Tattoos: Hip. Cool. Artsy. Permanent. Kosher?

January 19, 2007
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Tattoos, once considered off-limits for Jews, are becoming increasingly popular, for some as a form of rebellion, while for others as a prideful marker of Jewish identity. Tattooing and body art are classic forms of religious expression among people of some faiths, yet have been historically viewed unfavorably by the Jewish tradition.

As more young hip Jews make the choice to emblazon inky Jewish stars, Hebrew lettering, and kabbalistic imagery across their skin, it begs us to ask the question: What does Jewish tradition actually have to say about tattoos?

The biblical verse, “You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:28) is the foundational text upon which later Rabbinic scholars developed the prohibitions against tattooing. Rabbinic law clarifies the biblical statute and states that only tattoos of a permanent nature are considered impermissible.
Maimonides, a leading 12th century scholar of Jewish law and thought, explains that the prohibition against tattoos originates as a Jewish response to paganism. Since it was common practice for ancient pagan worshippers to tattoo themselves with religious iconography and names of gods, Judaism prohibited tattoos entirely in order to disassociate from other religions.
A later developed and commonly heard explanation for the prohibition against tattoos connects to the Jewish concept that all humans were created B’Tzelem Elokin (in the image of God). The mystical interpretation of this prohibition is that the human body is a holy vessel and a gift from God and as such, we are expected to care for our bodies and treat them preciously, which forbids certain actions including tattooing.
It is a popular myth that a Jewish person who has a tattoo is not permitted to be buried in a Jewish cemetery. Despite the prohibition, there is absolutely no legal justification to prevent a person with a tattoo from receiving a Jewish burial. Interestingly, tattoos are unique in the sense that evidence of the transgression remains on the body after death.
In a post-Holocaust era it is important to clarify that the prohibition against tattoos applies only to cases of voluntary tattooing. The Shulchan Aruch (16th century book of codified Jewish law) explains that when a person is tattooed involuntarily or against his will, he is not accountable for the act. This statute is particularly relevant to many Jews who received number tattoos on their arms during the Holocaust.

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Comments:

Posted By: Debra on 1/22/2007 12:21:00 PM

More on this would be appreciated! Thank you for touching onthis subject. More sobriety should be encouraged in young people inregard to desecration of the body.

Posted By: Lori on 1/22/2007 12:22:00 PM

I got my tattoo at 30 yrs old to celebrate my daughter- who'smiddle name is Starr. I've always worried I couldn't be buried at myfamily plot in a jewish cemetery. Thank god that's just a myth!

Posted By: ML on 1/22/2007 12:23:00 PM

And I was horrified when my little daughter (senior in collegethen, now married to a great Jewish guy six years later) had her earspierced! I guess I should consider myself lucky.

Posted By: Aryeh on 1/22/2007 12:28:00 PM

Maimonides frequently explained biblical prohibitions asrelated to pagan practices, even when no real evidence might exist forsuch practices.The overall objection to tattoes would seem to be the principle of kavodlaguf (respect for the body), one's responsibility to treat his or herbody with respect.

Posted By: Buddy on 1/23/2007 12:20:00 PM

Thanks for clarifying the issue of tatoos. I only hope thatevery Jew considering a tatoo reads your response.

Posted By: Sahidah on 1/23/2007 12:21:00 PM

Thank you for "keeping it real."

Posted By: Nancy on 1/26/2007 11:33:00 AM

opinions aren't relevant. an observant Jew will not mutilate his/her body. piercings are not allowed either. it damages the body which contains the spirit of G-d.

Posted By: Barbara on 1/26/2007 12:20:00 PM

with the advent of lasers which can remove tattoos, one couldargue that no tattoos are permanent, and therefore, they can beconsidered Kosher.

Posted By: Sharon on 1/30/2007 10:55:00 AM

I think this is a GREAT article. It really gives some insight as to WHY tattoos aren't "kosher". You always hear, BECAUSE, but never with an explanation attached. I would love to learn more about it!

Posted By: sheryl on 2/22/2007 9:09:00 PM

my 18 year old boy/girl twins just got tattoos, they had been preparing me for months-i thought the same thing about burial , i am glad i was wrong. i am still uncomfortable with it, but they are good kids and have recently both been accepted to great colleges. I will still pick my battles carefully. that being said-they have to tell their grandparents, aunts and rest of the family and THEY will take the heat.

Posted By: Dalia on 2/23/2007 1:45:00 AM

thank you so much for this article! i am 17, and have been considering getting a tattoo of the hebrew word for "life" when i turn 18. I've always been worrying about not being able to be buried in a jewish cemetery, because my religion and heritage is extrememly important to me! it is great to hear that this wont be a problem... now convincing my parents of this is another story. i will definitely show them this article.

Posted By: becca on 2/25/2007 11:00:00 AM

i think this article is great. i told my parents that ive been wanted a tattoo for years now (i started planning when i was 14 and im 20 now)... ive always wanted to get "what goes around comes around" in hebrew on my back and to show my love for israel, i wanted to get "if i forget jerusalem, i forget myself" as well....its good to know that the not being buried in a jewish cemetary issue is a myth. thank you so much for this article....more info would amazing!

Posted By: Kenneth on 3/13/2007 6:11:00 PM

Maybe I missed the point. I did not interpret your article to mean that tattooing is okay. It seems to me that many are taking what was expressed in the article to mean that tattooing is okay. If G-d makes a command, does it not stand regardless of the shift in societal convention? The biblical verse should provide a foundation for conviction. We should not allow society or even an opinion convince us to do anything against G-d and the Torah.

Posted By: Rachael on 3/20/2007 10:00:00 PM

like kenneth I am still a little confused...I always wanted to get a tattoo of my name in hebrew but the whole not being able to be buried with my family....I still can't tell if it's wrong or not according to Jewdiasm....and I know I am made in the image of G-d...But let's say this would make me truley happy then isn't that what life on earth is about...

Posted By: John on 4/16/2007 4:32:00 PM

So another woman says "an observant Jew will not mutilate his/her body". No, but if the Jew happens to be male, his parents will already have done so for him. This Jew gets a little tired of women saying this when they would mutilate their son's penis without a second thought, but be horrified about getting their own ears pierced; and cannot see their hypocrisy.

Posted By: Jordan on 4/25/2007 9:41:00 AM

John, one is a Torah mandated MITZVA, (i.e. the commandment to circumcise), the other is an act of human decision. It is not the callous act you are expressing. A Jew who is not circumcised has no place in the World to Come, regardless of how good a Jew he has been, (of which only G-d can Judge.)

Posted By: Hahna on 4/28/2007 3:42:00 PM

I agree that a lot of people seem to have taken this article as complete permission to get and enjoy tattoos. However, I'm not a hypocrit, and admit that I have my name in Hebrew across my back. All I wanted to say is that in the end, it will be God who gets to decide whether it was OK or not for me to get my tattoo, so I leave this debate up to Him.

Posted By: Itzak on 5/2/2007 10:01:00 PM

I like how this article lays out the facts, plain and simple: its forbidden, but it won't stop you from getting buried in a jewish cemetary. No where did it say it's ok to get a tattoo though..

Getting buried in a jewish cemetary is the least of your worries people. We're talking about going against the word of hashem, not how we plan to end our body's life.

(continued)

Posted By: Itzak on 5/2/2007 10:03:00 PM

(continued)
We all have our vices in life, and for whatever vice you do have, just be ready to pay the price for doing so. No one is a perfect Jew, and we all have our views of Judaism. I myself do many things that aren't kosher, but hey, like many have mentioned, it's my life, and like Hahna has mentioned, I'll be prepared to answer to the big guy when the time comes.

Posted By: levi on 5/23/2007 1:17:00 AM

if anyone reading this knows where to look at jewish tattoos or has some pics of them please post a link on this website. thanx.
by the way, who says the meaning of desecrate hasnt changed. And did this english version of the word exsist? who translated it over from the ancient hebrew text to modern day text?

Posted By: AJS on 9/7/2007 4:23:00 AM

I have been debating with myself about getting a tattoo for some time now. When I came across this article it sparked an interesting conversation between me and my fiancé. He opened up a translation of the torah and showed this to me... (continued)

Posted By: AJS on 9/7/2007 4:25:00 AM

(continued) Shmot 21:05 & 21:06 "If the slave on his own says 'I like my master, and my wife and my children; I do not wish to go free,' then his master must bring him to court, and stand the slave next to a door post, and then his master must pierce his earlobe with an awl. Then the slave shall serve his master forever."(continued)

Posted By: AJS on 9/7/2007 4:25:00 AM

(continued) this is referring to a "Hebrew slave" I would think that letting someone make a permanent hole in your ear to mark you permanently as a slave (which is right here in this law) would be more of a "gashes in your flesh" then letting someone put ink in your skin to celebrate who you are. I'm really confused about this. What do you think?

Posted By: Alfred Moldovan,MD on 9/15/2007 1:13:00 PM

Who wrote the comment on tatooing? On what authority? What Jewish body in Orthodox,Conservative,Reform and Reconstructionist movement endores it? I must say that I don't understand what the author is saying. What Chevra Kadisha will prepare a tatooed body for burial in a Jewish cemetary?

Posted By: SKiBby on 10/19/2007 9:06:00 PM

Rabbinical interpretation is always interesting. While we can gain much insight from it, it is not HaShem's word...the Torah is. The Torah clearly states “You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:28). (CONTINUED)

Posted By: SKiBby on 10/19/2007 9:06:00 PM

(CONTINUED)
Luckily for us, this translation is easy to understand. It is clearly speaking of making cuts on your body as you sit shiva and and literally cutting yourself and leaving scars. I certainly do not consider being able to see ink through the skin as gashes or scars and I think as long as you stay away from the "In Memory Of..." tattoos, you are probably safe.

Sean

Posted By: Anonymous on 2/14/2008 6:35:00 PM

So I feel like a tattoo is frowned upon in Judaism but not disallowed. Im reading all of the above comments and that is the message im getting..Does anyone agree?

Posted By: Scott on 2/15/2008 2:54:00 PM

NO. Tattoos are absolutely forbidden according to Jewish law. Read the article again.

Skibby, the Rabbi's interpretation is in fact the Torah law, as Hashem Himself says we should listen to the Rabbis. Failing to do so is apikorsus (heresy), along the lines of the Karaites.

Posted By: Scott on 2/15/2008 2:56:00 PM

(CONTINUED)

Dr. Monovan, my father is on a Chevra Kaddisha, and they will prepare any Jewish body for burial except that of a Rasha(evildoer, a legal term that can only be put on someone by a Rabbinical court).

Ear piercings are okay for women, but forbidden for men because of beged isha, the prohibition against wearing women's garments, jewelry, etc.

Posted By: Aaron on 2/15/2008 4:23:00 PM

But would they really consider someone with a tattoo an "evildoer"?

Posted By: Scott on 2/17/2008 1:01:00 AM

No, not legally, which is why someone with a tattoo can still be buried in a Jewish cemetery. Rasha is reserved for people who deny god, mostly. Getting a tattoo is still not allowed, however.

Posted By: Jessica Katz on 2/27/2008 6:29:00 PM

I have read many people's comments on tattoos, and find it quite interesting how many people feel that getting a tattoo, or a piercing, is "desecrating" your body. To desecrate means to violate the sacred character, and my body is still sacred no matter what I put onto it. Furthermore, that line can be interpreted so many ways. Maybe it is referring to what other religions did which is self mutilation (cutting oneself) for their G-d.

Posted By: mark compton on 2/29/2008 8:37:00 PM

can you tell or show me what "Mark" looks like in hebrew please thanks.

Posted By: Sky on 3/21/2008 6:20:00 PM

I wonder what a rabbi would say about the ability to remove tatooes. If you can remove them, then they are not permanant. Does that make them less bad? Is it the act of "permanantly" marking yourself that G-d frowns upon or is it specifically tatooes?

Posted By: Bob on 4/7/2008 6:17:00 PM

I've read a lot of the comments left here. It seems like those who want to get a tattoo are worried about where their body would be burried. Is that all you worry about? Consider the fact that as your skin ages, your tattoo will become deformed.

Posted By: the reasonable person on 4/19/2008 5:04:00 PM

Instead of these wild emotion filled opinions, why not just inform us of the laws, explain the implications, and allow us to make out own decisions?

Posted By: the reasonable person on 4/19/2008 5:04:00 PM

Since when had Judaism been a religion full of Jews who wont accept other Jews? When this does occur, we create another sect (i.e. Reform, Conservative, etc.).

We are not a majority of people that can afford to caste judgment on each other, look down, and exile each other because of each others personal choices on what to put on their body. If we don't look out for each other, no one else will.

Posted By: the reasonable person on 4/19/2008 5:04:00 PM

If we can do anything, its explain the history of these laws and what they mean to us (which this article does very clearly and concisely). Its ultimately up to us to make the final decision anyway.

Thanks

Posted By: MM on 4/24/2008 1:24:00 PM

getting a tattoo is a sin just like any other- people break g-ds commandments all the time, but that does not mean they are a bad jew or a bad person. i have a tattoo of a dove and olive branch, and it reminds me of g-d and that there's always sunshine after the storm. it helps me get through tough times, and i don't think g-d would keep me from "what is to come" because of it.

Posted By: True Love 0398 on 5/1/2008 12:04:00 AM

I am a Christian, who has been spirit filled for quite a few years. However, as of late, I have been shown some of the TRUTHS that were laid out by G-D that Christians as a whole are BLIND TO! And as a result, I have been studying the Torah. I have SEVERAL tattoos, and my prayer is that if this is a calling for change I feel on my heart, that I will be accepted as I am now. There are many other things that I will answer for that are far greater than ink in my skin.

Posted By: ChVR:. T L on 7/2/2008 8:43:00 AM

One of the things I most appreciated about being raised Jewish was that it is a religion that encourages questioning and debate.
To me it is precisely this rabbinic tradition that has kept our religion alive and healthy (socially and psychologically). IMHO it is the rigidness of other religions that demonstrates their fear and frailty, and encourages their disease and death.
continued…

Posted By: ChVR:. T L on 7/2/2008 8:50:00 AM

…continued

To this end, I believe Sean has at least made a valid point. The passage from Leviticus 19:28 remains: “You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the Lord”.

Are we to believe that HaShem (omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient) - Blessed be He - is incapable of speaking clearly?

continued...

Posted By: ChVR:. T L on 7/2/2008 8:51:00 AM

...continued

We rest firmly upon our traditions, respect our beloved Teachers, study and bravely make our own decisions.

Thank you

Posted By: paula on 7/15/2008 11:54:00 PM

i think that it can be interpreted many different ways. tattoos today are not really permenant. you can get them removed. also the act of tattoo does not mutilate nor cause gashes nor incisions into the skin. it puts INK into the skin. yes it pierces the flesh however it doesnt scar. its like getting a lot of little shots very quickly, the torah could not call that mutilation.

Posted By: paula on 7/15/2008 11:55:00 PM

i think we need to make allowances that neither the torah nor those who interpreted the word of g-d 5000 years ago had invisioned the technology of today. and i think as long as you treat your body as a sacred and holy gift g-d will not cast stones.

Posted By: p on 7/15/2008 11:55:00 PM

i have 7 tattoos my latest i got was the tree of life on my low back. all of my tattoos have great meaning to me and carry with them each a memory. i love them all and do not regret them i just turned 28 and started at the age of 18 i did research and put thought into what i was putting on my body. however out of respect to my grandmother who was a survivor i will never tattoo numbers or words on myself.

Posted By: Marv on 7/17/2008 4:27:00 PM

Which leads to this question.

What about ear piercing?????????

It certainly goes THROUGH the flesh, scars and is only for vanity.

Posted By: Steve on 7/27/2008 10:28:00 AM

I agree with Marv. If the prohibition is on making gashes in the skin, are people permitted to get a single set of pierced ears?

It seems to me that those piercings are, also strictly cosmetic And, if the justification is that those aren't permanent, then is there not a prohibition on getting other parts of the body pierced as well?

Posted By: Megan on 9/9/2008 1:17:00 PM

What about those looking to Convert to Judaism and even become Orthodox, but still have tattoos on their body?

How does this affect that process?

Posted By: Jon on 9/14/2008 10:38:00 AM

Many people seem to be taking this piece as confirmation that tattoos are fine as long as you have a Jewish burial. I disagree, it clearly says that it is against Jewish law. I can maybe understand breaking the law in the face of the overwhelming gentile society when it comes to something like driving on Shabbat. But getting a tattoo, something that is wholly up to you and that you're generally not under any real pressure to get, is just another opportunity for us to prove our devotion to G-d.

Posted By: Jeffrey on 9/15/2008 2:49:00 PM

I think there is a lot of confusion between what is right and what is allowed.
Yes, even with a tattoo you are allowed a jewish burial. However, that does NOT mean getting a tattoo is allowable.
“You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:28)
A tattoo is marking yourself.

Posted By: Rebecca on 11/5/2008 10:25:00 PM

Some are saying that the Torah "clearly" says that tattoos are forbidden. First off, it doesn't use the word tattoo, so you're obviously wrong there. And to those who, like Jeffrey, say "a tattoo is marking yourself," I respond that Lev 19:28 refers only to cut marks. If the word incise is a true translation, then tattoos do not fit this description.

Posted By: mike Gee on 11/13/2008 4:42:00 PM

as a christian who knows that my ver faith is founded on the strong and TRUE laws G-D gave to the jewish people as an example to nations, i am glad someone is trying to show that tattoing and peircing is a HEATHEN and unclean practice- its not pretty ,nor is healthy, and often cheapens the real beauty of the human body...

Posted By: Kim K on 12/17/2008 10:26:00 PM

Rebecca: I totally agree with you. Though, incising doesn't only mean cutting but can also mean engrave. This indeed, technically speaking, could mean putting letters or figures onto a surface with a needle. But also this translation doesn't count for tattooing: tattooing isn't engraving, it's putting ink ínto the skin. That's beneath the surface, not onto it.

Posted By: Kim K on 12/17/2008 10:27:00 PM

And besides that: I don't understand why it isn't allowed to use a needle to just to put ink underneath your skin on one hand, while it is allowed to use a much larger needle to pierce your skin and leave a permanent mark on the skin itself on the other hand?? As I read in numerous articles, getting your ears pierced (for women) isn't forbidden in Jewish religion, is it

Posted By: Ida on 12/21/2008 9:01:00 AM

God has given us free will....we love our children unconditionally as he loves us - therefor I cannot believe that God would impose, judge or be unforgiving of our choices in this regard...I have a Tattoo that reads "I AM" in ancient Hebrew, which is the reference of Gods name he himself delivered unto Moses....so if I chose to have a symbol of my maker on me and in me - truly would he dismiss my being...?

Posted By: David on 2/27/2009 10:37:00 PM

The biblical verse, “You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:28) - My interpretation of the following is. Do not cut yourself because of death as referring to the psychological disorder or mutilation or "cutting" in order to feel a different kind of pain than facing reality.

Posted By: David on 2/27/2009 10:37:00 PM

Proper tattooing does not do any permanent harm to your body, nor does it gash it in any way. In most cases it is beautifying God's creation and allowing self expression and choice, one of God's greatest gifts to man & woman.Jewish people that get cosmetic surgery are far more in transgression of the aformentioned that anyone who gets a tattoo.

Posted By: Ray on 2/28/2009 11:50:00 AM

There seem to be multiple opinions on this subject.

I had asked our Chabad Rabbi, his response was that a tattoo is ok so long as it was done in contemplation of hashem.....

Posted By: JoshuaFriedman on 4/7/2009 1:53:00 AM

Posted By: miri on 5/24/2009 4:23:00 AM

I just wanted to respond to AJS, I know it's years late. The point of marking the Hebrew Slave in a way that seems against the torah is to signify that he is in fact doing s/t that the torah does not agree with; choosing to be a slave to another man, instead of having one maters, G-d, he now has a human one as well. So he is marked in this permanent way.

Still that doesn't make tattoo's permissible.

Posted By: Nicole on 7/20/2009 2:39:00 PM

Although Jewish burial is allowed for tattooed Jews, MANY Orthodox Chevra Kaddisha's (Jewish Burial Society) will NOT bury a tattooed person next to their relatives. Just because it's not a law, does not mean that there are not people who STILL deny Jewish burial. It all depends on where the family plot is, and how religious the cemetary is. This is very important to note. See Chabad.org for more on this.

Posted By: Anonymous on 10/11/2009 3:12:00 PM

all I can say is this... I want to mark the end of a long suffering where I injured myself repeatedly with a tattoo...

now, it will help me alot, it will mark a new passage in my life and it will make my life be better in the long run. I KNOW I'll never regret it, because it means a lot to me...

why should God not want me to do this if it helps me so much?

Posted By: Will on 3/7/2010 1:23:00 AM

Back on the cosmetic correction issue... What if someone such as myself has a hideous scar that can't be corrected surgically. Wouldn't the same laws that allow cosmetic surgery come under consideration? I have not had anything done because I do take the issue seriously. But if it corrects a SERIOUS cosmetic defect even if it is only covering it up, wouldn't that at least come close to being a legitimate reason to tattoo?

Posted By: Robyn on 11/6/2010 12:16:00 PM

I am 53 years old, raised Orthodox, practicing Conservative, and just got a tattoo. I commit many Biblical prohibitions. I mix linen with flax, I don't stone my children to death for rudeness, I don't kill my neighbors for working on Shabbat, and I have planted two different crops in my garden. It all gets a bit ridiculous, don't you think?

Posted By: Josh on 8/5/2011 12:07:00 AM

Robyn, you make a good point. A portion of Jewish law is obsolete in modern day society. The majority of Jews feel they are no longer bound by divine Jewish law causing most to pick and chose which tradition or belief they observe.

Posted By: Deb on 8/28/2011 7:40:00 AM

I am a Christian and I believe it when God says not to take any mark or tatoo on your hand or forehead because that's the mark of the beast. That's in Revelation in the New Testment. I take that seriously.

Posted By: Brian on 10/4/2011 7:09:00 PM

I am Jewish and I have many Tattoos, some even in Arabic (since Maimonides recorded his 'Guide for the perplexed' in Arabic). My Tattoos will not effect my soul because my flesh is simply flesh and any Jew that passes up a tattoo they want is not being very Jewish. L'chaim means TO LIFE and what happens when you die should not matter as much as how you lived.

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