My tattoo is a yogic symbol: a Sri Yantra.

Yantras are symbols that are used in meditation to help focus the mind into clarity.

That’s why it’s on the top of my foot, so I can stare at it.

This is a visual representation of the sacred sound of ohm (aum). It is symbolic of the entire cosmos. The 4 upward facing triangles represent the masculine, and the 5 downward facing triangles represent the feminine. Together they represent the resolution of opposites, of duality.

In other words, it is a pattern that symbolises wholeness, or universal consciousness.

Pattern recognition is the work of the sixth chakra. It’s how you recognise your friend from a distance, before you can see their face, how you know when a fruit is past ripe, and the right time to merge when driving. Each time we recognise a pattern, we move toward wholeness. Patterns reveal the identity of a thing - what it is, what it is for, and how to relate to it. Once we recognize a pattern, we can intuit what it will become, and guide our actions accordingly. This is the beginning of wisdom.

As we see more and more of ourselves, we see more deeply into people and situations around us. Opening the third eye, developing the 6th chakra, allows us to see the big picture, transcend our ego-centricity, and find the deeper meaning inherent in all things.

And so I meditate on this symbol to develop my inner sight, become conscious of my illusions, integrate my dreams, develop clarity and personal vision, align with universal consciousness, and balance the opposites within me. I wish for myself the same as I wish for others: to find a way to live for something greater than myself.

Not exactly easy to explain when people ask me “what’s that?”

I tell them I stare at it to manifest what I want.