Tattoo Rituals
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US $59.99
My first experience of the traditional Tatau Samoa (tuh-tah-uw) was in 1990 in a volleyball tournament in Melbourne Australia. I saw a young man entering the stadium and remove your pants track to reveal what he thought at the time that a pair of intricate pattern bicycle. I pointed my bike pants Samoa husband takes note of the beautiful design tribal is thought to be something he wanted and that was when I learned about the pe'a (pay-ah), a traditional tattoo, which covers 65% of the body from waist to below the knee, and yes, everything in between.
I really did not think my husband when he spoke of the tatau me and would not be satisfied until I had seen this tattoo up close, so he took me to meet the young man who wanted to take a look at his beautiful Tatau Samoa, and I have been fascinated by them since then.
The art of decorating the body with the traditional tattoo, called tatau, has been practiced in Samoa in men and women for over 2000 years, and I am glad say I'm not the only Westerner who mistakenly took them for clothing.
When the first Europeans discovered the islands of Samoa in early 1800 of a sailor Boat people wrote about it this way: "They speak and behave kindly with great courtesy, no way brutal or awful. It is not paint, like the natives in the other islands do, but in the bottom of the body that are used skillfully woven silk trousers. "
If ever the luck to see a of these tatau beautiful with your own eyes what is meant by a distance that can be confused with the clothing as the intricate patterns covering such large areas of the skin is difficult to believe at first that a person may suffer physical trauma such.
The tools used in traditional tatau are the Au (comb), which is made from a small piece of bamboo or light wood and a piece of tortoiseshell bound at right angles at one end. Attached to this is the bone and tooth comb boars although today the combs are sometimes made of metal. The second stick is like a small hammer used to tap tap tap indefinitely Au wet ink on the surface of the skin. Ink is made from the soot deposits nervous man burned a smooth paste mixed with coconut oil. This ancient form of the ink is still used today.
Even something simple tatau designs can take many hours to complete 7-12 hours in an arm or leg. The pe'a But we can not take many days and weeks, with the start playing in the morning and continues until dark if the subject can stand. The ritual begins again the next day unless the inflammation requires one or two days to heal before resuming. In general, the whole pe'a may take up to three months to complete, and up to a year to fully heal.
Sarah Jayne Gasu is an Australian author who regularly visits the Pacific and loves everthing to do with its people and culture. For extensive information on the islands of Samoa you can visit her site at [http://www.dreamholidaysamoa.com/samoan_tattoo_tatau.html] and discover this beautiful and somewhat hidden destination in the South Pacific.
Being married to a Samoan High Chief gives Sarah real insight on the culture from the perspectives of both locals and tourists so you are guaranteed to discover everything you need to know to plan your dream vacation.
Sign up for her newsletter while visiting her site and receive a FREE article to teach you the basics of the Samoan language so you can be talking like a local before you even arrive!
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