Over the last ten years or so I have had seven dreams in which my skin is marked with a tattoo or tattoo like marking. I had waking visions around 2003 with om mane padme hum tattooed in Sanskrit {not Tibetan I checked} on the inside of both of my forearms The ink was of a very dark blue – indigo blue and to this day {now} I can still feel {or imagine} the lettering.
I have been looking into Thai or Khmer Sak Yant tattoos, perhaps inspired by this dream.
Saffron Trousers “Muay Thai” – Reincarnation – Dream 10-07-23
Here is this morning’s dream.
The dream opens at the confluence of two rivers in mountainous terrain. The river beds are strewn with dark grey-black rock. The river levels are low as is the resultant river. It is clear that from time to time and in rainy season torrents flow. Around the rivers are dense rainforest like trees. I am on a “beach” to the side of one of the rivers. There is a sense of antiquity and of “ago”. I know that I am near a village which is on a major trade route into / across the mountains. It has been the scene of major battles.
I look down and can see that I am wearing only some saffron-yellow trousers. They are held up with a drawstring at the waist and the ankles are similarly tied. They are loose fitting. My head is freshly shaved and without hair. My body is Asian and early twenties. It has no body hair. I am of a slight yet muscular build. I have a tattoo of my left forearm which I cannot see. I am with an old man with white hair and wispy beard. He is dressed in cotton trousers and jackets. He is an elder.
I am not of the village but have been assigned to it. There is an upcoming festival and I have been chosen to represent the village. Tribes will be coming down from the mountains for the festivities, which will be extensive over a number of days.
I point at a red rock on the shore. I say to the man that this could be ground up for face paint. {My mind interjects it is iron oxide}. He says yes and notes it. He will send one of the women back for it.
He has in his hand a cane upon which is a small pad. I am now supposed to kick the pad as he moves it. The type of kick is a roundhouse. He encourages me to swing the whole leg and not flex it at the knee. {My mind interjects that this not like a Japanese roundhouse mawashi-geri but more like a Muay Thai kick}. He moves the pad around getting me to kick low and high. He says that I must focus on the thigh kicks as these will deaden the legs of my opponents. He says that this is a key part of Muay Thai. He encourages me to kick low very hard and fast as we move around the beach. This “way” goes a long way back. He then gets me to work on a front stop kick which prevents the opponent from getting close. He says that I should tap into the warriors of old from this part of the mountains. The tribes coming down are savage and ruthless so I will have to be on my guard and at my best.
He says that although I am not of the village as the Buddhist priest, I should know its ways.
I have worked up a sweat. He suggests that I dunk myself in the river. Which I do.
The dream ends as we walk towards the village and I am amazed at how this body feels in comparison to the one in which I am sleeping.
Dream ends
* I note than in my waking dreams of me as a Buddhist priest I had a Sanskrit tattoo of “om mane padme hum” on forearms.
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The tradition of “sacred” tattooing is also by way of a magical spell or corporeal totem for the wearer. Such a thing would be imbued with intent. There are rules and a code of conduct to follow.
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IAST: Oṃ Maṇi Padme Hūm̐
Devangari: ॐ मणि पद्मे हूँ
Tibetan : ཨོཾ་མ་ཎི་པདྨེ་ཧཱུྂ
Thai : โอํ มณิ ปทฺเม หุํ
Khmer : ឱំ មណិ បទ្មេ ហុំ
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I intuitionally geo-located the dream to around the Chiang Mai area of northern Thailand near Burma and Laos which is not too far from Nagaland in that part of India which is East of Bangladesh.
The thinking goes that if I was once trained in Muay Thai and had a Sak Yant tattoo then having a Sak Yant in this life could precipitate a recall from the earlier life. There being nothing like being repeatedly stabbed with a ceremonial needle in a sacred ritual to alter the state of consciousness.
The language should probably be Khmer and ancient Khmer at that. This would mean that someone well versed in the Sak Yant tradition going way back might be the only one able to reproduce the mantra / yantra in a timely thousand year old Khmer script. Only they would know how, not for the eyes of the party goers at Phuket.
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I found out that one of the tattoo themes has two serpents or naga or nāga. Sometimes referred to as Mekong serpents for the tourists. These designs were appealing, if large.
A brief internet search suggests that there are no genuine Sak Yant masters currently operational in France. You might have to hang out in hardcore Muay Thai circles to find such a person. Alternatively a trip to Chiang Mai could kick start the process…
The hip surgeon would probably prefer that I waited until after the operation to get stabbed.
It sounds like a bit of a crazy idea at my age to get a Sak Yant…
Anyway it has been an interesting thread to explore so far…





