What Do Her Tattoos Reveal About Britney Spears?

Is there anyone who knows what goes on in the mind of Britney Spears? Interestingly enough, her tattoos may reveal a great deal more than one would think. Certainly more than the nightly examination of goat entrails as opinioned in solemn voices by the myriad pop psychologists on the various celebrity news shows dotting the cable networks these days.

The tattoos of Britney Spears. Do they mean anything? Not yet out of her mid-twenties, this singer, two-time Mother, double-divorcee and sometime actress has tattoos of a fairy on her lower back, a small daisy circling her second toe on right foot, a butterfly leaving a vine on left foot, and a flower with Chinese symbol for mystery in middle on lower stomach. Spears has three Hebrew characters on the back of her neck - her Kabala connection - and a pair of pink dice inside left wrist, in addition to a small star on her right hand. During her recent meltdown she added two more tattoos, red and pink lips on her wrist, and a black, white and pink cross on lower hip. Other body modifications include a pierced belly button and right nipple.

Like her fashion sense and matrimonial record, you sometimes wonder what compels Spears to do what she does when it comes to tattoos. By getting an odd assortment of small tattoos all over her body, she runs the risk of looking like someone without a clear or long-term vision of her body art. Her tattoos, the butterfly, fairy, Chinese symbol and others, do not show a terrible amount of imagination or originality. They are the same tattoos picked off the wall by a million other teenage girls in a thousand tattoo parlors in every Mall in middle America. Many of her tattoos appear to have been picked on impulse. But the things we do impulse are often times the most revealing actions we do.

What the tattoos do show is a clear pattern of picking symbols and designs that are intended to serve as amulets or talismans of protection, while also showing strong tendencies for flight and escape.

Fairies or faeries in myth and story are the personification of human wishes and desire and as a tattoo design they can be symbols of youthful innocence and a desire to retain a child-like imagination, wonder and awe. The word "fairy" comes from the Latin word "fata", meaning fate, so in choosing a fairy tattoo Britney hopes to hold on to and protect her inner child.

The butterfly on her left foot is a symbol that embodies ideas of change and growth, a metaphor for transformation. Butterflies also represent a kind of temporary beauty, for they are also symbols of impermanence and fragility. Does Spears identify with the butterfly?

The small daisy on her right foot is another symbol of innocence and child-like purity. It also has religious overtones as the daisy was often used in concert with images of Christ as the baby Jesus.

The attraction to two symbols with wings shows a strong attraction to the magical, for in magic as in alchemy, wings can be transformational, allowing an individual access to a previously unattainable state. Wings also provide an element of escape.

The flower tattoo with its Chinese symbol for mystery in the shows a desire to shield herself from the prying eyes of the world. It expresses her desire to keep some part of herself private.

The Hebrew characters on the back of her neck are one of the seventy-two Kabbala words for God, "Mem Hey Shin", this one meaning "healing". In the midst of the chaos that her life often appears, we can see her searching for spiritual comfort and an understanding of God and faith.

The pair of pink dice, as to be expected, symbolize chance and luck. Interestingly, Spears had the dice done to match her then husband, Kevin Federline's own pair of blue dice. As tattoo designs, dice are a metaphor for life. When we throw the dice we can no more determine or predict the numbers that will turn up on a pair of dice than we can predict the future in a capricious universe. Sometimes in life, as in games of chance, it is more important to be lucky than to be talented.

Perhaps Spears saw her relationship with K-Fed as a chance she was willing to take, a chance at love and at a family life. By placing the tattoo on her wrist she made a very public statement of her commitment. Spears was willing to take a chance, gamble, or leap-of-faith on this relationship.

As with other symbols of chance or gambling, the symbol has a duel meaning, where it not only stands for taking a chance, but can also stand for vice or eventual ruin.

The small five-pointed star on her right hand symbolizes protection and balance, two things that Spears wanted most in the days leading up to her breakdown. Stars also symbolize truth, spirit and hope and offer a guiding light in the darkness of night. The prominent placement of the star symbol on Spears' hand shows that Britney was looking for a reminder of these things on a regular basis.

The red and pink lips - a kiss - on the wrist are a symbol of love. Britney had this tattoo done in the midst of her current crisis. We could say that this is her attempt to give herself some love, since a kiss usually represents sealing something with love.

The black, white and pink cross on her lower hip has an obvious religious connotation. Spears' choice to adorn herself with such a tattoo on the same day she had the lips tattooed on her wrist and just after she had shaved her head gives us some rather powerful insight into her emotional, mental, and spiritual space that day. Not only does it illustrate Britney's quest for protection and well-being, but it also shows a profound desire for the comfort and strength found in spiritual faith.

It is not uncommon for people, women in particular, to cut of their hair after an emotional trauma. Hair is such a powerful feminine symbol that its total removal is an extreme statement of purpose. It is an overt attempt by Spears' to shed her past, and create a fresh start for herself. By ridding herself of the weight of her long hair, she was ridding herself of her public image and the burden and weight of that image on her shoulders.

Vince Hemingson

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