Body modification has been around as
long as humans have lived, and with its rich and fascinating history,
the practice is unlikely to die out anytime soon. Body modification
or "body art" used for decoration and/or ritual predates
recorded history. Ritual body modification behaviors are traditional
and reflect the history, spiritualism, and beliefs of a society.
Body Modification has been practiced since the dawn of mankind. Some
great examples of the flexibility of the body are the Neck Coils of
the Kayan of Mayanmar. Body modification was commonly practiced by
all levels of society from slaves to Emperors. Body modification is
piercings in the ears, nose, eyebrow, lip, tongue, belly button, etc.
It can also mean scarification, a process where the skin is scarred,
in a specific design. Body modification by means of tattooing and
body piercing has been around for centuries. Body modification
practices from all over the world, past and present, are being
introduced into the cultures of the West. As body modification
practices grow in popularity across the Western world, we find
ourselves turning more and more to the tribal world for inspiration.
Body Modification has exploded into a
new generation, and with it comes many controversies. Body
modification, a growing practice and subculture that now spans the
world, has made extensive gains in merging the body with technology.
While body modification for women may reject the broader culture's
beauty norms, it allows women to gain subcultural capital, especially
in subcultures in which male participation is valued over female
participation. Body modification is just a way for people to look how
they wish to look.
Any
body modification you have completed needs to be looked after to
avoid the threat of infection and aid the healing process. Some body
modification practices may result to scarring and creation of
permanent marks on the human body. Today, body modification is much
less done for religious or cultural purposes and done more for
pleasure, decoration, and expression. Body modification is the
deliberate alteration of the human body for aesthetic and non-medical
purposes. Also, body modification isn't limited tattoos or piercing,
though that's what's most frequently thought of. Certain body
modification practices, such as neck elongation or tooth filing, may
strike Americans as strange and exotic, we must realize that we
modify our own bodies in countless ways. Whereas body modification
includes some very common procedures such as everyday piercings and
tattoos, it is the extreme body modification that gets all the
attention. Extreme body modification, while seeming unnecessary,
painful and dangerous, appeals to a surpising number of people.
Hardcore body modification to them would be splitting the head of
your penis, suspending yourself from a single hook in your chest, or
doing what's known as skin peeling (where long strips or shapes of
skin are sliced off).
