The ohm tattoo, also known as the ‘om’ or ‘aum’ tattoo, is often the most meaningful tattoo that people get on their bodies. It can represent peace, happiness, calm, creation, and just about anything else, so it is a tattoo that can work for just about anyone who likes the look of the symbol.
On this page, we are going to go over some of the many meanings that people like to use with the ohm tattoo so you can know for sure if this is the right kind of tattoo for you.
Ohm is said to be the very first and most important word that humans spoke, at least it does to people who follow the Sanskrit language. That sound is said to contain all sounds in existence, so it’s not too surprising that people believe it has a powerful effect on us when we hear it. It’s one of those words and sounds that are supposed to level us out no matter how we are feeling and people have been using it for centuries to bring equilibrium into their lives.
The ohm tattoo is easily one of the most popular religious tattoos for Buddhists, Hindus, and many other religions because of the power of the word to them. For a lot of people, it is the only tattoo that they get because they feel like the symbol represents everything important in their lives and they don’t feel the need to get any other ink.
Others will combine the ohm tattoo with other religious tattoo designs that they like to make it clear what they all represent. Keep in mind that there are a lot of great religious tattoos out there, so it can also be a fun process to make the ohm symbol work with one or more of those other designs.
Many people who meditate use some form of “ohm” to reach a peaceful state, so some will get their ohm tattoos to show that meditation is a big part of their lives. In fact, many will get the symbol on their wrists or forearms so they can look at it whenever they plan on meditating or when they aren’t in a place where they can meditate. There are plenty of people who give meditation the credit for helping them turn their lives around, so it’s not surprising that many choose to get these designs on their skin.
The ohm symbol itself symbolizes the four states of Brahman, each of which brings with it its own set of meanings. What’s really great about this tattoo is that you can choose to use every meaning that it comes with or you can choose to use a meaning attached to one of the four states. You might even find that you add in meanings later on in life as they make more sense for you.
The metta state represents kindness, which is a meaning that plenty of people take pride in and would love to attach to their ohm tattoos. If people have often called you kind or you simply want to make an effort to be more kind, then this could be a great tat for you.
The karuna state represents compassion. This is actually a cool meaning to use because you really can’t find it in too many other tattoos.
The mudita state symbolizes joy. Just about all of us want as much joy in our lives as we can possibly get, so this is a meaning most will use even if they weren’t originally thinking of it when they first became interested in getting an Ohm tattoo design.
The upekkha state represents calmness and is the state most people want to get to when they are meditating. This seems to be the most commonly used meaning that people like to use when they get ohm tattoos.
Some people see the ohm tattoo as being one of the best symbols of evolution, so if you are a big believer in evolution or you find it very interesting, this could be a great tattoo for you. The whole idea of ohm is that each state evolves and changes us, so it is pretty much the perfect symbol of evolution. As we pointed out up top, this might be the only tattoo in the world that actually could represent everything.
What’s cool about the ohm tattoo is that the shape of the symbol actually gives it even more meaning. Each of the swirls that you see in the symbol represents different consciousness states. This is why it is important that all of the line work is correct in your design.
On top of all of those great meanings that you can use with the ohm tattoo, it is also the type of tattoo that you can design in many different ways. There isn’t a specific set of colors that have to be used, so you can make it colorful or even go with an all-black symbol. There are multiple symbol styles that you can choose from too, though they all contain the same amount of lines and swirls.
Another reason why the ohm tattoo is so popular right now is because it is very easy to fit just about anywhere on the body. You can stretch it out to make it large enough to fit on your shoulder or chest, or you might opt to go with the more commonly seen wrist or forearm variant. It’s also pretty common to see these tats placed on the back of the neck since the vertical look of it seems to fit perfectly there.
As you can see, there are quite a few reasons why it might be a good idea for you to get an Ohm tattoo. It’s a great tattoo to get if you are looking to get a smaller design that holds a lot of great meanings. If you do choose to get an Ohm tattoo, be sure to find a good artist in your area to up the chances of ending up with one that you’ll always be proud to have.