Tattoo Me With Eastern Promises

I absolutely love Eastern Promises, a film starring Viggo Mortensen as a member of the Russian Mafia. I am an avid Viggo fan and this fascinating film highlights his chameleon-like talent. He has the exceptional ability of allowing the audience to see the character instead of the actor, which is sadly lacking in most American actors, somewhat due to ego and box-office concerns. In addition to Viggo’s engrossing performance in this film, I am intrigued by the symbolic tattoos that his character has strewn all over his body (43 of them) and I’ve spent a good while doing internet research to learn more. Apparently, the works of Alix Lambert were important resources for the filmmakers. Check out the documentary, The Mark of Cain, along with Russian Prison Tattoos: Codes of Authority, Domination, and Struggle. From my understanding,the tattoos are meant to be representative of the wearer’s life story; where they’re from, past crimes, drug addiction, years of incarceration, etc. Apparently, only another member of the Vory V Zakone (Thieves In Law) can decipher the true meaning of these symbols, but there seem to be some themes that are indisputable, such as stars on the knees which mean that the wearer kneels to no one.

I began to think about what sort of tattoos I would have if I wanted to display my life to this point. I’ve never committed any crimes, although I am guilty of a small amount of shoplifting as a teenager. In the Vory V Zakone, thieves have cat tattoos depicting theft. Should I have a baby kitten? Perhaps a black cat for the hearts that I’ve stolen? Members might have a monastery or cathedral with numerous spires to indicate years of incarceration. Should I get some simple A-Frame houses to depict relationships or jobs that felt like jail sentences? Maybe I should have a little shopping cart, some wine bottles and the Lindt logo inked on my body to showcase my addictions. I like to exercise and I walk everywhere, so I’m guessing a pair of my favorite sneakers and maybe my treadmill. People often depict the death of loved ones on their bodies and I have contemplated that. It’s become the norm in the USA to have tattoos pertaining to children along with dates important to the wearer. What about the death of dreams? How does one depict an emotional or spiritual journey? One thing that I can say for sure, I definitely deserve those stars on my knees. Ask anyone who’s ever known me.

What about you? What tattoos would you choose to reflect your sins, conquests, successes…..life?