Martial arts inspired tattoos

[cheesefrysamurai]

Anyone have any?

If so whatcha got

[Harkon72]

Yes, I have "Do" written in Chinese on my left shoulder.

[Spartacus Maximus]

Only one in black ink and not visible with a shirt on. It was a stupid idea that I got as a teenager not thinking what consequences it might have in the future. I now since have started to regret having it done. The design is the crest symbol of Okinawan karate and it also represents the old Ryu Kyu kingdom. It is used in the logos of many Okinawan karate schools and styles and looks like three sickle blades in a circle.

Although it is possible to remove tattoos, the process is long and usually more expensive than having one put in. They should be considered life long marks so the decision to get one deserves some serious thinking. Personally, now that I have one I no longer think marking oneself permanently is a good idea. Especially with anything related to martial arts. Especially if the area is easily visible. Unwanted negative attention and an inaccurate impression from other people become inevitable.

[Wastelander]

I just recently got one, after passing my shodan test. It's between my shoulder blades, and it has a lot more meaning to me than it sounds from the description--it's a tree with the mitsudomoe (the symbol Spartacus Maximus described) carved into the trunk.

[sensei8]

I've kanji of:

Shindokan done in red

Hachidan in black

Hanshi in black

All on my upper left center shoulder. Shindokan is large and center...and on the right of Shindokan is Hachidan and on the left of Shindokan is Hanshi; they both are smaller than Shindokan.

[sensei8]

Anyone have any?

If so whatcha got

Do you have any, cheesefrysamurai??

[Kanku65]

I plan on getting one if and when I feel like I have earned it.

My sensei waited until he passed his 4th dan test to have his done. I wouldn't dream of having one done until at least that level.

This does not mean that I judge anyone who has it done earlier, it's strictly personal.

[CredoTe]

Every square inch of my skin is tattooed with the "glorious" birthday suit I was given when I came into this world...

Nope... no tattoos for me.

[Lupin1]

I have two tattoos, though neither are martial arts inspired.

I am considering getting one once I get my Shodan, but I can't come up with a good one (and I won't be getting one unless I can come up with a good one).

[DWx]

I've not got any yet but have been toying with two ideas for a long time..

The first stems from the fact that in my style of TKD, we only wrap the belt around the waist once unlike is traditional in most other martial arts. This is said to represent a concept that parallels ikken hissatsu:

"Il Kyok Pil Sung - Achieve victory in a single blow (literally One Strike Certain Victory).

Il Pyon Dan Shim - Serve one Master with unshakable loyalty.

Oh Do Il Kwan - Pursue one goal whatsoever, once it is determined"

For me it represents also acting as though you only get once chance to do something and one lifetime to make a (positive) impact Thing is though, I'm starting to think Gen. Choi coined the phrases above as I have never been able to find them written in hangul (or hanja) as if I were to have it tattooed I'd prefer it to be either written in that script or to just have some sort of pictorial representation.

The other one I want but haven't as yet found a good image, is a small turtle. The ITF plaque is a turtle shell to symbolize longevity and it is in most cultures associated with this plus strength, endurance, wisdom etc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_depictions_of_turtles I thought about trying to turn the Chinese character 龜 into a turtle like shape but I don't know.. (Besides, the turtle also features heavily in my two favourite book series, The Dark Tower by Stephen King and Discworld series by Terry Pratchett.)

So yeah if anyone is good at illustration and design, let me know