22 Mar 2024
I posted more than a week ago that I was going to get an ahimsā tattoo and now I have it! I went into tattooist Wednesday morning and he started around 11am and took about 1.5 hours to complete it. He remarked how appreciative he was that I didn’t move my arm during that hour.
This tattoo is a symbol and a testimony to my commitment to non-violence, whether my vegan lifestyle, or my total opposition to war. Ahimsā means non-violence and is central to Jainism, as well as being an important concept in Hinduism and Buddhism. For thousands of years, we have understood that it is wrong to take life and slowly we have come to understand that spiritual development is not possible while killing others.
As I think back to 18 year old me, I know that he would be proud of what I have become and proud of this tattoo. That young theology student who believed all violence was wrong and who struggled to imagine what that would mean for his life. I remember conversations with other theology students who were in the military (shudder) and recruiters, as they tried to convince me that we needed to counter violence with violence. I remember responding to one of them - “So we need someone like you to protect us from someone like you?”
Open your heart to compassion and leave behind the hostile world that you are helping to create. Be part of making a stronger, more beautiful and more loving life for all of those within your sphere of influence!
Aroha nui,
Lee Sturgis
leesturgis.eth
Support my Writing
If you would like to support my writing you can do so at the following Web3 addresses:
leesturgis.eth
leesturgis.sol
