Went to post this in Humor but decided Dharma battleground was more appropriate.

This British tourist spent the night in jail and was kicked out of Sri Lanka for a large tattoo of our guy on her deltoid.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/04/22/305899590/tattoo-of-buddha-gets-british-tourist-thrown-out-of-sri-lanka

Curt Welling

Cultural taboos can be subtle. There was a fight at third base during a major league baseball game because the batter spent a hair too long admiring his long drive into the outfield.

Weird, if I see anyone sporting a tattoo of a spiritual nature I think that it is a sign of respect for that spiritual system. Sri Lankans must think differently...?

Personally, I think the Buddha tattoo itself is not offensive but the two affectionate devas just below the Buddha may be offensive for some sensitive/orthodox folks.

It is also a misrepresentation of canonical Buddhism, because it shows the teacher of non attachment/clinging blessing an image that signifies attachment/delusion/sensual pleasure. In some places this may be seen merely as "love" but it may not be so in SL.

In any case, the woman should not have been jailed as intolerance is a form of aversion/hatred which is strongly discouraged in Buddhism. It would have been more reasonable to ask her to cover up or let her go to Maldives instead.

My 2 cents.

This is starting to look like Buddhist fundamentalism. Her treatment was quite appalling really, and completely misses the spirit of Dhamma. However, I am not surprised, given the genocide perpetrated on the minority Hindu Tamils by the Sri Lankan government, most recently and significantly in 2009. It's quite disturbing and concerning, the increasing intolerance of this supposedly Buddhist nation.

Why did "Buddha!" never make it as a swear word? "Jesus!" seems to be quite widely used.

In Truth,

The 3 CCC's

This is no different than Islamic fundamentalists who severely punish those who draw their head figure. We should all protest by getting Buddha tattoos!

I've always wanted one, but I worry I will make the wrong choice and be stuck with it the rest of my life.