Lots of you asked what tattoo I was contemplating for myself. I haven’t talked with anyone else about the style of tattoo I want until now. Probably because it’s slightly embarrassing to be obsessing over a tattoo already on a celebrity’s body. Not very original am I? I’ve had images of Jessica Alba’s wrist tattoo stored on my computer for months.
Visually, it’s not even particularly attractive. There are millions more superficially appealing wrist tattoos out there. But the meaning just gets me. Like, really gets me. It just seems so unbelievably relevant to my life that it’s the only ink that I’ve been close, so close, to having imprinted on me forever.
This tattoo is the Sanskrit (ancient Indian language) word ‘padma’ meaning lotus flower. Spiritually, the lotus flower is incredibly symbolic. As I understand it, in many religions it’s regarded as a physical representation of the human soul. The lotus starts it’s life beneath the murky muddy waters but eventually blossoms into the most beautiful of flowers basking in sunshine.
For me, the significance is profound – it’s about rising above the struggle to reach a point of enlightenment. A new beginning, whereby you can forget the past and no longer feel tainted by it. It’s like moving away from darkness into the light.