Ed Sheeran’s new traditional sacred Sak Yant sadly goes against all the Buddhist teachings I was taught and learned in the temples growing up and as a monk studying to be an Ajarn. Let’s delve deeper into Sak Yant culture and why I feel it is disrespectful.
Firstly, let me start with saying this is in no way an attack on Ed Sheeran. I have great respect for him and his music and enjoy listening to many of his songs. I was delighted when I found out he was coming to Bangkok and hoped to secure tickets but I was unfortunately unsuccessful. I also want to start by thanking him for taking an interest in Thai culture, Sak Yants and bamboo tattooing and sharing it with his many fans. This is a wonderfully positive thing for Thailand and he has bestowed us with a great honor.
Today, I woke up to a flurry of enquiries from customers either wanting to replicate Ed Sheeran’s new Sak Yant tattoo, which, according to my teachings, is problematically being worn on his leg or wanting to know why we had previously refused (and will continue to refuse) their requests to tattoo the Pead Tidt and various other Sak Yants on the lower body / below the waist.
Sak Yants can be divided into two categories, those that pray to and call on blessings from the Lord Buddha or other deities and those which pray to and call on an animal’s spirit for blessings. Sak Yants that call on the Lord Buddha or other deities should be worn on the upper body / above the waist as a sign of respect. The higher up the body the better. This is the same with depictions of the Lord Buddha himself. To understand why, we need to delve into Buddhism and Thai culture.
Within Buddhism, the head is considered the most sacred part of the body and the feet are considered the most dirty. The clean to dirty line is split at the waist. We see this regularly within everyday life in Thailand with simple acts such as removing the shoes before entering homes and places of worship along with many business premises. When praying, Buddhists sit in such a way to ensure they keep their feet pointed away from Buddha statues, monks and people of great respect. They will also try and keep themselves below the head height of someone older or revered. You see this with the way Thais will naturally dip their head when passing such people. Since the head is considered the most sacred part of the body, it is very impolite to touch other people’s heads, although of course there are exceptions such as between family and friends.
Traditionally, even clothes can be split into clean and dirty. I remember as a young boy, my mum separating the washing. She would wash upper garments and lower garments separately and dry upper garments such as shirts on a washing line that was pinned higher than the washing line used for trousers and skirts etc.. As you can begin to see, in a culture where traditionally we even separate the laundry in order to not mix the dirty with the clean, putting a Sak Yant that calls on the Lord Buddha on the lower body is not deemed acceptable. There are also Sak Yants that are not quite as revered as the ones that call on the Lord Buddha but should also be worn on the upper body in order to show respect. An example would be the Yant Khanom Tom. He was a legendary Muay Thai fighter who is greatly respected and as such any Sak Yant praying to him should be worn on the upper body as a sign or respect.
Animal Sak Yants are considered to be low and can therefore be worn on either the upper or lower body. If worn on the upper body, they should never sit above a Sak Yant that calls to the Lord Buddha or other deities. The most famous Sak Yant that can be worn on the lower body is the Suea Koo that prays to the spirit of the tiger.
Sak Yants that can be worn on the lower body are easy to spot as they will always contain an image of the animal that the Sak Yant prays too. However, it is important to note that some animals are considered blessed spirits and as such they may be incorporated within a Sak Yant that prays to the Lord Buddha and therefore should be worn on the upper body. An example of this is the Hah Taew Salika Koo. The mythical Garuda bird, Thailand’s national emblem, is another such blessed animal that should only be worn on the upper body. Therefore, it is vitally important when choosing a Sak Yant that you seek the advice of someone who can help you fully understand where each Sak Yant may be worn on the body and also their true meaning.
Ed Sheeran’s Sak Yant bamboo tattoo is a version of (incorporates) the Pead Tidt and therefore everything I have been taught for my entire life dictates it should only be worn on the upper body. Various Thai newspapers such as The Thaiger mention the Pead Tidt being tattooed on the leg and Ed Sheeran has been quoted as saying, “the piece goes in 8 directions, so protecting you from all sides, and you’re in the middle of the calm” which is indeed in line with the many blessings of the Pead Tidt. The Ajarn who performed the ritual has responded saying he rewrote the spell specifically for Ed Sheeran in order for it to be worn on the lower body and it is not the traditional Pead Tidt that Thai people know and love. However, it is important to note that the new version is still a prayer to the Lord Buddha and as such, in line with my teachings, it should only be worn on the upper body in order to be respectful towards the Lord Buddha. It is not a tattoo that I would personally feel comfortable placing on the lower body of any of my clients. However, the Ajarn that performed the Sak Yant is well known in Thailand and greatly respected. He clearly feels the Sak Yant can be worn on the leg. As such I have reached out to him so we can share our interpretation of our culture and see where we differ. It is important to note that all religions are open to interpretation and whilst it goes against my teachings and beliefs and it’s therefore not a Sak Yant I would place on the leg it doesn’t mean he is wrong and I am right. It simply means we differ on our interpretation of our religion and where the Sak Yant can be worn.
Unfortunately with such a tattoo being on someone so famous, it is sure to be replicated and again placed below the waist and will likely lead to other Sak Yants such as the original Pead Tidt, the Hah Taew and Gao Yord being worn on the legs by people without the proper knowledge. I must admit to being shocked and deeply upset by the placement of Ed Sheeran’s new tattoo. It is common within the west for depictions of the Lord Buddha to be tattooed on the legs of people who don’t fully understand the culture and I hope we don’t see an influx of sacred Sak Yants being worn without due respect.
I hope you enjoyed reading this post as I try to raise awareness regarding the tradition of Sak Yants and how to enjoy such beautiful Buddhist blessings whilst being respectful to both the Buddhist religion and Thai people.
Thank you from Ajarn Keng and The Bamboo Rooms® Family.
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