Few modern methods are adopted to suit the women who cannot spare five to six hours for putting mehendi. Zardosi mehendi is the most popular method which is in tune with today’s fast life. By this method one can sport beautiful designs on the hands and feet with different colours according to the persons choice in 30 minutes. The art of putting zardosi is the same as mehendi- a specially prepared black herbal henna is filled in a paper cone. With this the design is drawn on the hand and feet. After twenty minutes it can be washed off. This leaves a black imprint which can be later filled with different colours, nail polish, glitter sprinkles etc. to make it more colourful. This gives a tattoo effect on the hands and feet, and it lasts only for a few days.

Apart from this, computer graphic designs are also used with the traditional mehendi designs. Traditional Arabic designs of mehendi have now become popular in India. Wonderful designs make the art of mehendi more attractive and beautiful.

Popularity: 11% [?]

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Among the most devoutly tattooed groups anywhere is the community of Ramnaamis. Scattered across the Indian states of Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, this sect of untouchables found refuge from harm in their distinctive tattoos the name “Ram” repeated in Sanskrit on practically every inch of skin, even on the tongue and inside the lips. Ramnaamis began their extraordinary custom during the Hindu reformist movement of the 19th century when they angered the upper-caste Brahmins by adopting Brahminical customs. To protect themselves against the Brahmins’ wrath, the Ramnaamis tattooed the name of Lord Ram on their bodies. About 1,500 strong today, the Ramnaami community still practices this painful rite, which is as much a demonstration of devotion as a talisman against persecution.

Religious Tattoos

With a rich tradition and thousands of Deities, Hinduism itself is today the source of countless tattoo designs. Tattoos depicting popular Gods such as Shiva, Ganesha and Kali or sacred symbols like “Om” adorn the flesh of Hindus and non-Hindus alike. Some of the most elaborate tattoo patterns anywhere are on the women of the Ribari tribe of Kutch, the very region in northwest India just devastated by an earthquake. It is one of the places to which the Pandavas were exiled during the Mahabharata. The members of the nomadic Ribari tribe live as their ancestors did; their tattoos being tangible symbols of the people’s strong spirit and concern with faith and survival.

Today, many people choose a particular design not because of its power or religious significance, but because they simply like the look of it. Tattoos are borrowed from other traditions as well, including Native American and Buddhist. These tattoos for fashion, of course, should not be regarded as religious and are often offensive to those who understand that spirituality is not simply a decoration. And beware of getting a tattoo designed in an unfamiliar language. Last year a man in England had a tattoo artist inscribe his wife’s name on his arm in Hindi. Local Hindi speakers spotted the tattoo and informed the man there was a spelling error.

The Hawaiians are prominent among people who have specific tattoo gods. In Hawaii, the images of the tattoo gods are kept in the temples of tattoo priests. Each tattoo session begins with a prayer to the tattoo gods that the operation might not cause death, that the wounds might heal soon, and that the designs might be handsome. Many modern American tattooists will tell you, “When you should get a tattoo, the tattoo god will tell you that it is time.”

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Popularity: 18% [?]

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Temporary tattoos are not permanent in nature and are easily removed with soap and water or oil-based creams and are intended to last a few days. Temporary tattoos are normally applied to the skin using water to transport the design to the surface of the skin. In some regions like India, the Middle East, North Africa and other Asian countries, temporary tattoo art forms are known as Mehndi / Mehendi.

Mehndi / Mehendi is applied generally on the hands and the feet. The designs made by Mehndi / Mehendi are intricate and beautiful and go on their own in a couple of days.

Henna is powdered and mixed with tea or coffee, lemon juice (so that the dye is released easily) and sugar to make a viscous paste which is then applied on the intended parts of the body. The more you leave the paste on the skin the more it will last. Usually, most of the designs last for about two weeks. Henna has tendency to fade in a fixed pattern. It fades from dark brown to light orange. The chief advantage of putting temporary tattoos like Henna or Mehndi is that you can get rid of them after a few days and again come up with a new pattern or style.

As Henna is herbal there is no threat to the skin. Black Henna, which is made by adding some chemical to the natural Henna, is very unhealthy and has been known to cause burns. According to tradition in the Asian countries in general and India in particular, Mehndi is applied onto the hands and feet of the brides and bridegrooms before wedding ceremonies.

Popularity: 17% [?]

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