Unfinished tattoo, 4th session - sleeve to chest.
“I have two koi fishes that are swimming upstream, it represents strength and I am able to go against my odds. It also represents I can ”swim” through the “ocean of suffering” without fear. I also have three lotus flowers in the piece, lotus flowers aren’t generally supposed to be with koi fishes, although many people have them together, traditional japanese tattoo artists refuse to do them together because lotus flowers come from dirty water and koi fishes do not. I got lotus flowers because the meaning it carries for me is much more valuable than the culture. Each flower symbolizes my upbringing in life; childhood, teen years and adulthood—I came from the shittiest/dirties environments in all stages of my life but bloomed into something beautiful.”
Belongs to - www.borntosin.tumblr.com
