Abstract
This case study examines the roles of sacred tattoos
in the construction of identity among Thais in the contemporary Thai context.
Multiple voices of sacred tattoo wearers were juxtaposed and valued equally to
represent the unheard voices of sacred tattoo wearers in the present day. As a
qualitative study, in-depth interviews were conducted with nine Thai sacred
tattoo wearers at a sacred tattoo parlor in Bangkok from May to December 2019. The
participants’ narratives were then analyzed based on the frameworks of the seven
dimensions of religion, globalization, intertextuality, and identity
construction to determine the roles of sacred tattoos in the construction of
identity among Thais in the contemporary context. The main findings reveal that
sacred tattoos have shifted from being in the magical discourse to the fashion
discourse due to the advent of globalization in the modern era. Cultural
hybridization promotes the intertextuality to semiotically
shift the perceptions towards sacred tattoos from being magical or peculiar to
fashionable and trendy. Nonetheless, the traditional sense of sacred tattoos
still exists in a sophisticated way created by the new generation of Thais
influenced by globalized cultural flow. This leads to a new construction of
individual and social identities among Thais as being free spirits rather than
believers in magic.
Keywords: Sacred tattoos, Identity, Intertextuality