spot just outside Bangkok. They follow a grassy track

through orchards until they reach a plain wooden house.

They have picked the day carefully — it is a Thursday.

One of the young men carries lotus flowers, joss-sticks

and a candle. He seems a bit nervous, and his two friends

joke with him to cheer him up: "It was your own idea,

you know! Come on — there's nothing to be afraid of!"

Inside, the house is filled with statues of the Buddha

and of the 'Reusi' or Hermit. The Thai word ('Reiisi')

puppets) is revered in Thailand as the archetypal teacher

of all the arts; according to legend, he learned them from

the god Indra, committed them to memory, and passed

them on to other men. And among the arts, a humble

one perhaps but nonetheless a living part of Thailand's

folk culture, is tattooing.

The occupant of the wooden house in the orchards

is a skilled tattooist. Because of the reputation which his

skill has brought him over the years, he is regarded as a

'km' or "teacher". He charges his visitors only a nominal

candle must first be presented to him in a ritual cere-

mony, in which homage is really being paid to the 'Reusi'

through his pupil the tattooist.

After the young visitor has knelt, offered the three

items and 'waied' in homage to a statue of the 'Reusi' on

a raised platform and to the tattooist, the latter gets to

work. He uses a long, gold-tipped metal needle weighted

with a copper knob at the other end to provide the

correct balance. He dips the tip into black ink, then, the

right hand controlling the knob and the left hand

guiding the tip, he deftly pierces the skin on the young

at which a 'km will tattoo anyone — winces with the

pain as blood spurts out. Maybe he shouldn't have had it

done after all he thinks; but biting his lip he knows that

having started, he must go through with it.

The sympathetic 'km will only do a small part of the

design today. Later the boy will come back again and

again, and the 'km will gradually fill up the design, piece

by piece, until the whole of the young man's back is

covered. This may take as long as a year.

The designs on this young man's back will consist

mainly of magic symbols and passages of Khmer writing.

These are believed to be the 'Reusi's' teachings, originally

handed down in Khmer script (known in Thai as

'Kharm'). A particularly popular design is the 'gao yod',

literally "nine peaks," a cryptogram consisting of a

triangle or pyramid of small squares formed by crossed

lines, each little square containing a Khmer symbol.

It is the 'km' or tattooist who decides on the most

appropriate design; the boy cannot make his own deci-

sions. Besides the 'Khorm' writings there are other

designs, such as characters from the cornerstone of Thai

culture, the 'Ramakien' story. Hanuman, the white

monkey commander-in-chief of Rama's army, is very

popular as a tattoo design because he symbolizes courage

and manliness. There are also the 'hongsa' or mythical

swan and 'ruing fah', a female angel symbolizing peace

and love. The 'km', whose years of experience have also

made him something of a psychologist, can size up the

character of each "client", and he chooses the symbols

which he feels best portray the "client's" character.

The 'goo yod' design, and in fact tattooing as a whole,

are believed to confer a magical property on the person

who is tattooed: it makes him 'nang niao', literally "sticky-

skinned" — that is, immune from harm by any weapon.

No sword, knife, bullet or other weapon can pierce his

skin. The main reason why men are tattooed in Thai-

land is to protect themselves from bodily harm. (The

other reasons are personal vanity, or simply for 'sanuk' or

fun). So strong is the belief in this protective power of

tattooing that even occasional schoolboys, younger than

the prescribed age, come and beg for the tattooist's ser-

vices. If he agrees, he uses invisible oil instead of ink, so no

one will know; and the boy will feel he is now protected

from harm.

But it's believed that the magic protection conferred

by tattooing may "wear off' or disappear if the tatooed

man does certain acts considered bad or wrong, and for-

bidden by the 'km'. Such deeds usually include speaking

evil of one's father or mother, and walking under a

clothes-line on which women's lower garments are

hanging.

'Km' tattooists work only on Tuesdays, Thursdays

and Saturdays, as these three days are considered the

strongest days of the week. Each day about ten men may

be tattooed.

Every year a 'wai km' day is held, on which all the

men he has tattooed gather at the 'km's house to offer

food to monks and pay homage to the teachings of the

'Reusi' and to the 'km' himself. This used to be held on

Songkran Day, the ancient Thai New Year in April, but

Besides the 'km's', there are also "commercial" tat-

tooists who operate on a different basis. They don't

require the joss-stick offerings and so on, but on the

pattern required — which in this case the client chooses

himself. Popular designs include the face or whole body

of a tiger, dragons, and similar motifs.

Today tattooists can be found practicing their skill

in all parts of Thailand. And probably they will go on