the tattooing of a lion on the arm.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=246}} In a 1965 article published in the journal Man: A Record of Anthropological Science, author John Carswell documented that Sunni and Shia Muslims in Lebanon would get tattoos of the swords of Abu Bakr and Ali, respectively, to distinguish themselves from one another.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|pp=245–246}}

According to historians Shoshana-Rose Marzel and Guy Stiebel, face tattoos were common among Muslim women until the 1950s but have since fallen out of fashion.{{Cite book |last1=Marzel |first1=Shoshana-Rose |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KelQBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA102 |title=Dress and Ideology: Fashioning Identity from Antiquity to the Present |last2=Stiebel |first2=Guy D. |date=2014 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=9781472558091 |pages=102 |language=en}} Traditional Tunisian tattoos include eagles, the sun, the moon, and stars.{{Cite book |last=DeMello |first=Margo |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s0122BsqrZwC&pg=PA163 |title=Encyclopedia of Body Adornment |date=2007 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9780313336959 |pages=163 |language=en}} Tattoos were also used in the Ottoman Empire due to the influx of Algerian sailors in the 17th century.{{Cite book |last1=Joseph |first1=Suad |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bzXzWgVajnQC&pg=PA46 |title=Encyclopedia of Women & Islamic Cultures: Family, Body, Sexuality And Health |last2=Naǧmābādī |first2=Afsāna |date=2003 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=9004128190 |pages=46 |language=en}} Bedouin and Kurdish women have a long tradition of tattooed bodies.{{Cite news |last=Asquith |first=Mark |date=9 November 2017 |title=Tattooed women of Kobani |language=en |work=The National |url=http://www.thenational.ae/blogs/national-view/tattooed-women-of-kobani#1 |access-date=15 October 2017}}{{Cite news |last=Jaafari |first=Shirin |date=9 February 2015 |title=These Kurdish refugee women are proud owners of facial tattoos |language=en-US |work=Public Radio International |url=https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-02-09/these-kurdish-refugee-women-are-proud-owners-facial-tattoos |access-date=15 October 2017}}

Margo DeMello, a cultural anthropologist and professor at Canisius College, notes that tattoos are still common in some parts of the Muslim world such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Morocco, Algeria, and Egypt. Underground tattoos have also been gaining popularity among Iranian youth. Some Turkish youth get tattoos as a form of resistance, fashion, or as part of a counterculture.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=239}} Tattoos are also gaining popularity among young Muslims in the West.{{Cite news |last=Preston |first=Devon |date=18 May 2017 |title=Tattoos and Islam with Kendyl Noor Aurora |language=en-US |work=Inked |url=http://www.inkedmag.com/g/tattoos-and-islam/ |access-date=15 October 2017}}{{Cite news |last=Ahmed |first=Khadija |date=26 October 2016 |title=Confidently tattooed and unapologetically Muslim |language=en-US |work=Huck |url=http://www.huckmagazine.com/art-and-culture/confidently-tattooed-unapologetically-muslim/ |access-date=15 October 2017}}

Some Muslims believe that tattooing is a sin because it involves changing the natural creation of God, inflicting unnecessary pain in the process. Tattoos are classified as dirty things, which is prohibited in Islam. They believe that a dirty body will directly lead to a dirty mind and will destroy their {{transliteration|ar|wudhu}}, ritual ablution.{{Cite journal |last=Rokib |first=Mohammad |date=2017 |title=MUSLIMS WITH TATTOOS The Punk Muslim Community in Indonesia |journal=Al-Jam'ab: Journal of Islamic Studies |volume=55 |pages=47–70 |doi=10.14421/ajis.2017.551.47-70 |doi-access=free}} Some Shafi'i scholars such as Amjad Rasheed argue that tattooing causes impurity and that tattoos were prohibited by the Prophet Muhammad. They also claim that those who are decorated with tattoos are contaminated with {{transliteration|ar|najis}},{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=241}} due to potential mixture of blood and coloured pigment that remains upon the surface of the skin.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=243}} Blood is viewed as an impure substance, so a person with a tattoo cannot engage in several religious practices.Larsson, G. (2011). Islam and tattooing: an old question, a new research topic. Scripta Instituti Donneriani Aboensis, 23, 237-256. https://doi.org/10.30674/scripta.67390 However, in the present day, it is possible to get a tattoo without mixing dye with blood after it exits onto the outer surface of the body, leaving a possibility for a Muslim to wear a tattoo and perform a valid prayer. Scholar Yusuf al-Qaradawi states that tattoos are sinful because they are an expression of vanity and they alter the physical creation of God.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|p=248}} According to the online South African Deobandi {{transliteration|ar|fatwa}} service called Ask-the-Imam, Muslims should remove any tattoos they have if possible or cover them in some way.{{harvnb|Larsson|2014|pp=250–251}}

Shia Ayatollahs Ali al-Sistani and Ali Khamenei believe there are no authoritative Islamic prohibitions on tattoos.{{cite book |author1=Bryan S. Turner |title=Religion and Modern Society: Citizenship, Secularisation and the State |date=March 31, 2011 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9781139496803 |page=94}} The Quran does not mention tattoos or tattooing at all.

Grand Ayatollah Sadiq Hussaini Shirazi ruled: "Tattoos are considered {{transliteration|ar|makruh}} (reprehensible but not forbidden). However, it is not permissible to have Quranic verses, names of Ahlulbayt (a.s), drawings of Imams (a.s), Hadiths, unislamic and inappropriate images or the likes tattooed onto the body. And if the ink was the type that remains above the skin, then it would be considered prohibited. However, if it was of the type to go beneath the skin, it would be considered permissible but {{transliteration|ar|makruh}}."{{cite web |last1=Al-Shirazi |first1=Sayid Sadiq |title=FAQ Topics: Tattoos |url=http://www.english.shirazi.ir/topics/tattoos |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170509101047/http://www.english.shirazi.ir/topics/tattoos |archive-date=May 9, 2017 |access-date=16 October 2017 |website=Ayatollah Sayid Sadiq Al-Shirazi}}

File:Igor Olshansky crop.jpg has many tattoos, including two Stars of David on his neck."[http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=71276 San Francisco 49Eers Select Jewish Safety Taylor Mays] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110104215959/http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=71276|date=January 4, 2011}}". San Francisco Sentinel. April 30, 2010. Retrieved May 13, 2010 He is regularly featured in Jewish news publications.{{Cite news |last=Berkwits |first=Jeff |date=July 1, 2004 |title=Sampson of the gridiron |newspaper=San Diego Jewish Journal |url=http://www.sdjewishjournal.com/stories/xarchive.php?id=477}}{{dead link|date=April 2018|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}{{cite news |author=Josh Whisler |date=August 2, 2009 |title=Cowboys add muscle on defense with Olshanksy |work=Houston Chronicle |url=http://www.chron.com/sports/texans/article/Cowboys-add-muscle-on-defense-with-Olshanksy-1747227.php |access-date=September 21, 2011}}]]

Tattoos can be prohibited in Judaism{{cite web |last=Levine |first=Rabbi Menachem |title=Judaism and Tattoos |date=October 7, 2018 |url=http://www.aish.com/jw/s/Judaism-and-Tattoos.html?s=authorart |access-date=December 12, 2018 |publisher=aish.com}} based on the Torah (Leviticus 19:28): "You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the Lord." The prohibition is explained by contemporary rabbis as part of a general prohibition on body modification (with the exception of circumcision) that does not serve a medical purpose (such as to correct a deformity). Maimonides, a leading 12th-century scholar of Jewish law and thought, explains that one of the reasons for the prohibition against tattoos is a Jewish response to pagan mourning practices.

Scholars such as John Huehnergard and Harold Liebowitz suggest that the prohibition against tattooing was less in response to the pagan mourning practices as mentioned in the preceding verse of Leviticus, as death rituals in ancient Mesopotamia, Syria, Israel, and Egypt make no references to marking the skin as a sign of mourning.{{Cite web |last=Gershon |first=Livia |date=2021-01-02 |title=Why Does the Bible Forbid Tattoos? |url=https://daily.jstor.org/why-does-the-bible-forbid-tattoos/ |access-date=2022-07-24 |website=JSTOR Daily |language=en-US}} However tattooing was used a sign of enslavement and servitude in ancient Egypt, where captives were tattooed or branded with the names of priests and pharaohs to mark them as belonging to a specific person or god. Huehnergard and Liebowitz therefore suggest that tattooing was forbidden in the Torah because it was a symbol of servitude and the primacy of escaping Egyptian bondage in ancient Jewish theological law. They also point out the verse Isaiah 44:5 in which the children of Jacob committing themselves to God: "One shall say, 'I am the {{LORD}}'s'... Another shall mark his arm 'of the {{LORD}}.'"{{Cite web |title=Isaiah 44:5 |url=https://www.sefaria.org/Isaiah.44.5?lang=bi |access-date=2022-07-24 |website=www.sefaria.org}}{{Cite journal |last1=Huehnergard |first1=John |last2=Liebowitz |first2=Harold |date=2013 |title=The Biblical Prohibition Against Tattooing |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23496450 |journal=Vetus Testamentum |volume=63 |issue=1 |pages=59–77 |doi=10.1163/15685330-12341101 |jstor=23496450 |issn=0042-4935|url-access=subscription }}

Orthodox Jews, in application of halakha (Jewish Law), reveal Leviticus 19:28 prohibits getting tattoos. One reading of Leviticus is to apply it only to the specific ancient practice of rubbing the ashes of the dead into wounds; but modern tattooing is included in other religious interpretations. Orthodox Jews also point to a passage from the Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De'ah 180:1, that elucidates the biblical passage above as a prohibition against markings beyond the ancient practice, including tattoos. Maimonides concluded that regardless of intent, the act of tattooing is prohibited (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Idolatry 12:11).

Conservative Jews point to the next verse of the Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De'ah 180:2): "If it [the tattoo] was done in the flesh of another, the one to whom it was done is blameless" {{ndash}} this is used by them to say that tattooing oneself is different from obtaining a tattoo, and that the latter may be acceptable.{{citation needed|date=November 2023|reason=This article is largely implying that tattoos are viewed universally as not a violation of Jewish law within Conservative Judaism, which is not the case}}. Orthodox Jews disagree, and read the text as referring to forced tattooing—as was done during the Holocaust—which is not considered a violation of Jewish Law on the part of the victim. In another vein, cutting into the skin to perform surgery and temporary tattooing used for surgical purposes (e.g.: to mark the lines of an incision) are permitted in the Shulhan Arukh 180:3.

Reform Jewish leadership generally oppose tattooing, but are more permissive in their stance. The Central Conference of American Rabbis has issued a responsa on tattooing that describes it as "an act of hubris and manipulation that most surely runs counter to the letter and spirit of our tradition" and which dishonors the body. The responsa also states that the prohibition on tattoos is a general prohibition and not an absolute prohibition.{{cite web|url=https://www.ccarnet.org/ccar-responsa/nyp-no-5759-4/ |title=Tattooing, Body-Piercing, and Jewish Tradition |publisher=Central Conference of American Rabbis |accessdate=2023-09-16}}{{cite web|url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-tattoo-taboo-in-judaism/ |title=The Tattoo Taboo in Judaism |publisher=MyJewishLearning.com |accessdate=2023-09-16}}

In modern times, the association of tattoos with Nazi concentration camps and the Holocaust has changed the discussion around tattoos in Judaism. It is made clear that any such tattoos do not fall under the scope of the prohibition, since it applies only to voluntary and permanent tattoos.{{Cite web |title=Tattooing in Jewish Law |url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/tattooing-in-jewish-law/ |access-date=2023-04-25 |website=My Jewish Learning |language=en-US}} For some, the Holocaust added another level of revulsion to tattooing. For others, this tragedy sparked a wave of many Jews getting tattooed with Auschwitz numbers as a form of remembrance and reclamation.{{Cite news |last=Rudoren |first=Jodi |date=2012-10-01 |title=Proudly Bearing Elders' Scars, Their Skin Says 'Never Forget' |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/01/world/middleeast/with-tattoos-young-israelis-bear-holocaust-scars-of-relatives.html |access-date=2023-04-25 |issn=0362-4331}}

Additionally, it is a common misconception that anyone bearing a tattoo is not permitted to be buried in a Jewish cemetery.{{cite web |last=Levine |first=Rabbi Menachem |title=Judaism and Tattoos |date=October 7, 2018 |url=http://www.aish.com/jw/s/Judaism-and-Tattoos.html?s=hp2 |access-date=December 12, 2018 |publisher=Aish.com}} Even if a Rabbi considered a tattoo to be a violation of a prohibition it is still not grounds for refusing the right to burial or synagogue rituals simply because it is no more egregious that any other sin, it is only more visible. However, despite the allegation about Jewish people being barred from burial in a Jewish cemetery if they have tattoos being acknowledged in modern times to be an old myth, individual cemeteries and other organizations have in fact been entitled to make their own rules and standards for burial.{{cite news|url=https://jewish-funeral-home.com/can-jewish-people-be-buried-with-tattoos/|title=Can Jewish People be Buried with Tattoos?|publisher=Star of David Memorial Chapels Inc|accessdate=June 30, 2024}}

Neopagans can use the process and the outcome of tattooing as an expression or representation of their beliefs.{{cite web|url=http://www.earthtides.org/Newsletters/EPNNSpring2010.pdf |title=Earthtides Pagan Network News, Spring 2010 |access-date=April 5, 2012}} Many tattooists' websites offer pagan images as examples of the kinds of provided artwork. At least one Wiccan tradition, Blue Star Wicca, uses a tattoo as a mark of initiation, although it is an entitlement, not a requirement.{{cite web |url=http://www.ravenstarcoven.org/bluestar |title=Blue Star Wicca |work=Witchvox.com |first=Catalina |last=Castells |author2=Douglass, Amy |access-date=2005-12-11 |archive-date=2010-11-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101127003351/http://www.ravenstarcoven.org/bluestar |url-status=dead }}

{{Reflist}}

{{refbegin}}

• {{Cite journal|last=Larsson|first=Göran|date=17 January 2014|title=Islam and tattooing: an old question, a new research topic|journal=Religion and the Body|volume=23|pages=237–256|doi=10.30674/scripta.67390|issn=2343-4937|doi-access=free}}

{{refend}}

• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pfr80tmQHrg Tattos of Tibetan ex-political prisoners] Interview with Buddhist monk Palden Gyatso discussing tattoos for monks.
• [https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/10/19/a-new-look-at-judaism-and-tattoos/ A New Look at Judaism and Tattoos], Rabbi Menachem Levine, The Algemeiner

{{Tattoo}}

Category:Tattooing and religion