The gift the Fijians gave away
When the gift of tattoo was given to Samoan twin girls in Fiji, they swam all the way to Samoa to perform the first tatau. It was a gift that’s lasted thousands of years and while the Samoans had fiercely guarded this art making it a Samoan tradition, times have seen many other nationalities now taking this up n either by learning about it or by wearing it. The festive season is often a time when the families come to Samoa for holidays, reunions, weddings, funerals and title bestowments. For over two years now, there’s now another tradition that’s made many Samoans return home and that’s getting a tattoo.
The Su’a family members, the only people allowed to perform this tradition, are kept up at all hours trying to cater for those now queuing up to get their tattoos done. The average tatau (men’s tattoo) takes between a week to two weeks and they cost $5,000 (Samoan tala). The malu (women’s tattoo) takes just a day or two and that costs $1,500 (Samoan tala). For Su’a Senior, who has been performing tattoos for thousands of Samoans for over four decades, he had decided to give his sons most of the work, opting to take more time for himself. But he’s often requested to perform tattoos to the many Samoans living in New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii or the United States.
His son Su’a Peter has been working in Hawaii while his youngest son Su’a Sulu’ape Junior has been looking after things in Samoa. The festive season, however, had seen all three tattooists come together in Samoa to cater for the number of those wanting tattoos. There are many traditional taboos surrounding this tradition. Those undergoing tattoo cannot sleep with their partners during the actual operation. They cannot drink alcohol, cannot shave, cannot have sex nor can they sleep using a pillow. They are also not allowed to be alone at any time. That’s culture, however, there are other conditions to ensure that they remain fit to take on more of the operation day after day. Reklama: paskolos internetu, nevaisingumas, elektronini? parduotuvi? k?rimas, internetin?s svetain?s, pardavim? skatinimas, Google ADS, pamokos, patarimai ir naudinga informacija SeoPaslaugos.com
…to read more buy your personal copy at
