Sak Yant is the ancient Southeast Asian tradition of tattooing Yantra on the skin. Yantra are symbols or diagrams used to balance the mind & invoke spiritual powers. Many Southeast Asians & a growing number of intoxicated Westerners wear them for protection against both physical and spiritual dangers.

The origin of Yantra is in India & most of the characters are inspired by Hindu literature. However the custom of tattooing yantra onto humans originated in Cambodia. It was first used by hermit monks, but it soon spread throughout SE Asia, particularly in Thailand.

During the Khmer Rouge reign of terror the majority of Cambodian monks were slaughtered. For a brief moment the sacred art of Sak Yant Tattoos was almost lost. Luckily today Cambodians are reconnecting with their heritage & Sak Yant Tattoos are flourishing.

Even though they are neighbors, getting a Sak Yant tattoo in Cambodia is very different than in Thailand. Cambodian monks are not allowed to give tattoos, so the market is dominated by normal tattoo artists & ex-monks. In Thailand they have whored out the entire practice, with tattoos given by monks indiscriminately across the country to anyone willing to pay. Thai monks also instill a laundry list of silly rules with their Sak Yant tattoos; eating certain foods, having sex with married women & other activities as harmless as bowing under a bridge allegedly force the spirit from your body, rendering your tattoo useless.

Since I am guilty of breaking all the Thai rules I opted to get my tattoo done in Cambodia, the land with no rules. Another deciding factor was that Sak Yant originated in Cambodia & is written in Sanskrit. I wanted someone who could actually read what they were tattooing on my body & I damn sure didn’t want to be bombarded with someone else’s morals.

However, finding a legit Sak Yant artist was easier said than done. I didn’t want my tattoo done by just anyone, to get the real spiritual powers I needed an ex-monk. After scouring the internet until my eyes bled I finally found a respected Sak Yant master in Siem Reap, Ajarn Prak Sokdarenn. I called him up, & he could barely hear me.

At the time I was living in a hostel in Siem Reap. I was in the cheapest dorm room available, a sweltering un-airconditioned room filled with 30 beds & 90 drunk tourists. It was the cheapest hostel in all of Siem Reap, & was infamous for debauchery. How Ajarn heard me amidst the roaring noise of nearly 100 tourists doing drugs, drinking, yelling & publicly having sex at 9 am I will never know…but goddamnit I needed my Sak Yant tattoos.

After months of research in Thailand I already knew what I was going to get, the Hanuman & Dragon. The Hanuman is the Hindu monkey king, he is known for being a warrior & being exceptionally devious. Allegedly a Sak Yant tattoo of the Hanuman will protect you in combat & give you the agility to artfully maneuver any situation, no matter how dangerous. The dragon is one of the most revered mythical creatures, both for its power & wisdom. Allegedly a Sak Yant tattoo of a dragon brings fortune, good luck & protection in dangerous situations.

This was a week before I bought my moto, so I ended up hiring a moto to take me out there. After passing the phone from Ajarn, the moto driver & me multiple times I was finally on my way to get my Sak Yant tattoos. Zipping through traffic on the back of the moto with the ferocious Cambodian sun glaring down on me I reflected on my life. I was discombobulated from a sleepless night filled with drugs & casual sexual behavior with strangers. I knew I needed a change, but I had no idea where the hell I was going. As we careened through traffic into the outskirts of Siem Reap I vowed to learn Khmer.

We passed an elaborate temple & then turned down a long dirt path. There were puddles & dogs everywhere so I lifted up my feet to karate kick the nearest canine. Fortunately the barking was just for show & we made it down the road in one piece. The taxi driver motioned that this was the house so I hopped off & told him I would call him when I was done.

As he sped off I was greeted by Ajarn Prak Sokdarenn. He is a plump man with a beaming smile. Ajar Prak Sokdarenn is an ex-monk who left Buddhism so he could marry his gorgeous wife. His house is lined with pictures of him & his wife in traditional Khmer clothes. Once you see the pictures, you know he made the right choice. At first I thought they were pictures of the royal family, but was pleasantly surprised to see the motivation behind his dissidence. The fact that this man ditched the taboos of his religion to get laid made him the perfect candidate to give me my tattoo.

Even though he quit being a monk, Ajarn is still revered by the local community. Cambodians from around the block come by & routinely get blessed by him. During my two sessions we were interrupted multiple times by people who wanted his blessing. I had no hard feelings about the sideshow, to me it was fascinating to see how much people respected him. He would take them to his special room filled with shrines & pray over them. In return they would give him fruit & flowers.

After showing him which designs I wanted we started negotiating the price. I was dead broke & fresh from Peru so my haggle game was strong. After finally agreeing on a decent price he took me into a separate tattoo room & got to work. I had two options, a machine or traditional Mae Sak needles. I picked the machine since it was quicker & produced a more legible tattoo.

As the machine hummed over my back I was surprised at how much it stung. It felt like the needle was tearing into my soul & I thought about all the adventures that I have been through. I have had tattoos done on over half of my body but for some reason this pain seemed more profound. After he completed my Sak Yant dragon tattoo I gave him all the money I had. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough so he promised to bless me the following morning when I returned with the cash.

So the next day I returned, Ajarn seemed a little surprised. But he quickly took me into his holy room & prayed over my Sak Yant dragon. He blew herbal water over it, chanted for about 5 minutes & said I was free to go. It wasn’t that easy to get rid of me, I was full of questions.

For the next hour he explained to me what my tattoos meant. Each symbol represented a power invoked by the spirits. Each Sanskrit phrase was a prayer. After he explained this to me he read my fortune & gave me a red bracelet. After praying & blowing on it, he asked me if I was ready to leave. I announced that I needed a Hanuman tattoo as well. He seemed intrigued, he even started to chuckle.

I explained that I live & travel in dangerous areas, & I needed the Hanuman for protection. He pulled out his book filled with incantations & we figured out our game plan. After fiercely negotiating a price, we proceeded to the room & my Hanuman was born. This tattoo was equally painful, luckily it only took around an hour & a half to complete. Ajarn seemed extremely entertained that I chose a Hanuman, he was constantly chuckling. When I asked him what was the deal he just shook his head & chuckled more. I realized that I was either going to get a powerful spirit or be completely fucked.

During the tattooing I reflected on the amazing amount of violence that surrounded us. If there was a place to invoke the powers of the supernatural Siem Reap was it. Just 16 years ago Siem Reap was a war zone. After being kicked out of Phnom Penh the remaining Khmer Rouge fled into the jungle surrounding Siem Reap. They shot rockets out of Angkor Wat at government troops, knowing they respected the temples too much to shoot back. Millions of people were brutally murdered all around Cambodia, & the scars are still fresh.

He took me into the alter once again, prayed for my Hanuman & blew him into my skin. More people showed up to be blessed. I could tell he was busy so I thanked Ajarn profusely & went on my way.

I could tell he knew that I wasn’t the average tourist. Every Cambodian I met was wildly entertained by my style. I am a rare breed, my mind state is heavily influenced by the narcotics & violence that flood both California & Peru. I used the next few months to dive deep into Khmer culture & find myself spiritually. I bought a moto, survived multiple crashes & left Cambodia a wiser man. I learned so much in Cambodia from all the people I met & the life threatening situations thrown at me. The energy of that country sticks with me to this day & I will be eternally thankful that I got my Sak Yant in Cambodia instead of Thailand. My next spiritual revelation would be the killing fields, but that’s another blog post.