subject: Bat Tattoos – Are They Good or Evil? [print this page] Bat Tattoos Are They Good or Evil? Bat Tattoos Are They Good or Evil?
Bats are sort of unique animals, being the only mammal that can fly. This unique ability may account for their large numbers around the globe they accoun for 20% of all the mammal species. Their symbolism moves on a wide scale, accordingly.
Nowadays many people view bats in the west as negative, but this has not always been the case. At the Greeks, Diana was a many-breasted virgin goddees who watched over births and infancy. The Greeks already knew that bats suckle their babies unlike other flying animals. So, they attached the bat imagery to Diana, and both started to symbolize motherhood. From motherhood it evolved into the symbolism of fertility and sex.
As for the Chinese, the Wu Fu symbols of bats symbolized wealth, peace, long life, good health, and surprisingly good death. Death is an important part of life in Chinese culture, and it is important for them to know that they will die in good conditions.
When Europeans came into contact with bats, the negative images appeared. They started to associate it with the blood-sucking vampires, the type of which there are only three around the world in the tropics and subtropics of America. Tribes living here like the Mayas used vampire images to depict the blood needs of gods, and not the vampire's lust itself (as in vampiric depictions).
Modern bat tattoos encorporate mostly evil images, like the Satan, a fallen angel, vampires, and skulls - so we can say nowadays it has a Gothic notion. Sometimes only the wings of the bats are used as elements in other designs like a flying skull with bat wings.
