Uta's Tattoos: Snakes (part 2)

THE CADUCEUS

You have probably seen this symbol a lot. It’s often used in the medical profession (as an error since it was confused with the staff of Asclepius, which was the god of medicine/healing in Greece and therefore symbolizes health, medicine and healing). The caduceus was also carried by the Egyptian god Anubis and goddess Isis. 

The symbol is basically a staff with wings with two serpents intertwined around it, facing one another. The spiraling serpents symbolize an expansion of knowledge. The heads of the twining serpents (facing each other) is a symbol of settled quarrels, commerce, trade, transportation, communication and enterprise. The staff/wand/rod symbolizes transference between body and mind, and the wings are symbolic of ascension.

The caduceus is related to the god Hermes, who was the messenger of the gods and known as the “prince of thieves” and the god of commerce. It was viewed as the emblem of life and displayed on healing temples in Greece. The symbol represents power over wealth, prosperity, happiness, dreams, strength and wisdom.

The caduceus means different things for various cultures. In Hindu symbolism it represents the central spirit of the human body. The serpents represent a human’s DNA pattern – the double helix. In Greece and Rome it represented the four elements (air, fire, water, earth). In Roman times, it was used as a symbol of peace or neutrality in battle.

Uta's Tattoos: Snakes (part 1)

Uta has two serpents entwined on his right arm. Their heads meet at the wrist with the face of a fox between them. Their bodies intertwine higher up forming what seems to be the number eight with two flowers between them.

The snake is the universal symbol of rebirth and renewal due to the shedding of its skin. It deals with the primordial life force and it is associated with the element of water (water represents emotion, love and motion). The snake represents initiation, wisdom, patience, fertility, eternity, balance, cunning, intuition, awareness, healing, intellect, protection, solemnity, rejuvenation, transformation, occult knowledge, Ying-Yang and duality.

DOUBLE-SNAKE

The double-snake represents duality, the unification of polar opposites, communication and balance. Additionally, the opposing snakes symbolize the ying and yang. The dualities represented are: male/female, light/dark, water/fire, left/right, illness/health, binding/loosing, wax/wane, separation/union, sun/moon, upper/lower, asleep/awake.

The double snake is present on the image of the caduceus. If we look carefully at Uta’s tattoo, we can say that it’s the exact representation of this staff.

Uta's Flower Tattoos (part 3)

FLOWER TATTOOS: NARCISSUS

The narcissus flower is the flower for the Sun sign Sagittarius. It is a Chinese flower said to bestow the flowering of our hidden talents. It is reputed to increase the hard work put into a career. Uta has this flower tattooed on every point of the cross. The narcissus symbolizes: influential, philosophical, direct, trustworthy, having a sensitive side not shared with many, honesty, wise, good luck, strength, an active imagination and dreams. Narcissus was also a Greek hunter known for his beauty who fell in love with his reflection and drowned.

Uta's Tattoos: Equal Armed Cross

Uta has eight equal armed crosses tattooed on his hip. This symbolizes the human desire for knowledge and experience. It embodies the unification between ethereal and material. This cross symbolizes self, nature, knowledge and God. It has different meanings to various cultures. For the Celts it symbolizes the meeting place for divine energies. For the Greeks, it symbolizes the four elements. The Native Americans saw it as a compass for guidance. In the Middle East it represents the four directions and the four winds.

The equal armed cross is present in three tarot cards: the Priestess, the Emperor, and Judgement. 

Again, the cross is a symbol for the planet Jupiter and is present in its glyph. Jupiter is the planet for the Sun sign Sagittarius, Uta’s zodiac sign.

Uta's Tattoos: The Cross

Uta has two tattoos of crosses on his right arm: one in the center of the kitsune’s forehead and the other is next to the body of the serpent. Additionally, he has a circle of eight (this number again!) equal armed crosses on his hips but we’ll get to that soon.

The cross symbolizes the human desire to know and experience the mysteries of life. Its meanings are hope, life, honor, faith, unity, balance, transition, temperance, ascension and navigation. Its symbolic stations are self, nature, wisdom and god/goddess. The cross is a symbol that represents the meeting place of the divine energies.

Each arm of the cross symbolizes a branch of higher wisdom with the center representing our spiritual destination. It also represents navigation. It’s a symbolic compass that guides our spiritual thoughts. You can say it divides itself into three different navigations: spiritual, cyclical and time. In spiritual it re-centers our focus and moves our thoughts in the right direction. In cyclical it symbolizes the transition of the seasons and is a reminder of the transition of time; the transitory nature of our lives. In time it marks the four seasons and delineates day and night.

The bars of the cross also have important meanings. The top half of the horizontal bar represents the sunrise while the bottom half represents the sunset. The vertical bar of the cross represents past and future with the center being the present.

The cross is a symbol for the planet Jupiter and is present in its glyph. Jupiter is the planet for the Sun sign Sagittarius, Uta’s zodiac sign.

Uta's Zodiac Sign: Jupiter

JUPITER

Jupiter is the planet for the Sun sign Sagittarius, which is Uta’s zodiac sign. The symbol for Jupiter is comprised of several elements including a cross. This symbolizes a meeting of ideas, a crossroads coming together to form two paths of philosophy. On Uta’s right arm he two different crosses tattooed on it (one above the fox’s face and the other right next to the serpent). Jupiter represents balance. The planet’s position of balance makes it ideal for justice, manifestation and perfect order.

The traits for Jupiter are: expansion, good luck, protection, wealth, abundance, higher education, optimism, experience, authority, generosity, supremacy, justice and of course balance.