Tattoo Designs & Symbols provides meanings and explanations of some of the most popular tattoo designs in the world today. The meaning of tattoo symbols & designs on this page all start with the letter B.

Tattoo Symbol Index - A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Badger Tattoo Designs - The badger is either fierce, strong, and shy – or aggressive and anti-social – depending on your respect or antipathy for this nocturnal creature.

Many people came to first know the badger in Kenneth Graham’s, The Wind in the Willows. Mr. Badger is a gruff, solitary figure who ‘hates society’. But he is also the wise hermit, and proves himself brave, cooperating in times of need to keep the enemy away. In that famous story, the badger is the symbol of common sense... more

Bamboo Tattoo Designs - Bamboo is a favourite tattoo design motif for individual seeking to have large parts of their anatomy covered with skin ink. In tattoo scenes which feature creatures like tigers and dragons, bamboo is a popular backdrop, used in a similar fashion to design elements like smoke, fire, clouds and water. Bamboo gives a tattoo an authentically Asian feel, its segmented stalks and long leaves instantly recognizable all around... more

Barbwire Tattoo Designs - The barbwire tattoo is a tattoo design that first came out of prison culture, then it was adopted in Latino culture in Southern California, was then co-opted by modern tribal tattoo genre artists... more

Barcode Tattoos – The use of the barcode as a tattoo design is meant to be ironical, a warning that if we are not careful as a culture, we are all in danger of becoming products ourselves. A barcode tattoo is also a protest against... more

Bat Tattoos – The only mammal that truly flies and not just glides, is the bat. By defying gravity and navigating with a heightened audio sensitivity, the bat has become a symbol of transformation, intuition, and clairaudient abilities. Because bats are highly social animals living together in colonies, they are also a symbol of adaptability and survival... more

Bear Tattoo – The bear is a popular symbol in many cultures around the world, appearing in many European, North American and Asian myths & legends. The bear was both feared & admired for its great strength and ferocity. In many indigenous stories, bears are humans transformed & bears are often seen as... more

Bear & Bull Tattoo – The bull and the bear, two of the most powerful animal symbols we have, are used to describe trends in the stock market. The market is ‘bullish’ when prices of equities charge upward over an extended period of time – and ‘bear-ish’ when prices are in continual decline. Short-lived upward or downward swings are referred to as ‘corrections’ in the market. The duration of the trend is key... more

Bee, Wasp or Hornet Tattoo – Mankind has had a long history with bees, and presumably with wasps & hornets as well. There is archaeological evidence dating back at least ten thousand years that early humans gathered honey-combs for the sweet treasure it contained. There is even a possibility that Neanderthals may have practiced a primitive form of bee-keeping, and it is well-known among primatologists that non-human primates avidly seek out and consume honey, so there is no reason to believe that we are any different. We have probably been pursuing the "sweet life" since the dawn of time.... more

Betty Page Tattoos – Nicknamed the "Girl With The Perfect Figure", in 1955 Betty Page won the title "Miss Pin-up Girl of the World".

Bettie’s allure was an image of the girl next door with an attitude that hinted at a love of the naughty. Her image on camera was shy and daring at the same time, simple, yet exotic.. more

Biomechanical Tattoos –  Bio-mechanical tattoos are realistic, three-dimensional impressions of a robotic bio-realm beneath the skin. It’s a ‘tromp l’oeil’, or ‘trick of the eye’, since the skin often appears to be peeled back to reveal what you’re truly made of – an improbable (but somehow sublime) combination of mechanics and flesh. Where there should be a mess of blood and bone, tendons and sinew, we might see mechanical components – gears, tubes, and levers. Some say these titanium parts represent our hidden potential.. more

Bird Tattoos –  Birds, real and fabled, have long been among the most popular of all the tattoo designs and symbols for over a hundred years. It is difficult to imagine American tattooing without the Eagle or Japanese tattooing without the Phoenix. Birds are powerful metaphors for our moods and phases of life. All over the world, birds have been chosen to represent the widest range of human emotions and every country and culture has stories and myths were birds play central roles.. more

Bird of Paradise Tattoos –  Bird of Paradise tattoo designs can be found popping up in the most interesting of places, from the artwork of Greg Irons - iconoclastic San Francisco-based tattoo artist and graphic artist in the 60's and 70's - to the traditional Japanese tattooing of previous centuries. What is the attraction? The Bird of Paradise is the 'Diva' of the avian world, the flashy cousin of the raven and crow. The Bird of Paradise was rumoured to have come from the heavenly realms, where it soared through paradise without ever touching the earth... more

Black Cat Tattoos – Black Cat tattoo designs are usually associated as a symbol of the Occult, Witches and Pagan religions. During the terrible times of the Medieval Inquisitions carried out by the Roman Catholic Church, individuals who were thought to be heretics or witches were actively... more

Bluebird Tattoo – The bluebird -- like the swallow with which it’s often associated -- is a favourite nautical symbol of good luck. As a nautical tattoo design, the bluebird has sometimes been mistaken within popular culture for the swallow, or swift... more

Boar Tattoo Designs - The Chinese Zodiac makes no distinction between the pig and the boar – the former having been domesticated from the wild boar some ten thousand years ago. In the West, the term boar is usually used to refer to the wild pigs of the forest. Technically, 'Boar' denotes an adult, uncastrated male of certain species, including the domestic pig. The wild variety is swift, nocturnal, omnivorous, and sports a razor sharp set of sharp tusks... more

Bodhi Tree Tattoo Designs - The Bodhi Tree, symbol of Buddha’s enlightenment, is a reminder of the ultimate human potential that lies within us all. ‘Bodhi’ in the Sanskrit language, means ‘fully awake’. Some people see this sacred Buddhist symbol as the ‘World Tree’, the mythical tree whose roots lie deep in the earth and whose branches support the heavens... more

Brahma Tattoo Designs - Brahma is often said to have originated from the ‘Cosmic Mother’, although some sacred texts depict Brahma as the creative spirit arising from Brahman, the Supreme Being. Setting out to create the universe, Brahma first manifested water, into which his seed was planted. From this seed grew a golden egg, and out of that was Brahma born. Another interpretation finds Brahma arising from the thousand-petal lotus which sprang... more

Buddha Tattoos - As a tattoo symbol Buddha may be represented by a literal symbol, such as the statues of Buddha one is familiar with, or by a Lion, a Begging Bowl, a Stupa, an empty Throne, the Bodhi Tree - the tree under which Buddha achieved enlightenment, Buddha's footprints, or... more

Buddha's Empty Throne -  The Empty Throne of Buddha is often shown supporting the Dharma Wheel or the Bodhi Tree. Sometimes, the base of the throne is decorated with other symbols of the Buddha’s teaching, such as lions and deer - see, The Eight Auspicious Symbols of Buddhism. The idea of an ‘empty throne’ was meant to imply that the master is sitting there, yet no ‘self’ is present. The throne is a way to approach the master even through his absence... more

Buddha's Eyes -  On almost all Buddhist shrines (stupas) – especially in Nepal – a giant pair of eyes look out from all four sides of the main tower, seeing in all directions. These are Buddha Eyes, or Wisdom Eyes, and they symbolize Buddha’s omniscience. They are meant to remind us to cultivate compassion towards all living creatures, and to be mindful in everything we do. For the Nepalese, the Buddha’s Eyes have come to symbolize their nation... more

Buddha's Footprint -  Images of Buddha’s footprint symbolize Buddha’s presence in his teachings - the dharma - and enforce the fact that he was a mortal man who walked the earth. It reminds us that the spiritual life has its feet on the ground, and that while we aspire to ‘transcendence’, we should never lose awareness of the material plane of existence. At the same time, a disembodied foot speaks of Buddha’s absence, the absence of the human personality, and by extension, his non-attachment to this life... more

Buddha's Three Jewels -  IThe Three Jewels – known in Sanskrit as the Triratna – are not actual gems or precious stones at all, but gifts for those on the spiritual path. They are called ‘jewels’, because for practitioners of Buddhism, they are the most precious gifts in the spiritual life. They are the three refuges – the three sources of refuge from the endless cycle of rebirth (Samsara) – the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha... more

Buddhist Begging Bowl - The begging bowl is one of the primary symbols of the chosen life of the Buddhist monk. Every monk who has been initiated into Buddhist practice carries with him a begging bowl on his journey through life. It signifies the surrender of worrying about worldly living and also of concern for tomorrow. The Buddhist monk moves through the highways and byways of life with nothing but his begging bowl and his staff - and his beliefs... more

Buddhist Tattoos - Many of the symbols we now know as ‘Buddhist’ originated from the Hindu tradition, since it was into the Hindu culture and religion that Prince Siddhartha Gautama, later known as the Buddha, was born. Not until several centuries after his death did symbols relating specifically to the Buddha, and the religion he inspired, come into being... more

Buddhist Golden Fish Tattoos - In Buddhism, the golden fish – usually depicted as a pair – symbolize the state of fearlessness while afloat in an ocean of suffering – or what Buddhists call ‘the sea of samsara’. The golden fish became the sign of happiness and emancipation, of freedom and spontaneity, all of which are the consequences and result of the liberation one experiences when taking the teachings of the Buddha to heart... more

Buddhist Knot Tattoos - The Endless Knot is one of the Eight Auspicious Symbols in Buddhism, and one of the most popular symbols in Tibetan Buddhism. Also referred to as the ‘Mystic Dragon’, it symbolizes the infinite wisdom and compassion of the Buddha for all sentient beings.

Resembling the well-known Celtic knot, this unbroken weaving of geometric lines has shown up in many cultures around the world, making it a universal symbol... more

Buddhist Lion Tattoos - A ‘lion among men’ was how the earliest followers of Buddha’s referred to their enlightened master. In time, the lion was adopted as a symbol of Buddha himself, and remains the animal most often associated with him. Legend would have us believe that a lion followed the Buddha around after his enlightenment... more

Buddhist Treasure Vase Tattoos - The Treasure Vase – known also as the ‘wealth vase’ – and ‘vase of inexhaustible treasure’ - became the Buddhist symbol of spiritual abundance. As one of the Eight Auspicious Symbols of Buddhism, it represents not only the wealth of Buddha’s teaching but his never-diminishing generosity and compassion. Legend attributes to it a special quality, that of always remaining full despite much being taken from it... more

Buddhist Victory Banner Tattoos - One of the Eight Auspicious Symbols of Buddhism, the victory banner signifies Buddha’s enlightenment through his conquering of passion, pride, lust, and the fear of death. These four pitfalls are known as the ‘four maras’, and are considered by Buddhists to be the hindrances we face on our spiritual journey. Liberation, or the state of nirvana, can only be realized when the battle over the four maras is won... more

Bull Tattoos - The Bull is a symbol of power, strength, resurrection, masculinity, fertility, impulsiveness, fathers, kingship, and the Zodiac sign and constellation Taurus. The widespread presence of the Bull in many different and widespread cultural mythologies and early religions can be explained by... more

Butterfly Tattoo Designs - far and away one of the most popular tattoo design requests. Its ranking shows the influence that women have in tattoo culture, as butterfly tattoos & designs are an overwhelmingly feminine tattoo choice. The butterfly, because of its short life, its physical beauty, and its... more

Tattoo Symbol Index - A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z