Santa Muerte tattoos: several questions

Previous posts:
1. Death tattoos: Santa Muerte - origins and significations
2. Death tattoos: portrayals of the Santa Muerte
3. Santa Muerte tattoos: various elements which can occur in these tattoos

What could be the reason for getting a Santa Muerte tattoo? The first reason is the belief that Santa Muerte, being the saint of death, has the right to decide when one should die. By pleasing Santa Muerte, one can delay the moment of his / her death, can escape from deadly problems, etc. Besides, many of those who believe in Santa Muerte think that she can decide not only the moment of one's death but also the way in which a person will die and, consequently, a man need to gain her goodwill in order to receive a peaceful death.

Who are those willing to get a "Santa Muerte" tattoo? Initially, the Santa Muerte tattoos (just as the Santa Muerte worship) were popular only among thieves, drug-dealers, Mexican Mafia members, etc. For a stranger this might appear strange but most Mexicans and other Hispanic people, even though they are involved in gangs or other criminal activities, are deeply religious and rely on their Christian symbols to both identify and protect them. Moreover, they are exactly the people for whom the risk of death is always present and, quite obvious, they were the very first people willing to seek the Santa Muerte's protection. However, with the spread of the Santa Muerte worship, these tattoos ceased to be a symbol of the criminal underworld and nowadays there are hundreds or even thousands of ordinary Mexican Catholics who have an image of Santa Muerte tattooed on their bodies.

Are those tattoos "satanic tattoos"? On this issue, opinions are divided. The Roman Catholic Church has denounced the worship of Santa Muerte, considering it as a black magic and the Santa Muerte's followers as devil worshippers. On the other hand, many, if not all, of the Santa Muerte's followers consider themselves good Catholics. Santa Muerte figurines often stand near the statues of Jesus Christ or the Virgin of Guadalupe because the devotees to Santa Muerte do not see any contradiction between the Catholic faith and the worship of Santa Muerte. In many ways, a ritual dedicated to Santa Muerte is very similar to a Catholic rite, including procession and prayers for power healing, protection and favors.

Although there are many similarities between the two worships, Santa Muerte should not be confused with San la Muerte: San la Muerte is a "he" and is portrayed as a male skeleton, while Santa Muerte is a "she"; San la Muerte is venerated in the South America, not in Mexic; it seems that the San La Muerte cult is based on punishment and submission, etc. For more details about the San la Muerte cult visit this page: San La Muerte - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Santa Muerte tattoos: various elements which can occur in these tattoos

Previous posts:
1. Death tattoos: Santa Muerte - origins and significations
2. Death tattoos: portrayals of the Santa Muerte

The two most common objects that Santa Muerte carries are a scythe and a globe.

The scythe can symbolize the cutting of negative energies or influences. Also, as a harvesting tool, it can symbolize hope and prosperity. It can represent the moment of death, when a scythe is said to cut a silver thread. The scythe has a long handle, indicating that it can reach anywhere.

The globe represents Death�s dominion and can be seen as a kind of a tomb to which we all return. Having the world in her hand also symbolizes vast power.

The crown - the symbol of royalty.

The presence of this symbol may be explained in two ways: firstly, the cult of Santa Muerte was highly influenced by the aztec cult of Mictecacihuatl, the queen of the Mictlan; secondly, Santa Muerte is ofted portrayed as a skeleton version of the Virgin of Guadalupe - Queen of Mexico and Empress of the Americas.

Flowers (especially roses)

Just like in real life, where Santa Muerte's shrines are adorned with flowers, the Santa Muerte tattoos are usually highly decorated with beautiful flowers. Another explanation for the presence of the flowers in these tattoos could be that the ephemeral flowers are reminder of the ephemerality of the (human) life.

The halo

The halo (also known as a nimbus, aureole, glory, or gloriole) - being a catholic saint, the presence of a nimbus is mandatory. Usually, the entire body of the Holy Death (Santa Muerte) is surrounded by a halo, but there are situations where the halo surrounds only the saint's head (a well-known visual convention in the representations of the saints in the Christian iconography).

Beautiful coloured hearts

The presence of the hearts in a death tattoo can seem strange to someone who is not familiar with the cult of Santa Muerte. The explanation is quite simple: Santa Muerte is not feared but loved. Santa Muerte's worshipers send her requests for love, affection, luck, money and protection, as well as malicious requests regarding their enemies.

The hourglasses

An hourglass indicates the time of life on earth. It also represents the belief that death is not the end, but rather the beginning of something new, as the hourglass can be turned to start over. The hourglass is also a symbol of the patience.

Human skulls, human bones, skeletons

The presence of the human bones (skulls or skeletons) in the depictions of the Santa Muerte is another proof of the link between the Santa Muerte worship and the ancient Aztec cult of Mictecacihuatl. Unlike the Christian beliefs about Death (Grim Reaper, Angel of Death, etc), according to which the role of the Death is to separate the human soul from the body and to guide the deceased to the next world, the Aztec deity Mictecacihuatl was the queen of the Mictlan; according to the Aztec religion she was living among her subjects and was keeping watch over the bones of the dead.

The scales

The scales allude to equity, justice and impartiality, as well as divine will.

An owl

The owl symbolizes her ability to navigate the darkness and her wisdom. The owl is also said to act as a messenger.

Death tattoos: portrayals of the Santa Muerte

Previous posts:
1. Death tattoos: Santa Muerte - origins and significations

Depictions

Santa Muerte portrayed as Grim Reaper

Most of the Santa Muerte tattoos, especially those which are made by unskilled "artists" or those made under improper conditions (like prisons) are usually cheap depictions of the Grim Reaper: a skeleton dressed in a long hooded cloak, carrying a scythe.

Santa Muerte portrayed as a skeleton version of
the Virgin of Guadalupe, the patron saint of Mexico

More original images actually portray the feminine aspect of the character, and a look that often resembles a skeleton version of the Virgin of Guadalupe (the patron saint of Mexico, Patroness of the Americas, Empress of Latin America, and Protectress of Unborn Children).

If she's not portrayed as a skeleton version of the Virgin of Guadalupe, the Holy Death (Santa Muerte) is very often portrayed as a dead young woman. In this case, one can identify a Santa Muerte tattoo by the presence of certain elements: an aura around the head or around the entire body, the presence of the human skulls at the bottom of the tattoo, the praying hands, the presence of the flowers (Santa Muerte worshipers are supposed to offer her flowers along with food, tobacco, money, prayers, and, of course, their faith).

The clothes:

Usually, Santa Muerte is depicted wearing either a long robe or (less commonly) a long dress, covered from head to feet with only the face and hands showing. The color of the dress can be white, yellow, blue, black or red (in exchange for a peaceful death, the Aztecs used to offer blood to the king and the queen of the Mictlan - Mictlantecahtli and Mictecacihuatl; because blood offerings were considered of utmost importance the color red became intimately associated with the king and the queen of the Land of the Dead). However, due to the fact that coloured tattoos are quite expensive, very often the entire tattoo is made only with regular blue or black tattoo ink.

Death tattoos: Santa Muerte - origins and significations

Santa Muerte (literally Holy Death or Saint Death) tattoos are extremely popular among the Mexican people. Santa Muerte (also known as Santisima Muerte, Se�ora de las Sombras (Lady of the Shadows), Se�ora Blanca (White Lady), Se�ora Negra (Black Lady), Ni�a Santa (Holy Girl), La Flaca (The Skinny One), Santa Sebastienne, etc) is the beloved goddess of death who's origins date to the pre hispanic period of Mexico.

The origins of the myths of Santa Muerte aren't completely clear, but is quite obvious that the cult of Santa Muerte is a syncretism between Mesoamerican and Catholic beliefs. Mexican culture since the pre-Columbian era has maintained a certain reverence towards death, which can be seen in the widespread Mexican celebration of the Day of the Dead. Death became personified in Aztec and other cultures in the form of humans with half their flesh missing, symbolizing the duality of life and death.

In the pre-Columbian Aztec religion, the realm of the souls of the people who died from natural causes (of old age, diseases, etc) was Mictlan, the lowest and northernmost section of the underworld. Mictlan was ruled by a king, Mictlantecuhtli (Lord of the Underworld) and his wife, Mictecacihuatl (Lady of the Underworld).

Mictecacihuatl was not only the Queen of Mictlan, but was also the protector of the souls residing in the dark underworld (some legends claimed that she was the goddess in charge with the bones of the dead). She also presided over the ancient festivals of the dead, which evolved from Aztec traditions into the modern Day of the Dead (in spanish el Dia de los Muertos) - originally a holiday which fell at the end of the month of July and the beginning of August and was dedicated to the children and the dead.

The persons who died by natural causes were interred with grave goods, which they carried with them on the long and dangerous journey to the underworld. Upon arrival in Mictlan these goods were offered to Mictlantecuhtli and his wife, Mictecacihuatl. Many of the offerings given then are the same as those offered to Santa Muerte today.

Mictlantecuhtli (left) and Mictecacihuatl (right)

After the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, the worship of death diminished but was never eradicated, and the Day of the Dead remained one of the most important mexican festivals. In contrast to the Day of the Dead, due to the fact that the Catholic Church has labeled Santa Muerta as a death cult, claiming it has ties to satanism, the worship of Santa Muerte remained hidden until the 19th century. When it surfaced, reaction was often harsh, requiring the burning of any image found.

The religion of Santa Muerte was born in the middle of the 20th century, and at the very beginning was clandestine and closely associated with crime. However, in the past decades, original Santa Muerte's followers (such as thieves, pickpockets and street drug dealers) have merged with thousands of ordinary Mexican Catholics who had become disillusioned with the rigid behaviour of the Catholic Church and its insufficient reflection of life in the modern Mexican society. The Santa Muerte veneration, offering a spiritual way out of hardship, has rapidly expanded. The number of believers has grown to approximately two million followers and the new religion has crossed the borders.

photos taken during the ritual of 'Santa Muerte'

Although the Roman Catholic Church has denounced the worship of Saint Death, considering it as a black magic and the Santa Muerte's followers as devil worshippers, the devotees have never given up their Catholic faith. Santa Muerte figurines often stand near the statues of Jesus Christ or the Virgin of Guadalupe because the devotees to Santa Muerte do not see any contradiction between the Catholic faith and the worship of Santa Muerte. In many ways, a ritual dedicated to Santa Muerte is very similar to a Catholic rite, including procession and prayers for power healing, protection and favors.

Some worshippers make the last part of the pilgrimage to the shrine on their bloodied knees and many of them smoke marijuana that has a strong relation to Saint Death. Before the rosary is prayed collectively at the end of the day, they leave offerings (money, candies, tabacco, flowers and candles) and make petitions to �La Sant�sima Muerte�, who is reputedly a very powerful saint and can make life-saving miracles.

To be continued...