Elephants are among the largest land animals. Despite being the largest, they are one of the kindest beings as well. Elephants have a rich history. A species of elephants traveled to the Americas with the Native Americans. Elephants live a very long life, and they have been living on earth for ages, which makes them among the wisest species.
Currently, elephants are on the verge of extinction. Therefore, many tattoo enthusiasts and conservationists are committing their lives to protect the specie. Because of this, elephant tattoos are becoming extraordinarily popular.
In this article, I will tell you all about elephant tattoos, what their intrinsic meanings are, the best placement for tattoos, and designs you can select.
What your Elephant Tattoo mean in Different Cultures
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You may want to get an elephant tattoo to pay tribute to the dying species. However, it has multiple intrinsic meanings in various cultures all around the world. Some think of the specie as a form of god, while others think that elephants are a symbol of intelligence, peace, and strength.
On the other hand, many cultures have various mythologies and legends attached to the kind beast. Religions like Buddhism, Hinduism, and other cultures believe that an animal’s ancestors were their gods.
Elephant as a Sign of Power and Strength
Elephants are giants when you compare them to humans. They have more power and strength than we humans do. However, you rarely hear about them hurting humans without a human annoying them. It shows that elephants have a lot of mental strength as well.
Many cultures think of elephants as soul guides. They think that elephants will guide them to the path of patience and serenity.
Loyalty and Wisdom
Elephants experienced the changing world. They saw humans when they were at their lowest and their highest. Now, they are observing the modern technological age.
Therefore, many cultures think of elephants as a symbol of stability, wisdom, sensitivity, peace, serenity, reliability, determination, and loyalty. Elephants are extremely gentle towards their offspring, herd, and elders. They show a lot of compassion, care, loyalty, and determination to their kind, and most people call them the gentle giants.
Patience
Patience is what makes elephants so magnificent. Elephants are one of the kindest and mellowest animals in all animals kingdom. However, if you threaten their little ones of anyone from their pack, they will change at you. Besides that, you will never find an angry elephant.
Immense Power
Elephants are giants, according to humans. With all the power they have, they can cause a lot of damage. They can potentially become kings of the jungle. However, they do not display all that power, which makes them the strongest.
As a result, cultures around the world think of the elephant as a sign of immense mental and physical power. People of such culture even wear elephant teeth as jewelry to show the world how powerful they are. Others wear elephant teeth as jewelry because they think it brings good luck. As a result, humans kill the magnificent, which is leading to their extinction.
Elephant Significance in Buddhism
Elephants play a major role in Buddhist culture. Buddhist legends say Buddha’s mother was not able to conceive a child until she saw a white elephant in her dream.
According to the legend, a white elephant appeared in his mother’s dream and gave her a beautiful white lotus flower. Later she spins in orbit around her thrice. After that, she entered her womb, and when she woke up, she knew that the divine god had awarded her with the ability to conceive a child.
However, in the Buddhist culture, grey and white elephants hold different importance. They think of white animals as a symbol of purity, calmness, and divinity. Alternatively, they think of a grey elephant as a symbol of un-tenderness, untrained, uncultured, and agitated mind. They think that grey elephants wander around the world in search of enlightenment and power.
Elephants’ Importance in Hinduism
Elephants are the symbol of one of Hindu favorite Gods, “Ganesha.” They depict the elephant as a form of Lord Ganesha. The majority of Hindus follow God. According to Hindu belief, Ganesha can remove all the obstacles from their lives and bring good fortune, security, and luck to them.
Hindu depicted Lord Indra, the god of rain, lightning, thunders, and river flow, as riding a white elephant.
As a result, Hindus leaders started believing that elephants are loyal partners with their owners. Thus, many ancient Hindu emperors and kings used elephants as their main choice to ride around their kingdoms. Later, it became the symbol of royalty.
Significance of Elephants in Christianity
Surprisingly, elephants hold immense importance in Christianity. Christians believe that elephants are a symbol of chastity, temperance, and patience. When you look at Christian artwork, you will see they depict Adam and Eve as Elephants in their human form. If you look at the bestiaries, you will see the significance of elephants.
Elephant Significance in African Mythology
Africa has a high population of elephants than all parts of the world. African believe that the elephant is a chief animal with a lot of wisdom, power, and strength. It resolves all the conflicts that happen in the animal kingdom.
Modern Meaning of Elephants
In all cultures, elephants depict something entirely different from another. However, in current times, people get elephant tattoos to show the world that they are standing with the animal kind. They show that they are making a pact, which will safeguard elephant rights and help them get out of the extinction stage.
However, to most people, your elephant will give off the following meanings:
- Serenity
- Power
- Calmness
- Strength
- The promise of elephant safety
- Divine power
- Royalty
- Loyalty
- Obstacle remover
- Patience
- Sensitivity
- peacefulness
Best Placement for Elephant Tattoos
You need to be super creative when getting a tattoo. An elephant tattoo will look exceptional on just about any part of your body. However, there are a few spots where your tattoo will look more prominent.
On the Shoulder
Most people get a large elephant tattoo on their shoulders as it looks absolutely magnificent. If you are a fan of big tattoos but would prefer it to be discrete, getting a large tattoo on your shoulder is a great idea. You can get an elephant’s face inked on the spot.
On Either Side of your Chest
After the movie “Moana,” getting animals tatted on chest became a huge trend. Nevertheless, the prince of pop, Justin Bieber, has an animal face inked on his chest, and they become his signature tattoos since.
You can also do the same and get a huge elephant face tattoo inked there. It will not only look phenomenal but also put forward you macho side out in public.
On the back
Getting a huge elephant tattoo piece will look amazing. It is a great spot to get you to tattoo as you can hide it under your shirt. However, once you wear a tank top, you will look like a smoke show. When you plan to go shirtless on the beach, people will surely go gaga over you.
On the Arm
Your arm is a great place to get petite tattoos. However, an elephant tattoo has rich meaning, which will tell a lot about your personality. You can either get a large realistic looking tattoo on the arm, or you can get a tribal tattoo. You can extend the tattoo to your hand as well. Arm tattoos extending onto the hand look badass.
Back of your Triceps
It is a great spot to get deep, meaning tattoos like elephants. It is a great spot that people waste on a meaningless tattoo. After all, the spot has the right amount of space to rock an elephant tattoo.
On this spot, I recommend tattoo enthusiasts get tribal tattoos. As you do not feel a lot of pain in the spot, you can get painful tribal tattoos here easily.
Over your Stomach
Your stomach is a great spot to get magnificent large tattoos. You can get a single piece elephant tattoo here. When you move your stomach, the tattoo will look even better as the movement adds to the illusion.
On the Side of Hips
Ladies usually do not have massive blank spots on their bodies that have a lot of space. However, they can get massive elephant tattoos on the side of their hips. This is where you have enough space for a detailed design. Whether you like to show some skin or prefer staying covered up, the tattoo will boost your confidence.
On the Neck
The neck is another great space to get expressive tattoos. If you follow the latest tattoo trends, it is becoming a popular space tattoo community as well. All tattoos look phenomenal here. If you are a girl, opt for a delicate tattoo at the back of your neck. Your tattoo will show when you tie a bun, which will look super attractive.
Elephant Tattoo Designs
When getting a tattoo, you need to work your creative mind. You need to dive into your existence and remember the essence of you, so your tattoo artist draws something true to life. Your tattoo needs to be personal and custom. Your tattoo is your baby, and you need to be proud of the piece when the tattoo artist draws it on your body.
Tribal Elephant Tattoo
Tribal tattoos are becoming extremely famous now. It takes skill for tattoo artists to do justice with the design. On the other hand, you can find several tribal tattoo designs from the internet for reference. Greatest of all, you can easily change the size of your tribal tattoo.
Realistic Elephant Tattoo
Realistic elephant tattoo designs are among the most famous tattoo designs. However, keep in mind that this tattoo will look good in a large space. You will need to hunt down the right tattoo artist for the job as well. Not all tattoo artists can make realistic tattoos.
Elephant Family
You can get mama elephant, papa elephant, and baby elephant tattooed on any part of your body. It will look good. However, the tattoo is relative to a large tattoo, and you will need a decently good tattoo artist to do the job.
Baby Elephant
Baby elephants are the cutest. Getting a tiny baby elephant will show the world your love for the humble giant. It is the perfect tattoo, which will make you fall in love with elephants over again when you see it.
Baby Elephant holding Mommy Elephant’s Tail Tattoo
Mother and baby elephants share a strong bond. The tattoo looks amazing and attractive. It will show your love for the animal and your love for your mother and offspring. You can get this tattoo in tribute to your wife or sister as well.
Elephants showing Affection
The Sight of elephants showing affection to one another is delightful. When you see these two animals showing affection to one another, you will fall in love with nature all over again. Capturing the scene on your body is a great tattoo idea, even for couples.
Jumbo
Jumbo is an iconic Disney movie, which showed us the real face of circus and animal cruelty at young ages. Getting the iconic character on your arm is the perfect tattoo design. The tattoo design has multiple deep meanings that will get your message around loud and clear. It is a beautiful tattoo to get.
Final Feedback
Elephant tattoos are becoming a lot more common now. People are growing aware that we do not have many of these majestic beasts left now. On the other hand, the elephant has special intrinsic meanings. Your simple elephant tattoo will show love too many other cultures of the world. Nevertheless, the tattoo will give you the motivation to battle the odds and survive. It will teach to be strong but patient.