This illustration is where it all changed for me, When I was still doing my tattoo apprenticeship, things were a bit rough... But thanks to my crew DS, Jill who I was living with at the time and a dope sista named Nicole. . . They inspired me to come up with this: Meaning:
Ganesha's head symbolizes the soul, which is the ultimate
supreme reality of human existence, and his human body signifies the
earthly existence of human beings. The elephant head denotes wisdom and its
trunk represents Om, the sound symbol of cosmic reality. The broken tusk that
the Deity holds like a pen in his upper right hand is a symbol of sacrifice,
which he broke for writing the scriptures to teach the people (This is how
I view artist’s and the sacrifices they have to make). The Upper left hand is
clenching a fist... a symbol for revolution, uprising and change. The
lower left hand is reaching for that change and revolution through the form of
art and ‘HipHop’ (to understand true HipHop culture read: http://www.declaration-of-peace.com/en/)
hence his attire. Also, the way the Ganesh is sitting holds significance,
because the right side of the body is viewed as knowledge and wisdom and the
left is the emotions. . . So by sitting in this position, right over left, it’s
implying that we have to use our knowledge and wisdom to master our emotions.
Because as the great Jeru the Damaja states “The mental must remain calm, you
must let nothing move you, be it good or bad, for when the mental remains calm,
we have the power to create”
P.S- In no means am I
promoting or disrespecting any religious belief... This illustration is simply
a means of expression... telling ‘my’ story...
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