Uta's Tattoos: Jester

The jester was performer who entertained people at courts, fairs and markets. They emerged from different backgrounds including poets, musicians, and scholars. They were known as jesters, court jesters, and fools; and used various skills such as songs, music, storytelling, acrobatics, juggling, telling jokes and magic to entertain the common folk. Basically, a jester is one who jests, jokes or mocks.

The word jester did not come into use until the mid-16th century. It derives from gestour or jestour, originally Anglo-Normal (French) and it means storyteller or minstrel. The most ancient jesters were found in the fifth dynasty of Egypt around 2400 BC.

They were portrayed as a living expression of defiance against hypocrisy or ignorance. They confronted authority openly or subverted it while appearing to play along. A jester is a truth-teller in a world of lies that highlights the madness of the world with his wit.

Looking at Uta’s design, the jester’s face is that of a skull. The skull with a jester’s hat is a staple of Gothic imagery. It represents laughing at Death or Death laughing at you.

The jester is found on the trump card The Fool, which is the first card in the major arcana deck. This represents someone who is starting out on a journey. He is often portrayed standing at the edge of a cliff. This means stepping out into the unknown. It’s a card of new beginnings, fresh starts or changes in attitude. The fool makes no plans or gives no thoughts to consequences along the way. He is happy to do something different.

The traits of the fool are: innocence, beginning, simplicity, fresh start and blind faith.

Also present on the card is the rose, which I have talked about before since Uta has various rose designs throughout his tattoos.

Uta's Tattoos: Fingers

We’re taking a look into the tattoos on Uta’s fingers. There are many different variations on the internet but I’m using the original design from the TG Zakki book. This is actually a very interesting design and doesn’t seem as much at first glance. But there’s more to it than meets the eye (as with all of his tattoos). We’ll start with the center design since it’s the easiest to decipher.

There is clearly a visible face here. Now this looks like two things: first, as a jester and second as the personification of Death. The personification of Death is quite obvious since you can see the white face with the black details (the skull). But if you take a better look you can see the details of a jester. Let’s start with the design surrounded the face. They look like white circular designs and these are similar to the collar that the jesters wore. It even seems to have two bells at the end as well. Now let’s look at the top of the face. It’s kind of hard to see but I have outlined it in the photo. You can see the design of the pointy hats they used to wear, complete with the bells at the tips.

This is the only noticeable image I can see from this tattoo. But looking at the rest of it, there are some other things in there. Like for example, the design underneath the jester/death looks like the face of a clown. Then the surrounding area of the center face can either be a crown or a pirate’s hat. But it strongly resembles a mitre/miter which is the hat that the Bishops (and Pope) use in traditional Christianity. The Bishop isn’t only a religious figure but it’s also the name of one of the pieces used in the game of chess.

Renji Yomo's Zodiac Sign

Renji’s birthday is on July 9 making him a Cancer. Cancers are symbolized by the crab who casts off its shell for a new one, associating it with rebirth/cycling. Additionally, the crab is present on the Moon tarot card. This sign is ruled by the moon, its element is water and its colors are blue, green and silver. Blue means intuition, green means healing and silver represents receptivity and keen intuition.

Traits: tender, loving, loyal, sympathetic, protective, kind-hearted, caring, affectionate, reflects a deep influence in others, unpredictable, hermit, they enjoy home-cooking, introverts, hoarders, sensitive, silent, moody, intuitive, and imaginative. Family is important to them and if they don’t have a family, they will create one from close friends and associates. They enjoy being surrounded by mementos and are reluctant to let go of the past. They also absorb negativity like paper.

Renji Yomo's Name

I couldn’t find much on the meaning of his name. I did read online that Renji means “second love” or “yearning love” in Japan. 

Let’s take a look at what Yomo’s name means in numerology form. As we did before, we’re going to add the letters together by using a numbered table from 1-9. We’ll then add the vowels to get the heart number, the consonants for the expression number and figure out his personality number by adding both.

So his full name is Renji Yomo. The vowels are: 5+9+7+6+6=33; 3+3=6. His heart number is 6. The consonants are: 9+5+1+4=19; 1+9=10; 1+0=1. His expression number is 1. Adding both vowels and consonants equals 7, this is the personality number.

Expression (1): Noticeably confident, may seem arrogant, is popular, finds it easy to make friends, very supportive. The number one is a powerful number. It represents unity and wholeness. It’s the first masculine number and it’s the number of beginnings. It’s considered to be the number of God and the universe. Symbolizes the sun.

Heart (6): Extremely kind-hearted, considerate and loving. They make an excellent partner, colleague, parent and friend. They’re strongly creative and artistic. The number six is a harmonious number. It’s associated with love, service, responsibility and balance. It’s linked to the planet Venus and symbolized by the six pointed star.

Personality (7): Strongly psychic with powerful intuitions and vivid dreams. Music plays a vital role in their lives. They have a need for solitude and live inside their heads. The number seven is associated with philosophy, spiritual insights and inner contemplation. It is linked to Neptune.

Uta and the Kitsune

In Japanese folklore the fox is known as a Kitsune and are believed to possess superior intelligence, long life and magical powers. They are shapeshifters who can assume human forms when they reach the age of 100. Kitsunes have nine tails out of which only one is the main source of their power. There are two class types of kitsune: the zenko and the yako. Zenkos are benevolent and associated to the god Inari while the yako are mischievous or even malicious.

There are thirteen different types of kitsune with each one representing an element: heaven, void, wind, spirit, fire, earth, river, ocean, mountain, forest, thunder, time and sound.

*in relation to Uta's tattoo of the fox

Uta's Tattoos: The Fox

Uta has the face of a fox tattooed on his right forearm. It is located above his wrist in between the two heads of serpents. The fox seems to have a bindi (the point or dot in the center; this is commonly used in India) on its forehead. The bindi is used as a reminder throughout the day about all the activities and purpose of life. It is the achievement of self-realization.

The fox represents the solar emblem and are known to be shapeshifters who adapt well to their surroundings. The fox symbolizes thinking outside of the box and using our intelligence in creative ways.

Their traits are: cunning, strategy, quick-thinking, adaptable, cleverness, wisdom, passion, desire, intensity, and expression.

The fox represents different things to each culture. In China the fox symbolizes the afterlife and seeing one is a signal from a spirit. For the Celts, they were viewed as guides and were honored for their wisdom. In Japan, the fox is considered a rain spirit and a messenger for the god Inari (rice god). It symbolizes longevity and protection from evil. And for the Native Americans, the animal was seen as either a noble messenger or a trickster.

While hunting the fox assumes the position of a pointing arrow. This symbolizes determination. One of the most important aspects for a fox is freedom. They do not like being locked up or forced to do something they don’t want to. They also enjoy playing tricks on others, often taking and hiding things from them.