Moana, Maui, and Ancient Japanese Tattooing

All right, diving right in, huh? Today's deep dive is going to be pretty cool, I think. Yeah, it should be fun. We're taking a look at tattoos specifically. Well, it started with a listener question about Polynesian tattoos and the new Moana movie. Oh, cool. Yeah. And then it kind of spiraled. They were curious, could there be a connection between those Polynesian designs, you know, all those vibrant tattoos and the tattoos of ancient Japan? Huh, interesting question. Seems like a stretch maybe at first, but uh that's what we here, right? Dive deep. And uh this one gets pretty fascinating. I can see that the connection to the ocean is a good place to start, right? Both Polynesian and ancient Japanese cultures, although separated by like a lot of ocean, they were both so connected to the sea, it's a pretty powerful shared element. Definitely. And you know, you mentioned Moana and well, everyone remembers Maui, right? That Polynesian demigod totally covered in tattoos, but they're not just for show, are they? Oh, definitely not. Polynesian tattoos, they're like visual stories they tell about ancestry and achievements, emotions even. It's amazing. So, like what kind of things would they represent? Well, you see a lot of um the anata motif. It's a human figure. Yeah. And it symbolizes ancestors and family, lineage, that kind of thing. Oh, cool. So, it's really like wearing your family history on your skin. Yeah. Exactly. And then there's the tiki. Often represents protective spirits or deities and little guardian figures. Yeah, you could think of it that way. And of course, tons of ocean elements, waves, sharks, turtles, all reflecting that deep connection to the sea, their whole way of life, right? Makes sense, I guess, if you live on an island, the ocean's everything. So, we've got these Polynesian tattoos, all intricate and full of stories. But what about ancient Japan? I mean, do we even know for sure if they had tattoos back then? We do. There's this really cool piece of historical writing called the Way Xiwa Renzan, which translates to like records of the way. Records of the way. Okay. And this was written when? Way back in the third century AD. It's a Chinese text that actually describes the people of ancient Japan or well the Wah people as they were known then as having tattoos. The 3rd century. Wow. That is early. So we're talking what like almost 1800 years ago. Yeah, pretty much. It's amazing to have evidence from that long ago. For sure. And the text it specifically mentions fishermen, right? What did it say about their tattoos? One of the things it says is that they use them for warding off evil spirits. Makes sense, right? I mean, if you're a fish, going out on the open ocean. Yeah, totally. Facing the elements, all the unknowns. A lot of cultures throughout history have um attributed protective powers to tattoos. So, it's like a an ancient good luck charm right there on their skin. Pretty cool, I think. So, imagine these ancient Japanese fishermen heading out to sea covered in tattoos that they believed would, you know, offer some protection. Makes you wonder what those early tattoos look like. But wait, there are other theories about why those fishermen had tattoos, right? Not just for good luck. Oh yeah, for sure. There's another really interesting theory that they were used as camouflage. Camouflage. Really? Like to blend in with the ocean. Exactly. It suggests they had a deep understanding of the natural world and how to, you know, kind of work with it. And how ingenious is that? Using tattoos to blend in with your surroundings. That's amazing. But I mean, wouldn't the tattoos be just as visible to predators as to prey? It's a valid point. It's something scholars debate. You know, how effective that would have really been. The text doesn't go into great detail about specific designs unfortunately. Right. Right.