Tattoo Ideas: Quotes on Religions, God, Faith

After writing over two dozen hubs on tattoo ideas that showcased pictures as the majority of the content, I started noticing that a large portion of the comments were from people asking for ideas on what to say, not so much on how to say it. Like Lindsay, for example, who commented on the hub Tattoo Ideas: Words & Phrases and said: "I want some sort of latin script with a phrase having to do with karma." Or Jesso, who said: "I have a colourful fish on my left lower back, but next I want a script.. .. just what I don't know... something positive to remind me every day is mine, I am in control of my destiny."

The tricky thing about quote tattoos is that nine times out of ten they can't be too long. Unless you have a huge expanse of skin that you plan on dedicating to the tat, like a forearm or your entire back, you're going to need to pick a quote that's short enough to fit in a small area. A few years ago my girlfriend wanted to get something I had written tattooed on her in my handwriting. The quote she wanted was twenty-one words long, and she wanted it somewhere on her inner forearms. As she is already fairly heavily tattooed, there was no criteria such as having to get it on a place that could be easily hidden if need be. She's lucky. She ended up getting it running lengthwise down her arm next to the word GIRL that was already there. Most people don't have the same flexibility as her. Maybe your job is too professional for tattoos and piercings, or you don't want your mother to see it. If that's the case, then a quote tattoo can be challenging to find space for. And if you think you're going to fit an entire poem (unless it's a haiku) on your wrist by shrinking down the letters to a size 5 font, you're mistaken. Good tattoo artists will only let you make the lettering so small, because they know that tattoos blend, fade and bleed over time. The smaller the font, the better the chance that you'll be left with a meaningless blob ten years down the road. So although there are millions of wonderful quotes about the beauty of love, I've tried to only assemble the ones that are on the shorter side, while still being meaningful.

I went back through all 2,000+ comments on my previous hubs and tried to identify the most common themes people requested when asking for help with quote ideas. In addition to being a voracious reader, I've been compiling quotes in notebooks and journals since I was thirteen. This hub is fifth in a series of hubs broken down by category.. Please, if you have any ideas or would like to share a favorite quote of yours, feel free to comment! The examples I've chosen for this particular hub may not resonate with everyone. You might read it and get nothing out of it. But my hope is that something will resonate with someone, somewhere, and the words written here will inspire you to take a step you may not have taken otherwise.

Love rose, spirit flamed, word spread, God remained.

Faith isn't faith until it's all you're holding on to.

You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith. --Mary Manin Morrissey

I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be. --Douglas Adams

God will never give you more than you can handle.

One life is all we have and we live it as we believe in living it. But to sacrifice what you are and to live without belief, that is a fate more terrible than dying. --Joan of Arc

Faith is a bird that feels dawn breaking and sings while it is still dark. --Scandinavian saying

All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen. --Ralph Waldo Emerson

The Lord will either calm your storm...or allow it to rage while He calms you.

Fear ends where faith begins.

God places the heaviest burden on those who can carry its weight. --Reggie White

We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking, only to learn that it is God who is shaking them. --Charles C. West

Faith is the strength by which a shattered world shall emerge into the light. --Helen Keller

A little faith will bring your soul to heaven; A great faith will bring heaven to your soul. --Charles Spurgeon

My precious, precious child, I love you and I would never, never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you. --"Footprints" poem