

We say mask because being humans, emotions inevitably form a part of our existence. In the practical and rigid world that we live today, most of us choose to wear a mask, be immune to feelings, attachments, and emotional blows of life. It gazes at you with an emotionless stare, the darkness it wears overshadows all that it contains. Legend has it that it is almost impossible to trick, convince, or persuade the reaper to spare your soul. It just does its job to harvest the souls of the departed to the afterlife. These warriors tend to encounter near-death experiences in their careers almost everyday, and therefore, this tattoo is quite a remarkable way for them to portray their fearlessness towards death. This tattoo is also symbolic of bravery, which is why you will find it on many marines and soldiers. Sporting this tattoo can somewhat help us accept the fact that fear only makes things worse and that death is as likely as birth. For many of us, death is perhaps the biggest fear of all. They say that the best way to overcome your fears is to face them. Nonetheless, you can also customize it furthermore based on your personal memories associated with the deceased person. Additional elements such as a grave, name of the deceased, a rose, and a quote, can make the entire design look absolutely gorgeous. Similarly, a Grim Reaper design can also symbolize the memory of a dear one who has now moved on to the afterlife. Skull tattoos have always been a way to remember the dead, oftentimes inked with a dear one’s name. It emphasizes the fact that every moment passed is a step closer to death, and so it must be lived as happily and cheerfully as possible. A Grim Reaper design, in this case, can help in embracing and appreciating whatever time we have on earth. Some of us get so engrossed in building a materialistic haven, that we actually forget to experience life’s true essence, which is to appreciate, love, learn, and move on. Most of us also end up taking a lot of life’s gifts for granted. Most of us tend to take life as a burden, especially when we encounter pain, disappointments, and failures in life. This tattoo, in this case, would act as a reminiscent that you would eventually meet the scythe-bearer in due time, wherein he will be the carrier of your soul to the afterlife, the ultimate place of judgment, reward, punishment, and perhaps, rebirth. The belief in rebirths, reincarnations, or a different form of life after death isn’t unheard of. Yes, contradictory to its popular symbolism, the end of life, a Grim Reaper can also signify a passage to the beginning of another life. Those who wear the scythe tattoo believe in our infinite ability to change, to kill that which we dislike within us, and allow our new, better selves to be born.Those who view death as more of a new beginning than a mere end, would complement this design quite rightfully. As life ceases in winter, it is reborn in the spring. Instead, it marks the completion of a cycle and a new beginning. In Tarot, the Death card is not an ill omen like The Tower or The Devil. Those who bear the scythe tattoo know that all things must pass, and that, because it comes but once, our lives are the most precious things we will ever possess. In short, all that is body is as coursing waters, all that is of the soul as dreams and vapors.”įor some, this is a source of fear and concern, but for others, this is a comfort. “In the life of a man, his time is but a moment,” writes Marcus Aurelius, “his being an incessant flux, his sense a dim rushlight, his body a prey of worms, his soul an unquiet eddy, his fortune dark, his fame doubtful.

Just as grains grow after spring snow melt, ripen during the summer, and then fall to the harvest every autumn, so too do all lives pass on this earth. Unless you thresh wheat or cut grass with horrible out-of-date methods, the scythe is the tool of one figure: the grim reaper.
